Bye Sweet Carole Review – Till You’re Home To Stay

Bye Sweet Carole captivates with its beautiful artstyle, harkening back to Disney’s golden era. The gameplay execution is where it stumbles.

Hand drawn animation has come a really long way. From the 1950s classics such as Cinderella as a nascent medium to the more haunting 1990s Don Bluth offbeats like Anastasia before the world turned to 3D. Bye Sweet Carole is a 2D horror adventure firmly rooted in these iconic films that raised generations, quickly piquing the interest of whoever has seen a still of this beautiful game. Sadly, the eternal question of “Should this game have been a movie?” is raised as soon as the gameplay starts.

Greeted by a wondrous animated cutscene accompanied by a deep voiced narrator, we are introduced to the world of protagonist Lana Benton. Raised in the Bunny Hall orphanage, things quickly turn sideways when she falls into an endless hole and ends up transported to the Kingdom of Corolla. Motivated by finding what happened to her sweet friend Carole now disappeared, she faces unimaginable horrors in this brave tale of hope and despair.

Stalked by a red eyed owl and cloaked figures, most of the gameplay elements in Bye Sweet Carole consist of hiding from these foes to solving light puzzles. Going up and down areas, collecting and combining items to light up a furnace, moving cranks to power up an elevator or planting mouse traps are among the several activities Lana will be doing. Not too compelling overall, it at least makes players engage with the world as she finds answers. A bright fairytale with dark undertones, the corrupted beings in this fantasy land are always chasing our poor protagonist.

The neverending homages are evident for those perceptive enough to look for them. Alice in Wonderland can easily be thought of in this dual exploration of a fantasy and real world. At certain moments, Lana will be able to talk with birds, to the point of even being aided by them. Just like this was Disney’s whole shtick all those years ago, there is a certain feeling of warmth seeing it recreated in 2025 for adults of a certain age. In that sense, exploring these simply delightful worlds is a joy in and of itself.

In the pursuit of introducing gameplay elements to such a narrative-heavy experience, there are some questionable design choices that end up detracting from the experience. QTEs, the lack of any sort of accessibility features, and the game’s misguided intention of making it challenging can end up souring the playthrough. Because it is all painstakingly handpainted, this ends up making Lana’s movement rather stiff. Going up stairs, shimming to reach a balcony and climbing shelves feel unintuitive.

As mentioned, the game stumbles and falters every time it tries to create compelling gameplay scenarios. A grueling game of cat and mouse that becomes the central part of the playtime, instant-fail sequences become just as fun as they sound. Which is not at all. Perhaps if they added some difficulty settings to not stress out so much at the erratic enemies to allow you to witness the charming story behind it, I would be more enticed to wholeheartedly recommend it.

Described as a horror adventure, Bye Sweet Carole is scary in the same vein Courage The Cowardly Dog is (which, to be fair, I was when I was a kid). Or the evil beings from Kpop Demon Hunters, for a more updated reference. None of the monsters or jumpscares are particularly unnerving, but the strange shapeshifting abilities of the main antagonist Kyn are most certainly something to be admired. Some bombastic scenes reminiscent of the Ursula final act in The Little Mermaid are also rather memorable.

Verdict

Bye Sweet Carole has an ambitious third act that while it doesn’t quite stick the landing, it’s not for a lack of trying. Rewarding the player at the end of each chapter with a beautifully rendered cutscene, at least there is solace in knowing that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. When all is said and done, it’s hard to stay angry at this game when it has such a noble parting message. Its emotional voice acting, vulnerable narrative and especially its mesmerizing artstyle will take your breath away. There is no doubt about that. I just wish that there weren’t so many struggles to get to the good part.

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