Mindware Studios' FPS Dreamkiller is now available to play for free on Steam through the weekend.
It's unfortunately very repetitive and not very addictive, and Mindware has made some questionable design decisions, such as the lack of a manual save system. As a result, the game is better for stress relief than anything else, a source of mindless entertainment as you blast away at hordes of bad guys.
Dreamkiller is an unapologetic throwback to the shooters of several years ago. It is fast and furious, and you will be tested at every point in the game. It can be a lot of fun when things are firing on all cylinders, but with the average visuals and nagging bugs, your frustration level will rise. At the end of the day, Dreamkiller just plays out as an average shooter.
I might have to rent the X360 version when it comes out. Sometime I miss the simplified gameplay of the classic FPS.
The 12 dream-levels are a series of lush set-pieces connected by short corridors; the diverse gallery of baddies is often functionally identical – either a little dude, a slow dude with rockets, or an enormo-dude. The six weapons are fun, Easy mode is a smooth, modest challenge, and the voice work is believable. It just doesn't try hard enough. It doesn't offer dark, thoughtful dissections of the human mind, or showcase a consistent mythology.
