After having finally played NiGHTS Into Dreams as a life-long Sonic fan, I understand the appeal, and why Nights is such beloved character to SEGA fans.
I'd always considered NiGHTS to lowkey be a sister series to Sonic; Nights has an awesome pinball table in Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure 2's Radical Highway has holograms of Nights' head, the "Fly Chao" from the series directly pulls its likeness from Nights, and so many other cameos within Sonic titles.
Despite having seen this character now and then, I was deeply unfamiliar with the NiGHTS' gameplay. At a glance, it looks as though you're flying through hoops in dream-like environments (which is true!). So, seeing Nights appear in both Sonic Racing Crossworlds and Sonic Rumble, I figured I'd actually try the first game.
And what I can say, is that I get it. I finally get it- it's a lot of fun!! The game's presentation is very abstract in that there's no handholding, you're just thrown in to a strange world and expected to know what to do (an instruction manual is probably in order). I had to look up a video for a brief explanation, and I'd recommend [i]anybody[/i] interested in this game do the same. You can just play it casually out of the box, but if you're lost, don't hesitate to look online for the rules!
So. You're playing as either Claris or Elliot; two humans, each with their own set of stages. You have to dualize with Nights who is trapped, and upon doing so, you'll take control of them, flying on an endlessly looping track (from left to right) and collecting Blue Chips (blue orbs), all while a timer is ticking down. Your goal is to feed the "Ideya Capture" 20 Blue Chips, at which point it will explode, and give you a score bonus. The timer will continue ticking down, but so long as there is time remaining, you can continue to lap the track over and over (each time you do so, its collectibles respawn), farming as much score as possible (the Blue Chips will now be Yellow to signify this). To end the lap and move on to the next lap (called Mares), you'll want to fly through the point where Nights was initially contained. This'll reset the timer, and so you'll have to repeat, collecting Blue Chips, destroying the Ideya Capture as fast as possible, and racking up as many points as you can until it's time to go to the next lap.
Soo...It's an arcade game! NiGHTS Into Dreams can be finished really quickly if you're just interested in seeing it through, but the real fun comes from going through the stages a few times, and mastering their layouts to achieve the best ranks possible. I was genuinely on the edge of my seat with some of my attempts against the clock, but if you're looking for a casual experience, ignore the ranking entirely and just finish the levels as you please (though I do think you need C rank or higher on each stage to beat the game).
What's also really appreciated, is that this remaster includes the ORIGINAL Sega Saturn version, meaning you can experience the first iteration if you'd like! Your progression between both versions is carried (though it's a bit of a shame that the original version of "Christmas NiGHTS into Dreams" is omitted).
NiGHTS Into Dreams is [i]weird[/i]. It's abstract. It's visually appealing. Its music is extremely good. It's not like anything else I've ever played, and I don't know if anybody's even attempted anything similar. NiGHTS Into Dreams is a one of a kind art piece, and tells you its story with no words. I love this game.
It's really unfortunate that SEGA removed this game from sale, as it's a real gem of its time. Find a way to play it (consider downloading the 60 FPS mod), and have fun <3
