Weird Dreams

The game starts where the novella ends, with Steve lying on the operating table and slipping into the dream world. Steve is controlled by the player through numerous surreal worlds. He can collect certain weapons and items on these levels, but cannot carry them to another level, with a few exceptions. Steve has no health meter, but there is a heart rate monitor, which goes from 75bpm (normal) to 100bpm (in frightening situations) to 170bpm (shortly before death).

He immediately dies if he comes into contact with an enemy or an obstacle. He can also die if he remains too long in certain areas such as the Country Garden, where a lawnmower will come and kill him. When Steve dies, the game returns to the scene in the operating room where the surgeons attempt to save him, only to flatline and then for his heart to start back up. If the player gets a Game Over, Steve will flatline and his heart will not beat again, returning the player to the title screen.

The background story is told by a 64-page novella with 19 chapters written by Rupert Goodwins.

Steve is in love with his attractive coworker Emily. Unbeknownst to Steve, Emily is possessed by a daemon named Zelloripus who was banished to Earth, stripped of most of her powers, and trapped in a human female due to unspecified crimes done to other daemons. Emily sees a chance to let someone else suffer and stifle her boredom. She tricks Steve into taking three pills she has mixed to "cure his flu".

The general plot was conceived by the developers, and Rupert Goodwins was asked to write the novella included with the game.

The scenarios in the game are not based on Serrano's own nightmares, but are inspired by the paintings of Salvador Dalí, Terry Gilliam's cartoon animations for Monty Python, and on odd observations. After a visit to the dentist, Serrano developed a phobia of teeth, which is noticeable in the design of the monsters, many of them having mouths with large teeth.

Weird Dreams received mixed reviews. While most critics praised its visual style, there were some criticisms depending on the game platform. Frustrating difficulty, long loading times, and a disappointing soundtrack were common criticisms, albeit not unanimous.