Gris is the 22nd selection of year 2 of the UUGPGC! Finish by October 23, 2023!

Welcome to the Unsanctioned Unofficial Game Pass Game Club. Our 22nd game of 2023 is Gris. The target completion date is October 23, 2023.

We ask that until that date you use the forum software to mark any spoilers, either story based or mechanical, in the discussion below. Ideally the bulk of the discussion will occur after October 23, but if you want to comment before then you are welcome to so long as the spoilers are marked. We ask that if you leave a comment before that date you also come back to the thread after it to read other people’s comments and respond to them, though of course we cannot force you to do so.

All are welcome to participate regardless of whether you have stated a preference to or not and there is absolutely no commitment. You do not have to finish the game to participate but please let us know if you have not.

You are also free to come back any time after the completion date and share your thoughts! This club is meant to be open to all whenever you want to join in the fun!

You can find out more about the Unsanctioned Unofficial Game Pass Game Club or suggest future games for it here.

What is Gris?

A stylish platformer with a focus on gorgeous art and music and vibe over gameplay.

How long is Gris?

How long to beat lists it as 3.5 hours long.

That's funny. I just started this after finishing Sea of Stars. I should actually be able to participate in this one.

It's been a couple years, but 4 hours sounds about right. This was one of my favorite single-session games. One tip I wish I'd known: don't worry about having to choose paths and being locked out of them soon after. It's not actually a metroidvania and is rather linear, and while yes it will gate you off from returning, you don't need those optional paths unless you're after 100% collectibles and achievements. Which, honestly, it's not the type of game that really needs those. Just enjoy the experience.

I was looking forward to this but...

Here's the thing. Gris is a very well made game. I can acknowledge that. It's beautiful, it sounds great, it has a lot more gameplay and specifically gameplay variety than I expected, it does a great job of signposting mechanics and ideas, it's incredibly competent.

I just think I've played too many puzzle platformers recently and especially puzzle platformers about emotions like depression. It felt like a very well made retread and I just could not connect to it. Now this isn't Gris' fault; it's a 5 year old game and at the time it was a fresher idea, but I appreciated it intellectually more than I resonated with it emotionally or had "fun."

There are some spectacular and unexpected moments like with the eels, and a lot of really beautiful imagery and even fun little puzzles but it's definitely a saturated genre and I do not know what it would take to stand out for me at this point.

I've tried to play this on two separate occasions and both times I only got about half way through. I think the art style and music are both top notch, but not much carried me forward from beat to beat. This second time I even tried to just mainline it instead of exploring since it seems like the stuff you'd find is not important to progress. But it was just kind of boring to play, especially since I've been playing Super Mario Bros Wonder.

But I did end up watching a speed run of it on GDQ this weekend. There weren't any major skips and just watching the game in motion and listening to the soundtrack made me understand the love of the game a little more. I just think it is a little boring to play.

All in all, I still think it's worth checking out even if it didn't grab my attention. If you just need a light platformer with an interesting art style and excellent soundtrack, which I know is a very common genre nowadays, but the art style really is beautiful as more color gets added.

@noboners: It's a beautiful game and of course it doesn't compare to Mario Wonder but I do think the game play has a bit more depth than a lot of its peers. It's certainly not the most exciting game to play and as I said I did not truly connect with it so I'm not that passionate about defending it, but it introduces new mechanics pretty regularly, has some surprisingly decent puzzles and even a couple thrilling moments like the eel. I think "play this if you want a boring game that looks and sounds great" sells it a little short. It's a decent puzzle platformer even beyond the aesthetics (which are truly great.)

@bigsocrates: it's definitely unfair of me to compare it to Wonder, it was just hard to go to a platformer with a slower pace. I do think the challenge of the game must have been lost on me watching it on GDQ. Since the game was being completed as quickly as possible, I can't remember the challenge of most of the puzzles in the back half of the game. But it was nice that the puzzles changed and evolved as the game progressed.

But you're right, I should have mentioned there are some incredible cinematic sequences and they do some real fun stuff to show the scale of the levels you're traveling in. So it is more exciting than some of the other 2d puzzle platformers we've played in this club. I just think the moments in between were a slog. It's one of those games where I recognize the beauty, I just am not in the mood for it at the moment.

@noboners: I understand what you're saying. I am also sick of puzzle platformers! I don't think Gris is particularly challenging, it's more that it's mechanically interesting with lots of different stuff to do. I think calling it a slog is harsh. It's definitely deliberate but it has enough variety not to be sloggy. That's not to say I don't understand why you'd get bored of it, because it is very deliberate in its pacing and it's not exciting, but if you want a SLOG then play Planet of Lana! That's a game that I thought was beautiful but was a real chore to finish and they're similar lengths. Gris, at least, doesn't feel like it's just spinning its wheels over and over because it introduces new mechanics regularly.