The Yume Nikki "Series"

[lacktheknack]

Anyone played these or have opinions on them? They're basically a new genre - a sort of mad mix between exploratory adventure (a la Myst), linear drama (a la TRAUMA or The Path), open-world RPG and all of the crystal methamphetamine.

The games are Yume Nikki, Yume 2kki, and .flow. (.flow is likely not canonically part of the series, but it plays so similarly that I consider it to be part of it anyways.)

In all three of the games, you play a female hikikomori - someone who refuses to leave their home. The game is confined to their living quarters, where they all dream the same dream every night (well, in .flow, it's more "stimulating your brain until you fall into the same trance every day", but that's all details), which appears to map out their mental state. The entire point of the games is to explore the girls' psyches (ranging from somewhat delicate to utterly shattered) and retrieve "effects", or abilities that range from purely cosmetic (such as a dress) to practical (a whistle that can force NPCs to move in a certain direction, or a bike to move faster) to the violent (guess what a knife does!). Then, after finding them all, you can initiate one of possibly multiple endings, involving them leaving their home one way or another.

All of the games are positively RIFE with fan-theories. Fan-theories are possibly the biggest part of the genre.

I find them utterly fascinating. Despite having no real plot (the important events in the game can be summed up in a sentence or two), no real challenge (the only difficulty comes from finding effects, which are normally easy to find if you're thorough, and from dodging hostiles, which are rare), and they more or less can't be completed without the wiki (and no, figuring out the endgame is NOT a "challenge" any more than finding the right straw in a haystack is a "challenge"). Yet somehow, I find them utterly fascinating and play them compulsively.

To be fair, they tend to do well in the Striking Imagery department.

http://dotflow.wikidot.com/local--files/white-room/whiteroom.png

So yeah, those of you that have played them. What did you think?

 

[Razentsu]

I have only watched some Let's Plays, so unfortunately I've spoiled myself with Yume Nikki. I just couldn't help it, the game was too bizarre. The gameplay is not for me, but the atmosphere and fan theories sure are. It's fun to wonder what Yume Nikki means.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

It's fun to wonder what Yume Nikki means.

Well, literally it means "Dream Diary" in Japanese. Does that help?

 

[BreakfastMan]

Not exactly subtle games though, if I judge correctly by the picture (it so obviously symbolizes menstruation. srsly, it makes me want to scream SYMBOLISM! while looking at it).

Anyway, sounds pretty interesting. The games free, or do I actually have to pay monehs to play them? If they are free, I will probably download them shortly.

 

[Incredible Bullshitting Man]

I feel the same way you do; Yume Nikki and .flow have very little in terms of game play, yet I too find them utterly fascinating. The bizarre and often very minimalistic dream worlds, atmosphere you can get lost into, hidden events impossible to find without the wiki...all great stuff. Love it.

It's funny how the fan-theories have become the lore. Storywise, these games offer no explanation, no dialogue, nothing, only cryptic events that may or may not hint at something bigger. Gamers are left to speculate among themselves what all the madness means and -Boom!- you have a story. That wouldn't happen if the games were boring and uninspiring crap.

 

[Blarkuntvhite]

I just did a Google search of this and saw Uboa. So this is where that thing comes from?
I'm interested now.

 

[Nouw]

I have yet to play it because I need to download Applocale from MS. I will stop holding it off and play .flow and get back to you >_>.

 

[EscapeGoat_v1legacy]

Out of the three I've only played Yume Nikki - in fact, I wasn't even aware of the others' existence.

Yume Nikki was a mixed bag for me. I loved the atmosphere, the aesthetics and the idea behind the game, but it was a difficult game to trudge through. It was a fantastic experience though; I think I enjoyed it partly because of the above and partly because it was a totally different game to what I'm used to playing, and that experience was very interesting. I only played it through the once though, and I don't think I'd go back to it again.

 

[lacktheknack]

Whoa, the thread lived!

Not exactly subtle games though, if I judge correctly by the picture (it so obviously symbolizes menstruation. srsly, it makes me want to scream SYMBOLISM! while looking at it).

Anyway, sounds pretty interesting. The games free, or do I actually have to pay monehs to play them? If they are free, I will probably download them shortly.

They are free! They can be a bit of a ***** to get running, make sure to check Uboachan for instructions to run .flow.

Also, the fan theory on that picture is NOT of menstruation, shockingly. The rest of the game is so devoid of "coming-of-age" or sexual imagery that it would be out of place. The general consensus (from what I've gathered) is that either it represents someone she killed, or a particularly bloody event she witnessed. If you actually find the room, and see what happens to the girl while she's in it, it makes more sense that way.

I feel the same way you do; Yume Nikki and .flow have very little in terms of game play, yet I too find them utterly fascinating. The bizarre and often very minimalistic dream worlds, atmosphere you can get lost into, hidden events impossible to find without the wiki...all great stuff. Love it.

It's funny how the fan-theories have become the lore. Storywise, these games offer no explanation, no dialogue, nothing, only cryptic events that may or may not hint at something bigger. Gamers are left to speculate among themselves what all the madness means and -Boom!- you have a story. That wouldn't happen if the games were boring and uninspiring crap.

I know. I can't imagine .flow without an airborne virus, a vicious "health gang" and degrading sanity. And it sprang from... pure unadulterated wild mass guessing!

I just did a Google search of this and saw Uboa. So this is where that thing comes from?
I'm interested now.

Yep. If you flick the right lightswitch on and off enough, then AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

 

[Moontouched-Moogle]

I played the first one and found it bizarre but interesting. I wasn't able to beat it though, as my hard drive suffered a fatal crash and I haven't gotten around to re-downloading the game since. Didn't know there was an actual sequel, although I was vaguely aware that there were a couple of fan-games floating around.

 

[lacktheknack]

I played the first one and found it bizarre but interesting. I wasn't able to beat it though, as my hard drive suffered a fatal crash and I haven't gotten around to re-downloading the game since. Didn't know there was an actual sequel, although I was vaguely aware that there were a couple of fan-games floating around.

Actually, the "sequel" is a fan game. Yume 2kki features a different character entirely (for reasons that become clear if you finish Yume Nikki). They call it Yume 2kki because the Japanese kanji for "2" sounds like "ni" (or so I've been told).

 

[Moontouched-Moogle]

I played the first one and found it bizarre but interesting. I wasn't able to beat it though, as my hard drive suffered a fatal crash and I haven't gotten around to re-downloading the game since. Didn't know there was an actual sequel, although I was vaguely aware that there were a couple of fan-games floating around.

Actually, the "sequel" is a fan game. Yume 2kki features a different character entirely (for reasons that become clear if you finish Yume Nikki). They call it Yume 2kki because the Japanese kanji for "2" sounds like "ni" (or so I've been told).

Ah, that would explain why I didn't know about the sequel. I wasn't particularly interested in looking at the fan games, at least not until I'd finished Yume Nikki first. Kinda ironic, when you consider that I was introduced to Yume Nikki by someone talking about a fan game they were making on some Tumblr somewhere.

 

[Shinsei-J]

All right, Downloading now, Can't wait.
Seems like my kind of game.

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

I played a little bit of the first. It's interesting, I can say that. It's definitely a game one can easily get lost in, and certainly not a game you can just rush through. I was interested in playing it because before that I played Ib, which I enjoyed, and heard that it was similar in a way. I also begun playing To The Moon.

 

[lacktheknack]

]I played a little bit of the first. It's interesting, I can say that. It's definitely a game one can easily get lost in, and certainly not a game you can just rush through. I was interested in playing it because before that I played Ib, which I enjoyed, and heard that it was similar in a way. I also begun playing To The Moon.

It's immensely satisfying when you've memorized the general layout of each screen. Definitely not for the gamer-in-a-hurry.

All right, Downloading now, Can't wait.
Seems like my kind of game.

Tell me how it goes!

 

[neverarine]

ive played the first one, didnt know that there where others, lol im not very good at this sort of game and while i liked the way it looked alot i dont think ive managed to get very far into it :/

 

[Lovely Mixture]

I have played them and enjoyed them. They are games that don't take "experience" to a simple idea (like The Graveyard or that one flash game where you go to work and then go back to bed endlessly) they expand on it with exploration. I was pleased when Yahtzee mentioned the original in his Fez review.

For people who like the RPG maker style games (that are not RPGs), I recommend Ib which is more linear but just as atmospheric. In terms of Yume Nikki fangames Yume Nisshi [http://yumenisshi.wikia.com/wiki/Yume_Nisshi_Wiki] and Amnesia [http://yumenikkifg.wikia.com/wiki/Amnesia] (not the Dark Descent) are good fan-renditions.

 

[Shinsei-J]

All right, Downloading now, Can't wait.
Seems like my kind of game.

Tell me how it goes!

Let me spin you a tale of my slow decent into madness.

I've played some Yume Nikki for a few hours during that time I was in a dark room with the volume on high.
Each note of the music and noise would rattle through my being, I was uneasy to put it lightly.
At times I would freeze up out of sheer adenine, not knowing what to do with my body.
This game is wonderful.
Feeling a little shaky when I think about it though.
Like if you had a traumatic experience and went to face it again.
Each time I play it, that feeling gets worse but the rush is to much,
So I'm going to keep playing it until I complete it.
Hysteria is the state of mind this game wants you in and it's got me hooked.

Thanks for the recommendation, subtext is fun!

 

[Vegosiux]

Anyone played these or have opinions on them? They're basically a new genre - a sort of mad mix between exploratory adventure (a la Myst), linear drama (a la TRAUMA or The Path), open-world RPG and all of the crystal methamphetamine.

Let's just say I find them creepier than some of your avatars were, and that's saying something.

Worth the play, though, most definitely.

 

[lacktheknack]

All right, Downloading now, Can't wait.
Seems like my kind of game.

Tell me how it goes!

Let me spin you a tale of my slow decent into madness.

I've played some Yume Nikki for a few hours during that time I was in a dark room with the volume on high.
Each note of the music and noise would rattle through my being, I was uneasy to put it lightly.
At times I would freeze up out of sheer adenine, not knowing what to do with my body.
This game is wonderful.
Feeling a little shaky when I think about it though.
Like if you had a traumatic experience and went to face it again.
Each time I play it, that feeling gets worse but the rush is to much,
So I'm going to keep playing it until I complete it.
Hysteria is the state of mind this game wants you in and it's got me hooked.

Thanks for the recommendation, subtext is fun!

It's always good to see people enjoying new things.

Heaven help you if you ever play .flow.