My favourite metaphor was a subtle one. It's the orb in the water level where you swim up on it and it runs away. So you try turning into a rock, swimming faster, being more efficient--you chase harder. But then it occurs to you to just wait. And wouldn't you know it, the star comes back to you if you're just patient. No trick.
Actually, there are two ways to get it. You either wait or you chase harder. It's one of my favourite parts too. I love seeing which path the let's player chooses.
This is beautiful ❤ I played the games twice: the first time I both tried chasing it harder and leading it one way then going back to the other direction; the second time I just waited. Damn it was so much easier! It is indeed a beautiful metaphor
Everytime I see the final scene, with Gris singing while the darkness tries to take over, and then her mother's statue starts singing as well, I cry. So badly. And cried right now lol
I genuinely love how people seamlessly insert themselves in the game. It's never really established in the game what their relationship is. I saw it as losing a lover.
Something else I liked with the giant bird section is that while it represents darkness and setbacks in the grieving process, you ultimately need to use it's qualities to progress in the story.
Yeah it is full of these, kind of like when you fall into the pit and smash things. The Anger being somewhat useful and purposeful at that time, but ultimately needs to be... put into use differently rather than just to break.
I’m in the middle of grieving losing my baby from a miscarriage that happened last month after our second IVF cycle (I’d guess I’m in the depression stage). I played this game over the last couple nights. I was constantly on the edge of tears (not in a bad way), and was full on weeping as the credits rolled. I’m a cosplayer, and immediately decided Gris will be my next cosplay. Almost as a way to honor and say goodbye to my baby before moving forward.
The last demon Gris faces before she takes her step is herself, I saw this as after facing and overcoming all the hurt you’ve felt, the hurdles you’ve leapt, and the darkness you stepped out of. The only thing standing in your way, the final demon that you’ve still yet to prevail, is yourself
I was initially highly impressed with the beauty and the music of the game. It was introduced to me by a friend of mine. Coincidentally after this game, my grandmother who I have grown up with and is very close passed on. This game suddenly has a whole new meaning. And i love that this game can relate to anyone who has experienced loss, trauma, or pain in their lives. This game is more than words. And this can only be experienced when you play the game itself.
This was an incredible analysis. You connected the colours with the abilities and with the stages of grief and the emotions one might be feeling when in mourning in such a perfect way... Just a little something that I noticed you didn't point out: At 3:50 you walk through a hall supported by pillars that portray women covering their faces. You mention how it's symbolic of the main character having lost her support, her "pillar", but it's also interesting how each pillar shows the women being gradually turned into stone, with each statue being more... well, pillar like. I feel it's a metaphor for how sorrow and grief can be paralyzing, stopping your life in its tracks, slowly turning you into stone if you're unable to move on and get over that sadness.
The line of pillars, with how music stops exactly when you reach a complete pillar always gives me chills. It’s so strangely terrifying, even without fully understanding what it really means...
This game was such a sudden coincidence for me. Gris was purchased only because i found it so beautiful and refined, the music and overall smoothness made me eager to have it. And i had no clue what it's about. The fact is i lost my mother a year ago, and finding out Gris's plot shocked me and made cry at first. But i couldn't stop playing anyway and enjoyed it to the very last second. Thank you for this video and all your thoughts, you helped me to find something new in the game i loved so much.
So sorry to hear about the loss of your mother. While I still have my mother with me (thankfully), I lost my grandmother whom I grew up with and was so close to... This game suddenly became very relatable and moved me in ways I had never imagined...
Thanks for the kind comments, it is truly a special one and clearly connects with those who give it the chance or, need it to connect in some way. Best wishes to anyone who needs it
I know its not as serious as a mother dying but my guinea pig died and at first i was in denial an wouldn't accept it and then out of nowhere i couldn't stop crying and this game helped me get thru it. I had him since i was in 8th grade and i graduated 12th grade a few months ago he died just a week ago. Rip Remmi 🖤
Similar experience for me, only not so much death and more like a change in my life that caused me to go into a similar set of feelings like grief might trigger. The weekend I played this game Id say that I didn't feel ok about it at all, but I felt changed, touched in some way by the symbolism and beauty of it. It also allowed me to put things into perspective a little. I was compelled to do this analysis for this reason. I did a second play through, to find everything and unlock the mother cinematic. Its just such a beautiful game and i think for those of us who connect with it, we connect with it in many different ways.
Something I thought of after watching your review was how the statue of her “mother” breaks apart completely in the beginning . I say “mother’ because I think deliberately they made it vague as to the statue being her mother. She could just as easily be a lover or a friend. Initially her “mother” falls apart completely. But when you see her again, she returns as missing her head. It’s like the acknowledgement that her mother as a person is gone but her body remains, dead. But it isn’t till the end she is brought back again, whole. As though she isn’t really gone. She is still there, always, in some way. And when you finally accept that she’s never is truly gone, but still there, you finally have the ability to move on. You can’t keep letting the darkness and the loss consume you. You have your memories and lessons you learned from your lost lover/loved one and you move on. This is just my way of looking at it having experienced grief in many ways in my life. I think you shared many good points. Well done. I cried as well playing the game. No shame in that. It’s healthy. Well done 👍🏼.
I did also notice the differing conditions of the statues as you find the them. Generallly starting completely broken and slowly becoming more whole. I didnt focus on it too much as i think when writing it and reviewing the footage i thought insaw a pattern later for it not to be quite how i recalled... still i think your take away regarding the statues is a great one.
I can't say that I connected with the story, although I knew what was being hinted at during the game, but the power of the beautiful artwork and music definitely had an affect on me.
This is probably why there are two endings. The first with the statue and the darkness allows us to identify ourselves while the second one allows us to know the character's story. I really like these ideas.
I remember when I finished the first playthrough of this game, and completely breaking down in tears. From the frustration of completing the puzzles (which was so satisfying once I found the solution and got through them) through to that AMAZING chase sequence when passing through the underwater portion, even the trophies which pop up from time to time... It was especially the sequence when Gris sings her heart out, even when that manifestation of her self-doubt, that crippling image of her sorrow which drowns her and pushes her down... and coming out of it, strong... liberated, and a better person... I was shaking like a leaf, then I just wept. This game, gives so much catharsis honestly. Especially that ending. I actually went out of my way to thank the team and let them know how much I appreciate all that they did. Would have also sent them an email thanking them for a job handled EXCEPTIONALLY well, but honestly, I cancelled that idea and found the facebook page of the game, and sent them a message. This game, is the embodiment of catharsis, done exceptionally well.
Beautiful analysis! Thanks for showing me another way of looking at the story of this game! Also, very moving to read all the interpretations and stories from the other commenters. As someone who’s experienced depression for the last three years, I interpreted Gris as being a woman grieving about the loss of self (note: I didn’t see the memory sequence in my playthrough). The ending felt to me like she was finally moving on after regaining the capacity to love herself again. Because depression feels like a constant battle with yourself, I thought the black goo transformed into herself at the end of the story. The blue chapter read as especially beautiful to me since you see the stars in the sky first but than you fall into the black void. I had the feeling the game was saying: “If you want to go up, you have to go down first”. Kind of like how you feel worse the first few weeks of starting therapy because you must first confront yourself with your problems before you can start working on them. The game really made me feel that I could heal again.
I know someone close to me who was abused when they were younger, as I was also. Gris connected with deep unspoken emotions that I have around the above mentioned trauma. The symbolism spoke very differently to me than the reviews I've seen and I think that's the beauty of this game.
I finally played this yesterday and was wondering if someone else interpreted it in the same way I did. This is exactly how I saw the story. It's incredible how so much can be said without a single word.
Thank you for this explanation. I was enjoying the story as well because I assumed that this was some sort of post apocalyptic world like Journey. But this analogy stopped making sense when the buildings were seemingly devoid of culture, and Gris had the power to seemingly create stars and such. I was like "Eh?! What's going on" Your explanation makes a lot more sense. This isn't a physical journey but literally an emotional one of personal loss of a mother figure and how world itself feels empty and dystoptian despite being otherwise. So it wasn't the world that was changing, it was literally perception that was changing as later on she could literally see the stars again, after going through her grieving process/ journey.
When there is red, anger holds us dead, When there is green, beauty's to be seen, When there is blue, transparent tears will ensue, When hope flowers from a mother's kiss, she will find herself, Gris.
For everyone who loves how they have incorporated the story themes in GRIS, you should play Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice. They also incorporated the themes of mental health beautifully into the level design & gameplay mechanics.
What a truly a remarkable analysis, I completed the game twice and watched several videos and you came up with some details that I had never noticed. This game is an absolute masterpiece, the way it combines every element of the game to add up to the story is just incredible. The colors, the music and even the abilities and the puzzles always have a meaning that fits the story. The final scene, with the mother singing and the colors exploding, it's so well put together that it makes me cry every time, it instantly makes you think of the people, or the relations that you might have lost, of all those rough moments (that darkness always menacing till the end). And to think of your personal evolution and the hits you had to take to grow stronger and get through them. It's simply so god damn beautiful, have never seen a game like this.
It’s also a possibility that Gris is the one who’s dieing. And her death breaks the statue, whomever it is. Because at the end she’s the one who “ascends” to the stars after restoring the world, the colors and the meaning, both for her and the statue. Her last stage being to face herself and then accepting to take it all in, that could be accepting death. And the statue helps this time, witch could mean acceptance from the statue as well.
I lost my mother when I was 5 Wasn't really aware of the situation up until I was 12 when I really start missing her comparing my life with other kids knowing my life could never turn out that way , sometimes I feel devastated , out of shape , hopeless , helpless. Now I am 21 as time passes the grief become less and less but it could never be demolished as I also need it to keep me remember life goes on. This game finds a spot in my heart forever.
I finished the game yesterday and was really hoping for an analysis of it all since I had some trouble understanding some of its meaning, though the loss/grieving part was pretty clear. Really great video and analysis, I listened to the whole thing, it was very relaxing and it helped me understand. Thanks for making it!
I thought this was about gris' death. She was stuck in limbo eventually realizing she has died. First she denies the fact she died. Second she become angered that she has died and is stuck in limbo. Third is her bargaining to be revived. Fourth is depression because she is unable to come back to life. Fifth would be her accepting her fate and passing on to heaven. The statues would represent a god or her memories of when she was alive. The black bird/butterflies are represented as demons trying to drag her to hell. That's what I believed... well it is art so it can have different interpretations.
Yeah I think both sides of this work, either as a mental breakdown and being stuck in a 'alternate state of mind' almost like a fever dream trying to come to terms with the mother's death or as you say it is gris who died. The only thing I think leans me more toward the mother being the one is the hidden scene... which clearly shows a mother daughter relationship
This was what I originally thought as well, took the statue as a representation of her physical earthly form and the character you play representing her soul in purgatory finding her way into the afterlife. Probably about grieving her mother though, in actuality.
Well, if you take the Steam and Google Play Store descriptions of the game as well as the achievements into account, then your interpretation is "wrong" as in "not the story the developers intended to tell". It explicitly states "Gris is a young girl lost in a world of her own dealing with a painful experience in her life".
As an adult, I viewed the statue as (possibly her mother yes?) but it could also be representative of her lover. It was destroyed many times because she refused to accept her death and say goodbye. Until the end. When the statue is rebuilt, and it opens its eyes and finally sees her. As a tear streams down it’s face. Then it reaches out, finally steering you to the path which will allow you to cross over
So, just some extra proof that the loss the girl is dealing with is her mother, if anyone happened to be doubtful: the name of the solo piano main menu song, Mae, is actually mother in Japanese. There’s actually a few Japanese song names in the soundtrack, including Unagi for eel.
I bought this game on a whim because of the art style back in 2018 when it came out during the winter sale, unfortunately I didn't touch it for close to 6 months but when I finally played it, Gris became one of my favourite games of all time
I’ve been wanting to play this game but never actually did it, but yesterday I did and it was amazing. I fell in love with it, with the music, the art style, the gameplay, the meaning, just everything.. It really touched me and I think you did a wonderful job with this video. Thank you! This game made me cry and gave me goosebumps, I’ll definitely replay it. I’m speechless. ❤️
Thanks for making the analysis and thank you so much for sharing! I went to something very similar as Gris and still are dealing with it today. I knew the game had something symbolic on every corner and you explained it in your way very beautifully
Great video! I very much enjoyed this game as I felt deply connected to the characters journey through grief. I found your analysis really interesting and very well thought of. Thank you for taking the time to do this, it's clear that this game was special to you as well.
Thank you very much. I enjoyed your analysis a lot, and with your help i found another way of looking at this story. It's a really beautiful depiction of what humans have to confront in their lives. Every time i hear someone speak about these things, i realize that we all have our struggles and hard times. In the end, we are never alone in our grieve and sorrow. Out there is someone going thru hard times. This somehow helps me a lot if i'm feeling bad and i also gain better understanding an more patience for other people. Good man to talk about this subject. Cheers
Great job, and thank you so much for your analysis; it really helped me to appreciate the game as more than a piece of beautiful art. I personally cannot think of a more beautiful portrayal of the process of grief than this game.
How I perceived the story. (Perhaps even sadder, and perhaps some of you can describe my viewpoint even better) Gris is a young girl, that has fallen terminally ill. She can't have joy anymore. She seeks support from her mother and has questions. Her mother see's this, knows what is happening. And breaks appart, not able to be dealing with her daughters fate. Gris can't talk anymore to her mother, she is broken. Gris doesn't know what to do and starts going forward. Determined to help her mother by stayong alive. Time starts ticking. You can see it in the art. You can hear it in the footsteps. I perceived going up with dying and going down with being alive. Going left is indeed going back, while going right is going forward in the proces. Going all the way down might be going to the hospital or another department of the hospital. Steeling herself to deal with the pain when getting medicine. She goes down to earth. Or wanting the pain to end when she steels herself to any wind blowing. Jumping means mostly a little leap from her to get forward or a little acceptance that she is dying. Gris has to deal with the stages of grief of her own demise. Occasionly she looks for her mother who is slowly getting it together as well. Through her stages, the doctors look scary at first. The docters first try to send her in a direction. Eventually she and the doctor go in the same direction. Sending her up or forward. The doctors are dark non the less. Scary. Except for the turtle, who seems to be more compasionate. The turtle lights the path while Gris herself walks it. The turtle also takes over when the second doctor is chasing her up. "She can take this path herself in her own pace". The rain represents all the tears. The water represents accumulated grief. The water also represents the struggle of fighting to stay alive. Soon she learns how to struggle. The first time is always the hardest. It goes up and down. But easier with each passing moment. Perhaps even leading to false hope. When Gris finally is getting her voice back just a little. She tries a cry for help from her mother. Her mother, barely got it together and breaks again. She can't deal with her daughter being in pain. Gris now has her voice back and shows she has dealt with most of the acceptance. The medicine, although helping her up. Ease the pain as well. Despite that she is now going up faster and faster. But she is at ease and sings to see the joy again. However, the footsteps start making a ticking noise again. She looks at her mother who is still broken. And there it is. It is her time to die. All the lights to guide her up into the sky have been gathered. She calls one last time for her mother despite her mother being broken. Gris wants to talk to her mother one last time. Her mother puts herself together. The doctors are there too. Gris see's that her mother is together. She rushes forward to her mother. Asking if it is ok for her to die. Her mother cries loudly one last time. They hug, Gris gives a final kiss, which is saying that she loves her mother. And her mother leaves a tear for losing Gris. Her mother moves her hand with the gesture of letting go. She gives "permission" to die. And Gris goes up into the sky with the stars. Things go white. Then darkness. *** Secret scene: Her mother and Gris look at the sky. Gris asks how to get up there. Her mom responds that she has to follow the light. The forest might represent a part of the hospital. There is another patient. She helps the little guy. And the little guy helps her. Let me know what you think?
thank you for making this video. i just finished the game and this makes me appreciate it 100 times more ! i just wanna add that we discover yellow last. in the game, yellow represent light and yellow also a symbolic color for happiness, joy. this game is insane ! they put so much thought into it. great insight from u !
I just finished playing this game. I lost a friend in January to suicide and man did I cry so badly playing this game. I felt like I was playing thru the emotions I myself felt and still am feeling. I had no idea what the game was fully about when I bought it. This was such a beautiful and emotional game unlike anything I have ever played. This game was like therapy for me in a way. Your analysis was spot on 👐🏼
For a long time I was stuck in denial, anger and depression... this game put a comma at the end of it all, through facing her fears I faced mine! This analysis while sounding a bit unconfident is exactly how I interpreted it unconsciously, because it was all perfectly crafted with symbolism and parallels so that anyone may understand it.
To me the most emotional moment was Gris kissing the statue of her "mother" at the end and the statue shedding a tear. I already knew the game when it came out, cried when I watched the playthroughs, Then bought it but I couldn't play it on my computer for technical reasons. Then two months ago my mother passed on. Now I'm coming back to the game and playing it with a new perception: this game is my story and it is everyone's story when they lose someone dear. As another analysis video about it underlines, it is very relatable how messy the process of grief is pictured in this game. I feel like these last two months have been exactly like that, just in my own journey and detour around all these emotions and the world without my mother.
This is a great video. Thank you for your efforts and detailed explanation of the symbolism in the game. Completed the game 3 times and now going for the 4th time.
I played this game 5 times now and I still get teary at the ending because I have lost two people in my life that died by a heart attack and drinking too much Alcohol... It reminded me of myself how I finally excepted their deaths and moved on
I just finished the game while watching this video. I've never been this emotional while playing a game before, it has left me with a feeling I can't describe although I haven't gone in any similar experience in my life. Thank you greatly for this review, and a greater thanks to the developers of this game.
Beautifully seen. This kind of insight and sensitivity clearly shows you speak from experience. Thank you for experience the awe and love once again for Gris beauty and depth.
This was one of the most profound and incredibly well elaborated review I’ve ever seen in my life. Your voice, the sentiment and depth you’ve shared made this game even more meaningful to me. I’m going through something along those lines and this made me feel better. Thanks a lot mate, you spoke to my soul! Cheers.
Thanks, the game had a huge influence on me the weekend I got it and played through. As i say in the video, its quite a beautiful game but can hit quite hard depending on where you are at that time. Hope all is good
I'd like to think that even if it's a metaphor, the different scenery shown in the ending is her actual world and that the girl and her mother had magical powers similar to the abilities in the game.
Really well done, man. Just got done making a video similar to this myself (although, not quite as in depth as yours), and was looking to see if others felt similarly about the game. I don't really do game reviews either, but Gris was the exception. Excellent video, subscribed.
At first, I thought it was about the stages of depression, I didn't get the mother and daughter aspect. But the game is actually about the stages of grief... dealing with the loss of a love one. As she grief, the world around her crumbles and looses color (Life), then she falls deep into darkness (Depression). In case it wasn't obvious, "Gris" is Spanish for gray. As you go through different stages, you're moving forward (bringing color to the world), regaining your self (gaining back your abilities) and rebuilding towards the path you were at the beginning of the game (repairing what has crumbled while accepting the loss). At the end, the character reaches high above were she was initially, the character herself has gained color and she continues upward effectively overcoming grief. At least that was my take after finishing the game.
Loved your analysis! I finished the game yesterday and will recommend to a friend, along with your video! I would add that when she uses the bird wind in her favor instead of fighting it, is like accepting the negative thoughts and learning to live with them. :)
Thank you so much for this thoughtful and interesting analysis. It's so interesting how each person's experience will lead them to see things in their own unique way. Love this game.
I just finished the game today, and I wanted to look for his lore. This video made me cry, wonderful interpretation about the story of Gris, i figured something like that would be the story, but you took it to a deeper level. Nice video, great job.
I watched a playthrough of this game and for the first time in my life I think I felt a fragment of what it feels like to lose your mother, like my own mother did when she was a child. It helped me understand at least for a little how my mom has felt her whole life, and I cried at the ending as I realized what the game was about.
i was thoroughly convinced Gris is a witch trying to restore the world and the goddess thereof, but i definitely got the emotional impacts of the different colors
I initially thought it was an older sister but mother fits well too. Also the lights you are collecting I believe are the fireflies they caught together while the elder was alive. Very well done on the video encapsulating the whole of the story arc & it's effect on you. I too found myself forced to stop playing a time or two when I was overcome by a scene. This game is a true work of art and worthy of every bit of praise it has received. Loved it.
Sister does work too, the fireflies I think are symbolic of memories you created together as you say. There is the extra scene you can unlock once you 100% the game in which you see one of those moments being created. *Sigh* beautiful game though, I should give it a play through again. Though its a difficult one to get through depending on what's going on in life. And yeah, there are so many moments when I played through it the first time which required a cup of tea and a sit to think.
Funny, I actually never thought of that mother death thing. To me, the statue was the ICH in Freud's theory, while the little one was the ÜBER ICH, that tries to reconnect and overcome depression.
I liked the game, but actually didn't think about loss at all when I played through - I don't think you are wrong in your analysis though. What I got from it was themes of depression, friendship and taking leaps of faith. I was mostly trying to enjoy the beautiful art and music, and not analysing what I was experiencing, because this imo can ruin ones experience of a piece of art/media. Nonetheless, I believe your analysis is very good, and makes me appreciate aspects I didnt think about. Beautiful game!
Please give us more such commentary, no offense to Elite. but your insightful analysis further deepened my experience of Gris. It was like finding a bucket of water in a parched desert.
I know the game is about the protagonist losing her mother but my interpretation when I first played it was about someone who fell into a deep depression. The statues of the lady representing herself, first feeling like a broken person but slowly gaining a sense of self and of being complete again. I saw the black goo as her depression and self doubt attacking her sense of happiness and self worth. I think the beginning of the game when she had nothing but had to force herself up really got the sense of what being depressed really is like. Regardless of my miss reading of the game, it still stands as one of my most moving gaming experiences, and I thank the team for making it.
I think thats what makes the games imagery so powerful. While the game might be about someone coping with loosing their mother, which would likely trigger depression and the grieving process, It does also have common themes regardless of the kinds of loss one my suffer and how we each deal with them. As spoken about in my review it really brought back my own memories and feelings about loosing friendships and just that ever present feeling of dark, its hard to put into words. I was not ok the weekend I played GRIS lol
@@ErosMadelung definitely agree with you about it having common themes that are open to interpretation. I remember playing games like Doom in the past hoping that more would be done with narrative and story, while reading people saying it's not important in games. To see where we are at now makes me so happy that we can discuss gaming in such deeper and meaningful ways. Gris is a work of art.
I'm here because I finished this game and went "ok I kind of get it but not completely internet pls help." I think for me one of the major hindrances to not understanding the game is that I somehow I kept on missing the statues (ughhhhh denial you have to go backward instead of forward I'm such a dummy) so the first statue/achievement I found was depression xD at which point I was like "ok this confirms what I thought this game was about but WHERE ARE THE OTHER STATUES HOW DID I MISS STAGES 1-3 WTH" anyway I loved your other insights into the game and when you pointed out all the symbolism I was like "DANG you right! I didn't even think of that"--thanks for this and for sharing your experience with grief, this was all much appreciated
I think I'm the only one that has my interpretation of the ending. Everyone thinks she is saved from the darkness in the end. I beg to differ. The dead don't sing. They don't reciprocate, and the mother/loved one was definitely reciprocating Gris' affections. Here is my interpretation to explain this. When the dark depression swallows her whole in the end, it symbolizes that she kills herself. It's only after she dies that the darkness is gone, and the two, now dead, sing their duet together into the afterlife, represented in her ascension into the sky. Also, the stars were symbolically used as they used to be in the past, being the only way people could navigate in the dark.
That sir... is very dark. BUT thats actually pretty interesting, almost like it is the death process taking place. I mean the world is pretty fantastical in part as the game progresses.
I had lost my Mother when i was a child. when i played this game, i was pretty unaware of the "plot" as i played it, but as i got to the end it hit me, and my eyes just started pouring before i realized i was crying.
(inglish isn't my native idiom). Ok, I will try to explain what you make me feel with this video and everything you say. Thanks, i didn't know about this game and history. Everything you said touch deeply inside me, I have chronical depression and a lot of another mental stuffs, so, the way you explained everything was too much for me (in a good way. Too emocionak). Thanks, it was amazing. (I've already cry with you video). 🌸💗 I have to play that game!
I always thought that this game was happening in the mind of the mother who despaired after her daughter's death. The end is even symbolic when he releases his daughter and she goes to heaven. Even the statuettes depict an adult woman crying in depression. The death of a child for a parent is the greatest tragedy.
Another reason why I love this game is that the actual story is so open to interpretation and both of them work and make logical sense. I personally feel its from the view point of Gris herself since all of what takes place is from her view point. Though I do hear what you are saying in regard to the female figures, though I never identified them as her mother except for one or two of them at key points, or the recreation of the opening/ending scene statue. Totally valid however, and does also make sense :)
For the whole game I thought it was about loss of self (or like loss of talent /passion). My second theory was loss of lover/close person. Don't really see mother/daughter themes in it.
I really like this analysis. I don’t think that’s what this storybis about, I didn’t think so while playing it and don’t think so now, but I really do like your view of it. I do hope that it is in fact what the developers intended.
Excellent analysis, both on the symbolism and on the mental health topics. Even if you are not a mental health professional, you really seem to have a natural talent for it and from what you said, some experience on what it is like to deal with mental illness. So, if it's a career that you have thought about before, it's never too late I guess XD I don't think I have seen anyone mention this in the comments but there is a creative choice in keeping the childhood scene secret. Why is it gated behind achievements? Why can't everyone just watch it after their first playthrough? I think it's because you have to dig a little bit deeper to have access to it, just like some trauma or memories might only be accessible to someone after thorough introspection and navigation through those painful experiences, and only then you can make peace with them. I'm sure even after all of her journey, Gris' memories of her mother might be too painful to revisit for a while. Anyways, I didn't get that the story was about Gris losing her mother until I watched the secret scene. I thought the statues were just depictions of her own pain and grief surrounding her along her journey. It was a bit of shock when I found out because my mother was the most significant person in my life by far and she passed away 4 years ago, but it just made the game even better for me. Great video again.
My PERSONAL opinion: The Statue IS an actual godess. Gris was created by her. That would explain why The Game Starts with Gris in The Hand of The Statue. The Destroyed World IS Not Gris' Mind or Else, But her actual World. Something Bad Destroyed The World and Killed almost everything. Maybe a war or a nuclear Explosion. The godess created Gris with her Last breath and now ITS Up to her to save The world
My favourite metaphor was a subtle one. It's the orb in the water level where you swim up on it and it runs away. So you try turning into a rock, swimming faster, being more efficient--you chase harder. But then it occurs to you to just wait. And wouldn't you know it, the star comes back to you if you're just patient. No trick.
wait what?! I chased that thing down.
but yeah, means that happiness will come back, even if you don't chase it.. damn.
Actually, there are two ways to get it. You either wait or you chase harder.
It's one of my favourite parts too. I love seeing which path the let's player chooses.
i actually led it one way and swam the other so it came to me, but I get your point. Its such a masterpiece.
This is beautiful ❤
I played the games twice: the first time I both tried chasing it harder and leading it one way then going back to the other direction; the second time I just waited. Damn it was so much easier!
It is indeed a beautiful metaphor
I chased it until I caught it
Everytime I see the final scene, with Gris singing while the darkness tries to take over, and then her mother's statue starts singing as well, I cry. So badly. And cried right now lol
Must admit it makes me a bit emotional
@@ErosMadelung You cried too, don't hide it xD
asjfjfga same i just played the game twice and even still that part just makes me cry like a baby
Hakuro DarkLight I cried as well I get emotional from this it's just (Tʖ̯T) WAAAAAAAAAAA
I genuinely love how people seamlessly insert themselves in the game. It's never really established in the game what their relationship is. I saw it as losing a lover.
Something else I liked with the giant bird section is that while it represents darkness and setbacks in the grieving process, you ultimately need to use it's qualities to progress in the story.
Yeah it is full of these, kind of like when you fall into the pit and smash things. The Anger being somewhat useful and purposeful at that time, but ultimately needs to be... put into use differently rather than just to break.
I think that the bird and the sea demon can be interpreted as a shadow from Jungian psychology
I think the final form the dark things took is not her mother, but her self. Her mother got long hair
thats how I interpreted it too. the world is now full of colour and the only thing left to face is herself.
the dakness is herself, her depression
That's the exact comment I wanted to make.
@@pardox28 same
I thought it was the statue-
I’m in the middle of grieving losing my baby from a miscarriage that happened last month after our second IVF cycle (I’d guess I’m in the depression stage). I played this game over the last couple nights. I was constantly on the edge of tears (not in a bad way), and was full on weeping as the credits rolled. I’m a cosplayer, and immediately decided Gris will be my next cosplay. Almost as a way to honor and say goodbye to my baby before moving forward.
Super sorry to hear of these rough times.
The last demon Gris faces before she takes her step is herself, I saw this as after facing and overcoming all the hurt you’ve felt, the hurdles you’ve leapt, and the darkness you stepped out of. The only thing standing in your way, the final demon that you’ve still yet to prevail, is yourself
I was initially highly impressed with the beauty and the music of the game. It was introduced to me by a friend of mine. Coincidentally after this game, my grandmother who I have grown up with and is very close passed on. This game suddenly has a whole new meaning. And i love that this game can relate to anyone who has experienced loss, trauma, or pain in their lives. This game is more than words. And this can only be experienced when you play the game itself.
This was an incredible analysis. You connected the colours with the abilities and with the stages of grief and the emotions one might be feeling when in mourning in such a perfect way...
Just a little something that I noticed you didn't point out: At 3:50 you walk through a hall supported by pillars that portray women covering their faces. You mention how it's symbolic of the main character having lost her support, her "pillar", but it's also interesting how each pillar shows the women being gradually turned into stone, with each statue being more... well, pillar like. I feel it's a metaphor for how sorrow and grief can be paralyzing, stopping your life in its tracks, slowly turning you into stone if you're unable to move on and get over that sadness.
Nice observation
The line of pillars, with how music stops exactly when you reach a complete pillar always gives me chills. It’s so strangely terrifying, even without fully understanding what it really means...
This game was such a sudden coincidence for me. Gris was purchased only because i found it so beautiful and refined, the music and overall smoothness made me eager to have it. And i had no clue what it's about. The fact is i lost my mother a year ago, and finding out Gris's plot shocked me and made cry at first. But i couldn't stop playing anyway and enjoyed it to the very last second.
Thank you for this video and all your thoughts, you helped me to find something new in the game i loved so much.
So sorry to hear about the loss of your mother. While I still have my mother with me (thankfully), I lost my grandmother whom I grew up with and was so close to... This game suddenly became very relatable and moved me in ways I had never imagined...
Thanks for the kind comments, it is truly a special one and clearly connects with those who give it the chance or, need it to connect in some way. Best wishes to anyone who needs it
Gris actually helped me 2 days ago the worst thing in my life happened but without explanation, gris helped me be able to accept what happened.
I know its not as serious as a mother dying but my guinea pig died and at first i was in denial an wouldn't accept it and then out of nowhere i couldn't stop crying and this game helped me get thru it. I had him since i was in 8th grade and i graduated 12th grade a few months ago he died just a week ago. Rip Remmi 🖤
Similar experience for me, only not so much death and more like a change in my life that caused me to go into a similar set of feelings like grief might trigger.
The weekend I played this game Id say that I didn't feel ok about it at all, but I felt changed, touched in some way by the symbolism and beauty of it. It also allowed me to put things into perspective a little.
I was compelled to do this analysis for this reason. I did a second play through, to find everything and unlock the mother cinematic.
Its just such a beautiful game and i think for those of us who connect with it, we connect with it in many different ways.
Something I thought of after watching your review was how the statue of her “mother” breaks apart completely in the beginning . I say “mother’ because I think deliberately they made it vague as to the statue being her mother. She could just as easily be a lover or a friend. Initially her “mother” falls apart completely. But when you see her again, she returns as missing her head. It’s like the acknowledgement that her mother as a person is gone but her body remains, dead. But it isn’t till the end she is brought back again, whole. As though she isn’t really gone. She is still there, always, in some way. And when you finally accept that she’s never is truly gone, but still there, you finally have the ability to move on. You can’t keep letting the darkness and the loss consume you. You have your memories and lessons you learned from your lost lover/loved one and you move on. This is just my way of looking at it having experienced grief in many ways in my life. I think you shared many good points. Well done. I cried as well playing the game. No shame in that. It’s healthy. Well done 👍🏼.
I did also notice the differing conditions of the statues as you find the them. Generallly starting completely broken and slowly becoming more whole. I didnt focus on it too much as i think when writing it and reviewing the footage i thought insaw a pattern later for it not to be quite how i recalled... still i think your take away regarding the statues is a great one.
Gris is literally a child. Anyone who interprets the mother statue a anything other than a parent that Gris has lost is seriously wrong in the head.
I can't say that I connected with the story, although I knew what was being hinted at during the game, but the power of the beautiful artwork and music definitely had an affect on me.
i thought the statue were her old self and she was trying to feel in peace again with herself, leaving the old one "die" and becoming stronger,
This is probably why there are two endings. The first with the statue and the darkness allows us to identify ourselves while the second one allows us to know the character's story.
I really like these ideas.
That’s a great assumption! I think the game is meant to fit you. So if you want to imagine the ending one way, you can do that
I remember when I finished the first playthrough of this game, and completely breaking down in tears. From the frustration of completing the puzzles (which was so satisfying once I found the solution and got through them) through to that AMAZING chase sequence when passing through the underwater portion, even the trophies which pop up from time to time... It was especially the sequence when Gris sings her heart out, even when that manifestation of her self-doubt, that crippling image of her sorrow which drowns her and pushes her down... and coming out of it, strong... liberated, and a better person... I was shaking like a leaf, then I just wept.
This game, gives so much catharsis honestly. Especially that ending. I actually went out of my way to thank the team and let them know how much I appreciate all that they did. Would have also sent them an email thanking them for a job handled EXCEPTIONALLY well, but honestly, I cancelled that idea and found the facebook page of the game, and sent them a message.
This game, is the embodiment of catharsis, done exceptionally well.
Beautiful analysis! Thanks for showing me another way of looking at the story of this game! Also, very moving to read all the interpretations and stories from the other commenters. As someone who’s experienced depression for the last three years, I interpreted Gris as being a woman grieving about the loss of self (note: I didn’t see the memory sequence in my playthrough). The ending felt to me like she was finally moving on after regaining the capacity to love herself again. Because depression feels like a constant battle with yourself, I thought the black goo transformed into herself at the end of the story. The blue chapter read as especially beautiful to me since you see the stars in the sky first but than you fall into the black void. I had the feeling the game was saying: “If you want to go up, you have to go down first”. Kind of like how you feel worse the first few weeks of starting therapy because you must first confront yourself with your problems before you can start working on them. The game really made me feel that I could heal again.
I know someone close to me who was abused when they were younger, as I was also.
Gris connected with deep unspoken emotions that I have around the above mentioned trauma.
The symbolism spoke very differently to me than the reviews I've seen and I think that's the beauty of this game.
I finally played this yesterday and was wondering if someone else interpreted it in the same way I did. This is exactly how I saw the story. It's incredible how so much can be said without a single word.
Thank you for this explanation. I was enjoying the story as well because I assumed that this was some sort of post apocalyptic world like Journey.
But this analogy stopped making sense when the buildings were seemingly devoid of culture, and Gris had the power to seemingly create stars and such. I was like "Eh?! What's going on"
Your explanation makes a lot more sense. This isn't a physical journey but literally an emotional one of personal loss of a mother figure and how world itself feels empty and dystoptian despite being otherwise.
So it wasn't the world that was changing, it was literally perception that was changing as later on she could literally see the stars again, after going through her grieving process/ journey.
When there is red, anger holds us dead,
When there is green, beauty's to be seen,
When there is blue, transparent tears will ensue,
When hope flowers from a mother's kiss, she will find herself, Gris.
hi, where is this from? so beautiful
@@sol_illvminat I did yeah
For everyone who loves how they have incorporated the story themes in GRIS, you should play Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice. They also incorporated the themes of mental health beautifully into the level design & gameplay mechanics.
What a truly a remarkable analysis, I completed the game twice and watched several videos and you came up with some details that I had never noticed.
This game is an absolute masterpiece, the way it combines every element of the game to add up to the story is just incredible. The colors, the music and even the abilities and the puzzles always have a meaning that fits the story. The final scene, with the mother singing and the colors exploding, it's so well put together that it makes me cry every time, it instantly makes you think of the people, or the relations that you might have lost, of all those rough moments (that darkness always menacing till the end). And to think of your personal evolution and the hits you had to take to grow stronger and get through them. It's simply so god damn beautiful, have never seen a game like this.
It’s also a possibility that Gris is the one who’s dieing. And her death breaks the statue, whomever it is. Because at the end she’s the one who “ascends” to the stars after restoring the world, the colors and the meaning, both for her and the statue. Her last stage being to face herself and then accepting to take it all in, that could be accepting death. And the statue helps this time, witch could mean acceptance from the statue as well.
I lost my mother when I was 5
Wasn't really aware of the situation up until I was 12 when I really start missing her comparing my life with other kids knowing my life could never turn out that way , sometimes I feel devastated , out of shape , hopeless , helpless.
Now I am 21 as time passes the grief become less and less but it could never be demolished as I also need it to keep me remember life goes on.
This game finds a spot in my heart forever.
6:10 I feel like the bell ringing is like a wake up call of some sort.
I finished the game yesterday and was really hoping for an analysis of it all since I had some trouble understanding some of its meaning, though the loss/grieving part was pretty clear. Really great video and analysis, I listened to the whole thing, it was very relaxing and it helped me understand. Thanks for making it!
I thought this was about gris' death. She was stuck in limbo eventually realizing she has died. First she denies the fact she died. Second she become angered that she has died and is stuck in limbo. Third is her bargaining to be revived. Fourth is depression because she is unable to come back to life. Fifth would be her accepting her fate and passing on to heaven. The statues would represent a god or her memories of when she was alive. The black bird/butterflies are represented as demons trying to drag her to hell. That's what I believed... well it is art so it can have different interpretations.
Yeah I think both sides of this work, either as a mental breakdown and being stuck in a 'alternate state of mind' almost like a fever dream trying to come to terms with the mother's death or as you say it is gris who died.
The only thing I think leans me more toward the mother being the one is the hidden scene... which clearly shows a mother daughter relationship
This was what I originally thought as well, took the statue as a representation of her physical earthly form and the character you play representing her soul in purgatory finding her way into the afterlife. Probably about grieving her mother though, in actuality.
Well, if you take the Steam and Google Play Store descriptions of the game as well as the achievements into account, then your interpretation is "wrong" as in "not the story the developers intended to tell".
It explicitly states "Gris is a young girl lost in a world of her own dealing with a painful experience in her life".
@@sarthakmohanty997 pfft. You. Can’t tell someone how to interpret art
As an adult, I viewed the statue as (possibly her mother yes?) but it could also be representative of her lover. It was destroyed many times because she refused to accept her death and say goodbye. Until the end. When the statue is rebuilt, and it opens its eyes and finally sees her. As a tear streams down it’s face. Then it reaches out, finally steering you to the path which will allow you to cross over
A game of many games that I have not seen like it touches your heart, even if you seal it a thousand times, you will not get bored!
At 19:45 is not Gris mother, but her herself as you can see model her mother itself (Hair and mouth and eyes) Facing yourself with depression.
So, just some extra proof that the loss the girl is dealing with is her mother, if anyone happened to be doubtful: the name of the solo piano main menu song, Mae, is actually mother in Japanese. There’s actually a few Japanese song names in the soundtrack, including Unagi for eel.
"Mae(mãe)" is also mother in my language, portuguese.
Mae doesn't mean mother in japanese
I bought this game on a whim because of the art style back in 2018 when it came out during the winter sale, unfortunately I didn't touch it for close to 6 months but when I finally played it, Gris became one of my favourite games of all time
I’ve been wanting to play this game but never actually did it, but yesterday I did and it was amazing. I fell in love with it, with the music, the art style, the gameplay, the meaning, just everything.. It really touched me and I think you did a wonderful job with this video. Thank you! This game made me cry and gave me goosebumps, I’ll definitely replay it. I’m speechless. ❤️
Thanks for making the analysis and thank you so much for sharing! I went to something very similar as Gris and still are dealing with it today. I knew the game had something symbolic on every corner and you explained it in your way very beautifully
Great video! I very much enjoyed this game as I felt deply connected to the characters journey through grief. I found your analysis really interesting and very well thought of. Thank you for taking the time to do this, it's clear that this game was special to you as well.
Thank you very much. I enjoyed your analysis a lot, and with your help i found another way of looking at this story. It's a really beautiful depiction of what humans have to confront in their lives. Every time i hear someone speak about these things, i realize that we all have our struggles and hard times. In the end, we are never alone in our grieve and sorrow. Out there is someone going thru hard times. This somehow helps me a lot if i'm feeling bad and i also gain better understanding an more patience for other people. Good man to talk about this subject. Cheers
Great job, and thank you so much for your analysis; it really helped me to appreciate the game as more than a piece of beautiful art. I personally cannot think of a more beautiful portrayal of the process of grief than this game.
How I perceived the story. (Perhaps even sadder, and perhaps some of you can describe my viewpoint even better)
Gris is a young girl, that has fallen terminally ill. She can't have joy anymore. She seeks support from her mother and has questions. Her mother see's this, knows what is happening. And breaks appart, not able to be dealing with her daughters fate. Gris can't talk anymore to her mother, she is broken. Gris doesn't know what to do and starts going forward. Determined to help her mother by stayong alive.
Time starts ticking. You can see it in the art. You can hear it in the footsteps.
I perceived going up with dying and going down with being alive. Going left is indeed going back, while going right is going forward in the proces.
Going all the way down might be going to the hospital or another department of the hospital.
Steeling herself to deal with the pain when getting medicine. She goes down to earth. Or wanting the pain to end when she steels herself to any wind blowing. Jumping means mostly a little leap from her to get forward or a little acceptance that she is dying.
Gris has to deal with the stages of grief of her own demise. Occasionly she looks for her mother who is slowly getting it together as well.
Through her stages, the doctors look scary at first. The docters first try to send her in a direction. Eventually she and the doctor go in the same direction. Sending her up or forward. The doctors are dark non the less. Scary. Except for the turtle, who seems to be more compasionate. The turtle lights the path while Gris herself walks it. The turtle also takes over when the second doctor is chasing her up. "She can take this path herself in her own pace".
The rain represents all the tears.
The water represents accumulated grief.
The water also represents the struggle of fighting to stay alive.
Soon she learns how to struggle. The first time is always the hardest. It goes up and down. But easier with each passing moment. Perhaps even leading to false hope.
When Gris finally is getting her voice back just a little. She tries a cry for help from her mother. Her mother, barely got it together and breaks again. She can't deal with her daughter being in pain.
Gris now has her voice back and shows she has dealt with most of the acceptance. The medicine, although helping her up. Ease the pain as well.
Despite that she is now going up faster and faster. But she is at ease and sings to see the joy again. However, the footsteps start making a ticking noise again.
She looks at her mother who is still broken. And there it is. It is her time to die. All the lights to guide her up into the sky have been gathered.
She calls one last time for her mother despite her mother being broken. Gris wants to talk to her mother one last time. Her mother puts herself together. The doctors are there too. Gris see's that her mother is together. She rushes forward to her mother. Asking if it is ok for her to die. Her mother cries loudly one last time. They hug, Gris gives a final kiss, which is saying that she loves her mother. And her mother leaves a tear for losing Gris.
Her mother moves her hand with the gesture of letting go. She gives "permission" to die. And Gris goes up into the sky with the stars. Things go white. Then darkness.
***
Secret scene: Her mother and Gris look at the sky. Gris asks how to get up there. Her mom responds that she has to follow the light.
The forest might represent a part of the hospital. There is another patient. She helps the little guy. And the little guy helps her.
Let me know what you think?
shed a tear or two myself after watching this
Pretty comprehensive review of an incredible game that is an intense journey.
It's immensely beautiful game.
thank you for making this video. i just finished the game and this makes me appreciate it 100 times more ! i just wanna add that we discover yellow last. in the game, yellow represent light and yellow also a symbolic color for happiness, joy. this game is insane ! they put so much thought into it. great insight from u !
I am not ashamed to say that I have been crying for the last 20 minutes. Thank you.
I just finished playing this game. I lost a friend in January to suicide and man did I cry so badly playing this game. I felt like I was playing thru the emotions I myself felt and still am feeling. I had no idea what the game was fully about when I bought it. This was such a beautiful and emotional game unlike anything I have ever played. This game was like therapy for me in a way. Your analysis was spot on 👐🏼
For a long time I was stuck in denial, anger and depression... this game put a comma at the end of it all, through facing her fears I faced mine! This analysis while sounding a bit unconfident is exactly how I interpreted it unconsciously, because it was all perfectly crafted with symbolism and parallels so that anyone may understand it.
Your analysis was absolutely beautiful and made that much more poignant by sharing with us your own experiences of shadows. Thank you so much.
To me the most emotional moment was Gris kissing the statue of her "mother" at the end and the statue shedding a tear.
I already knew the game when it came out, cried when I watched the playthroughs, Then bought it but I couldn't play it on my computer for technical reasons. Then two months ago my mother passed on. Now I'm coming back to the game and playing it with a new perception: this game is my story and it is everyone's story when they lose someone dear. As another analysis video about it underlines, it is very relatable how messy the process of grief is pictured in this game. I feel like these last two months have been exactly like that, just in my own journey and detour around all these emotions and the world without my mother.
"More like a work of art"
Video games ARE art
This is a great video. Thank you for your efforts and detailed explanation of the symbolism in the game. Completed the game 3 times and now going for the 4th time.
I loved this video. Thanks for giving some time to GRIS. This game is a masterpiece & I'm dying to see what Nomada does in the future.
I played this game 5 times now and I still get teary at the ending because I have lost two people in my life that died by a heart attack and drinking too much Alcohol... It reminded me of myself how I finally excepted their deaths and moved on
I just finished the game while watching this video.
I've never been this emotional while playing a game before, it has left me with a feeling I can't describe although I haven't gone in any similar experience in my life.
Thank you greatly for this review, and a greater thanks to the developers of this game.
An analysis full of sincerity, and a good interpretation of Gris's symbolism. Good job !
I've only just found out about this game today. I love the animation & theme. It's breathtaking~ 👌 ✨ 🌠
Beautifully seen. This kind of insight and sensitivity clearly shows you speak from experience. Thank you for experience the awe and love once again for Gris beauty and depth.
This was one of the most profound and incredibly well elaborated review I’ve ever seen in my life. Your voice, the sentiment and depth you’ve shared made this game even more meaningful to me. I’m going through something along those lines and this made me feel better. Thanks a lot mate, you spoke to my soul! Cheers.
Thanks, the game had a huge influence on me the weekend I got it and played through. As i say in the video, its quite a beautiful game but can hit quite hard depending on where you are at that time.
Hope all is good
I'd like to think that even if it's a metaphor, the different scenery shown in the ending is her actual world and that the girl and her mother had magical powers similar to the abilities in the game.
Really well done, man. Just got done making a video similar to this myself (although, not quite as in depth as yours), and was looking to see if others felt similarly about the game. I don't really do game reviews either, but Gris was the exception. Excellent video, subscribed.
Thank you brother for investing your time and putting it out for all of us to understand this beautiful game better.
Thanks for this video. I have just completed the game and your breakdown of the game brought tears to my eyes.
At first, I thought it was about the stages of depression, I didn't get the mother and daughter aspect. But the game is actually about the stages of grief... dealing with the loss of a love one. As she grief, the world around her crumbles and looses color (Life), then she falls deep into darkness (Depression). In case it wasn't obvious, "Gris" is Spanish for gray. As you go through different stages, you're moving forward (bringing color to the world), regaining your self (gaining back your abilities) and rebuilding towards the path you were at the beginning of the game (repairing what has crumbled while accepting the loss). At the end, the character reaches high above were she was initially, the character herself has gained color and she continues upward effectively overcoming grief.
At least that was my take after finishing the game.
Loved your analysis! I finished the game yesterday and will recommend to a friend, along with your video!
I would add that when she uses the bird wind in her favor instead of fighting it, is like accepting the negative thoughts and learning to live with them. :)
Thank you so much for this thoughtful and interesting analysis. It's so interesting how each person's experience will lead them to see things in their own unique way. Love this game.
Really touching analysis, I connected immediately with the "feeling" of grief and loss of that game, due to my personal experiences. Thank you!
I just finished the game today, and I wanted to look for his lore. This video made me cry, wonderful interpretation
about the story of Gris, i figured something like that would be the story, but you took it to a deeper level.
Nice video, great job.
I watched a playthrough of this game and for the first time in my life I think I felt a fragment of what it feels like to lose your mother, like my own mother did when she was a child. It helped me understand at least for a little how my mom has felt her whole life, and I cried at the ending as I realized what the game was about.
A beautiful analysis for a beautiful game. Truly special.
i was thoroughly convinced Gris is a witch trying to restore the world and the goddess thereof, but i definitely got the emotional impacts of the different colors
I initially thought it was an older sister but mother fits well too. Also the lights you are collecting I believe are the fireflies they caught together while the elder was alive. Very well done on the video encapsulating the whole of the story arc & it's effect on you. I too found myself forced to stop playing a time or two when I was overcome by a scene. This game is a true work of art and worthy of every bit of praise it has received. Loved it.
Sister does work too, the fireflies I think are symbolic of memories you created together as you say.
There is the extra scene you can unlock once you 100% the game in which you see one of those moments being created.
*Sigh* beautiful game though, I should give it a play through again. Though its a difficult one to get through depending on what's going on in life.
And yeah, there are so many moments when I played through it the first time which required a cup of tea and a sit to think.
damn i'm almost crying again just watching this video. the game was sooo beautiful. i never expected it to be so strong and hit me so emotional.
I have watched this video more than I have played the game. And I have completed GRIS of course.
This deserves so many more likes than it has
Funny, I actually never thought of that mother death thing. To me, the statue was the ICH in Freud's theory, while the little one was the ÜBER ICH, that tries to reconnect and overcome depression.
I liked the game, but actually didn't think about loss at all when I played through - I don't think you are wrong in your analysis though. What I got from it was themes of depression, friendship and taking leaps of faith. I was mostly trying to enjoy the beautiful art and music, and not analysing what I was experiencing, because this imo can ruin ones experience of a piece of art/media.
Nonetheless, I believe your analysis is very good, and makes me appreciate aspects I didnt think about. Beautiful game!
Yeah my first play through I was mostly in awe at the art and music... it is pretty beautiful
Please give us more such commentary, no offense to Elite. but your insightful analysis further deepened my experience of Gris. It was like finding a bucket of water in a parched desert.
I know the game is about the protagonist losing her mother but my interpretation when I first played it was about someone who fell into a deep depression.
The statues of the lady representing herself, first feeling like a broken person but slowly gaining a sense of self and of being complete again.
I saw the black goo as her depression and self doubt attacking her sense of happiness and self worth.
I think the beginning of the game when she had nothing but had to force herself up really got the sense of what being depressed really is like.
Regardless of my miss reading of the game, it still stands as one of my most moving gaming experiences, and I thank the team for making it.
I think thats what makes the games imagery so powerful. While the game might be about someone coping with loosing their mother, which would likely trigger depression and the grieving process, It does also have common themes regardless of the kinds of loss one my suffer and how we each deal with them.
As spoken about in my review it really brought back my own memories and feelings about loosing friendships and just that ever present feeling of dark, its hard to put into words.
I was not ok the weekend I played GRIS lol
@@ErosMadelung definitely agree with you about it having common themes that are open to interpretation.
I remember playing games like Doom in the past hoping that more would be done with narrative and story, while reading people saying it's not important in games. To see where we are at now makes me so happy that we can discuss gaming in such deeper and meaningful ways. Gris is a work of art.
Excellent analysis, you have just gained another sub!
Astounding analysis. I had to go back and play the entire game all over again because of you. More like 😊a fog lifted. Thank you
I love your analysis and voice.. Brings a little tear into my eyes
It’s my favorite Indie game! Played it on the switch. I finished it in around 5 hours. It was such a blast.
Amazing analysis. I understood most of the games hints but your video definitely ad depth to my understanding of this game. Thank you so much!
I'm a simple man, I see Gris content, I hit like
I'm here because I finished this game and went "ok I kind of get it but not completely internet pls help." I think for me one of the major hindrances to not understanding the game is that I somehow I kept on missing the statues (ughhhhh denial you have to go backward instead of forward I'm such a dummy) so the first statue/achievement I found was depression xD at which point I was like "ok this confirms what I thought this game was about but WHERE ARE THE OTHER STATUES HOW DID I MISS STAGES 1-3 WTH" anyway I loved your other insights into the game and when you pointed out all the symbolism I was like "DANG you right! I didn't even think of that"--thanks for this and for sharing your experience with grief, this was all much appreciated
I think I'm the only one that has my interpretation of the ending. Everyone thinks she is saved from the darkness in the end. I beg to differ. The dead don't sing. They don't reciprocate, and the mother/loved one was definitely reciprocating Gris' affections. Here is my interpretation to explain this. When the dark depression swallows her whole in the end, it symbolizes that she kills herself. It's only after she dies that the darkness is gone, and the two, now dead, sing their duet together into the afterlife, represented in her ascension into the sky. Also, the stars were symbolically used as they used to be in the past, being the only way people could navigate in the dark.
That sir... is very dark. BUT thats actually pretty interesting, almost like it is the death process taking place. I mean the world is pretty fantastical in part as the game progresses.
I had lost my Mother when i was a child. when i played this game, i was pretty unaware of the "plot" as i played it, but as i got to the end it hit me, and my eyes just started pouring before i realized i was crying.
(inglish isn't my native idiom).
Ok, I will try to explain what you make me feel with this video and everything you say. Thanks, i didn't know about this game and history. Everything you said touch deeply inside me, I have chronical depression and a lot of another mental stuffs, so, the way you explained everything was too much for me (in a good way. Too emocionak). Thanks, it was amazing. (I've already cry with you video). 🌸💗
I have to play that game!
I always thought that this game was happening in the mind of the mother who despaired after her daughter's death. The end is even symbolic when he releases his daughter and she goes to heaven. Even the statuettes depict an adult woman crying in depression. The death of a child for a parent is the greatest tragedy.
Another reason why I love this game is that the actual story is so open to interpretation and both of them work and make logical sense. I personally feel its from the view point of Gris herself since all of what takes place is from her view point.
Though I do hear what you are saying in regard to the female figures, though I never identified them as her mother except for one or two of them at key points, or the recreation of the opening/ending scene statue.
Totally valid however, and does also make sense :)
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas. This is a very beautiful and bitter sweet game, much like real life.
For the whole game I thought it was about loss of self (or like loss of talent /passion). My second theory was loss of lover/close person. Don't really see mother/daughter themes in it.
Just perfect, Eros. Hats down for this wonderful explaination.
Thus game made me cry so hard it's absolutely beautiful
You explained everything so well. Beautiful game
Reminded me a lot of RiME which also deals with the 5 stages of grief. Great video!
I really like this analysis. I don’t think that’s what this storybis about, I didn’t think so while playing it and don’t think so now, but I really do like your view of it. I do hope that it is in fact what the developers intended.
Just the review i was looking for. Thanks for helping me understand a bit more!
Great Video, Loved your analysis of it just finished playing through it myself!
Thanks a lot for this video, this game is so beautiful and have such a deep meaning in every thing.
Wow! I literally just finished playing the game a few hours ago and it was beautiful! Happy to see this video :)
Excellent analysis, both on the symbolism and on the mental health topics. Even if you are not a mental health professional, you really seem to have a natural talent for it and from what you said, some experience on what it is like to deal with mental illness. So, if it's a career that you have thought about before, it's never too late I guess XD
I don't think I have seen anyone mention this in the comments but there is a creative choice in keeping the childhood scene secret. Why is it gated behind achievements? Why can't everyone just watch it after their first playthrough? I think it's because you have to dig a little bit deeper to have access to it, just like some trauma or memories might only be accessible to someone after thorough introspection and navigation through those painful experiences, and only then you can make peace with them. I'm sure even after all of her journey, Gris' memories of her mother might be too painful to revisit for a while.
Anyways, I didn't get that the story was about Gris losing her mother until I watched the secret scene. I thought the statues were just depictions of her own pain and grief surrounding her along her journey. It was a bit of shock when I found out because my mother was the most significant person in my life by far and she passed away 4 years ago, but it just made the game even better for me. Great video again.
My PERSONAL opinion:
The Statue IS an actual godess. Gris was created by her. That would explain why The Game Starts with Gris in The Hand of The Statue.
The Destroyed World IS Not Gris' Mind or Else, But her actual World. Something Bad Destroyed The World and Killed almost everything. Maybe a war or a nuclear Explosion. The godess created Gris with her Last breath and now ITS Up to her to save The world
A beautiful analysis. A very astute observation.
Beautiful analysis and story telling ❣️✨
Great video! Amazing analysis. I just finished the game and it was amazing.