Short version:Hansel and Gretel, written and directed by either Guillermo del Toro, Tim Burton, or [insert director with similar aesthetics as those two].
Long version: Hansel and Gretel, but make one of them the stepmother’s child, which makes them step-siblings. There will be many reasons why you’re lost in the woods, some of them include: a widespread famine, running away from an abusive home, treasure hunting, homesickness, searching for a missing person, escaping from an unwanted marriage, elopement, a terrible sense of direction, among other things. Replace the gingerbread house with a town, and the seemingly nice witch with a dark secret with seemingly nice residents with dark secrets. Trails that lead back home will still be featured though, being made of breadcrumbs not guaranteed. Happy endings also not guaranteed.
Sort of, yeah. Play as a boy, and you’re basically Hansel, but you don’t necessarily have to have a Gretel with you. Same goes for the opposite. Choosing to be a girl, Gretel, does not mean that you automatically get a brother. You get to choose your stepsibling’s gender, after all. So you can be a boy with a brother, or a girl with a sister.
I like the idea a lot. Hansel and Gretel was my favorite story as a kid, mine and my sister’s. And the idea of twisting it just sounds awesome. Plus, fairy tales always have their dark side and this might be it.