An Interface So Frustrating…
The interface in Dreamlords leaves a lot to be desired, especially considering all of the screenshots and information on the official website puts the emphasis on the 3D client. The only mention of the frustrating web client is in the game features, where it hails it as “a state of the art web client accessible from anywhere, no plug-ins required.”
The web interface is far from state of the art. It's bulky, difficult to navigate, refreshes ungodly slowly, and makes your general experience with a vital part of the game very, very frustrating. The tutorial alone for getting started in the game is 99 steps long, which begins at an agonizingly slowly pace, only to seem rushed around step 70. 90% of your time playing Dreamlords will be spent in the web client, with the actual RTS client being used solely for quests, battles, and PvP. I don't know what the guys at Lockpick Entertainment were thinking, but ALT + TAB in a game is a very bad thing, especially when it becomes a crucial part of your game.
As you can see, each move you make across each of the squares requires a refresh of the page, making the game very heavy if you plan on playing it longer than a few moments. Information isn't presented in an easy to access and read manner, instead you must search for it amongst several options, hoping to strike the right one. Overall, the interface is just badly thought out.
Client & Gameplay
The installed client is no better from a design point of view. Vital information takes up more than a third of the screen, forcing you to constantly rotate the camera in order to get a view of all of the action. Unit cards take up the entire bottom of the screen, displaying unnecessary artwork for each one, which contributes to hiding the action.
The AI of the client is pretty horrible as well, directing units on the field is a tedious and painful process, especially when you have several types of units, resulting in four or five different unit cards. Keeping track with them is made difficult again by the unit cards, as you're unable to select multiple units using the cards as you would in any other RTS game. Rotating the camera isn't as easy as it could be, forcing you to remember an out of the ordinary command which can slow your reaction time.
The current client also only affords around four or five very small maps for you to do combat. The maps are used over and over, and the monsters you fight pretty much stay the same. The only differences in the monsters is that they might have higher HP and armor from one map to another. Aside from the 10 unique monster models and five maps, that's all that comprises this 500mb download.
I'm Outta Here
Because Dreamlords has eras which are started over once certain objectives have been met, many players give up towards the end of an era. Once the final quest is completed by any convergence (guild), the game starts over completely. You lose everything you've worked for up to that point except for a few traits that carry over. This is pretty bad in an RTS. When people realize a convergence is close to completing the final quest, they'll stop logging in. It makes no sense to keep playing when you know that in another week or so, the era will be over and you'll be forced to start again, almost from scratch. This feature was probably added to try and improve the longevity of the game and give new players a chance to compete with the old, but all it does is hinder those who might otherwise find it an enjoyable casual game, despite its many flaws.
The concept for Dreamlords was really a solid, refreshing, perhaps even innovated one. However, the slow browser, lack of a unique client, and redundant gameplay can't redeem the game. Once you've realized you're spending 30 minutes on refresh pages and you've seen the same monster for four different quests, you'll spend your time… and money elsewhere.
