 |
Pardon the dust! This page includes some jargon that hasn't been added to the site's glossary yet. I'll be around to fix this later, but sorry for the inconvenience in the meantime. |
Review: Giana Sisters 2D
At a Glance
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
How to Save and Pause:Your progress is saved whenever you clear a level. If you need to pause your game, bring up the pause menu by pressing ESC. Time needed per session:A typical level can be cleared in under three minutes, so plan on playing for at least fifteen minutes.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
Does this game pose issues for Christian players?
 | Maybe This is your typical platformer, almost painfully so. Thus, the most objectionable material it has is some mild violence and a few spooky ghosts. |
Screenshots
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/giana_sisters_2d_0.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/giana_sisters_2d_1.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/giana_sisters_2d_2.jpg)
Game Overview
Back when the PC gaming world was ruled by the Commodore 64, a game called The Great Giana Sisters was released to much applause. Rumored to be the first platformer for the system, it followed Giana and her sister Miara as they explored a magical dream world filled with magical gems and fantastic monsters. However, the game took so much inspiration from Nintendo's Super Mario Bros that it was taken out of production shortly after launch. This led to an urban legend about Nintendo suing the game's developers, but this is apparently nothing more than a rumor. Still, the game continued to make waves and circulate among Commodore owners through file sharing and other "underground" sources.
In 2009, a reboot of the game was released for the Nintendo DS, which would've been pretty amusing if the lawsuit had actually happened. This reboot featured all-new levels and some new gameplay elements, though the original levels were included as an unlockable bonus. This version of the game was later ported to the PC as a high definition remaster, which is the game I'm looking at today.
As one would expect, Giana Sisters 2D is largely a Super Mario Bros clone, with some cosmetic differences and some additional mechanics to help it stand out. You're still going to be spending your time bouncing off small brown enemies, collecting airborne currency, shooting fireballs, and fighting giant castle dwelling reptiles, so it's pretty well travelled territory. Also, much like modern Mario games, each level contains a given number of red gems. Finding them all doesn't give you an extra life, but it does turn the end of stage flag red. Turning every flag in a world red unlocks the world's bonus stage, where you can expect a difficult challenge and larger rewards.
There are also some mechanics that are unique to this series. For example, the bubble gum dispenser allows you to create a huge pink bubble around Giana, so you can float about in the air and reach places that are impossible to access normally. Soda dispensers are another new item. By shaking the soda up and letting it spray out, you can break large rows of bricks that are blocking your way.
Unfortunately, these changes don't really fix the two biggest problems with this game. The biggest of these being that it's not really much fun. Platformers are a dime a dozen these days, so you'd think a game with this much name recognition behind it would be less boring. The levels are much too easy and repetitive to make it feel like you're actually progressing or accomplishing anything, and to make matters worse, there are also a lot of bugs waiting to get in your way.
Ultimately, it feels like this game was cobbled together quickly in order to bank on nostalgia. Sort of like Charlie Brown's Christmas tree, it could've been great with just a little more love. But, since it's clearly been abandoned, give this one a pass. There are plenty of platformers out there that are a lot more fun.
In 2009, a reboot of the game was released for the Nintendo DS, which would've been pretty amusing if the lawsuit had actually happened. This reboot featured all-new levels and some new gameplay elements, though the original levels were included as an unlockable bonus. This version of the game was later ported to the PC as a high definition remaster, which is the game I'm looking at today.
As one would expect, Giana Sisters 2D is largely a Super Mario Bros clone, with some cosmetic differences and some additional mechanics to help it stand out. You're still going to be spending your time bouncing off small brown enemies, collecting airborne currency, shooting fireballs, and fighting giant castle dwelling reptiles, so it's pretty well travelled territory. Also, much like modern Mario games, each level contains a given number of red gems. Finding them all doesn't give you an extra life, but it does turn the end of stage flag red. Turning every flag in a world red unlocks the world's bonus stage, where you can expect a difficult challenge and larger rewards.
There are also some mechanics that are unique to this series. For example, the bubble gum dispenser allows you to create a huge pink bubble around Giana, so you can float about in the air and reach places that are impossible to access normally. Soda dispensers are another new item. By shaking the soda up and letting it spray out, you can break large rows of bricks that are blocking your way.
Unfortunately, these changes don't really fix the two biggest problems with this game. The biggest of these being that it's not really much fun. Platformers are a dime a dozen these days, so you'd think a game with this much name recognition behind it would be less boring. The levels are much too easy and repetitive to make it feel like you're actually progressing or accomplishing anything, and to make matters worse, there are also a lot of bugs waiting to get in your way.
Ultimately, it feels like this game was cobbled together quickly in order to bank on nostalgia. Sort of like Charlie Brown's Christmas tree, it could've been great with just a little more love. But, since it's clearly been abandoned, give this one a pass. There are plenty of platformers out there that are a lot more fun.
Points of Interest
Regular and Classic Levels
The game's menu allows you to choose between the new level set from the reboot, or the old levels from the Commodore 64 release. However, unlike the DS version of the game, this version doesn't use the original art style for the old levels. Instead, it simply has you play through the old levels with the new designs - a detail that isn't sitting well with many players.
Steam community features
While there are no Steam trading cards, there are 51 achievements available for this game. This could have been a good thing, but many of them are pretty uninspired and almost pointless. As an example, collecting your first powerup is apparently a feat worth commemorating. Most of the other achievements are for things like collecting 100, 1000, or 5000 diamonds; ie, they're just milestones reached by playing the game for a given length of time. It's like the developers knew people liked achievements, but didn't understand what made them fun to collect.
Unpolished, buggy
On top of being a remarkably bland experience, there are several major bugs that get in the way of having a good time. Some of the achievements can't be unlocked, the map sometimes misbehaves and fails to work properly, and sometimes the game just crashes. Players have also been known to complain that the hitboxes don't line up with the sprites correctly, leading to them having Giana jump into monsters instead of onto them.
Doesn't live up to the hype
The original version of the Great Giana Sisters was ground breaking and famous enough that even people who never owned a Commodore 64 had a reasonable chance of hearing about it. As this is a rework of a reboot, a lot has been lost in translation.
Concerns and Issues
Mild violence
Giana can defeat her enemies by jumping on them or hitting them with a fireball. Neither method is graphic, as they'll just fall over or disappear. When something hurts her, be it a bee, a thrown rock, a sharp spike, or whatever, she'll either lose any powerups she has equipped, or jump up with a start and fall off the screen. All in all, it's pretty normal content for a platformer.
Ghosts
Some levels feature one or more ghosts. They look like the upper half of a skeleton wearing a tattered robe, and move around by gliding in predictable paths, which may result in them passing through walls. These ghosts are also one of the very few enemies that can't be defeated, only avoided, making them more of an obstacle than a monster.