It was fair to expect that Sega would have a new Sonic the Hedgehog title ready for their 32-bit Sega Saturn console at launch. Alas, this was not the case. Instead they relied on original software and arcade ports at first. Later on we saw the release of a unique game called NiGHTS, and the protagonist quickly became the system’s mascot. Development was helmed by Yuji Naka of Sonic the Hedgehog fame. Despite rave reviews NiGHTS just didn’t have the same appeal. Despite being one of the more popular games on the system it couldn’t save the platform. Years later a friend sold me his Saturn along with all of his games. This was included in the lot. NiGHTs Into Dreams quickly became one of my favorite video games of all time. Even now I keep the console hooked up to regularly play this title. NiGHTS really is that good.
The story here focuses on two children; Elliot and Claris who both live in the real world. They’re both at difficult junctures in their life, and their dreams are plagued with nightmares. This is the doing of wicked creatures called nightmaren. These are led by a powerful dreamland wizard named Wizeman. One of his henchmen, a purple jester named NiGHTS, rebels against this overlord but he is soon captured. Both Elliot and Claris soon learn they have the power to release him from imprisonment. They will need to team up with him in order to save the world of dreams. It’s pretty sappy, but in this day and age Nights Into Dreams is comfort food for the jaded gamer.
What’s interesting is the fact that you can choose to play as either of the two protagonists. They feature their own set of stages. The few that share have big differences depending on which child you choose. Upon starting out a stage you freely navigate as said child in a fully 3D environment. In front of you NiGHTs is locked within an altar, and you can release him simply by walking up to it. At this point your character merges with NiGHTs, and you take control of the flying jester. From here the game becomes more of a 2.5D side scroller as you fly left, right, up, down, and diagonally through a series of mostly linear environments.
Your basic goal is to collect the four Ideya crystals in each of the stages. This is done by collecting twenty blue orbs and bringing them to key locations in the level. Each time you do so another Ideya crystal is released, and every one has their own linear course through each level. This gives the game a very three dimensional feel despite the primarily 2D plane. The challenge comes in the fact that you’re timed, and the only way to add additional seconds to the clock is by restoring the aforementioned crystal. You can do some neat tricks to make things easier. Perform loops around these orbs and you’ll automatically collect them. This even works when these items are in the background. Half of the fun is learning how to chain together these loops to collect as many orbs as fast as possible.
Every stage is populated by enemies and touching them will subtract increments from your clock. When the timer runs out you regain control of Elliot or Claris and must return to NiGHTS in order to regain control of him. While on foot the children are pursued by a clock character that, when caught by him, will result in a game over. These sequences are surprisingly frantic. The contrast between playing as NiGHTS and Elliot/Claris is really interesting because it gives different perspectives on each stage. Once you collect all of the Ideya crystals you’re whisked off to a new area wherein you face off against a boss character. These are extremely well done and surprisingly dynamic from one another. Once again your main enemy is a time limit and every time you’re hit precious seconds are knocked away.
When it was originally released NiGHTS was packaged with a special 3D controller made specifically for this game. You’re given full range of control over the purple jester though you can only move on a 2D plane. You can however perform loop de loops and other flights of fancy. As I mentioned earlier you can perform loops to snag all items within them, and the special controller makes this far easier than the standard pad. The only other special move at your disposal is a spinning dash that allows you to fly in a single direction at top speed. The 3D pad also helps a great deal in aiming this trajectory. An energy bar determines how often this last special move can be used, and it automatically refills as you play.
While the basic game is plenty difficult these skills become very important quickly as NiGHTS is a game centered around getting top scores in each stage. I imagine this was part of why the title wasn’t as popular as it should have been as most gamers aren’t concerned with this element, but the vast amount of skill required here is astonishing. Practice makes perfect, and I’ve played few other titles where improving scores and ratings are as rewarding as it is here.
By Sega Saturn standards NiGHTs Into Dreams is one of the best looking games around. The 3D worlds feature minimal pop-in (mostly due to the two dimensional gameplay). The environments and characters are built with a considerable amount of polygons. Unfortunately everything has that typical 32-bit generation jagged polygonal look to it. In addition the textures are extremely pixelated and are a bit unsightly to be honest. Furthermore the game is prone to framerate drops when a lot is going on at once. On the bright side the game is extremely colorful, and the art style is unique and quite pleasant. The enemy designs are particularly striking, and NiGHTS has unmatched appeal stylistically. Despite the visual drawbacks I still consider this one of the prettiest games to come out of the 32/64-bit era.
The soundtrack stands as my absolute favorite from any video game. The composers did an amazing job of matching the unique visual appeal of this game with music that fits extremely well despite being extremely original. The soundtrack for the most part is a mix of bouncy pop music fused together with some jazz and rock elements. It’s extremely pleasant and catchy, and every single level has its own themes that change depending on the mood of the Nightopians that populate the dream world. It’s a unique concept, and works exceptionally well. The only weak link in my opinion is the ending theme ‘Dream Dreams.’ This is a vocal track performed both by adults and children singers, and it is the only part of the game that comes off as cheesy. The rest of the music is completely unmatched in my opinion; NiGHTS into Dreams’ music is amazing.
NiGHTS into Dreams is admittedly a rather short game. On the plus side it is extremely well designed and begs to be replayed. This is a once in a life time release, and is worth picking up a Saturn for just by itself. In my opinion Sega should have stuck with this name and worked it into more of a franchise. It’s significantly more memorable than Sonic the Hedgehog and stands as my favorite Sega game ever. Those who don’t want to track down a working console can always opt to download an enhanced version on the Xbox 360 or PS3; you won’t regret it.
