Dream Shark - Pt. 1

Dream Shark - Pt. 1

Benjamin McCarthy · 2025 · Adventure, Story Rich, Sci-fi, Surreal, Interactive Fiction

PC
2 user reviews100% · 2
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About Dream Shark - Pt. 1

When an escapist child’s VR mask breaks, he begins to have intense nightmares. He must learn presence through his dream characters to face the shadowy beast he runs from.Play as TAC, a cyborg cyclops child living on the moon in the year 2300. TAC racks up points in virtual reality and explores the futuristic moonscape with a jetpack to avoid the struggles of family life. But when his routine is disrupted, he’s pulled into a journey deep within his subconscious.Enter TAC’s dreamscape—a lush crystal island inhabited by an advanced society of axolotls. Solve puzzles, challenges, and hidden mysteries to unlock mini-games and extras, helping TAC become lucid and take control of his dream - but beware, the Dream Shark is always lurking.

Features

  • A Constantly Evolving Experience – Gameplay shifts between top-down exploration, platforming, isometric puzzles, faux-3D sequences, and shoot ‘em ups.
  • Two Worlds, One Journey – Explore the tech-dominated moon and the organic dream island, each with distinct environments, characters, and challenges.
  • Intuitive & Accessible Gameplay – Simple controls with clear guidance make it easy to jump in, though basic reading comprehension is required.
  • A Fully Original Chiptune Soundtrack – Immerse yourself in a dynamic score that adapts to TAC’s journey.
  • Cinematic 8-Bit Pixel Art – A richly detailed retro aesthetic, handcrafted for an authentic Game Boy experience.
  • Made by One Developer – A passion project built entirely by Benjamin McCarthy.
Do you have what it takes to face the Dream Shark?

What Steam players say

Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.

✦ AI summary

Players praise this charming indie game for its genuine world-building, creative storytelling centered on a kid's life on the moon, and the engaging "SIM" virtual reality system that lets players create their own universes. However, the game's intentional Gameboy Color aesthetic and simple graphics divide opinion—while it's lovingly crafted and works well on retro hardware, some players feel it's poorly suited to PC and question the value proposition for a game of this visual caliber, plus some find the music disappointing. Most recommend giving it time to open up beyond the initial setup, as

Recommended Jun 9, 2025
I've played this game for a few hours and it's awesome! The world building is great. You're a kid living on the moon just doing kid stuff (going to school, getting yelled at by your parents, the usual). There's a matrix/internet thing kids play on where they can make their own universe. Seems oddly realistic for a kid moon life. Even though the graphics are simple Gameboy graphics, there's still a ton of detail. As far as the actual gameplay goes this game has a lot of different things going on. It's probably best defined as a story driven RPG. Some scenes are top down, some are isometric, some are profile view. The story starts out as a kid trying to get to school, meets an influential person, and becomes inspired. I don't want to spoil anything more. My favorite thing about this game is all the different minigames. Each scene seems to have something different or something else to play with. Some of the minigames are... Some include: Jetpack platformer where you jump from rock to rock trying not to fall Scooter Racing (which looks really cool) Fishing minigame (shrimping I think?) which appears later on in the story Overall there's a lot here that I'm excited to explore.
5 found this helpful
Recommended May 16, 2025
I've only gotten about an hour into the story, and the game has already captured my inner child and sparked so much curiosity about this new world & "SIM". I can't wait to continue the story and I'll definitely update the review when i finish the game. Wonderful!!!!!
4 found this helpful
Not recommended May 4, 2026
I guess I need to preface this review with a couple of notes, first that the game is genuinely and sincerely made, it's not a cash grab scam or any kind of low effort shovelware, a lot of work went into this (although I feel that, and this is confirmed with the dead reception for this game, that was wasted effort). And also that this was not designed to be a PC game, it's a Gameboy Color game. Indeed, if I was reviewing this for a Gameboy Color game review, I don't see why it wouldn't even get a positive recommendation from me. It's also worth noting that it comes across very authentically. However, my gaming rig cost thousands of dollars in high end parts and is not by any way, shape or form, a Gameboy Color (a handheld "console" from 1998... this is a game made for last century!) It is the year 2026, not 1998. I am a PC gamer here to play PC games, and this is also true for the vast, overwhelming majority of PC games on Steam. In fact, you cannot even access Steam from a Gameboy Color. This is a case of a game in the wrong place. And, ultimately, because this has been published on the wrong platform, alongside hundreds of thousands of actual PC games, it must be judged…
3 found this helpful
Recommended Jun 1, 2026
Ok. So it is basically an 8-bit adventure platformer with minigames. The start is a little bit rough as it starts in a virtual reality, like Ready Player One (the book, not the movie), where you can collect points and buy upgrades, then you wake up, and the real game begins. As it turns out, you are a schoolboy with divorced parents and a big brother (probably biographical inspiration). After you meet the family, the adventure begins. I don't want to spoil the rest. It is quite an interesting indie game that is worth experiencing, but it needs time to open up, so keep this in mind and don't judge it from the first 20 mins. (But the music is sh*t and the price is just too much for a game of this caliber, just to say something not so nice too. Worth mentioning in the end, the game works with a controller ( D pad + A/B)) [quote]Follow us for more [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45113328-Awesome-Adventure-Friends/] Awesome Adventures![/url] [/quote]
1 found this helpful
Recommended May 18, 2025
First of all, I did not play the Steam version of Dream Shark too long. For the biggest part, I played the physical module on my Analogue Pocket. The developer offered a couple of Steam keys and I am happy trying to push this indie title. I enjoyed my playthrough a lot and it is one the best and most original home brew titles for a retro console I have played so far. Of course, if you are not into the aesthetics and overall simplicity of a Gameboy Color game, this is not for you. You play as Tac, a cyborg cyclops child living on the moon, in the year 2300. He lives with his mother and older brother in a small lunar dwelling. Even though his mother is hardworking and tries her best, her efforts of providing fuel for her family is mostly at the cost of her children's and her own happiness. His father prefers avoiding daily problems, including his responsibilities of parenthood. There is no ecosystem on the moon; a luminous turquoise liquid the Astro People simply call 'fuel' keeps them alive. To temporarily escape the grey reality, all Astro People wear a VR blindfold while sleeping. They engage in a digital simulation, called 'The SIM'. The SIM is comprised of user created worlds t…
1 found this helpful

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