Dreamview Weekly Roundup #63

Wow, what a week. (What do you mean, it’s only Monday? Look, the website had a bit of a hiccup last Friday. It was stressful.) Why not pull up a chair and relax? Wingback? Gamer chair? Bean bag? Weird alien donut chair? Actually, maybe don’t sit on that last one. Last time we did, it made this odd squelching sound and we promptly forgot every birthday party we’d attended from the ages of 8 to 15. Precious memories, lost like spare change in the sofa of time.

Apologies - we’ve had furniture on the brain this week, thanks to our recent collab with IKEA(opens in new tab). You’ll find some less existentially threatening seats in our Dream Homes collection. Once you’re as comfy as you can virtually be, pop your feet up and get stuck into this week’s five recommendations for things to play, see and do in Dreams.

Derl's Traps#

by willow_the_bob, kollwitzer and Smash-Tagg

Estimated runtime: 15 seconds

Much like one of Derl’s beloved traps, this animation is short, sharp and shockingly good. Every last detail is finely calculated, from the precise lip movements around Derl’s Louisianan drawl, to the head and eye movements. Our hunter lopes through the swamp, waxing lyrical about “goooooose” traps; cicadas chirrup impatiently. It might be a mere 15-second impression, but the spell it casts is as vivid and immediate as one of those Love, Death & Robots featurette. We can’t stop thinking about what happens next.

Pixel art / sprite builder 2.0#

by Jimmyjules153

Estimated playtime: N/A

Tired of placing, nudging and colouring individual sculpts? Tearing your hair out over aligning individual flecks? Screaming into pixelated chaos? (That last one is just using the internet in 2022. Kachow!) Bit-bothering artists rejoice, for the ever-brilliant Jimmyjules153 has taken the hassle out of creating pixelated art in Dreams with this drawing software. You’re able to physically draw onto the grid using your imp and motion controls, the many features are easily found via a clean and clear UI - and, crucially, the creation is remixable so that you’re able to ‘export’ your finished sprite.

Bike Ride#

by Johvork

Estimated runtime: N/A

If you told us this illustration had been plucked from the pages of a best-selling children’s storybook, we’d believe you. Johvork’s signature loose, freeform painting style creates the illusion of giddy motion - and blurry nostalgia - in this dusk-kissed scene, in which a young girl gives her pet kitten a ride in her bike basket. This heartfelt comment from kre8tor68 puts it beautifully: “Your artwork is beautiful, but I am very enamoured with art that has bicycles in. To me, they symbolise freedom. As a child I went everywhere on them, and that feeling has never gone away. I still cycle on most days. You have a lovely free-flowing style.”

A Good Way To Disappear#

by cutaia_net, SaucelessOne, lugadi, Tricobalt, RoyMucano and GrimPinata136

Estimated runtime: 25 mins

Community asset creator, game developer, avian comedy radio show host, prolific musician - let’s just keep things brief and call cutaia_net a creative shapeshifter. Their new seven-track concept album is some real ‘no skips’ stuff, mirroring its creator’s restless energy by bouncing between rhythmic funk and soulful ballads. Everything’s tied together by cutaia_net’s irresistible vocal rasp and winding lyricism, and videos made by Dreams music scene superstars. Back Of The Line’s staccato hi-hats and catchy hooks make it an early favourite for us - “I’ve gotten so damn good at quittin’ I could write half a book” is a line for the ages - but romantics will adore album-closer Probably Something, an anthemic piano-rock ballad that honestly feels like a lost ‘80s classic. Sensational.

The Appearance of Evil#

by Wargarble and Guizmo2435

Estimated playtime: 20 mins

You will learn to fear marshmallows. Yes, the enemies in this atmospheric, on-rails gyroscopic shooter might start off humanoid - something we repeatedly verify through the forcible inspection of many a ribcage - but it wouldn’t be a Wargarble joint without things taking a turn for the weird. Yeah, you’ll think the flappy-mawed demons skittering around on four hands are pretty kooky. That is until you see a giant, hairy, handless, possibly gelatin-based entity running at you, hell-bent on smashing you into so much rocky road. The details are carefully done, from the charming hand-drawn reticule to the destructive environments - but it’s the creeping progression from hauntingly familiar, domestic farm (something we’re sure collaborator Guizmo2435 has much to do with) to surrealist nightmare that leaves us with lasting chills.

Check out the playable edition of this week's Dreamview Weekly Roundup right here in Dreams!

Which creations caught your eye in the Dreamiverse this week, and why? Tell us about your personal picks over on the official Dreams forums!(opens in new tab)