Marie Pritchard Did Not Steal Christmas But Thinks You Should Spend It With The Grinch | Winter Spectacular 2024
It’s EGX 2023, my family and I are coming to the end of our day, thumbs tired from trying out new games dotted across the hall, stomachs growling - hungry for something other than the snacks we bought, and our feet begging for some respite from the day. On the way out of the hall, we decide ‘why not’ and head over to a section of games we’d skipped past all day (mainly because it was very busy!). One game in particular caught our eye and, little did we know, this was the beginning of a new holiday classic in our house - The Grinch: Christmas Adventures.
We spent far longer than planned playing this demo and the Grinch used his Candy-Cane Lasso to wrap around our hearts, forcing them to fall quickly in love with a game that (on the surface) could be seen as a simple family-friendly affair. Yes, it is definitely perfect for young children and families, but it’s not only that. It took me by surprise with how engaging and, ultimately, entertaining it is - so much so that it swiftly became a Christmas ‘must-do’ for us when the season arrived again this year.
The objective is to help The Grinch and Max steal all the Christmas presents in Whoville without getting caught. Plenty of obstacles stand in your way though, including gigantic swinging baubles and, quite frankly, terrifying sentient gingerbread cookies you need to outsmart in a tense game of hide-and-seek. Seriously, there’s no soul behind the eyes of the rather large cookies wandering around the houses, chasing you if you make even the smallest of noises or if they see you. (Now, I must confess, when I play this with my family I’m usually Max and find somewhere to hide while sacrificing The Grinch who has to find his own hiding spot.)
You need to collect presents to pass the level, but there are also optional collectibles for you to find along the way and this is where we spend most of our time outside of messing with the gingerbread zombies (not their official name but it feels right.) Not only do the collectibles go towards earning some achievements, which I feel I should mention are not impossible to obtain, but the Puzzle Pieces you collect lead to more content outside the main levels. Any pieces you find in a level can be used at the end to piece together a puzzle (which you need to do yourself) and, once the picture is complete, you can unlock new things like the Candy Cane Lasso you need to pass certain areas or double jump.
I also never expected a candy-cane lasso to provide so much entertainment - you can use it to swing across gaps and avoid plunging into an uncertain fate. Ok, that’s a bit dramatic, you respawn and there’s no permanent death in this game - if you lose your hearts or fall you’re taken back to a checkpoint lantern you’ve previously activated. The environment also helps you out as sometimes there’s a rock you can push down a hill to knock down Nutcrackers like pins at a bowling alley. Please don’t do this to your own Nutcrackers - or if you do, the idea didn’t come from me.
It wouldn’t be The Grinch without rhyming, and each level does it with particularly good timing. (Lex I’m sorry… wait, no I’m really not.) It doesn’t happen so much that it becomes a tedious feature you can’t wait to skip past, it happens mostly when the story progresses or a new mechanic is introduced that you need to learn how to use. They use it in such a way that you’re actually excited when it comes up rather than rolling your eyes and going ‘Really, again?’
I will state that it’s by no means a big blockbuster triple-A title to compete with Dragon Age or Indiana Jones and it’s definitely not difficult for more experienced players, it’s just plain and simple fun!
