Recent reviews by zaekr

The original Grim Fandango was released in 1998 with the remaster releasing in 2015. Very few games manage to maintain their charm over such a long period of time. The art-style, music, dialogue and humor still manage to captivate over 20 years later.

Taking inspiration from Aztec beliefs and the film-noir genre, this game takes you on an adventure through the afterlife through the eyes of Manuel "Manny" Calavera as he tries to right a wrong while gradually uncovering an underworld conspiracy, pun intended. Along the way, you'll solve many problems, make friends, and visit various locations.

The game is linear for the most part, becoming slightly non-linear with respect to the order in which you solve various problems in each area. As mentioned earlier, the dialogue is very witty and I found myself squeezing for every last drop of interaction I could get. It's not like the game lacks dialogue. No, no. Far from it. It's just so good, I could not get enough. The voice acting is excellent as well.

Purely game-play wise, the game has you controlling Manny from third-person perspective as he moves through pre-rendered backgrounds from various camera angles. You will need to collect and utilize items, interact with the environment, talk to people, and solve puzzles to progress. Most of the time, your objectives are clear, but sometimes they are not. Even then, despite knowing what to do, figuring out how to do it is a challenge as well. Many problems are straight forward, however a not-insignificant number of them will have you scratching your head in frustration, since they require very obtuse thinking and lots of trial-and-error. This is especially evident in the second quarter of the game, where I had the most trouble.

Graphics wise, all character models have had their textures and lighting improved, with the option of reverting back to that of the original at any point with the press of a button. The backgrounds remain unchanged as they're pre-rendered and already looked pretty good. I found myself toggling between the remastered models and original models often to see what it was like and the improvement is impressive. Modern players may find the new models to still be too basic and sharp, but I really appreciated the simple designs.

The story is not very complex but is executed well. However, the real enjoyment comes from character interactions. The dialogue is fun, and is only helped by the voice acting. My personal favorite dialogue deliveries were by the character Glottis. The subtle humor has aged extremely well. I would be surprised if someone did not enjoy what this game has to offer in terms of writing.

In summary,
+ Great writing
+ Charming art-style
- Some puzzles are frustrating to solve
- Back and forth movement in an area can feel sluggish at times

I feel the positives outweigh the negatives greatly and I would recommend this game to anyone with several hours to spare for a laidback game. Don't be afraid to use a walkthrough if you feel like you need it though.

Short and fun. Music goes well with the atmosphere. The pixel art-style brings out a feeling of nostalgia.
Their inspiration for the game is clear within the first few minutes of game-play.
Highly recommended for fans of Metroid Fusion.

It was an experience. And I loved it.

Really fun! Lots of replayability, humour and SPAAAAAAACE! (and the community chambers too)