You're still alive, little one! That's quite an unusual development. I must admit that even though you’ve shown some potential and your abilities can manifest in times of need, I didn't have a whole lot of confidence in your success. I'm quite impressed, lad. But enough of the sweet-talk, what brings you back to my humble abode?
Hansel and Gretel
Oh, so you've seen things or... beings and you need some answers? The fairy tales aren't as whimsical as one would think and they certainly are more real than fables. All I say is true - believe me! Lack of faith can bring you impending doom. Hansel and Gretel encountered the witch indeed, it's all historically accurate fact! The Youth did, in fact, go forth and learn what fear was and Beowulf is not just a mythical hero.
Grendel (Beowulf)
The story of Pinocchio, The Wonderful World of OZ and even Dracula – it's all true, little one, it's true! And although some of the tales end on a surprisingly optimistic note, no one lived happily ever after and there’s one particular reason for it – the transcendent and magical Lady Death, who binds time, space, lives and fairy tales together. Finding her is your goal, isn't it? So be prepared, my poor child, for she will use every available means to stop you!
Pinocchio Dracula
If wicked tales don't scare you enough, please add Dream Alone to your wishlist and be prepared for further announcements!
You're special, kid.
I mean... there's really something unusual about you. Your extraordinary bravery which led you to venture into the shadows in search of Lady Death is one thing, but those weird, amazing abilities are worth mentioning. And... quite scary if I can be really honest here.
Listen kid, I know you're really desperate to help your family and friends, but those potions that you take along the way certainly can't be good for your health. True, they help you cross some paths which would seem too dangerous, but man, when you drink that stuff, you seem like you enter some kind of dreamlike state. It's really hard to communicate with you. I can't even imagine what vicious, gruesome stuff you're seeing in your mind's eye. Fortunately, it doesn't last too long and after a few seconds you come back from that alternate reality or wherever your consciousness wanders off to when those potions take effect.
Wait... am I talking to you, or have you just cloned out on me? Oh, ok, it's the true you, but you just spaced out a bit. Focus kid, we don't want you to die on your way, do we? Anyway, your eau de clone, as I like to call it, may prove to be very helpful if you need to be two places at once. Sadly, the artificial you can't move or react to anything, but it works as a weight and can serve as a blockade.
Don't forget you can do that magical light thing as well. As some parts of this mysterious world are cloaked in darkness, the light will help you to force your way through the deepest shadows of the night.
I believe in you, kid. And remember, that though you need to Dream Alone, those powers will help you survive.
If you're brave enough to help the young explorer, please add Dream Alone to your wishlist to stay up to date with further announcements.
The only thing he needs to do [NEW GAMEPLAY TRAILER]
Once upon a time there was a peaceful village. Then, one day, the peace turned into dreadful silence as the terrible fate struck the villagers. A mysterious illness made all residents fall asleep except for a little boy. The young fellow ventures forth into the darkness to meet Lady Death who is said to possess powers than can cure the village.
Are you willing to help him survive? Check the new gameplay trailer to see what dangers await on your journey.
https://youtu.be/4t6mmw2QhuU
If you find this interesting, please add Dream Alone to your wishlist to be up to date with upcoming announcements about the game!
WarSaw Games Studio: A Decade Old Dream and the Puzzle Platformer to Fulfillment
Written by Dominik Gąska for Fat Dog Games
For Paweł Brągoszewski, a co-founder of WarSaw Games and one of the creators of Dream Alone, working in the gaming industry was a lifelong dream. And yet it would take him over a decade, a failed attempt and the perfect mixture of luck and persistence to realize it.
Dream big
Seeing WarSaw Games as a studio of first-timers may be a surprise when you look back at Paweł’s history. “It was around 2006, while working at Polish video games magazine GameStar, that I got to know Jacek Komuda and Maciek Jurewicz, two established screenwriters who had worked on a well-known Polish mod for Neverwinter Nights and the first Witcher game,” Paweł tells me. He quickly takes a few steps back to add that what had eventually come of their involvement with the first Witcher is unknown to him. What is important is that the experience and know-how was already there.
Along with this know-how, was a bold vision. “It’s a funny tale, actually, because we got Painkiller’s engine from Adrian Chmielarz to toy around with to our hearts’ content. Jacek just reached out to him and Adrian gave us the thing on a CD, saying something along the lines of: sure guys, do whatever, we’ll figure out the licensing terms when you start selling it,” Paweł reminisces, laughing. The idea was to come up with a strong concept, a flashy demo and present it to publishers with hopes of getting the funding.
The game called Lost Adventures was supposed to be a first person shooter in a diesel-punk setting. The elevator pitch? Tomb Raider meets The Mummy movie series. Underground ruins, scary enemies and fun action to top it off. You wouldn’t expect anything less from the game based on the Painkiller’s engine. Apparently, that wasn’t enough.
“We worked on Lost Adventures for over six months and we were very happy with the demo, but I think finding a publisher for an indie Polish project was nearly impossible at that time,” Paweł says. And so the dream would have to be shelved for a long while.
Dream small
After this head-on collision with reality Paweł started working as a mobile apps developer. But the dream of making a video game stayed with him. It was then when Paweł met Tomek Róziecki, another experienced programmer who shared his love of the medium. Unsurprisingly, the two started using their daytime job experience to try and break into the mobile gaming market.
“Back then we treated working on iOS games more like a fun after hours activity,” Paweł explains. “It was all small stuff, really. The App Store was just starting to get traction back then and we didn’t even think about making any kind of money. We just wanted to see how all of this worked. Seeing people having fun with our creations was all the compensation we needed.”
But what a different mobile games market it was! Paweł estimates that his games from that time reached around 600-800 thousand users without him even trying very hard. Back then just being on the App Store would get the developers exposure unlike anything they could hope for today. Reaching those kinds of numbers now with Dream Alone would make the game’s creators extremely happy.
Dream together
It wasn’t before the third WarSaw Games co-founder, Paweł Flanc, joined the team that their dreams of creating a full-blown PC game resurfaced. Tomek knew him as a music producer as he had worked with him on two hip-hop albums in the past. Flanc had also been doing graphic design as his main line of work for years. It seemed like he was the perfect person to bring to the table and just what the team needed - artistic sensibilities.
The three of them started bouncing ideas off of each other around November of 2016. It started, as it usually does, with a bunch of pub meet ups and beer-fueled conversations. “It was all pretty chilled at the start. We all knew we wanted to create something game related. Nothing big, just to dip our toes in the water and see how we do,” Paweł recalls with a smile. “And if we could find someone to invest a few zlotys to keep us motivated to finish the thing, then all the better.”
A few moths later the full vision of the game had formed, followed quickly by its first playable version. Before the summer of 2017, the team signed the publishing deal with Fat Dog Games. After over a decade of trying, everything would happen in the space of around 8 months.
“The actual work, when we stopped talking about the vision and changing things up, began at the end of April. It’s all still very fresh,” Paweł says. Now he realizes how crazy this process sounds to someone on the outside.
Dream Alone
Part of the team’s success in creating the game so fast comes from them their logical choice of genre. Choosing a puzzle platformer may seem like an obvious route to take on the surface, but in reality it allowed the developers to express themselves and come up with some crazy, innovative ideas whilst staying in a predictable, familiar framework. The same goes for the plot and setting. The Burtonesque graphical style and the light horror atmosphere instantly capture the audience’s imagination, while leaving plenty of space for oohs and aahs.
“One of our base concepts is that of alternate realities. Every once in a while the player will get a power up that allows them to switch between two versions of the same level. The music will change, the graphics will change, but most importantly - the level’s layout may also change a bit, allowing the player to pass where previously the road was blocked,” Paweł explains.
Of course this is only one example, and with the game release set for early 2018 you can forgive the team for not wanting to spoil the surprise too much. It’s their dream project after all.
Dream Alone - new update [08.12.2017]
Hello!
We're happy to announce that Dream Alone got a new build!
Patch notes:
Design of game world no. 6 + sound setting
Load/Save system
Outro animation
Voice over recordings
Want to know more about Dream Alone? Add it to your Steam wishlist and check regularly for new updates and announcements!
