A Flame in Winter, a narrative game that tries to be different

With Twin Mirror last year, the French at DONTNOD Entertainment showed their desire to publish games themselves. They have thus partnered with PortaPlay, a Danish studio to which we already owe the game Broken Lines in 2020. The result is Gerda: A Flame in Winter, which is due for release on September 1 on Nintendo Switch and PC.

Images and copy of the game courtesy of DONTNOD / PortaPlay

The Second World War was the birthplace of many video games, especially action games where the objective is often to put holes in the skin of naughty Nazis. However, this is not the approach PortaPlay has taken, since in their narrative game, the story takes place in Denmark, in the small town of Tinglev in February 1945. The context is set, with the occupation of the German army and the conditions in which the inhabitants live.

Gerda: A Flame in Winter is resolutely very narrative and even if it sometimes takes aspects of adventure games, with the movement of a character and points of interest to inspect, it is better not to be resistant to reading. There are a lot of dialogues with other characters, as well as entries in the diary of Gerda, the young nurse that we were able to embody for a few hours, the time to get a glimpse of the beginnings of the game. It is possible to read each event, whether it is about the characters, our encounters or even what takes place during the months of war.

We quickly discover the half-Danish and half-German origins of the young lady, as well as her father who seems rather on the side of the Germans, in the hope of regaining the lands lost during the successive wars. A beautiful climate of uncertainty in which she lives with her husband. We thus learn to know the few characters, living under the occupation, through the dialogues and descriptions that can be found in the newspaper. The story is therefore structured with a good number of texts and notes written by Gerda, which brings an additional and pleasant vision to the story.

It is rather difficult to judge the narrative quality of Gerda: A Flame in Winter, insofar as we only had access to the first two hours of the game. In any case, this is enough to know that the panel of characters to discover is engaging and quickly makes us aware of the issues surrounding them. Everything is gradually going well and the trigger, with the arrest of her husband by the Gestapo, gives us a glimpse of all that the adventure could offer us.

This is a little less the case with the perspective of the influence of our choices and actions. The game is centered around the dialogues and the choices that one operates there, by selecting for example the answers of Gerda. According to those present in front of us, this can raise three characteristics of the character: compassion, insight and intelligence. These points can be consumed later, in order to have access to more distinct choices, which in theory influences the course of the story.

Unfortunately, even after several playthroughs, the different choices don’t seem to have a big impact on the main story. At best, it raises or lowers the confidence of a character or a faction, which will change a few lines of dialogue or a situation, but during the two hours of the demo version, this did not change our major progress. This will have to be judged in the final version of the game, although it should be noted that certain limited resources and items to collect, such as rations or medicine, can change the course of a conversation or an event.

We can therefore shape some parts of our story in a way, by cultivating or not our relationships with the characters. To become a Danish resistance fighter or to bow one’s head before the occupation? In any case, these are possibilities that the game suggests, but the repercussions are not very significant for the moment. Especially since a great deal of luck determines the outcome of the dialogues, with certain choices being determined by a roll of the dice which can succeed or fail.

A slightly distorted and more than frustrating system, especially since these are often interesting responses or actions, with consequences that we would like to explore. This leaves too much room for chance, for a game that wishes to highlight the involvement of the player.

From a visual point of view it is rather successful. There are imperfections, especially on the animations which still lack naturalness, but the coldness of the colors used integrate well with the words and the context in which we are trying to immerse ourselves. The music accompanies us discreetly when we cross the snowy and somewhat dark landscapes, with an artistic direction that sometimes resembles an old painting.

We therefore come out of the demo of Gerda: A Flame in Winter with a mixed opinion, even if we have to remain conciliatory and tell ourselves that it is difficult to judge the whole with only the first two hours. PortaPlay has something to tell us and even if the form is not quite convincing, the background remains more than interesting and it remains a game to watch.

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