There is something sinister in Yume Nikki. It isn't really a horror game though, there is far more funny, cute, or just interesting things to see compared to anything out right scary, but there is always a vague sense that something else is going on just underneath the surface. The way the dream creatures seem to dance over Madotsuki's body is the most disturbing part of the game to me. Did they create the dream world with its wonders as a way to lure Madotsuki deeper into a nightmare so she would die? Or do they just represent the final shattering of Madotsuki's ability to differentiate between fantasy and reality? Did Madotsuki think she could fly off the balcony like she could from the mall?

That was the revolution of Yume Nikki its a game which doesn't tell you how to feel about it and offers no answers. Certainly older games offered mysteries with their surreal nature, but none have ever consciously demanded the player interpret it the same way Yume Nikki does. Plenty of other games have vague wordless stories, but more often then not they are too abstract for their own good. The images here are filled with symbolic shapes and motifs. It is certainly vague but it resonates in a way pure abstraction simply cannot.