Out later this year, The House Dreams Along With Them is a puzzle adventure that will confuse and intrigue

I’ve never played anything quite like The House Dreams Along With Them, and even after spending an hour with a demo build, I’m still not entirely sure what I’ve just experienced. One thing I’m certain of, though: I’m utterly intrigued, and I can’t wait to play more of this curious puzzle adventure set within the walls of a mysterious house.

The House Dreams Along With Them blurs the lines between being asleep and awake, and a key mechanic of the game is falling asleep to lucid dream. Within your dreams, you’ll be forced to explore a new areas, solving puzzles as you go. Although I’ve only scratched the surface of what the game has to offer so far, it’s clear that the lines between dreams and reality blur together here, and trying to figure out exactly what is real is a tall task.

But does it really matter? Making your way around the mysterious building of The House Dreams Along With Them will present you with plenty of puzzles to solve – or at least, to make your way towards solving. Finding clues might be a simple case of looking in a nearby drawer or cupboard. But there might be more to it, and you might need to make notes to come back later.

What I love about The House Dreams Along With Them is that certain observations and deductions are made for you within the game’s menu. It’s the type of game that will probably benefit from you taking your own notes as well, but if you find a clue to a code, for example, you’ll find a note within your ‘observations’ menu.

But that’s about the only help you’ll be getting. The rest is up to you and, from one dream to another, there’s no telling what this bizarre but utterly intriguing game is going to throw at you. For whatever reason, you can fall asleep on any rusted surface, be it a bed, table, or even a shovel. One lucid dream might simply have you finding a code to unlock a laptop. Another might have you playing a tricky game of The Floor is Lava, using cardboard boxes to figure out where to go. You might end up in an upside down house, or you might end up running through a dungeon, with a torch in hand.

The best puzzle-adventure games are the ones that allow you to pick up and interact with almost anything. The House Dreams Along With Them places emphasis on interactivity, and you’ll find countless objects that you can pick up, press, tinker with, throw and more. Almost every cupboard and drawer can be opened, and should your find something interesting inside, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to fiddle with it. Not everything will be helpful, but this level of tactility really adds a welcome level of immersion to the experience.

Being the work of a solo developer, Jeffrey Nordin under the studio name of Caranthos Mori Games, I’m equally impressed and fascinated by what The House Dreams Along With Them has to offer. I’ve only seen a fraction of what the full game will hold, but it’s safe to say I’m hooked, and can’t wait to see what else is in store as I explore the full experience of this unsettling adventure.

If you like the sound of this, a free demo is available for The House Dreams Along With Them on Steam. There’s no set release date yet, but it’s scheduled to launch later this year.