16 December 2017
Only six months ago, I was convinced that Dreams - the latest PS4 title in development from Media Molecule - was dead. A game that was more likely to be cancelled than released. We'd not heard any updates on this game since it was shown on Sony's E3 stage way back in 2015. And back then it didn't look great and was very confusing, with this idea of a game where you can create anything you can 'dream' of (it's funny looking back on my thoughts here).
But at PSX last weekend, Media Molecule did a 40 minute gameplay-revealing panel, that not only explains what this game is all about, but also puts it at the forefront amongst Sony's exclusives for 2018. I encourage any gamer, developer or anyone with a creative mind to watch the panel below.
It turns out that Dreams is actually a game development tool, rather than a traditional game. Media Molecule started developing this game after they finished LittleBigPlanet 3. A very creative game allowing players to play and create their own levels - the whole LBP series had the tagline "Play, Create, Share". Dreams continues this theme but on a whole new scale. It seems you can create literally anything in game. Not just levels but any individual assets, characters, music or even voice over.
Also similarly to LBP, Dreams does feature a story mode i.e. a set of levels created by the developer for players who do not want to create stuff. However this is really only scratching the surface. The difference here is that everything created for the story has been created in Dreams - using the in-game creation tool. Every asset, all the characters, the music, everything.
The best explanation of how Dreams' creation tool works, is from 18:40 onwards. The footage in the background shows a basic level being created from a small starting point. Firstly building a bridge, then building the landscape around it. Copying and pasting any area of landscape looks incredibly easy and expands the level so quickly. I especially like how copied areas can be pasted literally anywhere - they can placed in brand new areas or merged into existing areas - there are no boundaries to the creation tool.
Then it shows how animation is created in game. There is a little recording device that records your actions on a selected asset. The player literally moves a piece of content (with the thumbstick I imagine) in any direction they want while recording. After pressing a stop button, the animation is saved. In this example it's a moving platform - one of the most common features in a platforming game. But the key here is that it was so easy to make. This is then saved and can be used anywhere in the creation tool. This is what proved to me that Media Molecule seem to have created something special here.
Dreams can be played from a blank canvas, allowing you to create anything. But where I think this game will appeal to more people is that you can take other player's creations and modify them in any way. You can take other player's assets, characters, levels, and mash them together to create your own crazy idea. You can also take the main characters from the story, created by Media Molecule, and tweak them in any way you like from the 4000 or so pieces they were created from. It should be the easiest modding tool ever.
Another role you can play in Dreams is to simply 'curate' content and become a 'curator'. You can just search the community for the best looking levels to create your own 'playlist' of fantastic levels. If this gets liked by other players it will rise up in the community and you can become known as a famous curator. This is without building a thing with the creation tool.
From 32:36 they show off how audio is created in game. The UI is super funky here, but fundamentally the audio creation is just like a dedicated software tool for PC (similar to GarageBand). Individual instruments can be placed onto a multi-layered timeline to create a track, or you can search for existing music created by the Dreams community and mix these elements together. Again, copying and pasting individual sounds looks super easy, and in my mind this should strongly interest wannabe musicians who may not even play games. They can earn experience and gain a reputation in the Dreams community if their music is used in loads of player-created levels.
Voice over can also be recorded in game and used in any level or shared with the community. This can be achieved with a mic or a smartphone. Alex Evans, who has almost become the official spokesperson for Dreams, reminds us that all audio and voice over work for the story was all created using the tools in Dreams.
Towards tne end of the panel, Media Molecule explain that they hired lots of people who created levels in LittleBigPlanet. They hope that many young/early game developers can make a start in the careers by creating content in Dreams. All players need to play 100% of the game is a PS4. They're also just so excited by the prospect of what players will create in this game. The possibilities appear to be endless.
I was honestly quite blown away by all this. The one concern though is a No Man's Sky scenario. This is the first hype generated for Dreams. This panel has set the bar very high for features in the game. I hope Media Molecule can deliver everything they've talked about. With the game going quiet for so long, and launching only next year, this should put Dreams in a much better place already, as the hype cannot (or should not) drag on for years. Hopefully a release date is announced at E3 next year?