Hello again everyone. It's me, Goose. This time around we'll be talking about the famously mysterious and genre-defining ゆめにっき Yume Nikki (Dream Diary) released between 2004 and 2007.
I first learned about this game in late 2020 through YouTube algorithm suggestions. It seems like the YouTube algorithm has a pretty strong track record of igniting interest in retro products and aesthetics. I remember not too long ago when it was (in my humble opinion) majorly responsible for the resurgence in popularity of Japanese 'city pop'. At that time, I wasn't actually too drawn in by those video thumbnails. Yume Nikki just came off as some unremarkable pixelated game for wasting time. I was definitely picking up on the darker vibes, but it still crossed me as kind of disinteresting.
Then, eventually, I actually clicked one of those thumbnails. It must have been the sprite designs of the game. They were so bizarre and often very visceral. I became attracted to the visual style, the music, and then... the backstory. It turns out the background of Yume Nikki but more particularly its creator, the mononymous 'Kikiyama' (a Japanese surname), is shrouded in great anonymity. That's not my story to tell, however. Plenty of others have already done that job. There's even a great podcast on the whole mystery by a Lewis Denby I highly suggest.
Once digging into both the mystery behind the game's creation and the complex symbolism and messaging of the RPG, it becomes evident that heavy themes are at hand... suicide, sexual assault, violence, childhood trauma to name a few. Granted, all of this 'story' is carefully extracted from a very nebulous but frequently disturbing set of actions, environments, sprites, and sounds/music. Because of this, the story is understood differently by everyone. Personally, I find the social disorder/childhood trauma theories most convincing.
Yume Nikki is a walking RPG. In the most literal sense, you spend the entirety of the game walking, moving, from one place to the next. Actions and interactions are possible but relatively limited in what they have to offer. You are essentially responsible for collecting a number of 'eggs' within the interconnected but discrete maps of the game, and I figure this mechanic is less intended to be gameplay as much as it drives the player to explore all possible locations in the game. It's meditative and self driven. I feel sometimes when I play it that you really get out what you put it. It's a mirror in some ways, reflecting our stirring thoughts and questions back at us in statement form. With any sort of dialogue or inner monologue absent, the narrative of the game becomes your interpretation of Madotsuki (our main character, a shut-in young girl) and her waking life and dream environments. Madotsuki (窓付き) is not a real/common name in Japanese; it literally means 'window-fixed'. I wonder if this choice was meant to highlight Madotsuki's ruminating nature, exacerbated by physical isolation.
Yume Nikki, as I mentioned, is a genre-defining title which has incredibly clear influence on a number of widely known titles such as Omori, Undertale, and Lisa: The First to name a few. Of course, Yume Nikki itself draws strong stylistic inspiration from and directly references the Famicom's MOTHER (of the EarthBound series).
I'm finding it difficult to find an appropriate comment to conclude this post with. I feel like my journey with Yume Nikki is nowhere near over; I actively do and will continue to return to this game many times in the future. I think one day I would like to try making music in the style of the game. I have always been very moved by video game music. Needless to say, this conversation will continue through the discussions of other titles like those mentioned in this post. In the mean time, don't let Uboa get you!
Until next time,
Goose
EDIT: BONUS THOUGHTS!! Just as the final paragraph of this post suggests, I was struggling to find an interesting conclusion when writing this. I am returning to share that I often have Yume Nikki no commentary gameplay playing on my TV in the background of whatever I'm doing (or not doing). The game's atmosphere is so palpable... I could (and might even secretly want) to get let lost in this game. Tonight Mr. Goose is dealing with friction of wanting to have beautiful, inspiring, captivating thoughts while also wanting deeply to connect with the present moment. Peace.