I'm about as happy as anyone that the 3D-collect-a-thon platformer seems to have returned in the last few years. The genre has seen some pretty inventive and fresh twists and it is clear that developers are looking back for inspiration in new games. Cavern of Dreams sets itself to visually resemble the first era of N64 3D platformers like Croc and perhaps even Gex. Unfortunately the stiff gameplay and slow progression leave a lot to be desired from this short romp.

Little context is given in Cavern of Dreams, but you control Fynn, a small impish looking dragon that wanders into a mysterious cave system that connects many worlds. Upon entering the cave he's greeted by a magical witch that is able to grant him new power by returning the eggs of his lost siblings to her. Your job is simple, find the eggs and collect enough of them to gain new platforming capabilities to make your way through the cavern.

At first you don't have much in terms of platforming capabilities. Your jump is minimal and can barely reach ledges, but you do have a roll. The roll can be initiated at any point and increases your movement speed massively, which can be used to cross large gaps and traverse the open levels. The main hub makes way to several types of levels, which are each interconnected. The game lacks any form of combat or enemies, meaning that the biggest obstacle will be your way of accessing the hidden eggs. The world design is pretty interesting and clearly takes inspiration from levels in Banjo-Kazooie, Super Mario 64 and Donkey Kong 64. I especially liked the mechanical flying birds where you need to remove boils that are hurting it from the inside.

But that was mostly where my interest ended. Cavern of Dreams does very little to keep the player engaged in its world and characters. Fynn doesn't talk or respond to much going on in the world, leaving little personality to connect with during the adventure. But what really soured me on the experience was the slow rollout of powers and the stiff controls. The jump never really feels satisfying and tries to be improved over time with additional abilities adding powers like a glide. But it never truly clicks while playing. The roll increases speed, but Fynn quickly becomes uncontrollably fast and levels aren't really accommodated for it. I also felt that giving out power ups over time makes the game so “top-heavy” that you really need to commit to playing the game before it becomes fun, but by that point I had mostly tuned out. The repetitive music and level structure were the final nail in the coffin.

Honestly the disappointment on Cavern of Dreams hit me pretty hard. This genre has hit a fantastic revival era and I feel that the game really does attempt to carve its own identity. But it gets stuck in the mud of not being able to stand on its own. It feels too slow for a 3D platformer and there are too few collectibles to call it a collect-a-thon. Cavern of Dreams left me dreaming for a better game and that's just a real shame.