Firstly, I won't spoil anything about the game, but it's ending made me... well, speechless. Honestly I'm having a hard time finding the words to describe it even now. I think my only thoughts after finishing it were literally:
"Hey..."
"Hey!"
"Ah, man... well played."
Nothing too articulate, obviously, but it was a feeling (rather than thinking) moment.
In any case, here's the part of the review that matters. I'll try to organize it for everyone's convenience.
- I don't know how fair it is of me to criticize this, as the game is (hence the title) a dream, and dreams are illogical by nature, but I felt a distinct lack of artistic unity in some cases. For example, I still don't know whether I'm supposed to know who Edgar is. Is "Edgar" merely a meaningless figment of a dream? Is it something that you overlooked following up on? Am I too dim to have noticed it? I just don't know.
- Crucial to all puzzle-art games, of course, are the puzzles. They seemed to control the game at perfect difficulties. In other words, as I was playing, I always felt that I could progress through the game without stopping for long, but I also felt rewarded when I solved each puzzle. In fact, it was a good feeling to realize what the next step to take is and wonder how in the world you didn't notice it before.
- The art and ambiance were very pleasant. Beyond that, they felt convincing, and by that I mean they lent a genuine curiosity and appreciation for the simplistic environment the player finds himself in. It's surprising how much one's perception of each screen can change just by changing its orientation. I personally enjoyed the look of the whole game, especially the semi-monochromatic landscapes and their enormous suns. It's also nice to see a good looking game that doesn't fall into the trap of becoming "yet another melodramatic art game."
Have I forgotten anything? I can't think of anything else to discuss, so I suppose not.
Finally, I tend to like playing these made-in-X-hours games; in my opinion they offer a good opportunity to make use of every aspect of the game, to make the small things (which is often all that time allows) really stand out.