When I Dream Review

If you enjoy playing games like Apples to Apples, or party games in general, there is a (somewhat) new kid on the block who is sure to make your next large gathering incredibly enjoyable. Although When I Dream was originally released many years ago, the game has gone through a reprint, with brand new cards, artwork, and event extra goodies that make the package that much more enjoyable. But even though the game looks aesthetically pleasing, does it work well in a group setting? Let’s dive into When I Dream, and see how it all works.

 Setup

Once you’ve opened your copy of When I Dream, you can begin removing the games numerous components. Inside you will find a large board that will act as the communal playing area for the entire group. On that board, you will affix a large white bed, removing the pillow from the set as this will be used later. When the bed is affixed to the board, open up all the cards that come with the game, and place them into the bed fixture.

You will notice two words on each card – on opposite ends, facing towards the edge of the card – but it doesn’t matter how you stack these or in what order. Once the cards are in the bed, put the pillow on top, hiding one side of the card and ‘removing’ that word from the game. Now players will know exactly what card they are playing with, and which word on that card.

Depending on the number of players, you will remove some of the player cards from the box in certain denominations of fairies, sandman, and boogey man cards. These will be shuffled, and dealt one to each player, except the starting player who will be handed the sleep mask to put over their eyes.

The scoring tokens can be placed around the outside of the board, within reach of all the players. And, you are ready to play!

 How to Play

When you are the ‘dreamer’, the mask will be put over your eyes to shield your line of sight, and the top card from the deck will be removed and placed at the bottom of the bed. Then each player will receive their player card – either a fairy, sandman, or boogey man – with the extra card being laid aside.

In When I Dream, players will take turns in clockwise order providing the ‘dreamer’ a one word clue that may or may not help him guess the word that is on the card. Not everyone will actually want to the ‘dreamer’ to correctly state the word – we will get into this later – while others want him to guess it correctly. The number of cards in the correct and incorrect piles at the end of the round – which lasts two minutes in total – will determine who scores points, and how many. Let’s take a look at the three player cards, and how they score at the end of the game.

Fairies: will score one point per card in the correct pile. Therefore, during the game, fairies will want the ‘dreamer’ to correcty guess as many cards as possible, to maximize their potential points.

Boogie Man: will score one point per card in the incorrect pile. Therefore, during the game, boogie man will want the ‘dreamer’ to incorrectly guess as many cards as possible, to maximize their potential points.

Sandman: scoring depends on the difference between the two piles. If they are equal – say 3 cards in each pile – they would get three points, plus an additional 2 points for them being equal. If they piles are not the same, and are separated by only one card, they will score whatever pile is larger. If there is more than a one card difference, they will score the smaller pile.

Once a round ends, and before scoring as dictated above, the ‘dreamer’ – prior to removing their mask – will need to recount their dream as best as possible, using the words they guessed during the round. Since the person won’t know whether they got a word right or wrong, they will generally attempt to craft a dream using all the words they guessed. For example, if the player had the words car, travel, hotel, and spoon, their dream might be told as such:

One day I was traveling to the hotel, and realized I needed a spoon, so I jumped into my car and went to the nearest store.

The person guessing will receive bonus points if he is able to correctly name all the cards in the correct pile, ignoring those he got incorrect. An additional 2 points will be awarded to this player if they can name all the cards.

After completing as many rounds as you would like – making sure everyone is the ‘dreamer’ on an equal number of occasions – the player will add of their points, and whoever has the most points is the winner.

 Is It Good?

When I Dream is easily one of the best party games I’ve played in a long time, and I’ll be upfront and honest that ever requesting this title for review, and then watching some reviews – not demonstrations – online, I was pretty skeptical despite all the praise the game was getting. I didn’t think it would work well, but once I saw the strategy behind the various players, I quickly realized this was ingenious!

Playing as a fairy is simple – and there are always more fairies in the game than anything else – as you are simply trying to give amazing clues so the ‘dreamer’ can guess the correct word. I originally thought the Boogie Man would have the greatest advantage – since it shouldn’t be hard to screw up a guess – but after playing just a few rounds, I realized why that couldn’t be true.

In most situations, you will have more people at the table helping you guess correctly than those trying to dissuade you. Therefore, the majority of the one word clues should be somewhat similar, pointing towards a specific object (which is on the card). Therefore, the Boogie Man – and the Sandman when he is attempting to mess with the ‘dreamer’ – need to be very clever with their clues. Let’s look at an example.

If the word on the card is ‘lightning’ and the following clues are given – electricity, bolt, storm, peanut butter – it’s pretty obvious to everyone which of those 4 clues makes absolutely no sense. A Boogie Man can quickly out himself within a round if he or she isn’t careful with their clues, which adds layers of strategy that I never thought possible in such a simple game.

And ultimately, the game works really, really well. Since it is so easy to teach, and has a fun “recount your dream moment” after each round, it makes for a fantastic game to play when many friends are over for a party, or during that next family reunion. When you add in the colourful cards with outstanding artwork, and the high quality pieces which publisher Repos is well known for, you have a great little package that should be on any party-throwing-persons list of games.