Grim Prospects

Posted by Daedalus on Friday, September 16, 2005

Looking for skin
Now where…..did I leave……….my skin?

Do you know what the very best thing is about adventure games? Immortality.

Graphic adventures typically center around a story and a myriad of puzzles. The best graphic adventures center around a well-written story and a myriad of puzzles that not only have logical solutions in and of themselves, but the puzzles are worked into the context of the story instead of just being tacked on. Whether you’re playing a text adventure like Zork, trying to discover the secret of Monkey Island, off on the Longest of Journeys, or causing bloodshed in a diner restroom (Indigo Prophecy, my fingers are crossed), the game remains the same thought-provoking experience throughout the ages.

The technology train just keeps on rolling, leaving a wake of “How did I ever play this?!?” moments behind it. Have you gone back to try to play an FPS from before the days of Mouselook? Do you remember the disappointment when you popped in that old RTS and realized that you couldn’t hotkey groups? Try playing a 3D platformer without a dual analog controller and see how long it takes before you decide that you have better things to do. What were once the best games of their days become antiquated when innovations evolve into industry standards. Today, everybody has a 3D graphics card, a mouse with a scroll wheel, hard drive space in the double, triple, or even quadruple digits of GB, DVD-capable drive, and high speed internet connection.

If you’ve followed me this far and are impatient for me to get to the point…here it is. Recently, I’ve been playing Grim Fandango for the first time. It’s one of many titles that has sat untouched on my shelf for years, but it doesn’t matter. This is one of the best graphic adventures I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing. Time has done nothing to dampen the effectiveness of it, nor do I expect it ever will. While the graphics at times show its age due to low polygon counts and occasional compression problems in the rendered cutscenes, the art style is more than enough to make up for any technical shortcomings (by today’s standards, mind you). Mixing art deco, an Aztec flavoring, and the unique stylings of the Dia de Los Muertos, Manny Calavera’s world is a fully realized one in which everything seems to fit right in. In an odd twist, there is no need for mouse control in the game at all; all the commands are handled via keyboard and Manny is a character that you move around like any other. Though there are occasional problems in getting him to be exactly where you want him, the elimination of “pixel-hunts” from mouse-driven games is a very welcome departure.

Any self-respecting gamer should be required to check out at least one LucasArts adventure, and I can’t think of better jumping-off point than Grim Fandango. These guys were the kings of the genre, when there was a genre to lord over. Even if you’ve already played them, take the time to go back and play one again. You’ll be amazed at how strong (and funny) these titles continue to be, even 10 years after their heyday.

The Secret of Monkey Island
The Secret of Monkey Island II
The Curse of Monkey Island
Escape from Monkey Island
Maniac Mansion
Day of the Tentacle
Full Throttle
Sam & Max Hit the Road
The Dig
Grim Fandango

A moment of silence for an era whose time has passed.

A sly smile for knowing that they will never truly be gone.

An encouraging cheer for those who continue to carry the torch in the darkness.

5 Comments »

1335

Comment by Tim

9/16/2005 @ 11:23 am

Grim Fandango is my absolute favorite game of all time. When you talk about polish in game making you have to talk about Tim Schafer. The man does his homework and gets the details right. Who else would even think to combine the Mexican Day of the Dead, the Aztec afterlife, Art Deco, film noir, and 20’s era Gangsters and put it all in one game. Who else would make it work so seamlessly?

One of my favorite scenes takes place in a beatnik bar during open mic poetry night. It has nothing to do with the story or a puzzle, it’s just there for laughs. You create your poem one line at a time; prompted with a choice of four beatnik phrases that are melodramatically performed by Manny and punctuated by bongos and finger snapping. Later you ask one of the bar’s regulars to recite some poety. She recites some of her own:

http://tim.grimfandango.net/voice.php?poem=dream

but will eventually recite the last poem you created.

The mouse free interface was an innovation and finally made an adventure game immersive. No more pixel hunting. Be wary though that some modern graphics cards can distort the graphics and make it hard to see where you can and cannot walk.

If you haven’t played this game, you cannot claim to know the adventure genre. This is its pinnacle.

As for the other games mentioned, in my opinion the only Monkey Island that is essential is The Curse unless you have the infinite patience to play the first two which are really primitive. The Escape from Monkey Island has its moments but is by and large an unsuccesful attempt to bring the series to 3D.

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Comment by Tim

9/16/2005 @ 12:37 pm

Also, mad props for Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis

1337

Comment by Jeff S

9/16/2005 @ 1:53 pm

I refuse to get behind claims that the adventure game market is dead or even dying. American game publishers and the publisher-financed review sites would like you to believe that adventure games are dying because it’s cheaper and easier to crank out annual sports game revisions and unimaginative FPS’s. European and Japanese developers are still cranking out adventure games that sell extremely well. I’d go into more detail but right now I’m eating a taco.

Personal vote: Full Throttle and The Dig are must-plays.

1338

Comment by Dan

9/16/2005 @ 3:13 pm

While I agree that there is still an adventure game market, what I was referring to more specifically is the LucasArts adventure game market. I don’t think anyone can deny that there was something about the LucasArts game that set them apart from the rest of the pack while also sharing characteristics with each other.
It was as if there was an energy field created by the games. It surrounded them, penetrated them. It bound them all together. A living force, if you will.

For every LucasArts adventure there are 10 Myst knockoffs. The genre is far from dead, but this is one company for whom it may as well be…and that makes Dan a sad panda.

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Comment by Tim

9/16/2005 @ 7:06 pm

Jeff brings up a good point about the global gaming market. It makes sense that sports and FPS games dominate the US market. It goes along with our “shoot first, ask questions later” foreign policy. Why solve problems through conversation and ingenuity when you can just stick a grenage on it and get rid of the pesky thing altogether? Problem solving takes time, and we can’t even sit down for 10 minutes to eat.

I also think the adventure genre survives incognito these days; disguised as RPGs (Final Fantasy), action games (Zelda), FPS (Deus Ex) and even platformers (Psychonauts). There are a ton of these types of hybrids. Psychonauts appears to have sold a respectable amount and it came out this year. I expect Double Fine will continue to release quality adventure heavy titles.

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