It’s taken nearly the entirety of the PlayStation 4 generation for it to happen, but at long last,LittleBigPlanetandTearawaydeveloper Media Molecule has finally released its game-creation toolDreams. Today seesDreamsmakes its way out of early access and into full release, and if the reviews making their way online are any indication, this is a game that PS4 users, creative or otherwise, should definitely not miss out on.
Media Molecule has long enabled players to express their creativity with its titles, and with each new game, the restrictions holding that creativity back have grown less and less. WithDreams, those restrictions are now largely erased. As theimpressive creations people made duringDreams’ early accessshow, the developer has created an in-depth creative platform that’s nearly as versatile as professional game-making toolsets, while still being accessible enough that even the average player can create a unique game full of interactive elements and share it with others.
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That might sound daunting for those who just want to play games, but luckilyDreamshas plenty to offer outside of its vast toolset, including astory mode created by Media Moleculeand, of course, the creations of the widerDreamscommunity. And if the reviews are to be believed, all of these add up to an experience unlike any other.
PlayStation Universe(Laddie Simco)
It might sound cliché, but the possibilities of Dreams really are endless. Media Molecule has created something so amazing that it is almost impossible to fully grasp unless you experience it for yourself. It’s exactly the type of game that makes me proud to be a Playstation fan.
Score: 10/10
Game Informer(Jeff Marchiafava)
More than any developer, Media Molecule has been driven by a singular goal: to empower players to make and share their own games. LittleBigPlanet focused this concept on the 2D platformer, but clever players spent years devising ways to stretch and twist their creations beyond the genre’s confines. With the release of Dreams, Media Molecule obliterates those confines completely, giving players a broad and flexible suite of development tools to create whatever their hearts desire. Dreams may not strictly be a game, but the tools are easy and intuitive enough to make the creation process fun for everyone, which delivers a wealth of entertaining experiences noncreators can enjoy.
Score: Unscored
Destructoid(Jordan Devore)
It can be intimidating at first! But any energy you invest will be repaid multiple times over. Once you learn the ropes – how to work in a 3D space, where to find that one crucial UI element, which shortcuts are life-savers – you’ll discover the beauty of Dreams: that it’s not that tough or time-consuming to create cool things. Media Molecule worked hard for years and years so we don’t have to.
Score: 9.5/10
IGN(Simon Cardy)
The vast range of experiences already on offer via Dream Surfing means that no two sessions playing it are ever the same, offering fresh ways to have fun every time you start it up and see what community creations have popped up while you’ve been away. Whether you just want to create, purely play, or get involved in a bit of everything, Dreams offers it all to you. This is one dream I urge you not to sleep on.
Score: 9/10
GameSpot(Richard Wakeling)
With the freedom to create anything you can put your mind to, the toolset has to be incredibly exhaustive as a result. Fortunately, Dreams is chock full of informative tutorials that run through each tool and technique that’s available to you, from the basics to masterclasses on its most complex systems. Learning it all means investing a significant amount of time, but aside from being enlightening and incredibly helpful, each of the tutorials maintains Dreams' focus on creativity. It actively encourages you to express yourself even when learning how the toolset works, and this makes working your way through its tutorials an enjoyable experience when tutorials can so often be a drag.
Independent(Louis Chilton)
Time will tell whether Dreams is able to grow its tight-knit creative community into a LittleBigPlanet-esque sensation, whether the toolkit is fluid and comprehensive enough to support increasingly ambitious projects. For now, Dreams is a game that fizzes with possibilities: just big ideas and open doors.
God is a Geek(Chris White)
Dreams is a revolutionary video game, allowing you to create whatever you want and have fun doing it. The amount of tools and their menus are dense, and there will be times when you feel completely lost, however, if you have the willingness and time to learn, Dreams is a rewarding experience. The community at the heart of Dreams is both welcoming and helpful, and I hadn’t seen a single negative comment. Dreams is such a special game, and I implore everyone to jump into the Dreamiverse.
With what Media Molecule has accomplished withDreams, and what players have done with it so far, it appears that the long wait for today’s release was more than worth it. It’s a game that anyone can get the most out of, from players who like always having new content available tobeginners still learning the basics. In short,Dreamsis the gift that keeps on giving, and that will likely keep giving well into the future.
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