Grim Fandango Remastered review

Grim Fandango back to life thanks to this remastering of Double Fine. An adventure regarded by many as one of the best, finally again to be enjoyed in PC without patches or emulations while open in PS4 and PS Vita.

In our Retro Memories , plus tell you the benefits of Grim Fandango, one of the most memorable adventure games from LucasArts history, we said that it is virtually impossible to play the title of Tim Schafer today. Not only it is difficult to get an original copy (the price paid by the board of one of these issues is of offense, even the reissue of Activision is hard to find), but run on a modern operating system involves a mixture of patches and crossing fingers that are not at all comfortable. The unique formula, in fact, was to use the ResidualVM, an emulator for the engine used in Grim Fandango and The Curse of Monkey Island: the GrimE.

This is why resurrect a classic adventure games from the dead, give choices to players who don’t want to deal with speculators or emulators, already justifies Grim Fandango again in a remastering. I wish I had also made in physical format to boot all the root problem. And thanks also to its mechanical based on a pad, considered almost a heresy for the time, it has also been seen adapted to PS Vita PlayStation 4 and naturally.

Salvador Limones ... and a friend

As in the remakes of Monkey Island, Grim Fandango has a button to change at any time of the remastered original version. The first time you try, hoping that change brings, may seem a disappointment: funds not change and only 3D models seem to have better definition, also adjusting to the behavior of the stage lighting. But that would not fully see the whole because, for example, all funds have been rescued from the original files from LucasArts to fit better definition.

This is the meaning of a remastering. Just like in the movies they go to film to adapt to higher quality formats, Grim Fandango has been fortunate to retain its original material in good condition. This has been applied very subtle improvements, most notably the new control system. We can choose between a relative movement of the camera or on the character called "tank mode".

Grim Fandango is attractive

The control seems very similar to what we've seen recently with Resident Evil HD Remaster since both titles use a set of cameras for pre-rendered scenarios, characters recreated in three dimensions. If the tank was being so rude in his turns and changes of direction, the new mode on the camera better solves these problems, but carries other. For example, when the camera is completely bypasses the shaft to offer the opposite perspective, the direction you are moving the stick becomes the contrary, is back and forth. It can be cumbersome at times, but one ends up getting used and is more comfortable than the original motion.

Gloria Fuertes
Maybe the obvious changes of Grim Fandango not do so very different from the original version, which says a lot of great work done in 1998, but the best surprise is within the "additional content". To hear the comments of Tim Schafer about the development of the title, all while you play, it is a pleasure for the quantity and quality of its explanations and anecdotes that are an essential feature in any reissue to be provided.


Moreover, in Spain we have a delicious extra touch, is that the original dubbing is coupled to this version. A task that should not be easy, because this kind of translation and dubbing often lost over the years or wrong in a legal tide in which the producer of the game is not the same as the local editor. The boys GoG platform, for example, always talk about it when not wearing the Spanish editions to their store, and we appreciate the work of Double Fine to remember that, for many, a man shaped balloon Smoking a pipe is Gloria Fuertes. As if that were not enough, has even done work for adjusting lip-sync (figuratively) into our language.

The last of the most notable differences is proportion. The original is 4: 3 and Double Fine wanted respect, and to convert the whole game 16: 9 would have been recreated again all the mythical scenes, virtually remake task while zooming to fill the edges would have ended his definition and would not have been able to recreate the original frames. The solution, therefore, is to give the option of playing on a 16: 9 whoever forced to completely fill the image, while the 4: 3 can be played with bands or with a decorative designs on both sides.

We believe that Double Fine has perfectly understood the philosophy of a remastering: restoring a historical work, preserving the how it was designed and built

The main negative aspect is given by the own debugging versions. During our games the game came to hang on three occasions while at another time a bug prevented us from continuing. In all of them we lost enough progress as Grim Fandango has no autosave, but requires manual saved. Once you get used to it you can get to solve the problem slightly, but not easy after years of accepting that videogames perform this task for us. Hopefully this problem will be solved as soon as possible crashes because it is really frustrating having to reload a previous game and repeat your latest developments.

The glimmer of the sea, I'll let it shine

These are the major differences between versions, but for those who have never played Grim Fandango, what are the reasons to get to it in the 2015? What remains today? We are talking about one of the best adventure games considered in history, but that's just grades. Grim Fandango is attractive mainly because it is written and decorated in the few games they were and few games are. Each of his dialogues makes you laugh, delve more into his world, one of the best exercises that Tim Schafer has signed over his career.

The story takes us to the Land of the Dead, where our hero Manny Calavera is a travel agent, responsible for providing transportation to those who have recently died. But things are not going well in the Department of Death, as Domino, her partner and competition is getting the best customers (those who have been good in life) stealing all the good sales.

The recreation of the world of the dead, with its base in the Mexican folklore and Aztec mythology, created a microcosm that has never been seen nor in the game or in other arts. His jokes and inspirations in the black film are not mere references, but the adventure fit like a glove. Even recreating the world of the living, as a kind of Picasso's collage is an overwhelming brilliance. Play it today continues to attract through this imaginary; remains fresh, new and continues to conquer our hearts.

The puzzles are another story. They are original and making the pagan sacrifice of eliminating the combination of items, Grim Fandango has the best interface for inventory, making Manny Calavera long as possible and the impossible of his jacket and take the object in his own hand. This, coupled with its 3D mechanical puzzle makes many were simpler than the "pixel hunting" of the early 90s, but at times may be warped, as in the Petrified Forest and moments where we have to interact just time.

Grim Fandango was once a unique game. We justified its remastering having become a game of difficult access to the original title, and its price goes pretty, but it's a shame that has not been gone for a limited edition physical version come down a peg who wants to box based on nostalgia. News appear slim, but fair and necessary to enjoy the work following the original conception and saving some bugs and unnecessary burdens among some scenarios, it is an issue with which not to worry about patches and emulators. If you're adventurous of the time it's a perfect opportunity to pay bills and taxes; If you're new, I play it. Even if you get stuck, even if you have to pull guide, do not worry: here everyone is as dead as you.

I honestly don’t know how to react to the new player who is curious about this work, but is reluctant to classic adventure genre. What is perhaps more used to film Telltale adventure that classic puzzles and in some absurd moments, the adventures of LucasArts. But if it is attracted by its history, its humor and its setting, don’t hesitate to play with the guidebook in hand. Even without the factor of puzzle solving, Grim Fandango is still a must.

We understand some of the criticisms made to the title: "They could have redesigned the funds", "could have converted to 16: 9", "could have improved modeling of the characters" ... In the art of restoring classics said the basic principle is to touch as little as possible, preserve the soul of the work without adding your own interpretation. It's not about making a better background for the Mona Lisa because now there are other techniques or remodel the monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey because now you can do 3D. That, indeed, is the reason why fans Star Wars George Lucas wanted to stop tinkering with the original trilogy. We believe that Double Fine has perfectly understood the philosophy of a remastering: restoring a historical work, preserving the how it was designed and built. And Grim Fandango is video game history.

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