Description: Yume Nikki is an exploration game by Japanese developer Kikiyama. In the game, you play as a girl named Madotsuki. Madotsuki is a hikikomori (shut-in) who cannot go anywhere besides her apartment and accompanying balcony. However, she can go to sleep and explore the world of her dreams.
The goal of Yume Nikki is to explore Madotsuki's dreams and find 24 "effects", which have various effects on her appearance and abilities. These effects may be found simply lying around, or you may have to interact with an NPC or other object to obtain them. Once you've gathered all the effects, you can drop them off in the Nexus (AKA the door room), which will result in a change in the real world. I'm not going to spoil it, but this change is necessary to "end" the game. There is no dialogue in Yume Nikki, and no explained story. You have nothing but a vast dream world and your own imagination.
The dream world is vast, and you're likely to do a
lot of wandering, as there is only one save point. This may be off-putting, but there is a lot to explore and discover, aside from the effects, and it's always exciting to run across something new. That said, this game is not for the impatient.
Madotsuki's dreams are...odd. The areas tend to have a surreal, creepy vibe to them, but there are nice areas are well. If you don't like creepy things, this game may not be for you. Nothing pops out at you in this game (except a certain secret), but the dreams will make you think "What's up with this girl?"
I
highly suggest playing this game without walkthroughs, maps, etc. I ended up doing this a few times, and I feel that it tarnished the experience for me. Note, however, if you play this blind, you will most likely be playing it for a while.
Arrow Keys=move/navigate menu
z/Enter=interact/make selection
Esc=enter/exit menu
1="use" equipped effect
5=drop equipped effect
9=wake up
Download: Here. Edit: Madotsuki's Closet is a Yume Nikki fansite with lots of helpful information for those who need a hint, or would rather use a walkthrough. There is a list of all the effects, as well as some other interesting sights, without revealing their locations. There are also maps and walkthroughs for pretty much anything.