287: No Gods, No Devils

Brendan Main

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Jul 17, 2009
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No Gods, No Devils

From the super-stylized Land of the Dead in LucasArts' classic Grim Fandango comes a game about life.

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dolgion

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Nov 20, 2010
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What a great read about one of the best and most underrated LucasArts adventure games. The game itself was like a fresh breeze at its time, and it would still be today. I love the whole setting, the twist that comes with the whole idea that all these characters are actually dead and just try to deal with their situation.

I wish there were more games like that, games that walk beside the mainstream and encourage the player to contemplate themes like life and death.

I remember that Grim Fandango was dismissed back in the day because of the unconventional control scheme (only keyboard, no point and click). It put people off and many gave up after the first few minutes, some not even giving it a shot at all. To which I have to say: Please PLEASE give it a real shot, you'll get used to the controls soon enough and what awaits you then is a truly epic (this word is overused these days...) journey, a heart-warming love story and adventure full of humor and drama. Manny Calavera is one of the most endearing protagonists in gaming history. The style is just so unique for a game (very much inspired by movies like casablanca and mexican culture and art deco).

Anyways, great to see Grim Fandango get some spotlight again!
 

SamElliot'sMustache

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Oct 5, 2009
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I never got to play Grim Fandango when it came out, but I remember being fascinated by a blurb in a magazine talking about it's setting, and showing a screenshot from the game. The title, the pitch, and that one picture stuck in my mind for years, even when nothing else was ever mentioned about the game (until recently), and I still wish I could give it a try.
 

coldfrog

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Dec 22, 2008
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Yet another reason that A: Grim Fandango is one of my favorite games and B: Brendan Main seems to write my favorite articles. Even though I've played through this game a few times now, there's always a new way to look at it, and something that can be said that remains relevant. If only more games would work to be so poignant and unique these days.
 

FinalDream

[Insert Witty Remark Here]
Apr 6, 2010
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I loved this game so much even though I was young and it seemed really hard. I wish they made games like they used to!

Edit: By 'they' I refer to Lucasarts.
 

Gildan Bladeborn

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Ah Grim Fandango, how I dearly loved that game... and then was unable to play it for years because one of my siblings lost my blasted CD somewhere. Back when I'd first played it I would go on about what a brilliant adventure game it was, and how they really needed to play it, and then I would have been prepared to swear I entrusted my jewel case with sibling #1 to do just that.

Some time later, since I felt like playing the game again and they'd apparently never so much as even put the disc into the tray, I attempted to return it to the fold only to learn that it had "mysteriously vanished". And so I remained Grim Fandango less - several times over the years I've almost just caved in and purchased another copy, but the knowledge that I already own a perfectly functional one... somewhere had always stopped me.

Which is a pretty good thing really, because I came home yesterday to discover my game sitting at my place at the table - it turns out Grim Fandango had somehow ended up amidst the unholy clutter that sibling #2 generates around himself, and sibling #1 had found it while cleaning. There was much rejoicing.
 

Lord_Kristof

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Sep 24, 2010
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I only recently played Grim Fandango, despite wanting to play it for some time now, but you know, it's hard to get your hands on it!

As an adventure game, it's ok, but nothing very impressing. Some puzzles are too hard, others are too easy, the pacing is somewhat distorted by the end, that kind of stuff. But the setting is one of the best ever imagined, I have to agree with that.

Also, the music. I simply love it.
 

LadyRhian

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May 13, 2010
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That afterlife sounds like the Chinese Celestial Bureaucracy. You'll get to where you are going eventually, but first fill out these 9250 forms in triplicate and may Kuan Yin have mercy on you if you make a mistake or have to cross something out, because the Celestial Emperor WON'T.
 

Brendan Main

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LadyRhian said:
That afterlife sounds like the Chinese Celestial Bureaucracy. You'll get to where you are going eventually, but first fill out these 9250 forms in triplicate and may Kuan Yin have mercy on you if you make a mistake or have to cross something out, because the Celestial Emperor WON'T.
"Well sir, the good news is that we've reviewed your application, and we've found that you qualify to be a vampire. Here are your robes and hat. You can begin work at your earliest convenience.

The bad news... well, the bad news is that you have to hop everywhere. No skulking, no running, no "turning into mist." Just hopping. For all eternity.

We're sorry. You should have read the fine print."
 

Mullahgrrl

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I take issue with the part in the middle where you say that none of the villains are pure evil (wich you misspelled by the way).

The lawyer!
 

Maleb

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Apr 22, 2010
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I was really amazed by the soundtrack back then (and ofcourse the rest: story, pacing, gameplay). Really good stuff. But I'm just a sucker for adventure shindigs
 

Brendan Main

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Mullahgrrl said:
I take issue with the part in the middle where you say that none of the villains are pure evil (wich you misspelled by the way).

The lawyer!
Saying a lawyer is pure evil seems beside the point. Do you blame a shark for biting, or a staphylococcus from staphylococcizing? Maybe it just had a bad childhood. Tough to say.

But on the typo, I take your point. "Eebil" is incorrect. It's spelled "eeeebil," and should always be followed by a spooky laugh.
 

Mullahgrrl

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Brendan Main said:
Mullahgrrl said:
I take issue with the part in the middle where you say that none of the villains are pure evil (wich you misspelled by the way).

The lawyer!
Saying a lawyer is pure evil seems beside the point. Do you blame a shark for biting, or a staphylococcus from staphylococcizing? Maybe it just had a bad childhood. Tough to say.
But then, do you blame a Curryesque daemon for roasting people over magma?
 

LadyRhian

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Brendan Main said:
LadyRhian said:
That afterlife sounds like the Chinese Celestial Bureaucracy. You'll get to where you are going eventually, but first fill out these 9250 forms in triplicate and may Kuan Yin have mercy on you if you make a mistake or have to cross something out, because the Celestial Emperor WON'T.
"Well sir, the good news is that we've reviewed your application, and we've found that you qualify to be a vampire. Here are your robes and hat. You can begin work at your earliest convenience.

The bad news... well, the bad news is that you have to hop everywhere. No skulking, no running, no "turning into mist." Just hopping. For all eternity.

We're sorry. You should have read the fine print."
"Oh yes, and you'll find a fascination with counting things. Grains of rice... beans... just don't let your new obsession with counting things mean you fail to take shelter from the daylight. Please to enjoy your new eternity as a Chiang-shih."
 

LordBag

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Jan 10, 2008
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"Manny, until now we scraped along the ground like rats, but from now on, we soar. Like eagles. Yeah. LIKE EAGLES... ON... POGO STICKS."

Glottis is brilliant!
 

shiajun

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Jun 12, 2008
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I have my Grim Fandando disc up and ready and I'd really love to play it again. Tough luck there. Apparently as time progessed the game has become more a more difficult to run due to compatibility issues and now it just crashes in the first scene. I don't want a remake, I just wish LucasArts would take a little time to make this playable again.
 

Jake Martinez

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Apr 2, 2010
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shiajun said:
I have my Grim Fandando disc up and ready and I'd really love to play it again. Tough luck there. Apparently as time progessed the game has become more a more difficult to run due to compatibility issues and now it just crashes in the first scene. I don't want a remake, I just wish LucasArts would take a little time to make this playable again.
If you enjoy playing old games, then you need to get familiar with creating virtual machines. I have ones that run everything from DOS and Windows 95, to Windows Server 2008. There should be a fair bit of information on the internet about setting them up for gaming, in fact I'm pretty sure I read an article on it even in a mainstream gaming magazine just a couple of months ago.
 

C-45

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Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'd heard the name Grim Fandando before and I'd heard it paired with phrases such as "you must play this," but for some reason I'd never taken the time to look at it. And so the sea of great video games which I'm now drowning in grows slightly bigger. Now my weekend which was going to be occupied by penumbra overture and amnesia has been high jacked by Grim Fandando.
 

Nutcase

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Dec 3, 2008
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The game is basically impossible to buy and doesn't work right anymore -> great candidate for a Good Old Games release. I'd buy for sure. Never had the chance to play the real thing but my game designer friend swears it's the best adventure game made.