What this translates to, gameplay-wise, are third-person sequences where you pilot Aiba through surreal spaces, running about to try to reach the final, deepest area of the Somnium where crucial information hides. To do this, you need to break mental locks. Mental locks are barriers that stop you from exploring deeper into a person’s Somnium, and can be broken by interacting with the environment, often in very strange ways that would only work in this illogical dream space. 

As you progress, you unlock key rules, which clarify the specific rules of a person’s Somnium and offer insight into how a player can best approach breaking mental locks. These rules begin partially filled out, and complete as you make more actions. They’re meant to guide your thought process, though I rarely found myself reflecting on them. They were nice for flavour, adding insight into the narrative, but didn’t feel necessary in solving the dreamscape puzzles.

In a Somnium, there’s still the classic six-minute time limit looming over your dive. Actions in a Somnium cost time, and TIMIES are back to help you manage your precious seconds. They function exactly the same in No Sleep for Kaname Date as they do in the previous games, allowing you to apply either fixed or fraction TIMIEs to negate some of the cost of time-intensive actions. Because there’s no benefit in trying to hoard them, as you can only carry three at a time, you’re encouraged to spend them frequently. With decent TIMIE usage, it’s almost too easy to manage the six-minute countdown, even if negative TIMIEs pop up to try to ruin your run.

Overall, the Somnium sequences in No Sleep for Kaname Date feel, especially when compared with the first game’s Somniums, quite simple and linear. I’d say they’re comparable, at least, with the nirvanA Initiative’s Somniums, which have also received similar criticism. They just feel a lot less difficult by design. Of course, you can turn your difficulty up, but, regardless, at their core, the Somniums are easier this time around. This doesn’t mean they’re not enjoyable, though, especially when they’re so fun looking, filled with bright colours, unique set pieces and also the best music of the entire game. Seriously, the saxophone in the track for the first Somnium is killer.

Where No Sleep for Kaname Date shines the most is in the newly added escape sequences. These sections have you playing as Iris, supported by Date and Aiba, in miniature escape room puzzles. I was impressed with how well done the puzzles were. They capture the feeling of genuine escape rooms, challenging you to observe your surroundings, collect and combine items, crack codes and logically work your way out of locked spaces set up by the game’s antagonist.

The real kicker is how the complexity builds. Just like tackling an escape room with your buddies, things get more difficult as your team grows. You start just being able to control Iris in these puzzles, but as the game progresses, more characters join the roster. Suddenly, you’re swapping between two, then three different people, using clues from one person’s area to solve a puzzle in another’s. 

These escape sequences make so much sense to add to the AITSF formula. They’re the perfect logical counter to the nonsensical Somnium puzzles, giving you moments where, instead of navigating wacky dream logic in a Somnium, you focus on structured, grounded puzzles with genuine reasoning. Both styles have their place in this game, and together they create a satisfying experience. It’s such a thoughtful evolution for the series, slotting seamlessly into the flow of the game.