Is this game a masterpiece? The original certainly was. Little Big Adventure (in other parts of the world: Relentless: Twinsen's Adventure) was created in 1994 by French developers Adeline Software, having previously created the landmark Alone in the Dark (for Infogrames). It was a typically French game - difficult, emotional and set in a strange world. It is set in the world of Twinsun with its two suns, inhabited by four intelligent races - the Quetches, Spheros, Grobos and Rabbibunnies. Many gamers couldn't help but shed a few tears while playing the game - but usually because of the merciless controls and not because of the emotional and content-wise (but not graphically) brutal story. Nevertheless, the game sold well and was also released for the PlayStation 1 after the PC, as well as for Android/iOS around 10 years ago. The sequel Little Big Adventure 2 (another name: Twinsen's Odyssey) was released in 1997.

We play Twinsen, a young man (actually a Quetch, with a ponytail) who lives on a peaceful island with his annoying little sister Luna and his girlfriend Zoé. The story has been changed a little from the original - while in the original story we were looking for Zoé, now we are trying to rescue our little sister. But back to the start of the game - this is also new. While in the original we started directly in a high-security cell (ok, it wasn't that secure after all), the game now begins with a short prologue that starts a few years earlier and introduces us to the story (and controls). After power on Twinsun has been taken over by Dr. FunFrock and his army of clones, the playground on the island where Twinsen lives is replaced by a newly built insane asylum (called a nursing home by the government). However, it is not necessarily sick residents who end up there, but all those who oppose the regime. Many end up in the asylum - but no one ever gets out again. And after new and ever more restrictive laws are passed, a few years later Twinsen also ends up in the institution, because he wanted to help his sister, who did not abide by the new rules. This time jump of a few years is well portrayed - from a small, friendly provincial town full of cheerful inhabitants to a place full of barbed wire with tanks and soldiers patrolling everywhere, where people live in fear of the government and only talk to each other in whispers.

After Twinsen escapes from the asylum, Luna helps him to hide - for which she herself is arrested and taken to a remote island. Our goal now is to free our little sister. To do this, we have to explore the world of Twinsun (and unlock new locations and visit islands). Perhaps we can ultimately do much more than just rescue our sister... In any case, Dr. FunFrock soon declares us public enemy number one and his clones hunt us down wherever they see us. We become rebels and prophets in the fight against a dictatorship with a completely insane ruler - in a game with cartoon graphics suitable for children.

The controls have been greatly simplified compared to the original. There are no longer the four different behaviors that Twinsun can adopt, each of which offered different interaction options. Now we use the gamepad to walk or run, jump, strike and interact with hotspots. Sneaking (as in the original) no longer exists, but you can hide in various hotspots.

We use the shoulder buttons to throw our magic ball. This is a legacy from our father - and our weapon. It causes damage to enemies and always returns to us. Over the course of the game, it has several functions. We can throw it flat or in an arc, and it is also needed to solve puzzles in addition to fighting. However, fighting should be avoided if possible. Fights are of little use, even if killed opponents sometimes leave behind resources (money, life energy). However, the chance of taking damage yourself is high and Twinsen's life bar decreases quickly. Hidden remedies or money can be found in many places in the landscape. Killed enemies respawn as soon as you enter a building, for example. It is therefore not possible to make an area permanently enemy-free. In general, however, the level of difficulty is significantly lower than in the original. The controls still take some getting used to - but no comparison to 1994! With a little practice, you will soon be able to steer Twinsen through the world quite skillfully and win unavoidable battles easily. Most of your opponents aren't really bright. The clone soldiers as well as the big elephant people are really stupid - they can't see very far, are slow, often don't follow you for very long, get stuck on corners, have a problem with height differences, often don't even notice when they come under fire...

Conclusion:
Fantastic remake of a cult classic. Forgotten are the terrible controls of the original, what remains is the touching story of a young man in an oppressive dictatorship. Find allies and save your little sister in a colorful and wacky world that could only have come from the minds of French developers. Explore different islands, talk to the inhabitants, collect money lying around and avoid contact with the dictator's soldiers hunting you down. The design of the game dates back to 1994, but the controls now work without you having to regularly bite into the gamepad in frustration. This is what playable retro fun looks like!

The remake is pretty, the music is wonderful, the world feels bigger, it's done with a lot of attention and effort, it's more accessible... but remakes are almost always


and this one is not an exception.


The original LBA felt like an immersive sim even though it wasn't. This was misleading but felt great. The remake is more fair but but this fairness comes at the cost of a sense of richness and depth, making it feel less engaging:

• No more stealth whenever you want (I understand they did this because stealth mostly didn't work in the original, but it was nice to have the illusion that you can do it). Right now, it is reduced to a few very limited, scripted events and that's it.
  
  
• You can talk to LESS guards than in the original. Talking to enemies led to funny situations where you'd ask a clone about your arrested girlfriend and he'd tell you "This is none of your business" or directly hit you in the face, or guards that tell you to calm down or literally explain what they see as wrong with you (wearing an incorrect uniform). Some wouldn't react other than attacking but the fact that you could still tell them something was great.
  
  
• Missing NPC Routines Similarly, in the military camp there are some scripted NPC behaviours that are gone (the soldier looking for a toilet), which previously added humor and life to the setting...
  
  
• Broken NPC Routines ...while other NPC behaviours are broken just like in the original (the soldier that is afraid of you runs away from you and in the end gives you money to leave him alone... then immediately goes to his "normal" state, which is... shooting you. This was broken in LBA1 but here, it could have been fixed).

All these decisions were made because LBA is not as detailed as modern action-adventures such as Hitman, Red Dead Redemption 2, Dishonored, Kingdom Come: Deliverance. But ironically this approach ("we can't do it well, so we won't do it at all") now makes it even poorer in its mechanics.

• The Good - What drove me to the original LBA was how well it showed the oppressive world. The remake does it well, too, even more so, because the dialogues are much better. People are still afraid to help you, some betray you.
  
  The terror is expressed better (abandoned houses, destroyed in war). There's gradual descent into darkness (as it's done in LBA2 - your normal life is changed by the dictatorship without you noticing it at first) and also, the universe of LBA1 and LBA2 are made more coherent and connected - landmarks from LBA2 are retroactively and masterfully put in LBA1.
  
  
• Missed Opportunities - The surveillance machine on Citadel Island, which is similar to the flying cameras in Half-Life 2 but even more so, to the marching surveillance scene in INSIDE (where you have to do the same movements as everyone else while being watched), was not communicated well in the original LBA. It wasn't clear that it was forcing people to stop in their tracks, including you. Now this is even less clear.
  
  
• Less sexual truth - Because the game has become feminist in the most modern sense, Zoe is not a damsel in distress anymore, she's (as the trailer shows) leader of the resistance - this is perfectly okay, but guess what else? That lady that used to seduce the big clone so that you can sneak past now... doesn't, instead, this scene is replaced with something childish and unconvincing. So empowering women means denying the reality that they can use their sexual powers to solve problems. You'd think a French game wouldn't succumb to this, but here we are.
  
  
• Less mystery, more absurdity - In the old game it wasn't clear that (when getting in prison) the person slapping Twinsen is Funfrock. Now it is. I don't know how this makes any sense.

Also, there are


which, sadly, is the typical state of a modern game and modern, bloated software. Some bugs are dialogue related, others are visual, some are physical (collision / proximity to interact with something), some are broken scripted NPC events (like the ones I described above), some are even showstoppers (can't speak with a key NPC unless you're lucky).

I'll report dozens of those that I found to the team but that's not what truly matters. Let's look at the


How has the overall game changed? I'll give you just a few examples:

• Less Secrets To Unravel - The horse in White Leaf Desert / Principal Island didn't transport you anywhere in the original game, but he was there to show you the metroidvania aspect of the game - not being able to speak to animals in the beginning vs being able to. It's removed - and the game has less depth (again).
  
• Less Unique Surprises - no flowers saying "ouch" when you step on them. Another funny surprise that the player can figure out is gone. Was it too "low-tech" to stay? Fine, but nothing replaces it.
  
• Bad delivery - the NPCs that run away from you because they don't trust you could have disappeared behind a building / obstruction instead of you being able to reach them. Yes, the environment now works differently (they can't run to another "zone"), but they could go behind something, disappear and respawn later instead of the clumsy thing we have now.

I don't want to fill this section with nitpicking, so I'll just summarize with:

The main problem is that the game is less rich.

Some clunky mechanics, some things that may look ridiculous or underdeveloped, have been removed. However, a lot of depth has been removed with them, with nothing to replace it, and as a result the game feels more bland.


I bought the game three times (on GoG, Epic and Steam) to support the devs and I don't regret it. I'll probably buy it on Switch, too.
Steam doesn't provide a "meh" option, which would better represent my mixed feelings. Instead, I have to choose between thumbs up or thumbs down. I find it hard to force myself to continue playing. I also wouldn't recommend the game to friends because the moments I consider magical are botched. So I guess it's a thumbs down.

Amazing retelling of LBA1. I was a massive fan of Twinsen's Odyssey back in the day but LBA1 was always too clunky for me to get into. This one plays a lot better and the art style is beautiful. The team behind it did a stellar job and if you like the mood of this series, I can't recommend enough. Go play it!