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fredrikholm 4 hours ago [-]
I found Grim Fandango in a pile of discounted games as a tween in the 2000s. There was a cool skeleton in a suit on the front cover, so I bought it based on that.
Even though I didn't understand most references and sarcasm, few games have grabbed my attention as Grim Fandango did. The art work, the music, the writing. The whole game oozes of style that I've never seen replicated.
Even some 20+ years later I can almost recite most of Act I from heart. If you haven't played this game and like adventure games, this is one of the best.
Thank you for linking OP, this made my morning.
amiga386 33 seconds ago [-]
When I initially saw the game characters, I thought "this is janky". But by the end of the game, their personalities had won over my heart.
Tim Schafer is really good at this. Psychonauts has a large cast of deformed-looking characters, but you'll love them all by the end.
tialaramex 3 hours ago [-]
I have never played through Grim Fandangoo in full, but in my peer group memes from this game permeated so thoroughly that when I see a pigeon I will too often end up shouting at it, "Run you pigeons! It's Robert Frost".
InsideOutSanta 2 hours ago [-]
I first played it in my 40s when the remaster came out, and it's one of the best games I've played. It holds up incredibly well, particularly with the modernized controls.
So if anyone is wondering if this is just nostalgia, or if the game actually holds up, it's the latter. Just play it.
Gareth321 4 hours ago [-]
I played the demo and it's been at the top of my "to play" list for decades. For one reason or another, I just never have yet. Majora's Mask is also at the top.
jug 3 hours ago [-]
There are a few bad puzzles (especially one regarding infernal critters) that one can use a guide for, but mostly it was a blast to finish it back in the day. Such a unique story by itself and then in a rare comedy / noir style on top! It's kind of crazy how they even came up with it.
I still remember the feeling of the ending, and the end credits music when the violin kicked in as it played the Manny & Meche theme! The music is at least as good as this game.
bherms 50 minutes ago [-]
Soundtrack is dope as well
sersi 3 hours ago [-]
Well worth playing the remastered version. It makes the control a bit more bearable but otherwise feels like the original.
ElCapitanMarkla 1 hours ago [-]
Majora’s Mask is fantastic
jimbob45 3 hours ago [-]
Not to be a downer about a masterpiece game but…the demo ends right before the game starts proffering anti-logic puzzles.
DanielHB 1 hours ago [-]
I remember playing it back in the day and I was severely unimpressed. Compared to Full Throttle it just felt clunky and the 3d art wasn't nearly as good as the amazing pixel art. I ended up never finishing it.
syllogism 41 minutes ago [-]
It released with unbearable keyboard controls instead of the familiar point-and-click. If I remember right a remaster eventually came out that allowed mouse control.
I agree that I hated the 3d though. This was a bad patch for games when everyone wanted to go 3d for the sake of it, even though it looked and played worse.
Razengan 48 minutes ago [-]
You're missing out; give the Remastered/Extended/whatever edition a try
oulipo 2 hours ago [-]
Same for most LucasArt games, Day of the Tentacle, Monkey Islands, and the others
hirako2000 3 hours ago [-]
Unique game. Also to think that they pulled out that beautiful 3D toon feel before toon shaders were made.
Razengan 49 minutes ago [-]
Same, it's one of those things that stays with you for life.
For similar feels, check out Disco Elysium
Planescape Torment
and almost anything by Amanita Design
polytely 3 hours ago [-]
Nice, Tim Schafer is someone whose writing I really admire, if you haven't checked it out yet Double Fine (the studio he leads) documented the entire (7 year!) development cycle of Psychonauts 2 in a 32 episode documentary series, and it in my opinion one of the best documentaries ever made. It covers a lot of cool stuff, like Covid, them getting acquired by Microsoft, big project leadership struggles. It's long as hell but it is really worth your time if you have an interest in creative work in large teams.
They are currently doing a company wide gamejam/game idea incubation thing, after surviving Microsoft undoing the acquisition and the same Documentary crew is doing a doc about that (they did a kickstarter campaign to fund it)
ulrikrasmussen 1 hours ago [-]
I have started playing Grim Fandango with my kids (7 and 9) after we played through Day of the Tentacle together. Playing old adventure games on the TV and letting people take turns playing is a great family activity!
They aren't native English speakers and the story in Grim Fandango is considerably harder to follow compared to DoTT, so they lost interest a bit after we completed year 1. But as soon as their English skills improve, we'll get back to it, it's one of my favorite adventure games!
raverbashing 28 minutes ago [-]
I wonder how easy it would be to translate it today with LLMs and have a translated version running on ScummVM
ulrikrasmussen 24 minutes ago [-]
Isn't ScummVM 2D only?
leokennis 3 hours ago [-]
The small square box at the very end of the document, with accompanying text, is just delightful:
> To protect this document, please restrict your fallen tears of joy to this box. Thank you! → [__]
All over the document, you can see Tim Schafer "wasted his time" by adding personality (jokes, graphics, asides) to what is basically an internal document.
I think in 2026 a document lovingly crafted like this would be deemed a great waste of time, lack of efficiency and an affront to shareholder value.
Always fascinating to peek behind the curtain at how these classics were built. Grim Fandango had some truly brilliant, and occasionally maddening, puzzles.
armcat 1 hours ago [-]
I would sometimes just let the game idle at the casino level and just listen to the mellow jazz. That game was a piece of art.
dariosalvi78 3 hours ago [-]
I've been playing most of Lucas Arts games with my 10 y/o daughter. Grim Fandango is the one she has liked the best. It is not perfect, has lots of bugs (crashed on several occasions) and weird things, but the atmosphere is so cool.
Monkey Island comes second of course.
ModernMech 21 minutes ago [-]
Grim Fandango is interesting because they are responsible for Lua’s popularity as a gaming scripting language:
Ahha, this document came to my attention last night from this video [0] that bubbled in my YouTube recs - I don't know if it's the same for OP or just a coincidence, but I highly recommend it too:
Grim Fandango was one of the first games I bought out of my own pocket. And as was the norm back then, this used up all my games budget for months, so I had to stick to this game, for better or worse, for a long time.
I remember it took me a very long time to even find the Tube Room, it's easy to miss unless you do the 3D equivalent of pixelhunting to find the place where you need to take a turn. And boy, was I stuck in Rubacava!
I also remember that it was slightly difficult to buy the game - I was at least 13 at the time, the game had an age rating of 12, but (gasp!) there were skeletons on the cover, and the tag line mentioned corruption and crime. So the lady in the shop actually called her boss before eventually selling the game to me.
bherms 51 minutes ago [-]
My favorite game of all time. This is awesome
shmeeed 2 hours ago [-]
Obligatory link to The Digital Antiquarian's treatment of the game:
"Tim Schafer at Double Fine has posted the puzzle design spec for his classic adventure game, Grim Fandango. It is that game's tenth anniversary; it was released on the Day of the Dead, 1998."
PetitPrince 4 hours ago [-]
Looks like Tom Schafer style; I find him whimsical and funny in all of his communication. I don't think it's a stretch that this aspect extends to nom-public communications.
wodenokoto 3 hours ago [-]
It's a game design document.
My guess is it is kinda like a first draft that some higher ups approve and budgets and then dialogue and game development and puzzle testing can begin.
TZubiri 3 hours ago [-]
Looks like a GDD but just for the puzzles, a PDD
N_Lens 4 hours ago [-]
This game is iconic!
hnarayanan 4 hours ago [-]
Yes. Literally one of the best.
upmostly 2 hours ago [-]
I have a love/hate relationship with Grim Fandango.
I love the world, the characters, the music, and the art style. It was so inspiring for me as a child.
I literally hate the puzzles and the gameplay.
_s_a_m_ 2 hours ago [-]
Absoltely crazy amount of detailed work
TZubiri 3 hours ago [-]
>"This report by its very length defends itself against the risk of being read" Winston H. Churchill
And this comment will prove it, by referencing only the very first part of the document, being the comment most likely to garner upvotes and replies, as opposed to deeper nuanced comments.
Even though I didn't understand most references and sarcasm, few games have grabbed my attention as Grim Fandango did. The art work, the music, the writing. The whole game oozes of style that I've never seen replicated.
Even some 20+ years later I can almost recite most of Act I from heart. If you haven't played this game and like adventure games, this is one of the best.
Thank you for linking OP, this made my morning.
Tim Schafer is really good at this. Psychonauts has a large cast of deformed-looking characters, but you'll love them all by the end.
So if anyone is wondering if this is just nostalgia, or if the game actually holds up, it's the latter. Just play it.
I still remember the feeling of the ending, and the end credits music when the violin kicked in as it played the Manny & Meche theme! The music is at least as good as this game.
I agree that I hated the 3d though. This was a bad patch for games when everyone wanted to go 3d for the sake of it, even though it looked and played worse.
For similar feels, check out Disco Elysium
Planescape Torment
and almost anything by Amanita Design
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIhLvue17Sd70y34zh2erWWpM...
They are currently doing a company wide gamejam/game idea incubation thing, after surviving Microsoft undoing the acquisition and the same Documentary crew is doing a doc about that (they did a kickstarter campaign to fund it)
They aren't native English speakers and the story in Grim Fandango is considerably harder to follow compared to DoTT, so they lost interest a bit after we completed year 1. But as soon as their English skills improve, we'll get back to it, it's one of my favorite adventure games!
> To protect this document, please restrict your fallen tears of joy to this box. Thank you! → [__]
All over the document, you can see Tim Schafer "wasted his time" by adding personality (jokes, graphics, asides) to what is basically an internal document.
I think in 2026 a document lovingly crafted like this would be deemed a great waste of time, lack of efficiency and an affront to shareholder value.
Monkey Island comes second of course.
https://www.lua.org/doc/hopl.pdf
GDC Talk: "One Page Designs", by Stone Librande
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9_wLks1kAg
I also remember that it was slightly difficult to buy the game - I was at least 13 at the time, the game had an age rating of 12, but (gasp!) there were skeletons on the cover, and the tag line mentioned corruption and crime. So the lady in the shop actually called her boss before eventually selling the game to me.
https://www.filfre.net/2024/11/grim-fandango/
As a walkthrough, it is nice. But as the foundation for the game designers, it would be a fun because it is so lighthearted.
"Tim Schafer at Double Fine has posted the puzzle design spec for his classic adventure game, Grim Fandango. It is that game's tenth anniversary; it was released on the Day of the Dead, 1998."
My guess is it is kinda like a first draft that some higher ups approve and budgets and then dialogue and game development and puzzle testing can begin.
I love the world, the characters, the music, and the art style. It was so inspiring for me as a child.
I literally hate the puzzles and the gameplay.
And this comment will prove it, by referencing only the very first part of the document, being the comment most likely to garner upvotes and replies, as opposed to deeper nuanced comments.