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Anyone Else Hate When Games Are "Just A Dream"

To clarify what I'm talking about, it's when you reach the end of the game and you find out that everything was just a simulation or a dream and didn't actually happen or happen in such a way that wasn't exactly accurate.

There are some legitimately great games that unfortunately end up revealing to be that. Unfortunately, I can't say what the games are because that in itself was spoil it so I had to just make the spoilers with the title of the game in it.

One good example of a great game that does this is Control. The final DLC of the game reveals that most, if not all that happens, is because Alan Wake wrote it into being. The Hiss was just a test for Jesse, presumably to help him eventually fight the Dark Presence.

Here's another one that comes to mind....

Upon reaching the end of pray, you find out that everything was sort of a simulation based on memories of the person who was in the space station. Well it's not as bad as a reveal as sort of being all a dream, it's still kind of qualifies.

There's other games I can't remember at the moment that do this as well. Some of them are worse.

I just feel like it's sort of takes away from everything when it's revealed just to be an illusion, simulation or dream.

Maybe someone here can give some other examples but is there anyone else who gets annoyed by this?
 
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one of my most favourite games
 
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Fbh

Member
Is that first spoiler true? Seems like an awfully big revelation to keep for a DLC lol, specially with the base game having a rather lackluster story.

But yeah I don't like that nor do I like the "we won't explain shit and it's all up for interpretation" type of endings either.
 
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Is that first spoiler true? Seems like an awfully big revelation to keep for a DLC lol, specially with the base game having a rather lackluster story.

But yeah I don't like that nor do I like the "we won't explain shit and it's all up for interpretation" type of endings either.
Yes that first spoiler is true. It's pretty much canon as well. That is a pretty big revelation for downloadable content, I agree.
 
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Laptop1991

Member
I'm not a fan of dream sequences or simulator section's in games much, they take you out of the game world, Far Crry 5 3 region storylines comes to mind, Fallout 3's Tranquility Lane was a little bit annoying at times, but i can't actually think of a whole game i played that ended up just being a dream.
 

Wildebeest

Member
I guess I don't care either way because being a video game, the story is probably just as boring and self-important if it was "real" or a "dream".
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
Alan Wake wrote Max Payne, but Dylan says he saw a universe were Max Payne is real.
So its safe to assume Alan Wake makes universes that everything therein actually does matter, to the people in it, i.e us the players.
Dream sequence simulation shit, nothing in the dream or simulation actually matters.

That shit slaps!

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To clarify what I'm talking about, it's when you reach the end of the game and you find out that everything was just a simulation or a dream and didn't actually happen or happen in such a way that wasn't exactly accurate.

There are some legitimately great games that unfortunately end up revealing to be that. Unfortunately, I can't say what the games are because that in itself was spoil it so I had to just make the spoilers with the title of the game in it.

One good example of a great game that does this is Control. The final DLC of the game reveals that most, if not all that happens, is because Alan Wake wrote it into being. The Hiss was just a test for Jesse, presumably to help him eventually fight the Dark Presence.

Here's another one that comes to mind....

Upon reaching the end of pray, you find out that everything was sort of a simulation based on memories of the person who was in the space station. Well it's not as bad as a reveal as sort of being all a dream, it's still kind of qualifies.

There's other games I can't remember at the moment that do this as well. Some of them are worse.

I just feel like it's sort of takes away from everything when it's revealed just to be an illusion, simulation or dream.

Maybe someone here can give some other examples but is there anyone else who gets annoyed by this?
Hmmm I don't really remember which games had dream sequences or reveals that that's all it was personally to be quite honest. But since we are on topic of dreams, sometimes life doesn't even feel real. Dream is a complicated topic lol. Sometimes I feel that when people dream in real life or even me sometimes that it's just us living in a parrarel universe which the current one is taking a rest.

Anyway, the whole plot of Kingdom Hearts is confusing as shit and feels like it's all fake lol. Nothing in that game ever makes sense.

Also, one game does come to mind, but it kind of makes sense for its plot line
Isn't Bloodborne is essentially taking an entire place in a dream? When you kill the final boss you wake up in real Yharnam? Or am I wrong ?
 
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Hmmm I don't really remember which games had dream sequences or reveals that that's all it was personally to be quite honest. But since we are on topic of dreams, sometimes life doesn't even feel real. Dream is a complicated topic lol. Sometimes I feel that when people dream in real life or even me sometimes that it's just us living in a parrarel universe which the current one is taking a rest.

Anyway, the whole plot of Kingdom Hearts is confusing as shit and feels like it's all fake lol. Nothing in that game ever makes sense.

Also, one game does come to mind, but it kind of makes sense for its plot line
Isn't Bloodborne is essentially taking an entire place in a dream? When you kill the final boss you wake up in real Yharnam? Or am I wrong ?
Regarding your spoiler, that's just a theory.
 
I'm weird about stories and video games. I take lore and world building very seriously.
You and me share a lot in common friend. I was always fascinated with World of Warcraft/Warcraft lore in general, but then Blizzard made it a fucking mess.

Mass Effect is also fantastic with its lore imo. Very curious how the next Mass Effect is being rebooted.

AZ Ezio Trilogy was probably one of the best shit I've experienced story wise from AC 1 to AC Revelations but then it went too doo doo too.

Don't get me started on Half Life... and GMAN.
 
You and me share a lot in common friend. I was always fascinated with World of Warcraft/Warcraft lore in general, but then Blizzard made it a fucking mess.

Mass Effect is also fantastic with its lore imo. Very curious how the next Mass Effect is being rebooted.

AZ Ezio Trilogy was probably one of the best shit I've experienced story wise from AC 1 to AC Revelations but then it went too doo doo too.

Don't get me started on Half Life... and GMAN.
It's one reason why I like the Trails series so much. This is one kind of game you can't just play for the game itself. You're playing because of the story. An overarching story that's been around for 15 years and still going.
 

CamHostage

Member
Mario doesn't really have an ongoing story or even really a story at all. Plus this is a universe where dreams could become reality anyways.

Right, when it's cute then fine, have a twist. (Plus, Mario's dreams are as real as any other crazy things that happen to him or jobs he takes.)

Whereas when it's 10,20 or more hours of hard-fought gameplay and emotional investment in the story, and it ends with, "But actuality, none of this really happened....", it's a wet fart to deal with. Some of these you mention are clever and canon-twisting versions of it-was-all-a-dream, but still, I get the frustration.
 

Gojiira

Member
Dont agree with Control, Alan Wake may well write the events into existence but they still happen to Jessie.
Same goes for games like Bloodborne, it takes place in dream realms but actions taken within have real world consequences and lasting ramifications for the Hunter and population of Yharnam.
MGSV is close to copping out as this though, ‘The Truth’ revealing Venom is just a decoy despite being obvious is just such a lame twist, it was obviously not the real ending given MGSV was supposed to have THREE more chapters but still the game played with fan expectations but was almost entirely different.
 
Dont agree with Control, Alan Wake may well write the events into existence but they still happen to Jessie.
Well, since you've already spoiled it out on the open (lol) from what I understand he pretty much created the Bureau and even Jesse herself. So Alan Wake pretty much wrote all of it into existence although maybe things like the Astral Plane are real. It's kind of vague and where what's real and what was written by him sort of begins and ends.
 

Gojiira

Member
Well, since you've already spoiled it out on the open (lol) from what I understand he pretty much created the Bureau and even Jesse herself. So Alan Wake pretty much wrote all of it into existence although maybe things like the Astral Plane are real. It's kind of vague and where what's real and what was written by him sort of begins and ends.
I mean the games years old now…Honestly I really didnt find it all that vague, Jesse is flesh and blood regardless of how she came to be, ergo not written off as a dream. If anything it just makes her more tragic. The Astral Plane 100% exists though, from my understanding its what allows Alan Wake to write things into existence in the first place. Same goes for objects of power, IIRC Alans typewriter is one, again IIRC
 
I mean the games years old now…Honestly I really didnt find it all that vague, Jesse is flesh and blood regardless of how she came to be, ergo not written off as a dream. If anything it just makes her more tragic. The Astral Plane 100% exists though, from my understanding its what allows Alan Wake to write things into existence in the first place. Same goes for objects of power, IIRC Alans typewriter is one, again IIRC
It's not the Astral Plane that allows him to make his stories into reality. It's the Dark Place.
 
Aren’t they essentially the same thing? Or aspects of the Astral Plane?
No. They don't even look the same. The Dark Place is literally a place of shadows and darkness and has Lovecraftian entities.

The Astral Plane is white or gray and usually has the black pyramid hanging above.

The two realms are not remotely the same.
 
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Robb

Gold Member
I don’t really care, seems pretty easy to make things ‘matter’ either way. I just view it as two different realities in most video games, real world and dream world.

You could always make a ‘Links Awakening 2’ where Link returns to Koholint and everyone remembers him etc.

It’s way more annoying in movies imo, because then it implies it truly doesn’t matter at all.
 
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Zannegan

Member
In general, it's a pretty reviled storytelling trope for good reason. When waking up from the dream retroacrively removes all tension and meaning from the dream journey... then what was the point?

If you put a twist on it though so that the dream journey remains meaningful, it can work (Inception comes to mind as an example). That's rare though. Usually, "it was all a dream" results in a story that feels like a giant waste of time.

Anyway, being a medium in which story is usually secondary (and generally worse the more the director tries to centralize it), "it was all a dream" becomes less of a problem. I mean, in a story-focused game, I'd probably hate it. But if the story is just window-dressing for the action, then I guess it doesn't really matter anyway.
 

Gojiira

Member
No. They don't even look the same. The Dark Place is literally a place of shadows and darkness and has Lovecraftian entities.

The Astral Plane is white or gray and usually has the black pyramid hanging above.

The two realms are not remotely the same.
Well hence if IIRC, thanks for clarifying.
Tbf the Astral Plane also has Lovecraftian entities, just doesnt seem to be as hostile as the DP.
 
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