Bye Sweet Carole (PC) Review

I’ve had good luck with games this year. Even the ones I wasn’t particularly excited to review have turned out better than expected. The exception is Bye Sweet Carole, which is a shame, because it was the one I was looking forward to the most. On paper — or in this case, in screenshots — it hits all my indie-darling buttons:

Narrative adventure: Check

Dark fantasy: Check

Horror: Check

Hand-drawn art: Check

Unfortunately, none of these elements come together in a satisfying way. The main problem is that Bye Sweet Carole tries to do too much with too little. Its ambitions are lofty, but it never takes the time to see any of them through. The game leans heavily on its gorgeous hand-drawn animation and painterly backdrops to mask the lack of substance at its core. It seems promising at first, despite the awkward narration and occasional visual hiccups. But as the story drags on, it becomes clear that this ambitious project isn’t just stumbling forward — it’s tripping over... Read more