Little Nemo: The Dream Master is a game that takes me back to my childhood. It’s a classic 2D platforming game developed by Capcom and was released for the NES in 1990. The game is based on a comic strip from the early 1900s, which is evident in its story and character design.
The game follows Nemo, a young boy who is summoned to Slumberland to save King Morpheus from the evil Nightmare King. Nemo is transported to Slumberland whenever he falls asleep and must navigate his way through a new dream/level each night. Throughout the story, he gets repeatedly woken up by his parents whenever he finishes a dream/level. This continues until he finally gets to Nightmare Land and defeats the Nightmare King.
The story is simple yet strange and awesome, and it’s refreshing to see a game that explores dreams and their symbols and narratives. As a psychiatrist in training, I appreciate the creative canvas that dreams provide and wish more games would explore them like Little Nemo: The Dream Master does.
The gameplay is classic 2D platforming, with tight controls that guide Nemo with the directional buttons, and the A and B buttons allowing him to throw candy and jump. Candy doesn’t hurt enemies, but Nemo can feed it to certain enemies to take control of them and gain their powers. Enemies that can be controlled include hornets, lizards, gorillas, and frogs, among others. Controlled enemies have unique powers that can help Nemo navigate around levels, including climbing on walls, digging underground, swimming, and flying.
What sets Little Nemo: The Dream Master apart from other platformers on the NES is that the levels aren’t linear. Nemo must find several keys scattered around a level to unlock the exit. This design decision allows for much more open levels that force Nemo to discover secrets and hidden areas that make the game feel satisfying. The levels are well-designed too and force Nemo to use every enemy power he has to its fullest.
In the later part of the game, the design changes to a more Mega Man focus by granting Nemo a magic wand that dispatches enemies and forcing him to battle bosses throughout the last three levels. Obtaining this item was always exciting to me as a kid, as Nemo always felt quite weak, but I did miss the more open levels found earlier in the game.
In terms of graphics, the game is extremely colourful and still looks good for a NES game. The sprites are a nice size, and the levels have such variety. The dream themes of some of these levels are incredible, including the first level with the giant mushrooms, the third level where you travel through a child’s toy train set, and the sixth level where you drift through a night sky. Few games, let alone NES games,
Summary
Little Nemo: The Dream Master is a timeless 2D platforming game that takes players on a journey through a psychedelic dreamscape. Explore open levels, obtain powers from enemies, and battle bosses to save King Morpheus from the Nightmare King.
