History Videogame / TheGreatGianaSisters

Like Mario, Giana has a variety of power-ups to help her along her way. Her main ability is transforming from her very ''Literature/AliceInWonderland''-ish normal persona into "Punk Giana" (in the 1980s, a punk rock chick with a crazy mohawk and loads of piercings who shoots bubbles; in the more recent version, into a {{Goth}} that shoots fire) which allows her to shoot projectiles to subdue enemies, take another hit[[note]]unless it's the original game[[/note]] and break blocks with her head. She can alter these projectiles by collecting other power-ups which give the projectiles properties like bouncing or homing. Giana can also use convenient vending machines to give her giant bottles of soda which she can spray to break through walls or attack enemies, or bubble gum to allow her to fly provided she doesn't pop the bubble.

* BigBad: A slightly disfigured-looking dragon (referred to as Fucha in the original game manual).

* BottomlessPits

* GenreSavvy: According to the Giana Comic (the pages of which are posted on the official Website/{{Facebook}} page), the Hansel and Gretel boss came about because a mook observed Giana using powerups in the Commodore 64 game, and tried one for itself, becoming the NintendoHard boss it is now.

* PaletteSwap: Giana's sister, Maria, is just Giana with green hair.
** As of the ''Twisted Dreams'' expansion pack, she now has a paler skin tone, ponytail, and a giant ribbon in her hair in art, but still isn't playable.

* OneHitPointWonder: In the original, grabbing a Firewheel and turning Punk doesn't add an extra hit point to Giana/Maria. Averted in ''DS'', as Punk Giana actually makes Giana fire powers and acts as a SingleUseShield as well.

* SingleUseShield: Surprisingly Averted in the original game, were turning Punk ''didn't'' give [[OneHitPointWonder Giana]] an extra hit. In DS, however, Giana just loses her Punk powers upon getting hit and just turns to normal.

* FieryRedhead: Punk Giana.

* OneHitPointWonder: In the original, grabbing a Firewheel and turning Punk doesn't add an extra hit point to Giana/Maria.

* SuperPoweredEvilSide: The DS version's credits strongly imply this.

[[caption-width-right:340: Our heroine, Cute Giana (left), and her easily dated {{Super Form}}, Punk Giana (right).]]

''The Great Giana Sisters'' is a platform/action adventure game from Germany. It was published in the 1980s to [[FollowTheLeader basically cash in on]] ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'' for the UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}} market, since Creator/{{Nintendo}} never published games outside its consoles.

An official sequel, known as ''VideoGame/GianaSistersTwistedDreams'' was released at [[http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/giana_sisters_twisted_dreams/ GOG ]] and [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/223220/ Steam]] on October 23rd, 2012, with an eShop release on September 5th, 2013, and a [[https://www.amazon.com/Giana-Sisters-Twisted-Dream-Directors-Cut/dp/B01586FH6W/ref=pd_sim_63_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=G187ESSX49QYTHGZ39MP Director's Cut disk version]] released on October 29th, 2015, almost three years later. This one changes things up a bit by allowing Giana to switch between her normal and punk form at will. Doing so not only alters Giana's abilities, but also [[DualWorldGameplay switches the world around her from dream to nightmare]] (though which is which seems to be a matter of perspective). Each world has its own hazards, and switching between the two at the right times appears to be the focus of the gameplay. This was followed by a mini-expansion pack / mini-standalone game, ''Rise of the Owlverlord'', which adds a fourth world and boss (the titular Owlverlord who can swap between Pirate and Ninja modes) to the game.

* ArtifactTitle: ''Giana Sisters DS'' does not contain Maria, so "Sisters" is no longer accurate. She makes a return in ''Twisted Dreams'', where Giana must save her from the dragon Fucha who has abducted her to Dreamland.

* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Maria was absent in the DS sequel. She is back in ''Twisted Dreams'' however.

** GrimyWater / SuperNotDrowningSkills: In ''Twisted Dreams'' there are two types of water: violet/green water that kills Giana and blue water that she can swim in indefinitely.
* SuperPoweredEvilSide: The DS version's credits strongly imply that.

* GenreSavvy: According to the Giana Comic (the pages of which are posted on the official FaceBook page), the Hansel and Gretel boss came about because a mook observed Giana using powerups in the Commodore 64 game, and tried one for itself, becoming the NintendoHard boss it is now.

* WritingAroundTrademarks: Failed, obviously. This was the first widely-publicised case in which a FollowTheLeader ripoff of a video game was withdrawn from the market as a result of legal threats. They had been extremely common up to this point, with programmers and companies generally assuming near-impunity.
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An official sequel, known as ''VideoGame/GianaSistersTwistedDreams'' was released at [[http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/giana_sisters_twisted_dreams/ GOG ]] and [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/223220/ Steam]] on October 23rd, 2012. This one changes things up a bit by allowing Giana to switch between her normal and punk form at will. Doing so not only alters Giana's abilities, but also [[DualWorldGameplay switches the world around her from dream to nightmare]] (though which is which seems to be a matter of perspective). Each world has its own hazards, and switching between the two at the right times appears to be the focus of the gameplay. This was followed by a mini-expansion pack / mini-standalone game, ''Rise of the Owlverlord'', which adds a fourth world and boss (the titular Owlverlord who can swap between Pirate and Ninja modes) to the game.

* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: According to the Giana Comic (the pages of which are posted on the official FaceBook page), the Hansel and Gretel boss came about because a mook observed Giana using powerups in the Commodore 64 game, and tried one for itself, becoming the NintendoHard boss it is now.
** Also, in another comic, it waited for Giana by ambushing her near the ''front'' of the boss door, instead of behind it.

''The Great Giana Sisters'' is a platform/action adventure game from Europe. It was published in the 1980s to [[FollowTheLeader basically cash in on]] ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'' for the UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}} market, since Creator/{{Nintendo}} never published games outside its consoles.

Like Mario, Giana has a variety of power-ups to help her along her way. Her main ability is transforming from her very ''Literature/AliceInWonderland''-ish normal persona into "Punk Giana" (in the 1980s, a punk rock chick with a crazy mohawk and loads of piercings who shoots bubbles; in the more recent version, into a {{Goth}} that shoots fire) which allows her to shoot projectiles to subdue enemies, take another hit and break blocks with her head. She can alter these projectiles by collecting other power-ups which give the projectiles properties like bouncing or homing. Giana can also use convenient vending machines to give her giant bottles of soda which she can spray to break through walls or attack enemies, or bubble gum to allow her to fly provided she doesn't pop the bubble.

* EmbeddedPrecursor: Giana Sisters DS has every level from the original Great Giana Sisters as an unlockable.

* CowboyBebopAtHisComputer: There's an awful lot of reviewers out there that believe the 'Sisters' portion of the title means that cute and punk Giana are sisters rather than being the same person.

'''The series provide examples of:'''

''The Great Giana Sisters'' is a platform/action adventure game from Europe. It was published in the 1980s to [[FollowTheLeader basically cash in on]] ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'' for the {{Commodore 64}} market, since Creator/{{Nintendo}} never published games outside its consoles.

->''The brothers are history.''

* KeepCirculatingTheTapes: After the game was pulled from the market, it turned into easily the most popular Commodore 64 pirate game.

* TheWikiRule: Found [[http://giana-sisters.wikia.com/ here]].

* AmericanKirbyIsHardcore: Compare the [[http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/box/4/8/2/572482_66559_front.jpg original European box art]] to the [[http://image.gamespotcdn.net/gamespot/images/box/4/8/2/572482_33534_front.jpg North American box art]].

* BigBad: A slightly disfigured-looking dragon (refered to as Fucha in the original game manual).

* BrotherChuck: Maria was absent in the DS sequel. She is back in ''Twisted Dreams'' however.