Cavern of Dreams Review (Pringles Cartilage)
Having just 100% the game in a little under 9 hours, I feel it is the perfect time to give my thoughts on this game.
I'll play my hand open-faced here; I think you should play this game. It's a charming little bite sized collectathon by a small dev team, an indie project that I think should receive more attention and support.
As for what I think, I'm going to start with the vibes.
Imagine with me, for a moment, that it is 1998. You are in elementary school, 10 years old, just a few months into 5th grade. You've made a new friend this year, the two of you having bonded over a shared love for video games. They have an N64, while you own a PS1.
It is the evening, well after school. You've just gotten home from your new friend's house, where the two of you had spent all your time glued to the CRT TV. The two of you had passed the controller back and forth for Banjo-Kazooie and Super Mario 64 happily. When their older brother finally got home, the two of you had set upon him immediately like ravenous dogs, hounding him for help with the levels you just can't beat and begging to borrow his brand new copy of LoZ Ocarina of Time for "just a few minutes!"
But that excitement is passed, now. Upon your return, you'd promptly parked yourself on the floor directly in front of your TV, much too close as your parents often tell you. You dusted the screen down with your forearm, just to entertain yourself with the feel of static prickling your hairs. There you while away the dwindling daylight playing Spyro the Dragon, until you feel yourself begin to grow tired with the encroaching darkness.
Unwilling to surrender a moment of free time, you retreat back onto the couch to continue playing while you lie down. You're on your side, head propped up by a firm, scratchy throw pillow at an angle that you don't think much of now, but would feel murderous on your neck when you're older. Although your efforts to fight it are valiant, sleep finds you there on the itchy sofa, controller still in hand.
Behind closed eyes you bare witness to an amalgam of the day's fixations; a cute, colorful character navigating worlds of puzzles to uncover secrets. Slowly progressing and retracing his steps with each new skill learned, all set to a twinkling soundtrack. Just when those soft, dreamy and warm, bright color palettes give way to a world of shadows that instills you with a sense of unease like teetering on the edge of a nightmare, you are shaken awake by your parents.
Though scolded and sent to bed under the looming inevitability of school in the morning, you can't help but think of those fuzzy glimpses of a phantom game. The prospect of possibly seeing it again in your sleep entices you into bed. Most of all, you can't wait to tell your friend all about this cool new video game you thought of tomorrow.
Truthfully I don't know that I have the right words to describe this game's comfy, dreamy atmosphere. The whole time playing it felt nostalgic for me despite being an entirely new experience. I must say the dev team perfectly captured the feel of a 90s platformer, it's a wonderful love letter clearly crafted with passion.
I do feel the need to be fully honest with you on the game play front. The controls can feel a bit off; Fynn is rather slow and your methods of speeding up (ie rolling around to gain momentum) feel very unwieldy. I'm not going to harp on the jump/swim/fly mechanics too much, it'd be unfair as my controller's button is worn out so I don't feel I got an accurate experience. I did still have a fun time even struggling against my controller, so do with that what you will I suppose.
This game also struggles with the age old problem of 3D platformers; the camera. I wouldn't call it any worse than usual, however. Just an occasional annoyance.
While I do enjoy when a game doesn't hold your hand through every step of the process, some of the puzzles and secrets felt just a bit obtuse and vague on instructions. Ultimately they're not impossible to decipher, and there are full guides for the collectibles if you feel too stuck.
All and all it may not be a perfect experience -and a rather short one- but it is a very comfortable one. Give it a try, if only to support small indie devs.