Dreams in the Witch House to become reality on Windows and Linux

Written by Drew Onia — April 3, 2022 at 10:15

Moving away from home to go to school is tough at the best of times. You’ve got to find new friends, a place to live, and if you’re Walter Gilman, protagonist of Atom Brain Games’ upcoming genre-bending hybrid Dreams in the Witch House, a way to stop the apocalypse by the end of the semester.

Set in Arkham, Massachusetts during the late 1920s, Dreams in the Witch House takes inspiration from the H.P. Lovecraft short story of the same name. Promising young student Walter Gilman has just moved to Arkham to attend Miskatonic University, renting a room at the Dombrowski’s boarding house, which is rife with rumors of supernatural occurrences. At first Gilman takes little interest in the stories, until he begins having strange dreams. Before long he discovers “a hideous scheme is underway,” and now he has only two months to “start preparing for the dreaded May-Eve.”

The game's indie developer describes it as a “unique mix of point-and-click adventure and open-world survival game.” The city of Arkham is brought to life in stylish 320x180 pixel art with an advancing “day/evening/night” cycle and ever-changing weather. Players must help Gilman prepare by managing his money, health, sanity, hunger, and more, ensuring he’s fit to face whatever challenges await. Or not, if you'd rather avail yourself of the freedom to pursue different avenues entirely, including concentrating on Gilman’s thesis work by delving into the “forbidden books at Miskatonic University.” You could also focus on making friends, keeping yourself in “good physical and mental” health, or you can even “just stay in bed, and hope that it all goes away.” With “random events, city activities and encounters” occuring on the way to several possible endings, the experience is designed to span 10-20 hours and be highly replayble.

A passion project six years in the making, Dreams in the Witch House is at least nearing completion, with a projected release expected sometime in 2022 on Steam for Windows and Linux. In the meantime, you can continue to follow the game’s development on the developer's Facebook page.