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The Ten Best Gameworlds
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Land of the Dead
Grim Fandango
Based on the Mexican folklore tales of the land of the dead, Grim Fandango follows our hero Manny Calavera on his four-year journey to find his true love and earn salvation.
From El Marrow to the petrified forest, to Rubacava, and to the edge of the world, the game's background scenes and images are reminiscent of the '20s style moderne and the '30s art deco style. Backgrounds are painted with Aztec, Inca, and Mayan symbols and patterns. El Marrow in particular has an art deco feel to it that fits in perfectly with the film-noir quality of the adventure.
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One of the things that makes this world so special is its unique setting. Instead of landing on some familiar deserted island or the same old, dark sci-fi world, Grim Fandango takes place in the brightly colored universe of the land of the dead. Mexican folklore indeed provides rich material for creative visual and gameplay experiences. Nowhere is this more evident in Rubacava, with its nightclubs, casinos, and all-important cat-racing stadium. The main source of entertainment at Rubacava is gambling, and Manny, by working hard and greasing the right palms, runs a moderately successful casino. But he abandons it to continue his quest for his true love, Meche.
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His search for Meche takes him to every nook and cranny of Rubacava, as he seeks to board the ship that will take him on his next adventure. From Manny's casino to the spectacular cat-racing stadium to the underbelly of Rubacava, Manny flits hither and thither, finding the keys to his quest. The search to leave Rubacava takes a large portion of the game, but by the time you've got all the pieces together to get Manny and his faithful sidekick Glottis on board the ship, you're strangely reluctant to leave. You truly feel at home in Rubacava, with all its strange inhabitants and weird diversions.
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Not that an exciting sea chase and submarine-top battle with the game's evil henchman Domino Hurley doesn't make for a thrilling adventure. They do, and the game's final confrontations bring you back from the edge of the world through beloved Rubacava, albeit briefly, to the source of all the trouble, El Marrow.
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Throughout Manny's adventure, there's not one scene that doesn't transport you into another world. This world lives and breathes, and it is filled with wonderful characters that fit in perfectly with their unique environment.
Visit Fallout's sheltered world
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