Yume Nikki, created by Kikiyama and was released in 2004, is a walking sim available on PC platforms. Though it has pixelated graphics and simple mechanics, Yume Nikki is a walking simulator that manages to send chills down my spine even though the only real mechanic is walking. Its target audience is players who enjoy exploration-based games and kinda like a open ended narrative. After playing about an hour of the game, I was able to start enjoying taking in the art/setting instead of fixating on mastering fast pace mechanics.
The formal elements that contribute to Yume Nikki’s success are its minimalist presentation, clam soundtrack, and psycadillic backgrounds. The game’s primary mechanic is walking, which encourages exploration as I navigated through the world. The type of fun Yume Nikki aims to deliver is exploration and immersion in a mysterious environment. It successfully meets its goals by creating a world filled with symbolism, which allows players to piece together the story through their own interpretation of what is going on.
A moment of particular success in Yume Nikki is the game’s ability to convey a sense of isolation and loneliness through its mechanics and atmosphere. For example, I was expecting to encounter other characters to guide me along my way, but I was only met with dark backgrounds and abandon settings. As I walked through the vast, empty world, I couldn’t help but feel the sense that I was just alone in a void. This is further emphasized by the lack of dialogue and minimal interaction with other characters (focusing more on interacting with items/setting like at the beginning in the bedroom). In contrast, an epic fail would be the sometimes excessive ambiguity, which left me feeling lost and disoriented, for example, I spent like 10 minutes going back and forth because I couldn’t find where to exit. However, this could also be seen as a deliberate design choice to enhance the game’s open-ended and wonderous nature.
To make Yume Nikki even better, I would introduce more hints for players who may struggle with the open-endedness of the game. While the ambiguity is a core part of Yume Nikki’s fun, providing small cues could help prevent players from becoming frustrated or disoriented. Also, I think the game could use more sound effects like how Minecraft has a distinct sound for each type of terrain you walk on, or each action you take like opening a door.
I think Yume Nikki is very interesting. As a very avid “competitive” gamer that likes to master mechanics and crush noobs in multiply player, I struggle to play solo player games. However, it was very refreshing to just endlessly explore and appreciate art instead of trying to rack up fake internet points in ranked solo queue. I would compare the feeling of this game like walking through a museum, it might not be as interactive, but suits a certain audience.
