Everything GRIS has to offer is its presentation. The game is only about its excellent visuals and good audio. If you want a short experience focused on looking at pretty art, this is an excellent game for that. It is very much like spending a couple of hours at an art museum. For some people this presentation might evoke a lot of emotion, and thereby a lot of positive experiences. The gameplay of this game is that of an extremely simple platformer with light puzzle elements. There is very little enjoyment to be had from the gameplay alone. The platformer elements of the game are surprisingly punishing when you consider how incredible shallow and basic the gameplay is. The mismatch between the chill and relaxing artstyle and the difficulty is frankly ridiculous.
The gameplay in GRIS consists of moving through a 2D world with incredible basic gameplay elements. In addition to having very basic mechanics the game is not very good at communicating how the gameplay works. The clarity of gameplay is very much sacrificed for the overall artistic vision. In addition to unclear gameplay, the game is also way too difficult and punishing for what it does. The game has no interesting gameplay mechanics, and should be easy and accessible to players in order for them to enjoy the art. It is not that at all. The platforming jumps require precision to succeed at. Failure is often punished by pushing the player thirty seconds back before they can attempt a jump or something else again. GRIS feels like a museum that has added obstacles to the floor in order to keep old-people, children and the disabled away from the art.
The only thing you do in this game is to look at the excellent presentation the game offers. I would especially like to highlight the use of contrast in the game to create an impactful effect. The use of lighting is also very good considering that this is a 2D game. While the art is good, it is not good enough for me to carry the entire experience of the game on its back. If you find the images of GRIS striking and want to see more, and don’t mind a lack of gameplay the game might be for you.
| Playtime | 3.6 Hours |
| Game release date | 13 December 2018 |
| Review release date | 25 October 2024 |
| Light sensitivity | Significant problems possible. I had to stop playing due to the brightness several times. |
| Sound sensitivity | No issues |
| Motion sickness | No issues |
| Steam | Metacritic – Metascore (84) |