Cavern of Dreams is easily one of the best 3D platformers I've played to date. Taking control of a young dragon name Fynn, you embark on a quest to rescue his young siblings as he travels across the zany, unique worlds within the Cavern of Dreams. For those craving for a modern-day Banjo-Kazooie/Conker's Bad Fur Day, this game will certainly scratch that "classic, old-school" itch. While there were a few hiccups along the way, I had an overall excellent experience with this title, and would certainly look forward to a sequel if that's ever in the works.

Using a PS4 controller, I really noted how well-responsive the controls felt while playing the young dragon. When you start, Fynn is only capable of jumping and rolling into a ball to build momentum across flat surfaces and slopes. Most of the worlds are rather spacious, so being able to quickly cut through the terrain helps shave time when you need to backtrack, (Side note: I personally enjoyed it for giving that 2D Sonic feel in a 3D environment, sue me :p.)

As you rescue your siblings, you unlock certain abilities that expands Fynn’s move set, including gaining wings to glide, and a tail that both break’s objects and lets you fly forward if you slam your tail right before you land on the ground. These tools really helped enhanced the gameplay for me, especially when returning back to world’s you’ve previously explored and utilizing these abilities to find new pathways/secrets.

There is a healthy amount of puzzle challenges within the game. Some are easy to solve, while others may require you to pause and think for a bit. If you are ever stuck, it helps if you look carefully at your surroundings, whether it’s a room or even in the world itself, as those can provide hints as well. That said, sometimes there are hints the game provides that are so vague that its almost up to personal interpretation on how to solve it. This issue was especially apparent when I entered “Prismic Palace”, and had a frustrating time going back and forth in the world, thinking I was missing an obvious hint to solve a puzzle.

(Side note: I was so frustrated that I inadvertently found a glitch with the “Jester Boots” power up, an item that lets you walk in the air if you ever walk off a flat surface. Normally the powerup disappears if you leave a designated room, but I bumbled out a way to leave the room while keeping the boots on, which led to many funny game breaking moments admittedly.)

For 100% completionists, this game may put you in a sour mood at times when trying to find all collectibles. Collectibles includes finding all of Fynn’s siblings in their eggs and collectible cards that updates the encyclopedia within the game. I highly recommend a guide if only for looking for the cards, since there’s just a few so obscurely hidden that it gives original NES Legend of Zelda flashbacks, and that game at least came with a guide. For casual gamers not interested in 100% completion, this will not pose an issue at all to your experience.

Special note for parents: Despite the “cutesy” look of this game, I would not recommend this game for younger audiences below 12 years old personally. The sometimes unsettling imagery of this game may be too upsetting for younger minds, especially in the last world.

Cavern of Dreams is a much welcome callback to classic 3D platformers of the late 90s/early 2000s. With that said, it certainly sets out to establish its own unique identity with its psychedelic and frankly bizarre world design; as well as the silly yet sometimes unnerving enemies that you will encounter during your journey. I could not state any better how much I enjoyed my time with this game, and I look forward to seeing any future content with this game series.