Yunashi no Yume

I want to be clear: This is not a “good” game. Not in the way that most people mean when they say that word. The combat barely holds itself together. Some of the mechanics are clunky - the movement feels like you're piloting a dream through static. NPCs shift in and out of emotional coherence. Some cutscenes and parts feel like they got duct-taped over the remains of some entirely other game. And yet. I can’t stop thinking about it. You play as Dreamer... a boy... maybe - following orders going through a half-dead megastructure underground, under the command of a baby-shaped thing strapped to your chest. Yes, really. You’re accompanied by Enris, someone who might have loved you once or might hate you forever. You’re being monitored by a creepy lady who barely acknowledges your humanity. That all sounds a little surreal, maybe even a little absurd. But it does feels real. The dynamics are messy, restrained, painful in a way where no one says what they mean - but you somehow know exactly what they meant. Sometimes you sit on a bench. Sometimes you go on a train that loops endlessly. Sometimes you do meaningless sidequests and they hit you harder than any “main plot” ever has. Sometimes it breaks. Not just technically. But Emotionally. Structurally. It's kind of broken ruin in this game thats not just aesthetic - it feels spiritual. You’re not just playing through jank. You’re playing with it. It's a brokenness that feels like it's part of the text, not just. The game has it's holes - but they’re the kind of holes that you fall into, and then when you climb back out, you’re not the same. And I think that’s the point. This isn’t a story with a clean arc or resolution. It’s not a hero’s journey... and even when you "do stuff", you don't feel in control. It’s more like watching someone trying to remember a story they once tried to write about someone that they used to be. And they’re failing. And you’re watching them fail. And somehow that just feels holy. I won’t pretend it’s for everyone. If you want clean polish, fun mechanics or combat - then you should better look elsewhere. If you need clear story, or agency in choices, or stability, you’re not going to find that here either. But if you’ve ever played a game and wished it would just stop trying so damn hard to be a “game”… ... if you’ve ever sat with something imperfect...broken and still found it kinda beautiful despite or maybe because of that… or maybe if you’ve ever felt seen in a moment or a place that no one else would have noticed you there… And then maybe you’ll understand why I cried when nothing happened. So that's why it's not a good game. It’s just a real one. And sometimes that’s what matters more.

This is the third time I am writing this review. Yunashi no Yume works a lot better than HYPERxFANTASY, the tone is more consistent, the AI voiceover that ruined any emotional delivery has thankfully been completely excised. I tried to give it at least a fair 2 hours this time around and there are moments that I liked. Why can't I give it a positive review then? This game is broken. Some menu tabs will only work if you switch to them from a specific direction, otherwise you will skip to the next tab. The map is a featureless blob of grey, telling you absolutely nothing. Can you at least mark objectives to know the general direction to go? Sometimes yes, sometimes no, it depends but I don't know on what. The movement is broken - sometimes you will dash forward, sometimes you'll mount your hoverdisk instead. Sometimes the disk will launch up, sometimes it will go straight, sometimes it will go fast, sometimes it will go slow. Sometimes you will go over obstacles, sometimes you will smack into them for 50% HP. The janky combat has been mercifully removed... mostly... but sometimes you might encounter an enemy that is stuck in midair with no way to hit them. On one hand I can't help thinking that the brokenness of the world kind of works well thematically with the brokenness of the game itself. Maybe this is ok? Maybe it was meant this way? But then another part of me kept thinking 'What's the difference between bad-on-purpose and bad-not-on-pupose? In the end, both are bad'.Easy for me to say, I have never made a game, or maybe I have been spoiled by playing every game in existence, but I couldn't help thinking that this could have been made better. In the end, that second voice won. To the person or persons behind this - I want you to keep making games, maybe join itch.io, do gamejams, keep creating, keep refining. Maybe one day I will play a fully realized vision of what this game was always meant to be.

[h1] HYPERxFANTASY — An Unusual Indie Experience [/h1] [i]A game that doesn’t explain itself — and that’s part of the charm.[/i] [hr][/hr] [h2] First Impression [/h2] From the very first minutes, HYPERxFANTASY feels strange, heavy and intentionally confusing. The game throws you into its world without hand-holding, letting atmosphere and visuals do most of the storytelling. [u]This is not a casual experience.[/u] [hr][/hr] [h2] Gameplay & Flow [/h2] [list] [*]Exploration-driven progression [*]Action-focused combat [*]RPG-style growth and encounters [/list] You move forward by observing the environment, fighting enemies and slowly understanding how the world works. The game rewards attention and patience rather than speed. [spoiler] Some mechanics only make sense after experimenting — or failing a few times. [/spoiler] [hr][/hr] [h2] Atmosphere & Style [/h2] [b]This is where the game truly shines.[/b] The visuals are surreal, sometimes abstract, sometimes oppressive. Combined with sound design, it creates a constant feeling of unease — as if something is always wrong, even when nothing happens. [hr][/hr] [h2] Strengths & Weaknesses [/h2] [b]What works well:[/b] [list] [*]Distinctive art direction [*]Dark, psychological tone [*]Memorable world design [/list] [b]What could be better:[/b] [list] [*]Clearer explanation of mechanics [*]Smoother combat feedback [*]Minor technical inconsistencies [/list] [i]Occasional bugs do appear, but they are minor and do not ruin the experience.[/i] [hr][/hr] [h2] Final Thoughts [/h2] [strike]A game for everyone[/strike] A game for those who enjoy ambiguity and atmosphere. If you like indie projects that challenge perception and mood rather than logic, HYPERxFANTASY is worth your time.

Playing this game feels like a lucid dream. The world is so massive and surreal that you always feel tiny in it, almost swallowed by the atmosphere. The colors, the fog, the scale,,, all of it makes the world unsettling in a really good way. The combat flowed wonderfully too and it evolved very naturally, first you just follow little visual markers, then it clicks, and before you know it the enemies are holding their swords in ways that tie right into the mechanic. It’s super simple at first but blends into the gameplay seamlessly. Also, the hand-drawn character art is such a nice touch, and the humor caught me off guard more than once. Between the jokes, the creepy vibes, and the sense of being lost in a huge liminal space, it really feels unique. I’m still progressing through the story but already hooked, I really recommend this game!

Formerly known as HYPERxFANTASY ( still playable in beta branch ). A surreal action adventure that could be really good. Humanity is long gone. And mankind waits for ascencion. You are the executer who makes it possible... Or something like that... Worldbuilding and story are intriguing. But the controls are so messed up it's [strike]almost[/strike] unplayable. The UI is completely useless. As well as the map. And while the environment is truly colossal, the dense fog is way too much and renders the visuals unnecessary unreadable and monotonous. If the gameplay was a little more worked out and not pre-alpha this could be a great game. Better, more polished alternatives are [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1675830/1000xRESIST/]1000xRESIST[/url] or [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/3223390/BLACKSHARD/]BLACK SHARD[/url].

This game hits that same place in my brain as low-budget anime finales where half the screen is text and everyone cries while the music swells <3 You’re doing stuff! Missions!! Walking!!! Light combat!!!!!!!!! But underneath it all is this pressure - like you’re being watched by something that isn’t in the script.... The world’s big and empty and alive in the wrong way. It doesn’t explain much, and I kind of hope it never does hah

Es gibt ja so richtig schräge Spiele, die trotz und gerade wegen ihrer Schrägheit eine Menge Charme versprühen. Und dann gibt es Spiele, die völlig überborden. HYPERxFANTASY ist so ein Spiel. Im Grunde genommen handelt es sich um ein 3D-Actionspiel. Und das Erste, was auffällt, ist die erstaunlich grossartige Grafik. Das Spiel hat einen sehr eigenen, sehr kunstvollen Stil, der aber visuell absolut überzeugt. Das hat mir richtig Lust gemacht, in diese faszinierend aussehende und abgedrehte Welt einzutauchen. Doch beim Abtauchen bin ich ziemlich schnell auf eine Verstehenswand gestossen. Was zum Kuckuck spiele ich hier eigentlich? So abgedreht alles wirkt, so nötig wären zumindest grobe Erklärungen: Wer bin ich? Wo bin ich? Was ist das Ziel? Leider erklärt das Spiel seine Story oder Prämisse nicht zu wenig, sondern schlichtweg gar nicht. Und da das Ganze eben nicht das übliche Fantasy-Helden-Gedöns ist, hat man auch keine Chance, sich irgendwie selber etwas zusammenzureimen. Nun gut, vielleicht ergibt sich das ja im Laufe des Spiels? Vielleicht muss man einfach einen Moment durchhalten? Aber genau hier kommt das nächste Problem: das Gameplay. Was genau muss ich tun, wohin soll ich gehen, und wie funktioniert das alles? Auch hier: keine Erklärung, kein Hinweis, keine Orientierung. Das wäre okay, wenn alles intuitiv und selbsterklärend wäre. Ist es aber nicht. Und damit verliert man sich ziemlich schnell in einem wirren, unverständlichen Chaos. Fazit: Ein grafisch höchst interessantes Spiel, das aber jegliche Story- und Gameplayerklärung vergessen hat. Am Ende bleibt ein visuell beeindruckendes, aber spielerisch völlig verwirrendes Erlebnis. Darum ganz klar: keine Empfehlung.

I didn’t think this game would mean anything to me. I booted it up expecting another weird indie walking sim with fake-deep vibes and clunky movement. And yes - it’s clunky. ***The opening scene was slow.*** The first enemy looked like a broken model from an art school demo reel. I almost refunded.Then I didn’t. And I’m so glad I didn’t.

There’s a ride that just goes. Like forever. And I stayed on it for 20 minutes because it just… felt like I was supposed to. I think the game knew I would.

You could probably write a long list of reasons this game shouldn’t work. The framerate dips. Some mechanics are vestigial. The UI is kind of a mess.But none of it matters.I don’t play these games for polish. I play them to feel weird and sad and maybe a little understood. And this one gets it.