Note: I had a chance to play the full version, thanks to a totally awesome friend. ^^



Tavern Talk Stories: Dreamwalker is a cozy, fantasy visual novel developed and published by Gentle Troll Entertainment. You're the owner of The Drowsy Dragon, a tavern in a small portside town in the world of Phesoa. You greet guests who come into your tavern and serve them their desired drinks, along with creating quests and mixing the right drinks so that any quest takers may be victorious in their endeavors. After an extremely unusual fog appears and engulfs the world, affecting the people, your patrons seek to investigate this strange phenomenon and return the world to its normal state. What will happen? Only through your choices of drinks to serve will the fate of your patrons be decided...

As for the gameplay, you can initially decide on a customized name (default name being Cosmo) and gender before diving into the game. Choices are presented throughout the story even though they don't make any significant impact, only influencing the flavor text. You can mix drinks by pouring specific amount of potions, using either your mouse or controller. (For review purposes, I used my mouse.)

https://v1.steam.hlxgame.cc/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3745752088

Quests are created by taking notes of gossip that tavern patrons give, and then these same or different patrons can accept them. With quests, there are two approaches for completing them, which lead either to a positive or negative result, and you have to choose which drinks with specific attributes will best help. Steam achievements are available, and at the time of this review, they count towards a user's global total.


After having played and reviewed Gentle Troll Entertainment's first game, Tavern Talk, I've been enjoying these kinds of cozy games with fun gameplay. I played the demo way back when it was initially released, and thanks to a wonderful friend, I had the chance to play the full version and share my thoughts. ^^


As the store page states, this is a standalone story, so you don't need to have played Tavern Talk although I highly recommend it. It's a great game. With that said, I like how the story starts off. The day starts off quietly, with Cosmo's friend/acquaintance, Kerbosia Mariyam, dropping by for a drink. Other patrons, new and old, with a wide range of personalities enter the tavern for their drinks, and it seems like things are going to be slow, with the exception of the occasional side quest. However, events start to get exciting after a mysterious cloud envelops the world and starts plaguing people with nightmares. It's quite the twist, and most of the story revolves around the fog and the perpetrator behind it.

Although I found the story to be satisfying enough, I feel like it lacks a couple of elements that Tavern Talk had. When the final villain is revealed, it seems like it comes out of nowhere. Also, as a couple of people have noted, the very latter part of the story feels rushed, and I have to agree. In my opinion, the first Tavern Talk is better, but I do have fondness for it. In addition, this is just a personal preference, but for all the yuri fans, there's a hint of a possible blossoming romance, but because a certain event happens, it doesn't go anywhere.

However, I did enjoy the wide cast of characters and getting to learn about their stories. For example, there's a backstory between Cosmo and Mariyam, which involves Mariyam's younger sister, Zarah. Then there's Aegeus, a restaurant owner who secretly dreams of becoming an adventurer. Also, for those who did play Tavern Talk, the villain from that game becomes a patron here, which probably isn't a surprise since this is a prequel. I like that there are multiple endings, just like in the first game, although it feels like the best ending here has less fanfare.

The gameplay is pretty fun although it feels more formulaic this time, having to think of the right combination of potions to make the correct drink. However, the gameplay controls are the same as in the first game, so if you're used to them, you won't have any issues. Even though it can feel tedious to create drinks in multiple playthroughs, you can choose to skip already read text, so that helps a bit. Creating quests is the same as well, and they're pretty doable although you may encounter a few hints that are irrelevant. However, I had no problems obtaining all Steam achievements even though it will take multiple playthroughs. As it may be difficult to 100% complete the game blindly, there are quite a few wonderful guides, both on Steam and other sites, that can help. ^^


The art has a lovely style that is the same as in the first game, so I'm glad that the developers kept the same artist(s) here. The sprites and backgrounds are drawn and colored well, and I especially like the trinkets that you get from quests. Dreamwalker's art style gives off that warm, cozy vibe as you're welcoming patrons and serving them drinks.

https://v1.steam.hlxgame.cc/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3745751941

https://v1.steam.hlxgame.cc/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3745751672

As for the music, the tracks are lovely to listen to. They give off that feeling of being in a seaside coast town. Of course, all the tracks are instrumental, with the exceptions being the track when you open the game and the track in the ending credits. Most tracks are relaxing although a couple have those intense, scary moments, which makes sense, considering certain events in the game. The game isn't voice acted, with the exception being the opening of the game and the ending (if you get the normal or best ending).


Would I recommend Tavern Talk Stories: Dreamwalker? If you enjoyed Tavern Talk and want more of the same, like the drink mixing aspect, and/or enjoy getting those Steam achievements, then it's worth a look. Granted, I did enjoy the story of Tavern Talk more, but this may come down to personal preference, as Dreamwalker has a solid story on its own. Still, it was great to return to this series, and I'm curious to see any future games by Gentle Troll Entertainment (even though it's a bit too soon at the time I'm writing this XD).

For more detailed, fully complete, high quality reviews like this, please follow The Introverted Gamer, prioritizing heart and soul always. ^^

[Black Box Includes Vague Spoilers for the First Game]

After having played the first Tavern Talk game, this game coming out was the best thing ever in my life. I've never felt such distress, need to pace around the room, and utter dread while staring at the ceiling as I did when playing this game knowing the information that I've known. No matter though, the game still is cozy, and the drink mixing is more challenging and fun! I adore all the characters and their story, and I'm excited to 100% this one!

A somewhat weaker prequel?

I did a full 12-hour playthrough and got to an ending, and enjoyed the game, but I think it’s weaker than the predecessor. I wish Steam had a middle option. The overall experince is good, but there negative things that soured the game experince.
It is a prequel, a second game in this universe, but it feels more like a "first game" than the first “Tavern Talk” game in a way.

Drink mixing is now more math based and is somewhat more frustrating than before, especially in the beginning, although that comes to personal preference.
Visually potion bottles are OK, but compared to first game creative design of bottles, they are just very bland. There are also no infusions.
The ready drinks look great though, no complaints here, very fun and creative designs.

Characters and quests are interesting, but there are less characters and not a lot of quests, and it takes some time before the first quest even can be created.
There are only 8 characters in this game, compared to the cast of 18 main characters of the first game.
The story is interesting, but also there were certain aspects that are lacking or feel not fleshed out enough.

Spoilers bellow about narrative:
There is no foreshadowing of the main villain, it just kinda happens? Of course, there is an obvious "world is in danger" twist that was coming but there is no direct confrontation with the main antagonist, like in the first game, and not a lot of foreshadowing of the twist villain, which felt like a weak twist. There are also some unanswered questions, and it feels like the climax of the story should have been fleshed out a bit more. Also, a certain fight with a character was resolved way too fast, that makes conflict feel weak, and it ad such a good start to it too...