DayD: Through Time

DayD: Through Time is an action-strategy game set in a fantastical world where players navigate through time to complete missions. The game features a unique blend of board game mechanics and time management, offering a challenging and engaging experience. Players must strategically plan their moves and manage resources to achieve victory in a variety of levels and scenarios.

DayD: Through Time: Review

Introduction

In an era dominated by high-octane AAA titles and sprawling open-world epics, DayD: Through Time (2018) carves out a niche as a quaint time-management strategy game with a whimsical premise. Developed by Creobit and Uni-Bit Studio Inc., and published by 8floor Ltd., this entry in the DayD series blends resource management with dinosaur taming and time-travel shenanigans. While its repetitive loops and lack of innovation drew criticism, the game’s charm lies in its simplicity and accessibility. This review explores whether DayD: Through Time deserves recognition as a hidden gem or serves merely as a derivative clone of its predecessors.

Development History & Context

The Studio and Vision

Creobit and Uni-Bit Studio Inc., both affiliates of 8floor Ltd., are no strangers to casual strategy games. Their portfolios include titles like Gnomes Garden and Lost Artifacts, which share DayD’s core mechanics of resource gathering and structure-building. The team’s creative lead, Alexander Blagodarenko, sought to transplant this formula into a Jurassic-themed adventure, blending strategy with lighthearted humor. However, the game’s modest budget and reliance on established systems limited its ambition.

Technological Constraints

Built for low-spec PCs and later ported to consoles, DayD: Through Time prioritized accessibility over graphical fidelity. Its 2D scrolling visuals and point-and-click interface reflect the limitations of its engine, which struggled with bugs like vanishing resources (a recurring issue in 8floor’s catalog). Despite these constraints, the team delivered a functional, if unpolished, experience optimized for quick play sessions.

The Gaming Landscape

Released in 2018, the game entered a market saturated with mobile-inspired time-management titles. While overshadowed by contemporaries like Hidden Through Time, DayD leveraged its dinosaur theme and 50-level campaign to appeal to casual gamers. Its $14.99 price point positioned it as a budget-friendly alternative to AAA strategy games.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Plot and Characters

The story follows Brian Sunshine, an eccentric scientist who builds a time machine to fulfill his childhood dream of meeting dragons—only to find dinosaurs instead. His nemesis, Doctor Awful (né Terrible), aims to enslave the prehistoric creatures with mind-control chips. With help from Helen, a benevolent dinosaur, Brian must thwart Awful’s plans across 50 levels.

Dialogue and Themes

The narrative is delivered through static cutscenes and minimal dialogue, leaning heavily on slapstick humor and campy villainy. Themes of friendship and environmental stewardship emerge subtly, particularly in missions where players protect dinosaurs from destruction. However, the writing lacks depth, serving primarily as a backdrop for gameplay.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Core Loop and Progression

The game follows a familiar template:
1. Gather resources (wood, stone, food) from nodes.
2. Clear obstacles (rocks, vines) to expand pathways.
3. Build/upgrade structures (workshops, dinosaur pens) to automate production.
4. Complete objectives (repair bridges, light signal fires) under time constraints.

Levels are graded with a three-star system based on speed, incentivizing optimization. Progression unlocks new abilities like time-freezing and construction buffs, though these add minimal strategic variety.

Combat and Customization

“Combat” is nonexistent—players scare off hostile dinosaurs by building campfires or deploying tamed dinos. Customization is limited to upgrading base structures, which marginally improves efficiency.

UI and Flaws

The UI is clean but utilitarian, with resource counts and objectives displayed plainly. Notable bugs include:
– Vanishing resources if collected during upgrades.
– Level 37 soft-lock if campfires are built before completing a pool (unfixed since 2018).

World-Building, Art & Sound

Setting and Atmosphere

The game’s 50 levels span jungles, volcanoes, and icy tundras, though environments feel repetitive due to recycled assets. Dinosaurs—from raptors to T-Rexes—are rendered in colorful, cartoonish sprites, evoking a Saturday-morning cartoon vibe.

Visual Direction

While sharper than Gnomes Garden, the 2D visuals lack detail, resembling upscaled mobile graphics. Animations are minimal, with workers and dinosaurs moving stiffly across the screen.

Sound Design

The soundtrack, a loop of upbeat synth tunes, grows grating over time. Sound effects—like chopping wood or dinosaur growls—are serviceable but unremarkable.

Reception & Legacy

Critical and Commercial Reception

DayD: Through Time garnered mixed reviews. Critics praised its accessibility and content volume but panned its repetitiveness:
– Xbox Tavern (5.9/10): “Falls short due to its tedious loop.”
– GBHBL (5.5/10): “Inferior to the games it copies.”

The game sold modestly, finding an audience among casual strategy enthusiasts.

Industry Influence

While not groundbreaking, DayD reinforced 8floor’s reputation as a purveyor of budget-friendly time-management games. Its failure to innovate, however, cemented its status as a footnote in the genre.

Conclusion

DayD: Through Time is a competent but unambitious entry in the time-management genre. Its charming premise and accessible mechanics cater to casual players, while its lack of depth and technical flaws deter genre veterans. Though overshadowed by its predecessors and contemporaries, the game’s 50-level campaign offers fleeting enjoyment for those seeking a low-stakes strategic challenge. In the annals of gaming history, DayD remains a curious relic—a dinosaur itself in an evolving landscape.

Final Verdict: A middling effort that fulfills its niche but leaves room for growth. Worth a purchase on sale for casual strategy fans; others may find it extinct on arrival.