The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra – A Short but Sweet Bedtime Tale

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald

Overview

The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra is a touching piece of interactive fiction that follows ‘the little one’ and ‘the bear’ on a charming adventure, exploring the universe and their sense of togetherness.

Narrative

The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra has a casually paced but poignant narrative that is both uplifting and hopeful, without being devoid of more melancholy moments that provide balance. The story begins when the little protagonist finds the bear hidden, silent, and alone in a series of tunnels and helps him out to see the stars again. It then follows the two characters on a meaningful journey during which they converse, explore, and meet new creatures. The narrative is made up of five, slightly surreal chapters (Tunnels, Planets, Light, Stories, and Time), and is told in such a way that it mimics a soothing bedtime story. The main themes are life cycles, friendship, growth, and belonging.

Gameplay

The gameplay in The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra is laid back and undemanding, with a heavy focus on narrative over interactivity. The controls are mouse-only and quite intuitive, however, it is clear the game was originally designed for mobile and the controls are definitely best suited to a touch screen.

Most of the interactive elements consist of moving the little protagonist and the bear through the five chapters, controlling both so that they work together to make progress by walking, climbing, swimming, carrying or pulling. This provides some light puzzle-platforming elements that boost player engagement, there is little challenge, but some sections do require a little bit of thought. There are also some choices for players to make, such as deciding whether to hear an old couple’s story or follow a school of fish. These are mostly inconsequential but afford the game some replayability as there is an opportunity to see new content.

Styling

The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra features a minimalistic but delightful, hand-drawn art style. It uses block colours and a cool, slightly muted colour palette that matches the soothing nature of the game’s bedtime story feel. The character models are fairly simple and resemble, in some ways, Among Us characters. However, this allows the player to focus on their personalities and world experiences rather than what they look like. The scenes are shown in an oval shape in the centre of the screen, while text is displayed primarily around the outside.

The music is very relaxing, fitting well with the gameplay and visuals. It has a slow tempo with prominent piano melody atop more gentle twinkling and ethereal sounds. The soundtrack sits comfortably in the background, helping to create a calm ambience and never dominating the experience.

Summary

The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra is a short game, easily playable in under an hour. It boasts charming visual and sound design elements, a light but moving story, casual, enjoyable gameplay, and uplifting character progression. Easily appreciated by a range of player types, of all ages, this family-friendly game has a lot to offer. It was created by a fairly small team and is clearly a labour of love. I found the experience both fun and relaxing, and I’d happily recommend this title to anyone looking for a short narrative-focused experience.

Giveaway

Courtesy of Mucks! Games we have one Steam key for The Bear: A Story from the World of Gra to giveaway!

For more details and your chance to win (or just to chat about indie games), simply join our friendly Discord server and check out the announcements!

If you enjoy interactive fiction, you may also like these reviews:
Brand New Interactive Fiction: A Sketchbook About Her Sun – A Walk With Yiayia – An Emotional Stroll Around the Neighbourhood – A Memoir Blue – An Emotional Dive into the Past

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