Brain
Concepts are dialogue options with NPC's unlocked by collecting brains rarely dropped by slain enemies. These Concepts can be discussed with NPC's to learn information about the items, enemies, or general world of Dream, Which will often result in unlocking items or other aspects of gameplay.
Concepts are unlocked in order. You, and This Place are unlocked by default.
Concepts
Collecting concepts
A community achievement guide lists nine concepts that must be earned from brains: Life, Death, Flesh, Time, Dream, Blood, Mind, Power and Empathy. Any enemy can drop a brain, and collecting all nine earns the "Brain Devourer" achievement. Since patch 0.1.5, Pot Mimics no longer drop brains once every concept has been discovered. The same guide suggests asking every NPC, including the Mirror, about every concept to unlock most rings, bands and weapons.
Note: that list leaves out Myself, which implies it is also available from the start. This page currently says only You and This place are.
Community-sourced (added October 2026, not yet verified in-game). Sources: Steam guide: "every achievement guide" (MSK); Steam patch notes: 0.1.5.
From the official manual
- The manual confirms the mechanic: brains found in the dungeon can be consumed to gain the knowledge contained within them, which it says may be of use when conversing with denizens of the dungeons.
From the game's official manual. Unlike the rest of the notes on this page, this is a primary source: it is the developer's own documentation, not community research.