One of my earliest and favorite computer games was The Great Giana Sisters, which was published exactly a quarter-century ago. So I returned with much emotion to Giana’s dreams, who is no longer a small child. And because adolescence is a tough time, she may be as adorable as a sheep at times and a feisty, dyed-in-the-wool adolescent at others!
However, I’d want to start with the greatest letdown. Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, for some reason, lacks even a little narrative! With just a few seconds of introduction, we’re on the first board. People who have never read about the game or played the first or second parts will have no idea who they control or why they do so. When you don’t know where you’re going, you’re less likely to spend hours mastering the challenging, arcade features that abound in this old-school platform game. So let me quickly explain that the heroine’s sister, Maria, gets taken by a magical crystal and sent to the land of dreams, where she is kept hostage by a large, hideous dragon. So we travel to the dreaming country in order to save Maria. It rapidly becomes clear that our adolescent troubles are mirrored in our dreams: depending on the situation, Giana may control the environment, remaining submissive and a bit terrified or changing into an angry, very young punk rocker! Essentially, the entire game mechanics are based on this magnificent coming-of-age battle, which each of us experienced in our own unique manner. We can change the manifestation of the heroine at any moment. Fat birds will be transformed into hunchbacked abominations, and gorgeous sceneries will be replaced by drowsy decay. The backdrop switches between tranquil versions of famous songs by Chris Hülsbeck from the previous game and fantastic hard metal performing by the Swedish band Machinae Supremacy.
Of course, altering the universe presents a slew of additional issues – it’s not only about platforms and equipment that may be employed in many guises. Trapdoors, gates, and elevators are examples of huge, moving machinery that we turn this way and that. Together with the girl’s abilities, such as a scorching punch, hovering in the air in an infinite pirouette, or the conventional, beautiful jump on the monster’s head, this forms an interesting and well-thought-out combination! Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams is a traditional platformer in which we hop, gather crystals, and search for hidden goodies. It is recognized by its lovely, enjoyable graphics. There will be references to the original as well as the obsession with conventional fairy tales and fairy tales. We travel to wonderful places with intriguing and whimsical details. It’s difficult not to be moved by the genuine beauty of each level. The game begins with the most basic elements, allowing us to grasp the mechanics and controls. The initial levels are not challenging. The developers, on the other hand, add additional skill-based components as each topic is addressed. The default keyboard arrangement is well thought out, and you can also attach a gamepad to your computer, which I did to complete the game. The adventure begins in earnest around halfway through the button-flicking game. Giana Sisters does, in reality, become a challenging platformer at some point, necessitating exceptional accuracy and imagination in traversing following pathways. To be successful, you must employ all of your abilities at the same time while also altering the world.
There are checkpoints on the boards at the basic difficulty level, so we don’t have to restart from the beginning if we fail. More demanding players can select the more tough option, where a mistake means returning to the level’s beginning. For those who become frustrated, there is a “Über-hardcore” mode where, if we fail, we restart the entire game. The level designers employ all of the typical ideas and gimmicks that puzzle platformers have employed since their beginning. In addition, we occasionally encounter intriguing features referencing other masterpieces from the 1970s and 1980s, such as the iconic Space Invaders. It’s difficult to become bored with the first, easier boards behind us. Without attempting to be unnaturally original, creators shower us with attractions. All of this has been seen before, but the continuously changing landscapes, the astonishing pace of the game, its creative depth, and wonderful soundtrack make the new Giana Sisters simply fantastic.
Two factors, however, lessen the enthusiasm. It’s worth noting that the title has rather high hardware requirements for a platformer. Solid hardware is required to display the game at its best. Nonetheless, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams is enjoyable. And I really mean it, because it’s a weird, beautiful game that I keep wanting to return to.