You know, the ironic thing is that the most memorable bits weren't actually the graphics, it was the soundtrack: you spent so much time trying to find the crowbar that opened the latch that released the pigeon that distracted the pirate, that you could remember every single MIDI note that was playing in the background.

Maybe one of these days I'll compile a list of game tunes - but for now, here's a quick countdown of my top 10 favourite old school graphic adventure games:

And there you have it: the Progspot.com Top 10 BEST old school graphic adventure games. I have to admit it's heavily skewed towards Lucas Arts and Sierra, but they were really THAT good.

Are you a fan of old school adventure games? I've probably missed out a couple other classics, but hey there's only room for 10. Let's hear your thoughts on the list!

Per nulla al mondo mi perderei la festa di Ognissanti di Izcurra. Per nulla al mondo.
Una volta all’anno nello sperduto paese di Izcurra vivi e morti si riuniscono per festeggiare Ognissanti e vi assicuro che non è possibile trovare tanta confusione quanta se ne trova a Izcurra, una volta all’anno. A Ognissanti.
Pensate che ogni anno, durante i festeggiamenti, muoiono centinaia di persone a Izcurra. Eppure continuano a festeggiare come se niente fosse. Ce ne sarebbero di storie da raccontare in proposito…
Come quella volta, qualche anno fa, in cui attraversai il deserto a dorso di un mulo soltanto per partecipare a quella festa pazzesca. Mi ero dato appuntamento con un mio amico, il serbo Stankovic, che non era mai stato a Izcurra a Ognissanti. Una mancanza imperdonabile, indubbiamente, perciò mi raccomandai affinchè si presentasse.
Capii che stavo arrivando in paese perché il mio mulo cominciò a decomporsi.
Giunsi alle prime case nel bel mezzo dei preparativi: bancarelle che venivano montate, striscioni e fiori, ma soprattutto botti e bottiglie di alcoolici spostate da una parte all’altra.
Sì perché, non so se ve l’ho già detto, ma una delle particolarità di questa festa è che si beve come dei porci. A tutte le feste si beve come dei porci, dite? E’ vero, ma mai come a Izcurra il giorno di Ognissanti, no di certo. Delle centinaia di persone che vi ho detto che muoiono ogni anno in questo giorno, beh, una buona parte è di coma etilico che ci rimane.
Oltretutto, se c’è un merito da riconoscere ai morti, è che reggono benissimo l’alcool. Sul serio. Voglio dire, possono bere litri del più laido e infame alcoolico del luogo e niente, sono lì ancora barcollanti e instabili. Proprio come erano prima di bere.
E se c’è un liquore che ai morti piace, è la tequila. Se anche a uno non piaceva in vita, da morto gli piacerà. E se già gli piaceva da prima, beh allora sarebbe disposto a fare qualunque cosa per un sorso di tequila.
Ma se c’è una cosa che i morti non sanno fare, è a cazzotti. Sono un po’ lenti di riflessi. Già. E poi perdono pezzi facilmente…
In ogni caso, vi stavo dicendo, arrivai in paese che ancora stavano preparando le coreografie e tutto il resto, quando vidi quella pellaccia scura del buon vecchio señor Alonso.
“Ehi, vecchio Alonso! Come te la passi?”
Puzzava già di vino, il vecchio Alonso, quindi credo piuttosto bene…
“Bene figliolo! Proprio bene!” rispose senza smettere di martellare su un’asse di legno “Sempre bene ad Ognissanti. E’ il resto dell’anno che non c’è un cazzo da fare, in questo dannato buco di culo…”
In effetti non si può dargli torto, Izcurra è proprio un mortorio durante l’anno. Cioè, lo è anche ad Ognissanti, ma in un altro senso…
“E si è già visto qualche cadavere desideroso di festeggiare?”
”No, non ancora. Ma arriveranno, non preoccuparti.” sputò a terra “Con il crepuscolo, come sempre…”
Il crepuscolo arrivò, e con esso in effetti arrivarono anche i primi morti.
Potevi vederli sbucare da sottoterra oppure uscire da vecchie cantine dove erano stati dimenticati l’anno prima; a schiere giungevano dal cimitero, sbraitanti e chiassosi, maledettamente desiderosi di divertirsi.
E la festa ebbe inizio.
Mentre una giovane band locale suonava vecchi successi dei Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, gran bei pezzi come “Calaveras y Diablitos” o che so io, vivi e morti, cadaveri freschi e scheletri antichi, uomini donne vecchi e bambini prendevano d’assalto le bancarelle e divoravano angurie trangugiavano stufati ingurgitavano pinte di birra e bicchieri di rhum gin vodka e tequila.
Ti ritrovavi magari davanti scheletri ingordi che si ingozzavano di salsiccie che appena masticate ricadevano a terra. O peggio, rimanevano incastrate fra le costole, e vedersi una persona con l’insalata frai denti è niente al confronto. Oppure li guardavi inseguire saltellando uno dei milleduecentosei cani di Izcurra tentando di recuperare una tibia rubata. Cose così, insomma…
Cominciarono le prime gare alcooliche e con esse, ovviamente, anche le prime scazzottate. Soltanto nelle prime due ore di festeggiamenti mi ritrovai coinvolto in sei risse. C’è un gran gusto a staccare le teste ai cadaveri già un po’ decomposti e lanciarle fra la folla: si incazzano di brutto.
Il livello etilico saliva inesorabile: fu così che padri premurosi finirono a brindare coi figli ai quali giusto il giorno prima avevano proibito di bere un bicchiere di vino. Quasi mi venne un colpo quando mi accorsi che stavo brindando con mio padre morto sedici anni prima.
Bevevo, mi divertivo e, ogni volta che guardavo mio padre, mi commuovevo.
Quando ,ad un tratto, mi accorsi che il mio amico serbo non era ancora arrivato. Ero sicuro che sarebbe venuto, me l’aveva garantito. Mi seccava terribilmente che si perdesse quella festa stupenda e per un attimo questo turbò i miei festeggiamenti.
Ma durò poco: la band attaccò con un fandango, ed io fui avvicinato da un’affascinante scheletressa. Poteva avere anche trecento anni, ma vi assicuro che era più attraente di molte donne ben più giovani di lei.
Mi porse la mano sottile, io la afferrai e la condussi al centro delle danze.
Ballava divinamente. Fu il fandango più macabro e sensuale di tutta la mia vita.
Finì il ballo, mi allontanai da lei. Non per altro, ma è meglio non innamorarsi di qualcuno che puoi vedere una sola volta l’anno. Sì, da certi punti di vista può anche essere un vantaggio, però…
Mi misi a camminare ciondolando fra le bancarelle, molte delle quali ormai distrutte dai festeggiamenti. Il mio amico serbo non era ancora arrivato e mi ero fatto malinconico. Pensai che probabilmente non sarebbe più arrivato. Bastardo, pensai…
Poi un trambusto improvviso. Delle persone che gridavano aiuto e trascinavano un uomo per le gambe. L’uomo perdeva sengue dalla testa.
“Che succede?” chiesi loro.
“Abbiamo trovato questo qua in un vicolo con la testa fracassata.” questo qua mi sembrava famigliare “Sta perdendo un casino di sangue e se non troviamo in fretta un dottore mi sa che tira le cuoia.” questo qua è il mio amico Stankovic, pensai.
Il panico mi assalì.
Cominciai a urlare, in mezzo al fracasso della festa di Ognissanti, disperato: “Un medico! Cristo c’è bisogno di un medico. Subito!”
Finchè non vidi uno coi baffi da medico, che quindi non poteva che essere un medico.
Ero sbronzo. Anche lui era sbronzo. E così, anche se lui mi spiegava di non essere un medico, bensì un assicuratore, riuscii a convincerlo di essere un medico.
Portammo il serbo Stankovic all’interno di una baracca e lo stendemmo su un letto.
“Cosa si può fare, dottore?”
Il dottore esaminava con sguardo stordito il paziente.
“Dottore?”
“Eh?”
“Allora?”
“Ah.”
Esaminò il serbo sanguinante per altri due minuti buoni.
“E’ spacciato.”
Sbiancai.
“Potrebbe tirare avanti due o tre giorni ma poi crepa.” concluse accarezzandosi il mento.
“Come ancora due o tre giorni?” domandai “Si perderà tutta la festa di Ognissanti! E’ venuto qui apposta.”
Il dottore si accarezzò il mento ancora qualche minuto, poi esclamò: “Una cosa si potrebbe fare…” ed estratta una pistola da sotto la giacca me la porse.
Lo fissai attonito.
“Beh, è lei il suo amico. Mica pretenderà che lo ammazzi io.”
Presi la pistola in mano, tremante, atterrito dall’idea di sparare al mio amico, per quanto ormai fosse spacciato.
Presi la mira. Poi crollai.
“Non ce la faccio. Non lo posso fare io.”
Uno degli uomini che l’aveva portato dentro si offrì di sparargli al posto mio, gli cedetti la pistola.
“Tieni.” gli porsi l'arma.
Neache feci in tempo a riabbassare la mano che fece un buco in testa a Stankovic.
“Cristo ma checcazzo hai fatto?”
“Ma mi hai chiesto tu di farlo, e io gli ho sparato.”
“Sì però potevi aspettare un attimo porca troia. Non ero pronto…”
Mi diede una pacca sulla spalla. Ormai non c’era che da aspettare che quel cadavere si alzasse, come fanno tutti i cadaveri a Izcurra il giorno di Ognissanti.
Fu un attesa macabra, tutti quanti radunati attorno a quel serbo morto con il cranio sanguinante. Ma fu un attesa premiata.
Mentre fuori la band accennava le prime note di un mambo sfrenato, il defunto Stankovic accennò un primo movimento. Poi un altro, e un altro ancora. A ritmo. Finchè quel fottuto cadavere non si alzò a ballare sul letto come un ossesso e, finito il brano, mi saltò addosso abbracciandomi.
Fu la festa di Ognissanti più bella della mia vita. Io e il serbo Stankovic bevemmo, urlammo e ci divertimmo come matti. Alle prime luci dell’alba, giunta l’ora del commiato, il mio amico mi ringraziò e scomparve sottoterra, dove da allora tutt’oggi dimora.
Lo rivedo ogni anno, una volta all’anno. Dove, credo sia superfluo dirlo…

Let me start off by saying that there have been a lot more games than movies or books that have changed the way I see the world. While it may seem like most games just involve mindless violent shooting or becoming addicted to doing stupid things for months on end - nothing could be further from the truth. Blame the narrow minded media for that, they just publish stories that will fuel the ignorance of the masses because it sells. Video games have changed so much since the 80s, the days of pacman. They now contain some of the most fantastic art and music of all media, coupled with some of the most engaging storylines which actually adapt to the way you want the story to unfold. Imagine being able to decide if Neo takes the red pill or the blue one, and watching completely different movies based on your choice. Or being able to step into the school of hogwarts, explore every room, attend the classes, play quidditch and go on your own magical adventure.

Things have changed and instead of blindly listening to the media experience some of the deepest and most engaging games for yourself. Step into the world of Dreamfall - A young woman's journey to regain faith. The trailer doesn't truly give justice to the amazing story, but it gives an idea of the music, art and experince. Or play Grim Fandango perhaps the most original, artistic and hilarious game of the decade. Its a tale set in the land of the dead, where people arrive after death and must journey to their final resting ground across a treacherous and colourful land. Or check out some of the latest blockbuster games like Mass Effect which push boundaries and make it difficult to tell games apart from multi-million dollar sci-fi action movies. If you can't get over how blocky some characters in these games look - please open your mind. If you can forgive shakespeare plays set on stage for not looking like they are actually being played out in a Danish castle during the 1600s, I'm sure you can get over this. If you still can't then watch this. This is how fast video games are progressing towards creating believable characters. Watch this it atleast till the 2 minute mark, and if you can actually say that you don't for even a second believe that this is a real person drop me a comment. The sales of games like The Sims cannot be ignored (over 100 million copies, and thats not even counting the illegitimate copies) and just goes to prove how far games have come.

Videogames are growing fast, and its time people stopped treating them like "childish" past times. Yes they can be used to pass time, but the same can be said about many other things. Video games have matured and are now put together by some of the most talented and hard working artists in the world. Give them a chance, suspend your disbelief and take a step on some of the most amazing journeys in this universe.

I was trying to play the best game in the world today, but it doesn't seem to work in my modern shiny computer - The solution was to take my so-called 'Linux server' that still wasn't working properly (I blame NVIDIA), lob Windows on it, and install the game on there. For once, shitty system specifications can be an advantage! Plus, it gives me an excuse to hook it up to my shiny new monitor, like so:

And the best game of all time? Why of course, it has to be Grim Fandango. I miss the old Lucasarts, the one that made good games like this and the Monkey Island series before they started milking the Star Wars cash cow dry. The humour is just perfect - enough witty banter to keep you interested, and it doesn't feel forced at all, say, such as Jack Keane, which is trying to copy of LEC's comedy and failing. The pre-rendered graphics aren't too shabby for nowadays (looks even nicer in 22" widescreen, mind you), and surprisingly, gamepad controls work perfectly. I've always used a keyboard in the past, but this works better.

So yes, go play this game. If you don't, then you deserve to be dragged out into the streets and shot.

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In any case, I found the blog through a link from Kotaku, highlighting a number of different essays on gaming narrative that all seem to have coincidentally appeared at around the same time. Blog author Michael Abbott proposes that these essays are the beginning of a kind of manifesto concerning narratives in gaming:

Perhaps "manifesto" is too strong a word for what I'm describing, but at the moment I can't think of a better one. Most dictionaries define the term as a public declaration of intentions, motives or views. Beyond that simple definition, however, manifestos are intrinsically anti-status-quo. Regardless of its framework -  politics, ideology or art - a manifesto is a defiant call for change and an implied "Who's with me?" All of the people I'm about to describe are plugging into something that sounds very much like a collective manifesto to me.

I won't go into much more of it here, save that one of the authors Abbott quotes is Jonathan Blow, the creator of Braid, a game that recently hit the Xbox Live Marketplace. (A full review of which is forthcoming, but in short, a brilliant game that everyone should go play.)

Abbott's post is an excellent read, and although I haven't yet been able to delve into the links he provides, I expect I have several hours of reading ahead of me. Go check it out.

Pero que fue ayer cuando lo juge por primera vez y ya han pasado 10 años, el juego sigue tan fresco como siempre.

Después de aplicar el parche oficial, copiar los ficheros del cd que te indica en la ayuda consigues hacerlo funcionar en Xp aunque a mi las cinemáticas me funcionaban a tirones.

Las aventuras de los protagonistas ocurren en el octavo infierno y en el viaje que deben emprender hacia el noveno infierno, la tierra del descanso eterno.

Manuel Calavera es un agente de viajes que agencia paquetes a los muertes según sus acciones en la otra vida. Con lo cual si han sido buenos pueden aspirar a un billete del tren numero 9 que les permitra hacer el camino de 4 años en solo 4 minutos.

Pero algo huele a podrido en las tierra de los muertos ya que de un tiempo a esta parte incluso los mejores clientes de Manuel no consiguen ningún billete mientras que su rival Domino los tiene casi todos.

Usando el motor GrimE fue la primera aventura en 3D de LucasArts y demostró claramente que las aventuras gráficas en 3D son posibles, fue la ultima gran aventura de Lucas.

Con una estética visual muy original y un argumento con toques de películas como Casablanca y el Halcón Maltés nos hallamos ante una gran aventura.

Nota: 9

But I'm only cautiously optimistic about Brütal Legend.

Now, I'm on the game itself, I'm completely sold. This page should make it blindingly obvious that I'm a huge fan of Schafer's work, and Grim Fandango is one of my all-time favorites. The man's turned out solid gold throughout his career, and his most recent effort, Psychonauts, was an unappreciated work of genius.

Although not particularly advanced in its narrative techniques, Psychonauts' writing is sharp, succinct, and so damn funny as to make its reliance on cutscenes forgivable. And even so, the game had its moments of revolutionary narrative. The discovery of an incongruous nursery room and its disturbing contents in the otherwise bright, cheery discotheque of Milla Vodello's mind ranks as one of the single best moments of character development in any game I've played.

So I have no doubt that Brütal Legend will be fantastic. My cautious optimism instead concerns its chances of success. Despite Schafer's brilliant game design, his most recent work has met with commercial mediocrity. Grim Fandango's sales marked it as the penultimate adventure game to be released by LucasArts, followed only by the lackluster, (commercially and critically,) Escape from Monkey Island before LucasArts stopped production of adventure games entirely. Psychonauts' failure turned publisher Majesco towards the casual games market and away from big-budget releases.

So I really, really want Brütal Legend to do well, if for nothing else than to show that original game concepts can sell well in the sequel-crazy world of big budget releases. Certainly, the game has more going for it than Psychonauts had. It has Jack Black voicing the lead character, other vocal contributions by Ronnie James Dio, Lemmy, and Rob Halford, and the same kind of celebration/exaggeration approach to rock and metal that made This is Spinal Tap and Metalocalypse so successful. It's ad campaign, although not in full gear yet, has already featured Jack Black wearing a Brütal Legend t-shirt at the MTV Movie Awards, which is certainly more than Psychonauts ever got.

So optimistic, yes. I'll obviously be buying the game. Whether the rest of the gaming public goes with me is another story.

Still, I wanted so badly to see it at E3. Between this news and the news that Half-Life: Episode 3 won't show up either, there's not a whole lot left that I'm particularly excited about. I hope to be surprised on that count. Maybe Harmonix will announce more of the Rock Band 2 song list. Yeah, that's the ticket.

Part 1: The Labyrinth Era (1986)
LucasArts, then known as Lucasfilm Games, entered the adventure gaming market with an adaptation of the Jim Henson film, Labyrinth. In a Wizard of Oz move, the game begins strictly as a text-based game but when the main character enters the labyrinth it becomes a graphical adventure.

Part 2: The SCUMM Era (1987-1997)
This era makes up most of LucasArts' adventuring career. SCUMM was the name of a very flexible game engine that allowed for other engines: audio, graphical, text, etc. to be inserted. LucasArts would use this engine for a decade. This era comprised a few short series and several stand-alone games.  It began with Maniac Mansion and was soon followed by Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders.  These games established the LucasArts style of using quirky characters and cheesy (bad?) humor.  Mansion was followed years later by Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle.  Sam and Max Hit the Road, based on the comic of the same name by LucasArts artist Steve Purcell, continued in this vein in the early 90s.

LucasArts made more serious games, as well, starting with Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, a very well-received game that closely follows the plot of the movie.  A few years later it was followed by Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis.  An original game, Loom, used an apocalyptic, fantasy setting and used music for all of its commands.  In the mid-90s, The Dig feature a pan-planetary sci-fi adventure.  Full Throttle featured MOTORCYCLEZ.

In 1990, the company released their biggest hit and the beginning of their only long-running adventure series with The Secret of Monkey Island, followed only a year later by Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge.  Several years later, the SCUMM engine was retired with the 3rd game, The Curse of Monkey Island.

Part 3: The GrimE Era (1998-2000)
In 1998, LucasArts decided to modernize and created a brand new, 3D engine, debuting with Grim Fandango, which has gone on to become perhaps the most critically acclaimed adventure game from LucasArts.  It featured the "humor" they were best known for and dealth with themes of the AFTERLIFE.  The imagery is heavily inspired by the Mexican Day of the Dead.  The entire adventuring journey came to an end with the release of Escape From Monkey Island.  After that LucasArts began a new Sam and Max game but eventually cancelled it and fired all their employees and took a bath in Star Wars money.

Part 4: Legacy
Several LucasArts adventure developers eventually started a new company, Telltale Games. They have had surprising success, utilizing online distribution. Unfortunately, all of their games have used licenses, a couple of which are HORRIBLE licenses. For example, they have made two CSI games and have an upcoming Strongbad game in the works.  Thankfully, they've also worked with a genuinely cool license: Jeff Smith's Bone.  They made games based on the first two books but have decided their current focus is on "episodic" content, which Bone is apparently not compatible with.  In other words, they're sellouts.  Yes, I hope someone searches in Google for "Telltale are sellouts" or "Telltale Games are sellouts" so they can see this and cry over the horrid truth.  Telltale is best known for their current revival of the Sam and Max series, which is released in "episodes".  Jeez.

LucasArts stalwart Tim Schaeffer went on to create the lauded and beloved platformer Psychonauts and he has a very cool-looking new game in the works featuring bikers and roadies, much like the LucasArts game Full Throttle.

kicknz

This month's soundtrack comes from the game Grim Fandango, the classic LucasArts adventure.

Simply put, it is perhaps the best soundtrack ever made for a game. I recently listened to the soundtrack as I was preparing to do my own film noir tune for a game I'm working on. Sometimes listening to a parody of a genre is more informative than researching a particular example of the original genre and this is a good example of that. They've distilled the film noir jazz sound into its essence so well, you'd think the music came from the black & white age.

Peter McConnell created a masterpiece with his score for this game and all other adventure game developers should look at this classic as an example of what's possible in game music. One of my goals as a game music composer is to help raise the quality of game music. I'm glad that other composers, though few and far between right now, are out there with that goal in mind too. This soundtrack has great depth and it avoids cliches, something every composer should look to do. Pick up a copy of the game. It's worth it for the game itself, but everyone needs to hear what's possible with a game soundtrack.

Verdict: Required Listening

the closest thing we have to recorded dreams. That's why when a black bird flew over my head one evening, and simultaneously I heard a child's cry, and someone in one of those tall buildings nearby, from a glowing window, pressed "Play" on two incongruous tapedecks - I thought of Zelda .

When Zelda spotted a tower in the distance that could never be reached, when Zelda had a vision of a dark future before it happened, when Zelda played "The Song of Storms" and changed the weather, when Zelda taught a new melody to the spirit child in the forest... thank you.

It's also the 10th Anniversary of Grim Fandango, everyone. There are games we bring to a close, and games we will never complete, and I wish I spent more time in this mexican beatnik film noir afterlife, it's firearms that shoot funeral flowers, its simulated poetry dives, its magazine-cutout-montage-people, its Art Deco, glorious-yet-disconcerting temples of seedy, cartoon delight. It's plight of the common man transported to a totally uncommon and impolite setting.  

At the end of the dayall the pieces go in the same box, and the loose ends take on semi-mythical properties, and I shall not be surprised if my afterlife takes on something of the colour of this... "game".

We can't be pixel-perfect. We can expect to lose just as much as we win, but we can learn to enjoy losing, call it exploration. If I've neglected to mention the best day of your life, or your favourite of the chunky grey cartridges in my attic, that wasn't the point. A speck of dust is like a boulder to a microchip.

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Se ei ollut varsinaisesti piknikki. Pelin mekaniikka tunki tielle. Tuonpuoleisen ja elävien maailman väli on ehkä ahdas rako, mutta ei niin ahdas kuin pelin maailma. Kenties betatestauskin jäi vähemmälle, sillä pelin logiikka oli dadaistinen. Tein outoja, enkä tiennyt miksi. Tekijöiden tarkoitus ei tullut perille. Juoni kulki välianimaatioissa Bone Wagonin hurjaa vauhtia mutta jäi pelivaiheessa jumiin ongelmaan, jonka ratkaisu oli lopulta moraaliton, surrealistinen tai perustuva järjestelmällisyyteen oivalluksen sijasta.

Nostalgisen muistini mukaan Monkey Islandit ovat ylenpalttisen runsaita; Viikatemies on ideoiltaan rikas ja kaunis, mutta luonteeltaan kitsaampi. Esimerkiksi Noutajan tärkeintä työkalua voisi käyttää lähes kaikkeen, mutta jos sitä yrittää, peli uhkaa monotonisella palautteella ja ehdollistaa lopulta välttämään koko vehjettä. Pelimekaniikan rajallisuudella oli kuitenkin asiaankuuluva sivuvaikutus: kuoleman yksinäisyys tuntui luiden ytimissä, kun ei ollut ketään jolle puhua. Pelin henkilöillä ei ollut mitään sanottavaa Mannylle, jonka paras kaverikaan – Bid Daddy Rothin suunnittelema Glottis – ei ollut koskaan mikään Voltaire.

Loppu tuli parin vinkin avulla pelisessiolleni ja se näytti koittaneen myös Mannylle, mutta viikatemies ei ole kuollut, väittävät Department of Death ja Grim Fandango Network.

"Ni amigo ni enemigo, vengo de un mundo donde dichas palabras no tienen sentido." - Gray Fox, Metal Gear Solid (Konami, 1998]

Del mismo: "Snake, no somos herramientas del gobierno, ni de nadie. Combatir es la única cosa que he hecho en mi vida, pero siempre por aquello en lo que creía." - Gray Fox, un personaje emblemático.

"¿Porqué? ¿Porqué en los sueños pasan las cosas que pasan? No lo sé. Todo lo que sé es que desde que me llamó tuve que seguirle... Desde entonces viajamos juntos al este. Siempre hacia el este..." - Marius, Diablo II (Blizzard, 2000)

"Los cementerios están llenos de hombres indispensables." - Mei Ling, Metal Gear Solid (Konami, 1998]

"- ¡Mira, detrás de tí!" "- Sí, ya sé, un mono de tres cabezas." - Guybrush Threepwood, Monkey Island (Lucas Arts, 1990)

"Es la segunda caracola más grande que he visto. No, espera... es la primera caracola más grande que he visto." - Guybrush Threepwood, aprendiz de pirata.

"- Eh... ¿señorita Mascarón?" "-¡¿Qué?!" "- ¿Todavía por aquí?" "- ¿Todavía haciéndote el pirata?" "-¿Qué horrible abominación de la naturaleza te dio el don de la palabra?" - Guybrush Threepwood, esta vez hablando con el Mascarón de barco parlante.

"¡Estoy cansado de que la gente siempre me pregunte por Grim Fandango!"

Pasemos a Grim Fandango:

"Brillaba pálida como un hueso mientras yo estaba sólo, y pensaba cómo la Luna esa noche arrojaba su luz sobre el verdadero placer de mi corazón y el arrecife donde su cuerpo estaba esparcido." - Manuel Calavera y Velasco, un poema marinero.

"¿Hay algo más seguro en este mundo que la traición de una mujer?"

"Cavo en busca de un tesoro que parte de mí no quiere encontrar, porque cuando encuentre ese doblón que me diga quién es esta pobre alma, mi recompensa no serán riquezas, sino la oportunidad de hacer una llamada telefónica y romperle a alguien el corazón." - Membrillo, el de la morgue.

"-Vaya feria, ¿eh?" "-Sí, sí... Muy concurrida. Mi síndrome del puente carpiano me está dando el día" "-Pero si no tienes tendones..." "-¡Eh! Tú tampoco tienes lengua y eso no te hace callar, ¿verdad?" - Manny y un payaso, el día de los difuntos.

"-¿Qué pasa, payaso? ¿Me dejas pasar por encima de tu tienda?, quiero ver el desfile." "-Pasar por encima de la tienda de alguien, ¿no? ¿Parezco una puerta giratoria?" - Este payaso era la hostia xD

"-La verdad es que no me gustan mucho los gatos de pelo largo, ¿y a tí, Manny?" "-No, el taxidermista cobra más por ellos."

En Sam & Max, cuando haces clic muchas veces sobre un objeto o una acción que es imposible de realizar:

"-No puedo hacer eso" "-No puedo hacer eso" "-Te digo que no puedo hacer eso" "-Te digo de verdad que no puedo hacer eso" "-¡A ver, que no puedo hacerlo!" "-¡¿Eres tonto?!" "-Déjalo Sam, es un cruel e inaprensivo..."

Y algunas que están aquí por fetichismo. El mítico:

"¡¿Pero qué coño...?!" - Solid Snake, al ver a Gray Fox hacerse invisible.

"Morir es vivir. Morir es vivir..." - Los monjes asesinos de Resident Evil 4. Uf...

Ha sido complicado encontrar frases decentes porque nada más que encontraba de Final Fantasy y de Metal Gear Solid, además en inglés. Está visto que las aventuras gráficas (sobretodo) y los juegos de acción son los que tienen unos diálogos más elaborados... seguiré buscando frases célebres. ¡Saludos!

Cuando las aventuras gráficas aún no estaban completamente de capa caída y las 3D comenzaban a asomarse por nuestros hogares, el equipo de Lucas Arts se sacó de la manga uno de los títulos más alabados por la crítica de este mundillo, y uno de los más originales en su guión y en su estética. Con su peculiar sistema de control (el GrimE, que fue empleado años después por otros desarrolladores), Grim Fandango nos adentra en un mundo de ultratumba adornado con festejos carnavalescos propios del día de los difuntos y rodeado de la magia del cine negro entremezclado con un entorno de los años 20 americanos.

Poniéndonos en la piel (en los huesos, más bien) de Manuel Calavera, agente de viajes de la muerte (ayuda a las almas que han abandonado la vida terrenal a llegar hasta el Noveno Infierno, la tierra del reposo eterno), tendremos que desentramar una conspiración haciendo lo propio de las aventuras gráficas: dialogar, recoger pistas, pero con el plus de los diálogos sencillamente abstractos y muchas veces surrealistas a los que tan acostumbrados nos tiene Lucas Arts.

La banda sonora combina temas de jazz, con be-bop y ritmos latinos con aroma a azteca. Una delicia para los oídos, aún si no habéis probado el juego.

Haz clic aquí para descargar el disco.

Espero que lo disfrutéis tanto como lo hago yo cada vez que escucho esta joya de las bandas sonoras de los videojuegos.

1996. DirectX 3.0. The year PC adventure games began their swansong - a song ended two years later by Grim Fandango. Dreamworks interactive and The Neverhood Team release The Neverhood Chronicles, one of the quirkiest, zaniest and downright funniest adventure games on the platform. The entire claymated game follows protagonist Klaymen as he wakes up in The Neverhood; a beautiful, idyllic klay land where something has gone horribly wrong. Players control Klaymen through a traditional point-and-click interface, guiding him through the world, solving puzzles and uncovering the Genesis-like history of his world.

Currently one of the only claymated games on the PC, every single frame of The Neverhood was shot individually using stop-motion animation and then digitised to form walk cycles, backgrounds and objects. Doug TenNapel, the creative behind The Neverhood (as well Earthworm Jim before it) estimates three and a half tons of clay were used throughout the entirety of the year-long animation process. Everything - from the characters, sets, objects and cutscenes - was lovingly hand crafted with manual skill. It is this that makes The Neverhood unique; it is one of the last games where physical creativity and craftsmanship are the building blocks of what you see on screen, not polygons. The designers, builders and animators literally left their fingerprints all over the world.

Many of you will have played The Neverhood, and have as many fond memories of it as I do. Fewer of you may have played the game's official sequel, Skullmonkeys, on the PS1. Though now a platformer instead of adventure game, it retains all the quirky humour that made the original stand out. Fewer of you still may be aware that plans for a movie based on The Neverhood have been announced!

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117967622.html?categoryid=1050&cs=1
A trio of toon veterans are launching Frederator Films as an indie feature film company with a mission to produce 2-D animated genre movies budgeted below $20 million...First projects from the shingle:

"Samurai Jack," a feature version of the Cartoon Network skein. The creator, Genndy Tartakovsky, is attached to write and direct.
"The Neverhood," a claymation feature based on the DreamWorks videogame of the same name. Doug TenNapel, who created the game, is aboard to write and direct.
"The Seven Deadly Sins," a hip-hop project with Don King hired as the first voice actor.

Doug TenNapel has been suprisingly vocal about the project over on his official forums at TenNapel.com. A few statements are worth quoting to get a little insight into the feature film.

"There's this huge divide between what fans want and what a general audience want. If we made a Neverhood movie, millions of new people would be exposed to the story while only tens of thousands of old fans would care about the project.

Fans don't like changes to old things, I don't like Lucas changing Star Wars, but most third graders will argue with me about how Phantom Menace is the best of the series, it's because our culture changes over time and have different tastes over time.

If I make the Neverhood movie, it would be for EVERYBODY, not just fans. And I would tell a different story and have characters look different if I was making a move today vs. a video game based on fine artwork I did 20 years ago. In fact, I changed the fine artwork to make the video game so if I stuck to the oldest incarnation of the Neverhood it wouldn't look a lot like the game and there certainly would be no Klaymen.

When I make new projects I'm willing to change whatever it takes to engage the largest possible audience. I don't want to spend 10 million dollars of someone else's money to please original Neverhood fans...sorry, that's not my job. My job is to entertain the butts in the seats---and I love my job."

This is a good thing. The Neverhood fanbase is really not that large, and there is nowhere near enough narrative content in the original game to justify turning the same storyline into a movie. The game world is one specific to adventure game situations, and such environments would not make logical sense in a film. What would make a good story, however, are the events of The Neverhood Chronicles themselves; the huge amount of backstory that exists in the game's Hall of Records.

"Don't speculate on the feature, the only conversation I've had with this producer is that I'd like to retell and expand the creation, fall and restoration of the Neverhood in movie form...no game to get in the way."

Lucky for us, this seems to be the direction Doug is heading in. Anyone who's taken the time to read through the Hall would know that the rise and fall of The Neverhood is a truly epic tale.

I'll end this post with one of the best cutscenes from Skullmonkeys: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BUmv8imdH0

Hector LeMans: Oh Manny... so cynical... What happened to you, Manny, that caused you to lose your sense of hope, your love of life?

Manuel Calavera: I died.

10 Jahre alt, und es kriegt mich immer wieder.

My old friend Jeff Bonhag's apartment—not his current one, the old one!—was a fantastic pit of debris, a kibble-littered expanse of the random refuse of modern man and some packing peanuts. It was always a lot of fun to go there and see what new sort of trash could be ground into the carpet, then go home to a nice clean bedroom a few hours later. Plus he had a deaf cat that would crawl around in the acoustic panel ceiling. Fun for all!

Except my copy of Grim Fandango. This Tim Schafer-designed classic is probably one of my favorite computer games of all time. Its potent mixture of noir attitude, Day of the Dead aesthetics and blades of precision humor, were certainly not unprecedented, because Tim Schafer had made other games before, and he was part of that class of game designers that included the likes of Ron "Monkey Island" Gilbert. But Grim Fandango was the special sauce for me. I liked the interface (none), the voice acting (good), the look and feel (glistening art deco and Mexican skeletons) and the puzzles (except the really dumb ones). And the story was superb. Thanks to Tim Schafer, the game's primary writer.

In Grim Fandango you occupy the role of Manny Calavera, a travel-agent for the recently deceased, working off the sins of his life helping people make their four year journey across the Land of the Dead to the Ninth Underworld, their final resting place. There are dames and gangsters and homages. And everyone smokes all the time—surprise, surprise, they're all dead.

Just like smoking a cancer stick could kill you, kids, Jeff Bonhag's floor killed my copy of this game. I lent it to him, then picked it up from the ruin during the final reckoning (Jeff sold his possessions to buy a motorcycle and left for the West). It sure wouldn't play anymore. And I kind of miss it, like I miss my friends from middle school and the houses we lived in back then.

Fortunately Tim Schafer had the good sense to go and make other games, including Psychonauts. It's about a summer camp for spoon-benders and mind-readers. One of the little kids in the game has tiny little arms and wears a tin-foil hat to keep from blowing up peoples' heads! And the protagonist climbs into other peoples brains to clean up their psychic garbage! Wicked!

Click here to read an article at The Escapist about Grim Fandango's internet following...

This is, overall, a good selection. The titles I am most interested in are Fahrenheit and Psychonauts, chiefly because they offer a varying gaming experience from the majority of first/third person hack 'n' slash/shoot that dominate the market. This is not to mean that I am knocking the other releases because as we well know, Halo made the Xbox especially on Live and Fable was one of three Xbox exclusives that prompted me to splash out one of Microsoft's black monstrosities. Besides, I have played both of them extensively and I know just how good they are.

Psychonauts, I am eager to play because it is the brainchild of Tim Schaefer, the man behind Full Throttle, Grim Fandango and Day of the Tentacle. It is a story about a young lad named Raz who is a cadet at psychic summer school. He discovers that a madman is kidnapping the other cadets in order to steal their brains. I order to stop this evil genius Raz must journey through the minds of some weird and wonderful characters. Sadly, Psychonauts did not fare well sales-wise, even though it was met with rapturous critical acclaim. I hope it can find its market here amongst the downloadable content on Xbox Live Marketplace.

Fahrenheit I am familiar with. This is one of my favourite games of the last 4 years. It is a psychological thriller where you play the part of several characters. The main thrust of the plot is that you have to solve a series of gruesome and mysterious murders in a very cold and snowy New York. The backdrop is very evokative of Max Payne but that's where the similarities end. David Cage at Quantic Dream has a very clear philosophy. His aim is to create games that are more emotionally immersive. When you play as a character he really tries to help you feel what the character is feeling at that moment. For the most part Fahrenheit is very successful. It creates the right air around the whole game and it is very polished indeed. My only qualm with it is the button-bashing action sequences reminiscent of Resident Evil or Shenmue. They are meant to get the blood flowing but the difficulty curve is quite steep and I ended up feeling angry and frustrated rather than exhausted and panicked. Aside from this the game is very good and the storyline is very compelling. This is definitely a welcome addition to Marketplace.

For the complete selection click here.

Agora, voltando ao assunto tema do meu post de hoje, vou falar da minha experiência com esse, que não é NEM um pouco novo, mas que deixa MUITOS jogos novos "no chinelo".

Grim Fandango é um game adventure pra PC e foi o primeiro game 3D produzido pela LucasArts em 1998. Nem um pouco novo, não é mesmo?

O game é difícil. Cara, e como é difícil. A primeira vez que joguei, em 1999 ou 1998 mesmo, ficou gravado na cabeça, como e o quão legal era aquele jogo. Não sei como explicar. Depois de jogar FullThrottle e adorar, apesar de não ter chegado ao fim, este outro título da LucasArts não deixou por baixo a maneira de hipnotizar o jogador de modo a mantê-lo frente ao PC por horas e horas. Mas infelizmente havia empacado no jogo, o que acontece com MUITA frequência, e acabei extraviando os CDs.

Um jogo 100% dublado, MUITO bem por sinal, e legendado, caso queira jogar ao som horiginal. É um game fascinante. Eu, como disse anteriormente, havia jogado o FullThrottle e um dos porquês de eu ter adorado aquele jogo era a legenda, que pra um garoto de 10 anos que não entendia bulhufas do English, era uma puta mão na roda e que só agora veio saber que o porque de ter empacado no game foi nao ter como continuar devido a uma senha que foi traduzida.... Agora imagina a minha empolgação, ao ver o Grim Fandango. Não tem, era demais. Todas as perguntas, respostas e expeculações muito bem dubladas e o carisma do herói da história, fazem deste um dos melhores games que já joguei até hoje.

A um ou dois meses atrás resolvi ir atrás deste só pra me atualizar e ver se o que eu falava de bom desse jogo não era apenas a empolgação de um molequinho de 10 anos que mal sabia jogar direito. Heh. Mais uma vez, me surpreendi. Adquiri o game por Torrent, pois acho que fizeram questão de quebrar todos os CDs em uma conspiração do mal, e pude então mergulhar no tempo e voltar a ser aquele moleque que se divertiu horas outrém.

O jogo é mergulhado na era dos CGs, e não faz feio não. Pra época em que foi lançado, não sei se era o melhor, mas ficou bem legal no jogo. Efeitos sonoros legais, e após uma breve apresentação do jogo, está lá, você comandando aquele que será o seu parcero: Manny Calavera.

Manny Calavera é a Morte. Trás as pessoas do mundo dos vivos e vende a elas bilhetes para o além. De acordo com a vida que as pessoas levam no mundo dos vivos, elas podem adquiri-los e encurtar o caminho para a salvação, ou mais ou menos isso. Só que ele acaba se envolvendo em uma falcatrua no mundo dos mortos e agora precisa colocar ordem na casa. Algo assim, só jogando pra vidrar mesmo na mirabolante história deste jogo.

Eu já comentei algo sobre a dificuldade desse jogo? Pois é. Ela merece ênfase denovo. Se tu for vidrado em puzzles e quebra-cabeças tá aí um ótimo desafio. Desta vez, como na anterior, eu utilizei um detonado. Sim, eu sei que muitos não concordam, mas eu não gosto de ficar empacado muito tempo em um game, mas isso fica pra outra conversa. O jogo é tão difícil que mesmo com o detonado, eu ainda consegui me perder. A história continuou tão fascinante quanto se estivesse sem ele. Não importa se tu tá com um detonado, ele só vai te mostrar a saída do puzzle, a história, como eu disse antes, vai ser contada por CGs e se tu não curtir, ah tu merece umas palmadas. Hah!

Se você já estiver jogado. Tenho absoluta certeza de que concorda com o que foi aqui descrito. E tem mais, eu sei. Mas não consigo comentar muito mais sem dar spoilers do game. Agora, se você não jogou, tá perdendo tempo. Esse game merece horas de dedicação.

Fica aqui o convite, não perca tempo e jogue esse clássico. Garanto que não irá se arrepender! ^^

"Set around a series of galleries in an old monastery, the museum allows death, in the form of human skulls, to stare you in the face from every angle. [...] In glass cabinets, hanging from walls, peeking out at you from round corners, deathly creations are everywhere. [...] You can also find depictions of skeletons playing basketball, or drunken skeletons engaged in a poker game."

Weird enough to make me curious about this "Mexican Day of the Dead". I always like to read about different cultures and customs, and I found the Wikipedia entry a very interesting read. But while I thought I knew nothing about it, I kept having a feeling that the Day of the Dead celebration was not new to me. It was odd, because I have never been to Mexico, let alone celebrated the festival of the dead. Maybe a movie? A previous life? Hmm...

...Why was I sure I knew this guy??? Or at least someone who looked a lot like him...

Then I realized:

... GRIM FANDANGO!!!!!

(from Wiki:) "The story unfolds in four episodes, each set a year apart on the Day of the Dead, November 2. It is from this festival that much of the game's imagery is drawn — most of the game's characters look like skeletal calaca figures."

No wonder those calaca things looked familiar!

Released in 1998, Grim Fandango would be Lucasarts' last truly great adventure game. It had everything: it was fun, touching, with a great storyline, unforgettable characters, witty dialogue and plenty of STYLE. 

There were so many memorable moments, it would be hard to choose just one scene, one line, one character - although Manny Calavera is up there with Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe - only funnier.

"Manuel? Are you... in love with her?"

"Love? Love is for the living, Sal. I'm only after her for one reason... she's my ticket out of here."

Eat your heart out, Bogey!

It's been almost ten years now since its release, but Grim Fandango has lost none of its appeal. Even the graphics - that now are nothing special from a technical point of view - work well, thanks also to the flawless art direction, in giving the game its unique atmosphere. Seeing someone sprout is always a powerful view.

And the voices? Perfect.

"Oh Manny... so cynical... What happened to you, Manny, that caused you to lose your sense of hope, your love of life?"

"I died."

I've no doubt I wasn't the only one who felt a bit sad when it ended. But, as with a good book, I am not sure I want to "live" it again. After all, Manny, Glottis, Meche, they all will be doing something else now. Enjoying the trip.