Despite being wrapped in next gen (well, as next gen as Wii can get) packaging, the bulk of Nights’ replay value is most visible through an old school scoring system. The now standard Sonic Team grading scale returns, scoring you the way from A to E depending on how much time remains when a course is completed. A small amount of points can also be obtained by flying through hoops and collection orbs. Links, created by flying through hoops or collecting orbs in constant succession, have taken on a whole new face as a means to rack up your score; the higher your link, the more bonus seconds are added on to your overall time. At the end of a course, more time remaining equals more points, so it’s in your best interest to not only mimic the bird’s flight path, but also to be speedy enough to link together every hoop and orb in sight. Doing this requires a perfect combination of drill dashing, enemy awareness, and overall aerial finesse. It’s easier said than done and, delightfully, provides a ton fuel for the just-one-more-round mentality.
If the grading system somehow isn’t enough to satisfy your desire for more, Journey of Dreams offers a handful of extras outside the normal gameplay. 60 Dreamdrops are scattered throughout the stages, with most of them being just outside your usual point of a view. Normally I’d dismiss a collectathon without thinking twice, but your compensation for completing this is worth the effort, especially for fans of the original. Three different “persona masks” are also unlocked as you move through the game. These transform Nights into a dolphin, a rocket, or a dragon, and are mainly used in boss encounters or to explore new areas. A two player mode is also present, offering two different modes of play. One involves a standard race to the finish over a portion of three different courses, while the other mocks the meteor throwing battle with Reala. Trying these on split screen wasn’t especially fun, but the limited viewing area combined with the horrible dives in the frame rate might have been partially at fault. Thankfully, both are also able to be played with friends online.
Shoved in a dark corner of the experience, much like in the original Nights: Into Dreams, is the optional A-Life system. The worlds in which you spend your time are inhabited not only by the Nightmaren, but also by cone-headed pacifists, the Nightopians. Paralooping these guys (a gesture that would kill them in the original, ironically) will teleport them to the “My Dream” area of the hub world. Here, they will exist independently as they engage in a limitless number of activities. They’ll shoot off fireworks, go sledding, run with a birthday cake, plop next to a television and play a Sega Saturn, and countless other activities. You’re bound to see one of these guys do something different every time you visit. For those with more of a God complex, you’re also given the indirect ability to mutate these suckers. Simply ram a Nightmaren into a Nightopian and an egg will pop out. The egg will be a hybrid of the two, which will then breed with regular Nightopians and unleash some truly effed up creations. It’s mindlessly entertaining, but a little too hands-off in its approach.
Dreams Delight
It’s crucial to note that every single part of this experience feels like Nights did on Saturn. Yes, the context of Nights has changed, but, essentially, it still feels like you’re playing the same game. The sense of immediacy granted by a bird jetting away with the key presents a constant, reachable objective and feels like a natural evolution of the Nights formula. It also doesn’t hurt that the game is jam packed with references to the previous title. A nod to its level design here, a beautiful ode to its art design there, and an abundance of musical cues everywhere, fans of the original will be grinning from ear to ear when they play Journey of Dreams. It’s a virtual love letter to the dwindling Nights’ fan base, Sonic Team literally gave gamers everything they asked for (and by “they asked for” I mean “everything I asked the Sega PR guys at E3”) in this sequel. I’ve never seen a game that’s so faithful to the source material while simultaneously trying it’s best to welcome new players. Unfortunately, this also means a handful of things people weren’t exactly clamoring for…
Of course, it’s now 2007 and, sadly, gamers are no longer satisfied by a five minutes run through seven unique levels. To help modernize Nights’ aged interface, Sonic Team has opted to open the worlds up to different sets of challenges. While the bird chases and the bosses are obviously the showcase event of each world, three other mandatory missions help round out the experience. Some of these, such as the link attacks and a couple of the new events, successfully preserve the classic Nights formula. Others, such as the god-awful bubble pushing Aqua Challenge, do little to sustain your attention span. These new events never approach the level of misery where a game implodes on itself, but they aren’t exactly fun either. Oh, and then there’s the platforming stages.
What? You mean I don’t get to play as Nights?
Oh my. To be fair, platforming was a limited feature in the original. That is, limited to five seconds of necessity or an instant death if you chose to trot around the level on foot for a bit. Journey of Dreams, on the other hand, gives us four missions consisting of lukewarm “get to the end of the level” gameplay. On the way there Will and Helen can toss blue orbs at enemies, solve a couple basic puzzles, and exploit one or two gimmicks as a means to an end. It’s a sound concept, in theory (explore areas Nights obviously can’t fly to), but the execution is way off the mark; just as the flight mechanics were pulled from 1996, so is the platforming. It’s aged, uninspired, and seemingly thrown in on a whim. These levels aren’t particularly bad, they just pale in comparison to unbridled creativity that overflows throughout the rest of the game. Unlike the rest of Journey of Dreams, the platforming stages are likely a one-and-done affair.
