I’d bought this one as part of a package with The Longest Journey and I always play all of the games that I buy. I wasn’t terribly enthusiastic about it as my reaction to the first game was distinctly lukewarm but my completionist instincts insisted that I at least give it a go. It helps a great deal that even though it’s still dated by modern standards, the graphics are much better and gives a proper sense of wonder and awe to all of the places you find yourself in.

This one takes place ten years after the end of the previous game with a new but again young female protagonist Zoë Castillo. The story begins in Casablanca, in what players already know is Stark. Zoë is pulled into a mystery while trying to help her journalist ex-boyfriend on a story. As usual, this involves evil corporations and more unusually a ghostly little girl reminiscent of Japanese horror movies. In the meantime, in Arcadia, April Ryan is now apparently a warrior of some renown. She busies herself with helping the rebels against the Azadi occupying the city of Marcuria, while grappling with a sense of purposelessness.

As mentioned, the updated graphics are a huge deal for me, a lot moreso than I expected. The feeling of waking up in Casablanca is fantastic and when I revisited the familiar locations of Marcuria again, I was almost jumping with joy. Being able to see the world in 3D instead of as a static 2D background makes all the difference. Sure, it’s not cutting edge but all that’s really missing is that the textures don’t look detailed enough up close. The quality jump between the previous game to this one is like night and day and added immeasurably to my enjoyment of this game.

Gameplay-wise, this sequel makes some significant changes as well. The puzzles here are much easier, almost trivially so in fact. This is represented by the fact that there are so few objects to pick up that you have hardly anything in your inventory. It’s obvious that the designers don’t want to gate your progress and very much want you to experience the whole story. At the same time, there are now very, very rudimentary combat and stealth systems. I agree with the consensus here in that they’re awful. On the other hand, like the rest of the game, they’re easy so they’re not a barrier to progress either. Plus, I think they do add a sense of danger and tension to the game. One thing that always annoyed me about the old point-and-click adventure games was that everything felt so scripted so it’s hard to feel excited about any scene. The inclusion of these systems, as basic as the implementation here is, adds a much needed sense of immediacy to me so I have to say that I’m a fan of this design choice.

Still, the big draw of these games is always the story and here, I find myself conflicted. I think that the individual set-pieces are quite good and I even like the new characters. The puzzles, such as they are, are more straightforward and as such plausible which helps the story. The silliness is turned down and the story is overall darker in tone, much more in keeping with the seriousness of the stakes involved. There’s still some humor, especially when Crow reappears, but you get a good sense that this is no longer a children’s game when you see April Ryan straight up killing enemies. I also loved that you meet many of the old characters again and see how time has changed them.

Unfortunately, I must also register my disappointment with the way that the writers play up the mystery of everything and leaves everyone hanging. Both Zoë and April complain about being given messages that are obtuse and indecipherable but hanging a lampshade on it does not mean that this is okay for the player! I understand about leaving plot hooks for a sequel but this game really answers almost nothing and as such feels thoroughly unsatisfying to me. Once again, I am flabbergasted that poor Emma and Charlie are teased with information about April only to once again be left high and dry. As for April’s shift in personality, I can buy how she’s tired of always being asked to save the world, but to leave her friends in the dark, even Crow, and not let them know what is happening to her leaves a sour taste in my mouth especially given April’s last scene in this game.

I know that Ragnar Tørnquist keeps insisting that everything will make sense in the end but I can’t shake the feeling of being strung along like in the Lost series. Years pass between releases making it much more important that the story in each game be self-contained. If this is considered one of the best stories in videogaming, then I have to say that quality standards pretty terrible. I’d to point to The Walking Dead as a counter-example of how stories can be good and narratively satisfying without having to play up the mystery bullshit.

All this means that while I want to like Dreamfall, I find the lack of resolution to be so frustrating that I can’t bring myself to recommend it. It also means that I’m not going to be sticking around for the sequels. I guess I’ll just have to read a synopsis of the whole thing once it finally ends.