![]() The other main alteration in the re-master – the control scheme – is far more successful and very welcome. These issues perhaps make the re-mastering effort appear a little lazy at times. It automatically loads into 4:3, with a suitable Art Deco border – however, the option for widescreen simply stretches everything, which obviously further effects the visual fidelity of the backgrounds, and isn’t true widescreen. Things get worse still if you decide to switch to widescreen mode. Although the scenes are still nicely designed, sadly they certainly appear to be lower quality when presented next to the sharp, updated character models. ![]() Sure, the character models and lighting are infinitely better, but the background scenery barely changes at all, aside from maybe a minor resolution change. Having the option in-game to hot switch between the original and re-mastered graphics actually helps highlight just how little has been updated. Cutscenes, too, have been re-compressed from source files, removing a lot of noise that was present in the original release. This also eliminates the previously terrible shadows cast by the character models – no longer heavy blocks of solid colour, but now softer and much more natural. Completely new lighting effects have also been applied to character models in all scenes, adding a lot more Noir flavour and atmosphere – with window shutters cast upon worried faces and dark shadows obscuring evil-doers. All the character models and usable objects have had sharper and higher-resolution textures applied to them, with the result that they are all far sharper and clearer to look at, and previously muddy or pixelated details are now easy to discern. The graphic overhaul, however, is somewhat of a mixed bag. New developer commentary tracks have been added too, so at highlighted points fans can play back the views of the original development team on different scenes and elements – a nice addition for longtime followers. The voice acting seemingly remains untouched, but is still top-notch even by today’s standards, with suitably authentic delivery all-around. Now it sounds better than ever, re-recorded by a full orchestra to great effect. Catchy big-band beats are infused with Mexican folk guitar in a seamless manner, complementing both the action and setting throughout. The music of Grim Fandango was always one of its best features. Therefore it was with good reason that Double Fine decided to bring it a little more up to date in several respects.Īnd this was certainly a success in some areas – the most impressive being the newly-recorded musical score. Because of these reasons in particular, the title hadn’t aged well visually, and felt like a bit of a chore to control. There always was an epic and cinematic feel to it all, and Tim Schafer and the Lucasarts designers were on top of their game with Grim Fandango – despite the technical limitations of it being their first graphic adventure that was produced with 3D character models and controls. To reveal too much about how the story develops would do a disservice to such a classic piece of story-telling, but suffice to say it delivers a fantastically gripping tale of star-crossed lovers and stars a great cast of both lovable heroes and vile villains. Pulling ideas from such a disparate range of influences could easily create a real mess, yet Grim fandango ties it all together into one strong vision of life after death, and tasks you with uncovering the corruption therein. ![]() The story spans four years and draws inspiration from Mexican culture and the Day of the Dead festival, mid-twentieth century Film Noir and Casablanca in particular, and Art Deco design. This new version will allow a new generation to play through one of the greatest adventure games ever produced – with some much needed changes made to the control system and interface – but don’t expect to be blown away by the graphical upgrades.įor those who haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing Grim Fandango before, it is a traditional point and click-style adventure with direct controls, that follows the story of Manuel Calavera – a travel agent who helps lost souls on their journey through the Ninth Underworld. Whilst it’s still an epic adventure that is equally adept at making one laugh as it as at jerking on your heartstrings, the high definition makeover feels distinctly lacking. I certainly experienced mixed feelings when playing through Grim Fandango Remastered.
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