|
AceofAces's Grim Fandango (PC)
|
| [February 9, 2008 01:45:52 AM]
|
Gameplay:
Continuing the story, you end up stealing a premium client from your rival Domino, but when Manny tries to book a travel plan for this client, named Mercedes Columnar, he runs her name through the computer, and despite her bio indicating she lead a virtuous life, she doesn't qualify for any of the better travel packages. Before Manny can puzzle this out, he's paged to his boss' office.
Manny's boss has discovered Manny's subterfuge, and threatens to fire him, until it's revealed that Mercedes has left to start her walk to the land of the dead without waiting for the situation to be resolved. This causes Manny's boss to go ballistic, and he locks Manny in a room in the Garage until the local authorities can come to question him. It is implied that Manny is in big trouble. But Manny eventually escapes the city, and sets about trying to find Mercedes so that he can rescue her and clear his own name.
Design:
The gameplay isn't very innovative, with the exception of the inventory system. When you press the inventory key, the camera switches to a view of Manny pulling things out from under his coat. You can cycle through his inventory in this view, Manny will put away the current inventory item and grab another from his coat. In this way, Grim Fandango avoids having obtrusive inventory screens that are common in adventure games.
There's never a point where Manny is in real danger in the game, the player is always given as much time as he or she needs to think of a solution. Also, the game doesn't penalize you for making bad decisions, other than having to backtrack a bit to retrieve an item. It is impossible for the player to get stuck by throwing away a necessary item. This is a good thing, because the solutions to the puzzles in the game are strictly progressive, and the player has to solve them in exactly the way that the designers intended them to be solved. Since the game takes on a humorous tone, the way designers want puzzles solved is often in some very arbitrary way, which adds to the humor value.
The reward that the game gives the player for solving the puzzles is strictly narrative. The player advances the story, and so learns more about the mystery. The player also gets access to more funny dialogue, which is the main thing that keeps players playing. I see this game as having no replay value until the player forgets every line of dialogue in the game.
read comments (1)  -
add a comment 
|
| [February 8, 2008 10:30:26 PM]
|
Grim Fandango is an adventure game, where you take on the role of Manny Calavera, Grim Reaper/Travel Agent. Manny is trapped in undead indentured servitude, forced to sell travel packages to the land of the dead to newly deceased people. Manny doesn't know what he did to deserve such a dreary existence, but he tries to keep a cheerful attitude, cracking jokes and generally not taking unlife too seriously.
You start out in Manny's office, after the intro cut scene. You wander around in a 3d environment, able to examine, use, or pick up items in the scene. The intro cutscene shows you that Manny is an unsuccessful Grim Reaper, because he never seems to get any “premium clients” people who led virtuous enough lives that they have it easy making it back to the land of the dead once they die. Truly virtuous clients can take a train ride to the land of the dead, whereas people with no redeeming qualities get issued a walking stick with a compass. Interesting to me, is that you're never actually told why going to the land of the dead is a desirable goal, you are just shown the alternative, purgatory, which is Manny's fate. Apparently, if Manny sells enough insurance, he can work off his debt, and eventually make the trip to the land of the dead himself.
The first task you're given arrives via the message tube in Manny's office. There's been a mass poisoning at a diner, with so many deaths that clients will be handed out according to whoever meets them first. The problem is, that Manny's rival, Domino, has told Manny's regular driver to take the day off from work, as a way of insuring that Domino gets first pick of the clients. Manny meets Glottis, the mechanic elemental, who would love to drive Manny, except that he's too big to drive any of the cars in the garage, so he has to get permission from the boss to modify Manny's transportation in the form of a signature on a work order. Manny confronts the boss' secretary, Eva, and they have a funny conversation.
Manny: Any messages for me?
Eva: Besides the one about the poisoning?
Manny: Yeah
Eva: I only have one other message for you Manny...
Eva: I'm not your secretary!
Eva: I don't take your messages!
Eva: So get it through your thick skull, and stop forwarding your phone to me!
Manny: Alright, but that sounded more like FOUR messages to me
add a comment
|
|
|
 |
AceofAces's Grim Fandango (PC)
|
|
Current Status: Stopped playing - Got Bored
GameLog started on: Friday 8 February, 2008
GameLog closed on: Saturday 9 February, 2008 |
|
