Launch day is a hugely important one in the life cycle of a game. It’s often when a developer will make the most from sales, and if executed well it can make a tremendous difference to the fortunes of a title. Shape of Dreams did not have the best launch day.
That said, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a problem for developer Lizard Smoothie, who quickly pivoted to rebalance early game progression with a quick update. The technical issues that I experienced still happened, there’s no sugar coating it, however, since those first hours I’ve had a much smoother experience with the game.
So, let’s just put those technical hiccups behind us, focus on the game in front of us, and see where we are a few days after launch…
So, what is Shape of Dreams?
Lizard Smoothie’s elegant action-RPG is set in an original universe steeped in dream-related mythology. Across a series of fantasy-themed biomes, you must battle flaming monsters, icy spiders, floating swords, and a series of relentless bosses, all using a complex but well-made combat system that facilitates several playstyles.
There’s a MOBA-lite feel to the game, particularly on harder difficulty settings with co-op friends in support, but it has more in common with Hades and Nuclear Throne when played solo. There are eight playable characters in the game at launch, although much of my time was focused on the starting character, a cool-looking lizard dude with a rifle and a trench coat, called Lacerta.
As you can see from the UI on the screenshot below, each character has a main attack, plus four slots for supporting abilities. Each of these abilities has three of its own slots, and you can fill them with crystals that amplify and enhance the effects of your powers. It’s a really cool system that allows for plenty of build experimentation, even within the relatively narrow confines of a pre-defined character.
Dreamy character building
One thing that I really like about Shape of Dreams is the frequency of interesting decisions. Yes, there are plenty of run-of-the-mill incremental upgrades to speed up your rate of fire or basic damage output. However, the socket-system means that there is a constant stream of small but meaningful decisions to be made.
Whether synergising a single build or a whole team, you’ll be able to adapt characters to focus on different damage types, as well as adding effects that trigger under certain circumstances. Many of your abilities will offer ancillary benefits to other attacks, for example, adding a damage type to the next shot or amplifying burn damage that enemies are already struggling with it.
On top of the in-game currencies, health boosts, and mysterious opportunities that I’ll not spoil here, there is also a robust meta-progression system. Each of the playable characters has their own skill tree, which you then expand over time and also dress up with stat boosting upgrades, which you unlock as you play.
Initially, there was concern among some players based on the progression rate of the unlocks in the final game based on impressions from the demo. Honestly, this was never an issue for me, especially after the patch – after every run there was always load of new items unlocked for me to use in the next, and each new run saw a nice mix of items I had already used and new ones to try out.
Understated aesthetics
At first I was reasonably pleased with the art style and visual presentation, and this feeling has persisted throughout my time with the game. The watercolour effect and visual style has a Risk of Rain 2 feel about it, although the isometric perspective is more Hades-like. It’s not a super-demanding game, and it ran pretty smoothly on my Steam Deck, for what it’s worth. Those launch day bugs have also not returned, it’s worth noting.
Overall, the whole thing looks and feels really nice to play. The environmental design unfolds and expands over your time with the game, and there are plenty of little surprises just waiting to be discovered as you move between locations via the portal system. Jumping through one will take you a world map as in Slay the Spire and FTL, and like the latter there is the pressure of challenging enemies in hot pursuit – loiter too long and you’ll get your ass kicked, basically.
My first impression of Shape of Dreams might not have been the strongest, but I’m really glad that I pushed through those teething issues because the game underneath has turned out to be a wonderful surprise. There’s a lot to unpack and experiment with, but I think a majority of you will have a great time exploring this weird and wonderful action-roguelite.
