Dreamfall Chapters Book Three: Realms

 PC
Metascore
tbd

No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Ragequit.gr
    Jun 30, 2015
    88
    Implementing some beautifully executed and very cleverly scripted "traditional" adventure game puzzles, as well as further advancing the excellent storyline, "Realms" proves, beyond all doubt, that Dreamfall Chapters is indeed, the next step of an unforgettable journey into the heart of what-may-very-well-be.
  2. GameSpot
    Jul 24, 2015
    80
    In many ways, Book Three acts as the fulcrum from which the story's trajectory pivots on your past choices. It is short and powerful, using the momentum of previous chapters to leverage dramatic weight going into the penultimate act like narrative jiu-jitsu

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 37 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 37
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 37
  3. Negative: 10 out of 37
  1. JustMy2
    Sep 9, 2015
    0
    The first two episodes left me so underwhelmed I almost didn't care about playing this game anymore, so it actually took me three moths afterThe first two episodes left me so underwhelmed I almost didn't care about playing this game anymore, so it actually took me three moths after the release of chapter 3 to even try it out.

    A lot can be said about the shortcomings of the first two, but I'll sum it up in a single sentence: I never got invested in the story or the characters, and the surrounding gameplay was excruciatingly tedious.

    So when I finally decided to check out part three, my expectations were low.

    The first scene was mildly entertaining, but still plenty tedious to play through (I'll avoid spoilers here, in case someone actually wants to play through this snorefest of a game).

    But then the game dropped me into a conversation between two characters where one of them came to the conclusion the other was gay (after a very forced and obvious setup dialogue), and -surely enough!- went on to give the usual cringe-worthy declaration of tolerance to prove she's not a homophobe.

    This kind of **** keeps happening in Dreamfall Chapters, and it keeps pissing me off. Not that I give a damn about homosexuals doing their thing; to each his own, live and let live and all that jazz.

    I just don't want this stupid political correctness mania infesting my games!

    It's just so *wrong* for a fantasy character in a magical wonderland to speak as if she is afraid to upset the sensitivities of the easily butthurt Western PC-culture on Earth anno 2015 (the only place in space and time where people constantly have to pay lip service to tolerance and inclusiveness of an entire laundry-list of protected out-groups to avoid being socially ostracized).

    After suffering through this painful conversation to its bitter end, I was dropped in a dark back alley as Kian Alvane, the badass warrior who never actually does anything. My task (should I choose to accept it) was to go to someplace and presumably talk to someone or something, it didn't really say.

    I dutifully walked a couple of meters forward, then I stopped and asked myself: Why am I even here? Why am I supposed to go to that place? Why am I even supposed to care about anything or anyone in this game?

    The full weight of how totally emotionally not invested I was in this game hit me like a freight train. I couldn't find the enthusiasm to move another step forward, so I shut down the game right then and there. I don't intend to try again later, and I don't intend to download the last two episodes. I really don't give a F about what happens next.

    It's all just so incredibly BLAND!

    This game will forever remain in my memory as the game where deciding to buy a sausage or not passes as An Important Choice, having Severe Consequences.

    (Mild Spoiler of those consequences: an obnoxious character whose guts you probably hate says he got a tummy ache if you give him the sausage. Hard to feel sorry about that. And not even that satisfying.)    … Full Review »
  2. runner
    Jul 27, 2015
    6
    I see that book three generally gets positive reviews, more than the previous books.. I can't see why unfortunately, even though I reallyI see that book three generally gets positive reviews, more than the previous books.. I can't see why unfortunately, even though I really wanted to like this episode, I just couldn't help but feeling disappointed by it.

    Technically it isn't much different than the earlier books. Still some technical issues, and personally I even suffered from lower framerate on this one for some reason, after playing book two with highest graphic options with no problem, so, I don't know what happened there, but sadly that's not the only issue...

    Realms is extremely linear compared to its predecessors. There aren't complicated conversations with branching options and different choices, there are barely any "critical" choices towards the three chapters of book three, and at its end after reviewing the choices recap I didn't even realize the choices I've made in this book. I'm not going to spoil things here but that was a little annoying.

    In addition, and in contrary to book one and two, there wasn't much space to explore with Kian and Zoe. Some of the fun of adventure games is the freedom to explore and feeling the characters' attitude and responses to the environment, but here there wasn't much of it. The only "big" area we get to wander around is when (subtle spoiler alert!) Zoe reaches Marcuria, and I guess she can travel the entire city BUT unfortunately she seems to have almost no comments about the environment around her, which is weird, knowing she's returned here for the first time after so long and after a coma and an amnesia phase.

    Anyway, aren't we already used to ignoring the little downside because of the TLJ Saga's terrific story?
    Well, as much as it hurts, I'm disappointed of this aspect as well of Realms. Given the fact that there aren't much choices to be made (which is one of the game's main features!), there isn't much to explore and everything is rather linear, we'd expect for at least a terrific story and a show of all of our earlier choices playing out and affecting the characters and plot.
    I didn't feel any of that in Realms. The plot mostly didn't seem to be THAT affected by my choices, except for a line or two one of the characters say, and not much beyond that. I could be wrong here, of course, and really should replay the game with different choices to judge this aspect.

    Still, the general story itself didn't feel so good. While I thought Book one and two were preparing the ground for something really big and good, storywise, (Like the first TLJ did and even Dreamfall), I was painfully disappointed by what felt like a very thin and even somewhat banal story, with bland references to the story of the first game in the series which we still cannot understand what part they play in Chapters. And while TLJ and DF presented deep, moving and engaging story, in Chapters I feel like the magic slowly fades and we get instead a rather typical common predictable plot with some illusion of choices and consequences which we, the players, so to speak, may determine and control.

    That's most of what I have to say on Realms.
    Looking back at the entire package of the first three books, I can still say I enjoyed playing them and am expecting the continuation. And being such a big fan of this universe, I have some really high hopes that book four and five would fix the impression this part of the adventure left on me, and would make Dreamfall Chapters worth it in its entirety.    … Full Review »
  3. o0thePope0o
    Apr 28, 2016
    4
    The game's pace is very disjointed. Characters' motivations seem a little obscure and the game play is at times convoluted. While there seemsThe game's pace is very disjointed. Characters' motivations seem a little obscure and the game play is at times convoluted. While there seems to be a lot of anticipation for an upcoming "judgment day" of sort, the game fails to point out what are the stakes. So in the end the player only focuses on the task at hand, not caring about the big picture. Dialogues are very long and, while certainly interesting, they fail to be engaging because characters' animation is poorly done. Therefore all dialogues seem very static and more boring than they actually are. This would work well as an audio book.… Full Review »
See all user reviews »