Editorials Reviews Previews Essays Worth Playing

Essays

Essays 11 August 2022, 14:05

GRIS. 8 games with brilliant ideas for narrative

Table of Contents

  1. Genre: 2D artistic platformer
  2. Year: 2018
  3. Platforms: PC, PS4, Switch, iOS
  4. Developer: Nomada Studio

The two-dimensional, artistic platformer GRIS by Spanish studio Nomada manages to evoke strong emotions, if not as powerfully as The Last of Us: Part 2. Interestingly, you can complete it - even "max it out" - and still not understand what it's about. Over the course of this short adventure, the titular character gains new skills, and the grey world slowly becomes more colorful. Why?

As I studied some psychology at university, I quickly realised what GRIS is really about. The names given by the developers to the various stages of the game clued me in. "Denial", "Anger"... it's here that I realised that the next stages will be: "Bargaining", "Depression" and "Acceptance". In other words, I understood that the structure of Nomada Studio's game is based on Elisabeth Kübler-Ross' psychological model, which describes the five stages of grief of a terminally ill patient and their family as they struggle with the news of their impending death.

Stage two - "Anger" - is dominated by the color red. - 8 games that I love for their narrative tricks - file - 2022-08-01
Stage two - "Anger" - is dominated by the color red.

This theory is often applied to the way one experiences the loss of another person. GRIS makes use of this theme. Interestingly, in Spanish, the word means the color gray that dominates the game during the first stage (called "Denial"). In the following stages, the colors shift to red, green, blue, and finally yellow, expressing the character's changing emotional states.

In my opinion, this simple narrative trick elevates GRIS to the level of a masterpiece. Although you won't find much gameplay here, the general concept and main theme make up for it. This entry is also a great argument in support of the idea that video games can be more than "time killers"; that they can convey really important messages.

  1. More about GRIS

A LONELY JOURNEY

An equally important social problem was - in a sense - raised in The Journey. Specifically, it's about loneliness. Although it's not the game's leading theme, it can definitely invoke this feeling in players. The unusual online mode implemented in The Journey is especially interesting, as it allows two players to meet in the middle of nowhere and, as the title implies, journey side by side for a while.

Hubert Sledziewski

Hubert Sledziewski

Has been writing professionally since 2016. He joined Gamepressure.com five years later - although he has known the service since he had access to the internet - to combine his love for words and games. Deals mainly with news and journalism. A sociologist by education, a gamer by passion. He started his gaming adventure at the age of four - with a Pegasus. Currently, prefers PC and demanding RPGs, but does not shy away from consoles or other genres. When he's not playing or writing, he enjoys reading, watching series (less often movies) and Premier League matches, listening to heavy music, and also walking the dog. Almost uncritically loves the work of Stephen King. Does not abandon plans to follow in his footsteps. However, he keeps his first "literary achievements" locked away deep in a drawer.

more

Red Dead Redemption 2

Red Dead Redemption 2

The Last of Us: Part II

The Last of Us: Part II

Hades

Hades

12 Minutes

12 Minutes

Gris

Gris

See/Add Comments