70%Sega Saturn

A really cool concept 2D/3D sidescroller hybrid flying through trying to build combos and collect orbs to defeat monsters to get to the boss. Boss fights are trial and error, and can be somewhat frustrating due to having to complete the whole level again. Great graphics, cool soundtrack and interesting gameplay.

100%Sega Saturn

Despite first playing in 1996 at a kiosk, then buying it complete with 3D controller only to play through half of the game. Honestly I did not understand the requirements in order to make a A let alone B rank, and would end up with C rankings or lower. Today I kept my original US/North American release and also have a Japanese NTSC-J import of a game I've never completed! That all changed tonight, where I finally understood the rules and finished both stories (Elliot, Claris).

Hard to put in words how whimsically unique this genre-defying SEGA masterpiece is. Everything from the original gameplay, in vivid dreamlike courses, with each lap different than the other. To the music, sound effects, animation, story, characters, bosses, stage design, FMVs, nothing else like it- and it all worked seamlessly.

75%PC

While a classic game that was revolutionary at the time, currently despite the charn, quality aesthetic and passion oozing from this piece, the gameplay itself lacks some qualities that make this one of the top games I've played. The arcade format initially was very unappealing to me, however over time I came to like the game and understood how it benefitted the game itself. Story left a good deal to be desired, not direct whatsoever. Yet, despite all it's flaws, it's hard not to enjoy the game, especially with how smooth most of the mechanics are. You can tell the creators were passionate about the game, it's hard not to enjoy it, especially for such a short romp.

100%PC

I'm bad at it but it's so pretty

80%Sega Saturn

I think it's not a 10 out of 10 game like many people claim, since it's just too simple and confusing at the same time; it took me more than 30 minutes to fully understand what I was doing, even if the game's concept is simple. Even after mastering it, I still think it's a 8 out of 10 game.

It has that now-distinctive Sega Saturn 3D aesthetic, and it's indeed one of the best games for the system. NiGHTS is (in my opinion) one of the cutest and unique characters in the gaming world, even if there isn't much of a background about this fairly memorable gaming character.

As a musician, I can definitely say that the soundtrack is possibly one of the strongest of any arcade like game I've ever heard (apart from the campy "Dreams Dreams" ending track). It's very delicate and subtle. The menu theme, the post-boss theme, the results screen theme... They are all that great.

Gameplay-wise, again, it's a simple game: collect at least 20 blue crystal balls, destroy that ship-looking thingy holding the main ball, and bring it back to the control point. Then repeat it the same thing three more times. Learn how to defeat the stage's boss, and you are done. Try doing all of this the fastest you can, and get at least a C-rank in every level order to unlock the final stage for your character. And... That's all.

I think one of the worst aspects of the game is that due to its extreme simplicity, the boss battles are kinda confusing, because all you have to do is basically to hit them with your dash move, and just avoid them from touching you. And after you learn how to beat them, it's going to be just utterly easy to repeat it.

Another aspect that I literally don't like about the game is how it lacks the minimum explanation, and gives you now idea of what's going on, what you are doing, or what you are supposed to do, so a in-game "help" section would be handy for first-time players.

Anyway, just play it and you'll see. It's a quite nice arcade like action game, and it's like this is Sega Saturn's Crazy Taxi, because they are both arcade games that involve doing your objectives the fastest you can, and mastering every technique/move in order to save precious seconds and gain the best ranking possible. Oh, and if you are playing on the real hardware just like me, a 3D Controller is quite handy, and I highly recommend it if you are planning to play Saturn games you've never played until now.

VERDICT
+ Fast-paced action game with a very unique concept. It's even weird to call it an "action game".
+ Beautiful visuals for the Saturn.
+ One of the best OST I've ever heard in an arcade-style game.
+ Even though beating both Elliot and Claris scenarios is a short experience, you can replay them and try obtaining a better ranking, because mastering the game is indeed fun.

- Just too easy. The actual challenge isn't a big deal.
- Lack of in-game explanation of what's going on.
- Lack of different modes
- There aren't many levels, and the final level for both characters is practically identical.

8/10

50%Sega Saturn

Elliot and Claris' Bizarre Flying Adventure...

70%PC

NiGHTS is easily one of the most "I have no idea what I'm doing" games I've ever played, but jumping past that hurdle gives you a satisfying arcade-like experience, making the mastery of its unique gameplay nature all the more gratifying.

+ Multi-layered 2.5D level design
+ Wonderfully elegant controls

- Obtuse and poorly presented gameplay loop that takes some getting used to
- Occassionally disorienting level routes making foreground/background elements unclear

70%Sega Saturn

I don't think it's the masterpiece a lot of people seem to say it is, but it's still a fun game.
Great visuals for the Saturn, banger OST as usual with Sonic Team games and fun gameplay once you get the hang of it.

This has to be one of the most confusing games I've played in a long time though. It took me a while before I even understood what was going on and what I was supposed to do. I actually looked at the manual for this, which is rare. You also gotta love how the game shows how to play it AFTER you spent several minutes trying to figure out how it works and getting a game over.

70%PC

NiGHTS into Dreams is a high score based game that sees you trying to collect 20 orbs as fast as possible so you can build up your score and progress though the stage ultimately leading to a boss fight.

The levels in NiGHTS into Dreams reward memorisation and optimization of movement, because you gain a bonus multiplier after exploding the Ideya Capture, you are encouraged to collect 20 orbs as fast as possible so you can have as much time with the multiplier active as possible giving you the chance to build up and maximise your score. This all makes the game very replayable as you can keep optimizing your movement to clear levels faster and improve your score.

The stages in NiGHTS into Dreams are all well varied, with each one featuring a few mechanics that are unique and help to keep each of the stages from feeling too repetitive and growing stale. Each of the stages features a unique boss fight at the end with each one being fought differently, each making for a distinctive fight that never feel overly monotonous.

NiGHTS into Dreams is inherently a high score focused game, and this can be seen by the fact that the last stages have a score requirement you must meet before they can be unlocked, although admittedly a fairly reasonable one to achieve, just needing a C rank average across all other stages. This encourages you to keep playing and try to improve upon your scores so you can unlock those stages and experience the ending of the game.

Overall, NiGHTS into Dreams is short, fun and replayable game that will have you wanting to optimize your movement and maximise your score.

40%PlayStation 5

Moments were fun, but in the end it was frustrating enough to score well that I had no desire to keep trying. Felt lost trying to navigate a lot of the time because you can see so little of what's around you. Boss battles were pretty cool though. Definitely could've used a tutorial (thank goodness for online guides).

60%PC

sega has an insane vice grip on me and i will eat up anything they do. i don't think this game is really all that amazing but it's pretty fun and just screams sega so i had a really good time.

100%Sega Saturn

NiGHTS is a very bizarre game in that theres not really much of a tutorial or anything whatsoever to help new players understand the extremely abstracted mechanics, which leads to new players just being sort of confused when they first play the game. I know I was, at least. However with that confusion comes curiosity, and with that curiosity some players like me choose to learn how the heck to play this weird game, and through going down that rabbithole we are treated with one of the finest crafted, most original and polished score attack games of all time. Definitely reccomend giving this game a try, and even if you are confused at first just focus on getting points and maybe the game will click, if not then idk

60%PC

10/10 if the only goal is to make something that's never been seen before. But in games like this it would be a good ideya to explain how to play, wouldn't it? Especially in the boss battles, which make you play the last 4 levels again if you can't work out what to do - and then do it - within two minutes.
It reminded me of Jet Set Radio which was hard to get into until replaying the levels for high scores. But I did that here and it never really clicked. Everything is still far too zoomed in, the gimmick sections in each level still have nightmare fuel controls, the bits of other levels that appear in front of or behind the current plane are still an annoying distraction. In hindsight maybe this was the beginning of the end for Sonic Team. With the awkwardly animated CG "story" cutscenes and the must-skip credits music (with children singing), the journey to Soleanna starts here.

70%Sega Saturn

This wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. Sure, it's very unique, I'll give it that, but it's also very short and having to replay levels if you run out of time at the boss is poor design.

70%PC

The flying in the normal levels still feels great and has aged surprisingly well after all these years, but the boss fights are still frustrating, with a lack of even any hint of what you're supposed to be doing until after you've already failed in most of them and crappy camera angles straight out of the mid-90s.