Review (Gaming)

by Cody Miller , Music of the Spheres - Never Forgot, Sunday, December 23, 2018, 19:25 (2169 days ago) @ cheapLEY

Finished it. FYI it is not long. I took 3 hours.

The most damning thing can be summed up with a conversation I had with my girlfriend:

"That looks pretty, what is it?"
"It's a game called Gris"
"What do you do?"
"You wander around, and collect sparks of light so you can continue on"
"Okay but why? What's the point?"
"………"

And there lies the problem. I guess it's a game about overcoming your demons? Well so was Limbo. But in Limbo you could die. You can't here. What's to overcome when you can't be harmed? What good is a world explored if it doesn't present danger? This is itself a huge failure of design and theme. It undercuts the game to the very core.

The art is pretty, and there is certainly coherence to it. However it is flat. There is no sense this world extends beyond us in either direction in a significant fashion. There is no interplay between background and foreground like in a game such as Inside. The path forward is always presented to you, and the solutions never more than a screen away. There is no sense of creativity to your actions, as everything is placed exactly to where it's to be used. The red pedals for instance, are placed exactly where they need to be. All you have to do is activate them. There is no real decision making on your part.

Danger is a big part of exploration, and for a game about fear it's completely inexcusable that you can't die or fail. The game asks nothing of you other than to continue on. Inputs are a formality when the 'challenges' are perfunctory. Gaming is about interactivity, and the games that use it the most are therefore the best. I could have watched someone play it and had the same satisfaction.

At least Inside had the fortitude to shock and challenge you thematically. The ending left you wondering. Is there an outside at all? Or is that part of the system too? The ending to Gris leaves nothing to the imagination, nor does it say anything definitive. it just… is.

The set pieces we have seen countless times before in other games. A mishmash of the old, simplified with no stakes and a fresh coat of paint.

Gris is an opera you simply have to sit through even if you just want to go see some rock and roll.