Projected Dreams Preview: In the Shadow of Creativity

Many of us remember what it was like to be a kid late at night unable to sleep, your mind racing with the possibilities of what tomorrow might bring. We’d try our best to stay quiet, read books under our blankets with a flashlight, or play cards with our siblings in silence. And likely many of us played shadow puppets, using hands or toys to create shadows and stories on the wall. Projected Dreams from Flawberry Studio taps into the nostalgia of being a kid with an active imagination and wanting, more than anything, to stay up late, and let that imagination run wild.

Projected Dreams is an upcoming relaxing puzzle game where players manipulate objects around a little girl's room in order to create elaborate shadows on her wall. Once you cast the shadow, they become real objects that can then appear in the room for you to use on future puzzles. It’s a very simple concept and one that Flawberry Studio has tackled beautifully through its demo.

The Projected Dreams current demo features just a handful of the game’s levels, but gives players a glimpse at what the gameplay and story are like. Players join little girl Senka as she dreams up adorable and fun scenarios using the shadows that you create on her wall. In one level, for example, you use objects around Senka’s room to create moon shoes, a toy that was super popular when I was younger. After creating the moon shoes, players will notice that Senka’s room changes slightly and looks like the inside of a spaceship. 

Senka’s spaceship, along with looking super cool and futuristic, is equipped with a device that allows players to grow or shrink the objects in her room. Each puzzle has multiple solutions and the addition of the shrink and grow mechanic adds even more fun into the mix. Of course, I immediately made Senka’s Teddy bear as big as it could go and placed it on the table to reign over the rest of her room. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.

The demo will likely take the average player just twenty to thirty minutes to complete but gives the perfect look at what to expect from the full story. From the toys to the game concept, Projected Dreams is sure to be a lovely, relaxing time for anyone that jumps in. And with the super chill soundtrack from artist Floris Demandt to wrap it all together, we can’t wait to see what’s in store.

Preview by Becca Smith