It's fans of those games, to an extent, that Funcom is marketing to with Dreamfall. Adventure game stalwarts, though, shouldn't be afraid. Dreamfall isn't going to have the extensive combat or action system of traditional survival horror games. In fact, according to Jorgen Thoraldsen, the Funcom representative sitting in on our Dreamfall demo, a lot of effort has gone into giving the gamer enough pathways through the game that fans of traditional adventure games will be able to think their way through, while those who want a little more fighting or stealth action can find that, too.
In our earlier preview, we spent a lot of time learning about the world and the storyline of the game. During this demonstration, we were treated to two new sections of the game that haven't been seen before. The first part was referred to as the "Spider" section of the game. Zoe Castillo, the game's protagonist, is searching Casablanca for her missing friend. When she goes to his apartment, she must first break through an electronic lock, starting the first of several mini-games, in this case a timed pattern matching game. Once she gets inside, though, she finds that the police have left a security spider in the apartment. Designed to secure crime scenes, the spider is sensitive to sound and fast motions and will stun Zoe if she moves too fast.
It's at this point that the gameplay begins to diverge. Traditional adventure gamers can use Dreamfall's "Focus" system to note that the spider has a golden lion's head logo on it, one that you may have seen before. If you leave the apartment and track down the logo, you can get a security program for your PDA that will allow you to hack the bot. Action gamers on the other hand, will be able to use the analog stock on a PC or console control pad to sneak Zoe around the apartment. Assuming you're stealthy enough and don't knock over any of the junk on the floor, you can get to the bathroom, lure the bot into the shower and short it out with water.
In fact, Funcom has apparently decided that the game's control method will be the key difference between the PC and console version. The PC version of the game will be completely controllable using a mouse to "push around" Zo¿, and everything, from examining items to using your inventory to interacting with stuff will be mapped to the two mouse buttons and a control wheel. Naturally, there will be support for a PC game pad and keyboard as, well, but players who choose to use the mouse control method will find that much of the combat system has been simplified and automated. Console gamers, on the other hand, will find more functions mapped to shoulder buttons and different face keys will allow for a greater variety of kicks, punches, and blocks. The game won't be a beat'em-up by any stretch of the imagination, but Funcom says that the combat system has been revamped and enhanced a great deal in recent weeks.
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey is scheduled for release in September 2005.
