Unbelievable, even almost 10 years later

User Rating: 9.9 | Grim Fandango PC
By mesayni | Review Date:
I'm a great fan of the adventure game genre, or at least I was when I was younger and was playing games like Myst and The Neverhood and King's Quest and stuff like that on my computer. But I'd never played Grim Fandango, and I knew I had to. I must say, absolutely crazy how good this game is. From the first cutscene, I was impressed and even shocked by the quality of the game's presentation. The writing is great, the art direction is better than most cinematography you see these days, and the story just pulls you through the game you wouldn't believe. They don't really make games like this anymore, at least not in any level of quantity, and it's too bad because all I want to do is play games like this for the rest of my life but it wouldn't be the same because it's not Grim Fandango. After all this hopeless fawning, I'll break this game down into the 5 sections that GameSpot gives.

Gameplay- Fabulous. It's not a point-and-click like so many of the old-school PC adventures, so it feels quite innovative. You have to watch Manny the protagonist's face to know what's important. The real good part about the gameplay is that you're never quite sure how you're going to need to use an item in what context. However, this does not mean that you're going to use any items in completely illogical ways and every puzzle is completely solveable with a little bit of thought, not that this is easy in any way. This is a tough game.

Graphics- Technically, 10 years later, not a great accomplishment. But artistically, this game has aged incredibly. The way the directors of this game framed the different scenes and locales you'll find yourself in is awe-inspiring and beautiful. It's tough to imagine anyone doing it any better. I found myself constantly just saying Wow to myself as I was transported from the Edge of the World to Under the Sea to the bustling corrupted town of Rubicava to the Train Station out of the Land of the Dead. Incredible.

Sound- My favorite soundtrack to a game yet. Nice mix of jazz, mariachi, and just otherwise great music. And while it's not intrusive, if you listen closely there's some awesome music going on. This is coming from a guy who usually mutes games because they're so annoying, so that's a bit of an accomplishment. And the voice acting. Awesome voice acting, almost Hollywood caliber, and like I've said it's witty, dramatic, and smart the whole time. Great script, great music, great voices, sounds good to me.

Value- Once it's over, not a whole lot more to do, but I could see playing it again another year or two from now just to re-experience everything. It's hard to put a price on a game this good, so I can't bash value too bad. Tilt- The game keeps you moving, but once in a while you'll get stuck on a puzzle for a long time, and if you don't wimp out and use a walkthrough like I did a couple times your game will come to a grinding halt. But it's hard to blame the game for that. if you sit a puzzle out and work until you figure it out by yourself, the sense of accomplishment is worth it. And the majority of this game is paced perfectly. You will be wondering what will happen next and playing in a frenzied manner to experience this great game. Obviously highly recommended.

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