Gris is a game that is trying really hard to be art.
This is unfortunate, because it is neither very good as a game nor very good as a work of art.
The problem is, a game needs to be engaging, but Gris is not very engaging. The simple 2D platforming that makes up the gameplay doesn’t do anything novel, and the game mechanics don’t feel like they have anything to do with Gris’s theme of dealing with grief. Instead, the main character can jump, turn into a block to smash fragile ground, swim, double jump and glide, hop off of small clouds of birds to propel herself higher (only where they are available in the environment), or sing and make flowers bloom or turn on stuff.
Yay.
The singing is the closest thing to something that ties into the theme of grief, as you sing to yourself to soothe yourself, but… that’s about it.
But the worst of it is that there’s nothing really here gameplay wise. Everything here has been done before, better, in other games, and the main character isn’t particularly agile nor exciting to control. The level design, too, while aesthetically pleasing, doesn’t feel like it does anything novel, nor is it particularly difficult, meaning it cannot challenge you on that axis either.
Instead, it simply… is.
And while acceptable, serviceable gameplay is alright if you have a really knock it out of the park story, this game’s story barely exists at all. And this is the problem:
A work of art needs to say something, but Gris does not.
Gris simply IS. And while it’s okay to have some pretty abstract thing, something that you’re going to sit in front of for several hours needs to do more than be aesthetically appealing, it needs to have some point. But Gris does not. Grief is a process.
Yeah, I know. But… okay? What do you have to say about grief?
Nothing. The story is extremely vague and abstract, and the main character is so vague as to not really be much of a character at all. Saying they’re even one-dimensional is generous, given there is no dialogue and we are given little to no context for most of the game.
Thus, Gris fails on both fronts – it isn’t a fun game to play, and it isn’t a meaningful work of art that moves you. While it may be aesthetically pleasing, it’s hollow and empty, and doesn’t have anything to say.
You might send about four hours or so beating this game, but I couldn’t recommend spending the time on it even if you got it for free; there’s just better things to do that will leave more of an impact on you.
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