I cannot stop thinking how come the fairy-tale of the Grimm brothers turned out to be put into such a dark and gloomy game.
I most probably would not be surprised if it had been an adaptation of Andersen's tale who is a pretty dark guy in some of his works, but the tales of the Grimm brothers seem to be suitable even for the smaller kids.
However, this game is not.
Not even for all adults, I would say.
Well, definitely not for the adults like me--who dislike cruelty even on the screen.
In the orignal Grimm's tale the most shocking nuance of all is, perhaps, the fact that the cruel step-mother manages to persuade her hubby to get his kids into the forest and leave them there.
However, the game goes much further than that, and here the step-mother and her emasculated hubby seem to be pure angels compared to what the rest of the characters--and, above all, the sweet little Gretel herself--are performing at each step.
Especially in the second part of the game.
All in all, it seems to me that the second part of the game explores the fearful sides of life and resembles a nightmare.
You want some examples to prove my point? Here you are: first you (for you are supposed to play for Gretel) fall in love with a most cute little rabbit--and then mercilessly killing him; then you will also have to kill a nice and kind bear who trusts you and wants to eat something tasty you are giving him, and a deer.
Then, there are also threats to Gretel herself--nearly at each scene she is likely to be killed, and the views of her death are quite naturalistic and horrifying.
The good thing is that once Gretel is killed, the game immediately returns you to the beginning of the same scene, so that you can go through it again.
But the animals are not as lucky as Gretel, and at the end of the game you will be provided with a cynical list of all deaths during the Gretel and Hansel's journey.
Oh, we have totally forgotten about Hansel who is supposed to be the second protagonist of the game.
The reason why I nearly skipped him is that Hansel is of little help--just in some cases when he gets Gretel across the pond or does something else to assist his sister.
While Gretel is the clever one, her brother seems to be a bit...
well, mentally challenged.
So, I would call these games cruel and certainly would not recommend them for kids and sensitive adults.
You may, of course, hold a different opinion, but as much as I like the cute graphics and original style of Gretel and Hansel, the same way I hate its sophisticated deaths.
I most probably would not be surprised if it had been an adaptation of Andersen's tale who is a pretty dark guy in some of his works, but the tales of the Grimm brothers seem to be suitable even for the smaller kids.
However, this game is not.
Not even for all adults, I would say.
Well, definitely not for the adults like me--who dislike cruelty even on the screen.
In the orignal Grimm's tale the most shocking nuance of all is, perhaps, the fact that the cruel step-mother manages to persuade her hubby to get his kids into the forest and leave them there.
However, the game goes much further than that, and here the step-mother and her emasculated hubby seem to be pure angels compared to what the rest of the characters--and, above all, the sweet little Gretel herself--are performing at each step.
Especially in the second part of the game.
All in all, it seems to me that the second part of the game explores the fearful sides of life and resembles a nightmare.
You want some examples to prove my point? Here you are: first you (for you are supposed to play for Gretel) fall in love with a most cute little rabbit--and then mercilessly killing him; then you will also have to kill a nice and kind bear who trusts you and wants to eat something tasty you are giving him, and a deer.
Then, there are also threats to Gretel herself--nearly at each scene she is likely to be killed, and the views of her death are quite naturalistic and horrifying.
The good thing is that once Gretel is killed, the game immediately returns you to the beginning of the same scene, so that you can go through it again.
But the animals are not as lucky as Gretel, and at the end of the game you will be provided with a cynical list of all deaths during the Gretel and Hansel's journey.
Oh, we have totally forgotten about Hansel who is supposed to be the second protagonist of the game.
The reason why I nearly skipped him is that Hansel is of little help--just in some cases when he gets Gretel across the pond or does something else to assist his sister.
While Gretel is the clever one, her brother seems to be a bit...
well, mentally challenged.
So, I would call these games cruel and certainly would not recommend them for kids and sensitive adults.
You may, of course, hold a different opinion, but as much as I like the cute graphics and original style of Gretel and Hansel, the same way I hate its sophisticated deaths.