Grim Fandango: Ten Years Old, and Two Days 04 Nov, 2008, 19:07 / 12 comments
For those of you who don't know (and you were supposed to know, but I was held back because of ugly school deadlines): two days ago, on November 2nd (update: apparently it's October 29th), 2008, was the tenth anniversary of the brilliant landmark game, Grim Fandango. Ten years! Tim Schafer's thoughts here.
I wasn't old enough to play Fandango in 1998, and I only played it last year. It was beautiful. I'll never, ever forget a moment at the end of the game - and spoiler coming-up here - where Manny runs once again into Chepito, the traveller following the "moon" underwater - as he "[evens] out my life in this world before I go on to the next," and then walks into the next world, singing that song. As Manny, I tried to follow him. And Manny stopped.
He stopped, looked at the tunnel to the next world and said that he wouldn't, not without all the people he'd promised to save.
And in a surge of emotion I realised that my life's just that much better because of it.
What a beautiful story and a beautiful game.
Grim Fandango is my favorite game of all time by the way.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/1998/10/27/DD89817.DTL&type=printable
Kind of like how I had to wait for my EBGames to get Psychonauts in. Poor Tim.
And props to Tim Schafer and co for creating such an awesome game.
By an extraordinary coincidence, I began playing Grim Fandango for the second time of my life two weeks ago. The last time was 10 years before that.
And maybe it's because I've aged and matured, but I find it even better than the first time.
(If someone makes a patch to allow the use of the mouse in the game, he'll get my eternal gratitude!).