A Love Letter to Grim Fandango 

People thought Glottis was annoying? What!? Who? I want names!

My absolute favorite. A beautiful review of a beautiful game.

'Anyone can love 'because', but to know the flaws and love 'despite', that is rare and pure and perfect' -- Ragnar, you have written one of the most quotable things of all time. *waves hands* that's your legacy, right there.

This channel is kicking all KINDS of ass. Gothic, Vampire and now Grim Fandango. You have excellent taste good sir.

the way you pronounce "El dia de los muertos" is perfect

First you do Vampire the masquerade and now this, you sir just jumped to the top of my must watch list.

I awkwardly like when you say Spanish words.

"thats not on fire" "dont want to mess up my blade"

Sadly i only have one sub to give, this video is amazing.

high art, this game is high art.

If ever there was a video that needed more views, it's this one.

That "never-dying" nostalgic attraction you have to Grim Fandango is what makes it such a classic to so may of us too. I remember first playing Fandango back in 1998 at a friend's house. I remember it being the kind of game that I would had never considered buying or even trying based on it's cover. It seemed so odd, even a little freaky at first, but it had a strange attraction to it, a way of making you need to know what happens in the next room , or what the solution to a puzzle was. I would play the game for short periods at first, but eventually I had to go out and buy it (with what little money I had) because it became part of life. I knew nothing about Mexican day-of-the-dead culture, and I knew even less about 1930's era architecture, but their unholy mix created a world truly unique in it's self. And I think it's that immersion into such a literal and real world that makes the game so great, not so much the puzzles. In fact I always found the puzzles as slightly annoying obstacles that stood in the way of exploring this fascinating world, while at the same time serving as a calibration, slowing you down so you have enough time to actually soak in and enjoy each scene. The artistic graphics were so astounding, even by today's standards. The mic of culture, with art, technology, and architectures is truly timeless. It was like a harmonic mix of Casablanca, 1984, exploring Aztec ruins and what materialization of what society in the early 20th century might have speculated future technology might be like. I agree with the video author that Rubacava was the ultimate synergy of all these things. Just the physical depth in the world, the way you feel the dizzying heights between different scenes, the deep penetrating rumble of the giant airship, it all just felt so real. Being a CGI artist myself, I have particular appreciation for the level of effort and detail that went into building the 3D scenes and designing the architecture, not just of the buildings but of the experience. Although the computer's at the the time probably wouldn't be able to host a true 3D walk-through of the scenes, just as much effort went into building a one-frame scene than would of gone into building a full 3D game. Although the re-make was a nice visit to this timeless world, I wish the developers could take all that effort that went into the world's creation and bring it to life as full-fledged 3D adventure game, how awesome that would be!

Playing this masterpiece on my teenhood has sent me years later to feel the "dia de los muertos" at Mexico, where I've intensively "lived" it while celebrated my birthday (nov 3rd) as I proposed my wife. So you can imagine how it has emocionally impacted my life (sorry for my bad brazilian english)

I know I’m late to the party, but I recently “discovered” Grim Fandango when it released on the Switch e-shop and this really hits home for me. Rubacava’s chapter took me a long time to get through, and I would have found it difficult and slow to get through if I didn’t have such a good time just reveling in the setting and characters. Sure, at a certain point the backtracking became a little tedious, but it was so pretty that it didn’t frustrate me. It’s a beautiful game, and encountering the temple in the final scenes always gives me chills.

I came here because I just finished replaying the remastered version and, like you, was sad to see it end and wanted some more. Now I am also sad this video ended.

The way you pronounce certain passages and words sounds unmistakably like Dr. Evil. Subscribed ^^

Hey ragnar ! I'm addicted to your content (which I hope is a good kind of addiction) keep up the good work and please make more videos about game developing and design 🙏

Very good tribute. I've heard that the creators of Grim Fandango stated that those who were sprouted end up being reborn in the Land of the Living. So you don't know what's worse. Dying and leaving everyone you love behind? Or being Sprouted and end up having to re-live your two lives (Living and Dead) all over again, unable to reach the Ninth Underworld.

Name of the Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind :D

I would love a The Longest Journey saga Love Letter video.

Your voice make you sound sarcastic all the time. It's hard to tell when you are actually being ironic.

20:53 this man died the meme was to much for him

Certainly, and I am mainly just paraphrasing Focault, but non-western and especially pre-modern cultures and societies tend to have a much less binary and obsessive relationship with death. The lines between this life and the afterlife are blurred by spirits and various middlemen between the living and the spirit world, assuaging somewhat the anxieties and fears surrounding the inevitability of death through a sort of socio-cultural therapy to broach the topic early and often and dispel its mystique. Its something we could do with more of in modern western societies, albeit in a more secular way.

Between the moments, the pieces of dialogue, the tracks from the ost and how identified I felt with your experience with the game (and being a slow reader that feels the same way when managing to finish a book or game) I felt chills all throughout the video.

People are so down on Year 3 but I think it brings the most mystery to the game… as you leave the established world of Rubacava, things start becoming strange and fall apart until you barely reach the Temple Gate, which is in my opinion the mystery that makes the rest of the world so compelling…. The entrance to the unknown and what equalises everyone in the Land of the Dead.

GET ON WITH IT!!! I'm more than 2 minutes into the video and you're still yakking about the day of the dead.

I disagree, I loved part 3. Chepito may just be the funniest side character we meet, the scuba aesthetic was great and it's also the part where, rather than being basically a helpless observer like for most of the first two chapters, you get to start to really strike back and make a difference whether it's dealing with your longtime adversary Domino, or finally settling things with Meche, or saving some cute (?) children. It even felt liberating to get away from the crowdedness but apparent total indifference of the city. If there's a weak part to me it's part 4, but thankfully the ending itself is alright.

Now everything that´s missing is "the longest journey" ^^

Imagine a game like Deus Ex or Thief (immersive sim) set in the cities of Rubacava or El Marrow from Grim Fandango with today's graphics. Just imagine.

In the early 80s the videogame crash happened in the US. In europe the story was completely different. It was healthy and bouyant... Just on formats which weren't successful in the states.

You speak Mexican Spanish like an actual Mexican. Bravo Señor, Bravo

This Day of the Dead festival is so festive even the dead would surely want to be with.

Because of your reviews, and this review in particular, I re-discovered my love of computer games after about 15 years. I may have been living under a rock, but I didn't know that there *is* point&click adventure game genre at all, and this is precisely what I have always been looking for - story-rich games with creative puzzles, where speed isn't the factor. I watched half of your video, then paused, downloaded Grim Fandango, finished it, and then finished watching your video. And - I couldn't agree with your review more. I've since played and loved other similar games, but Grim Fandango will always the one that opened up a door to a new world to me. Thank you! p.s. your videos are incredibly enjoyable to watch despite the fact that I'll never play 90% of games you're covering. keep up the good work!

this game is absolutely definitely in my top 5 favorite games of all time. I've played this game three times and each time I'm sad because I'll never experience this game for the first time again. truly one of the best stories I've ever experienced.

Another outstanding video, Ragnar. Having only played Grim Fandango for the first time last year at the behest of one of my oldest friends, I get why, after 20 years, he keeps bringing this title up. That "phantom pain" you spoke of at the end really hit hard. I'm already looking forward to your next video. Thanks, again.

Hey! I was wondering when you were gonna upload again!

God i love the remaster but god it was confusing

I love your love letters.

The most heartbreaking noir story, it has all the best to tell. It's amazing how the game becomes a part of you even without knowing the references.

Hey man, now I love you even more. Grim Fandango absolutely deserved a documentation like this. Keep it up! ^^

Nobody gonna talk about how the skeleton at 14:55 looks like the Minecraft painting?

I have to say, I only bought Grim Fandango for the platinum on PS4 but after playing the first year, I threw the speedrun guide aside and just enjoyed the living hell out of this game. Now, it's one of my favourite video game soundtracks of all time! Also, I can't say I found Glottis annoying, to be honest, I loved his character and was devastated about having to leave him behind.

Oh man, you can't go on posting one video per month. They are too good to be like this. I must have watched the last one at least 15 times...

Don't have words to describe how much I've loved this video. I felt everything you said was ripped out of my brain + The video itself, such an amazing job.

i had the same feeling at the end of Little Big Adventure... like i lived in this world for years... and it was hard to quit the game, at the end ! (i was young, it may amplify this feeling, with nostalgie and a feeling of grander scope)

Your channel is pure gold. I'm glad I found it. =)

Dear Ragnar, there are many channels I wish I had the means to support on Patreon and even beyond Patreon, but among them you are the only one I feel 'guilty' of not being able to. Every video you produce is like an amazing journey. Simply, thank you.

Oooh new Ragnar vid, and about Grim Fandango!

Yeah all the computer games I played when I was like above age 8, other than Starcraft and the Sims, were LucasArts games: Droidworks, Gungan Frontier, Dark Forces, Starfighter, Force Commander, Battlefront, I'm sure there are more.

By the way speaking of tradition , Grim Fandango being the very first 3d game to work on ScummVM

I was late to the fiesta when it comes to Grim Fandango. Didn’t play it until a couple years ago in my late twenties. Played other Schafer games before it when I was a kid, but I think GF is easily my favorite of the point-and-clicks. Even without the nostalgia guiding my opinion, (aside from seeing some promotional stuff for it when it initially came out) I think it’s a fantastic game which hits all the marks and more for the adventure genre. Great video!

that's why there should be no sequels because how are they going to capture the success of the first game if they made a second game

I feel that I never knew that much about Dia De Los Muertos to be able to fully appreciate Grim Fandango. So I was always more partial to Full Throttle myself.

Impressive as always

Magnum opus indeed. The best video game ever made and one that truly shows that video games are an art form. I remember how much of a commercial flop it was at the time, no doubt too far ahead of the curve. Now it seems more popular than ever.

my first lucasfilms game was Monkey Island , Grim Fandango was the third

i just didn't really get this game.. maybe i am just dumb or too young to get it, and thus have a bias towards the puzzles in the game, i felt i really had to go into walkthroughs to get anywhere in it, because i was getting annoyed by the puzzles, and i dont hate adventure games, i been playing them ever since i was a kid with ron gilberts humonguous games, but you have to be really funny, really clever, or really provocative to make this game truly good, or at least have some honestly smart and logical puzzles, and with grim fandango.. i just wasn't really invested that much, maybe its just too adult for me, maybe i know nothing about movies to get the film noir references, or maybe the humor just went over my head alot, but i find the game so overrated

I love your videos but these is often something extremely annoying in your intonation half way into a long sentence sounding like you are puckering your lips when you run out of air or something like that. Other than that, thanks for all the hard work that go into making these videos. Great job!

I love the game. Played the remaster, but idk how people beat it without a guide. It’s so confusing

I was recommended the Obduction video on the main page, quickly realized this was a channel for essay(ish) videos, and I find this gem. Grim Fandango IS the best game I have ever played and this video almost brought me to tears.

Love the Patrick Rothfuss quote from the kingkiller series at 27:10. Just after youve talked about books. Brilliant.

Something that I love about Grim Fandango use of themes is how people that stay un Ruvacaba because they have given up finding eternal rest is somewhat of a parallel with being stagnant in life. The dead hang to what they were in life with their customs instead of going to a better place. Tim mentioned once that being sprouted actually makes people reborn in the land of the living, but the dead don't know this and treat flowers as a symbol of death (but they can't die since they are already dead), instead they treat is as another kind of death when in fact flowers are still a symbol of life and rebirth, making them being trapped forever in a state of "false life", trapped in a state of limbo. Scary.

Love this video:)

heeeeeeelll yeah!!

You have a wonderful way of wording and explaining things. I find your videos a joy to watch and always feel I discover something new about games I thought I knew well.

I recently got this game on sale after remembering your video on it. I just finished it, and I really do feel the void similar to finishing a good book... I'm gonna have to replay it with the dev commentary next time!

My favorite game of all time. I was so disappointed as slowly adventure, games, or no longer on the shelves. But before they totally disappeared, I had quite a collection of different ones. I eventually gave them away as new computers couldn’t handle the old stuff. Sad, really.

Er yes, Grim Fandango has it´s flaws, and yes year three is weaker than year two. It should have more depth and more caracterisations. But in comparison with other adventure games, even year three is quite great. And like you sad: It has a lot of good ideas and great philosophical themes in it. So YES it IS the weakest part of the story, but man tell me another weakest part of the story, that is so great than year three of Grim Fandango. ;) By the way: One problem of year three is that it´s totaly different than year two. You also have to feel in and grow in year two, because it´s also different than year one, but on one side year three is much stranger than year two, and too short. As you begin to feel comfortably in year three it is almost over.

I'm still angry about the cancellation of the second Sam&Max game. Grrrr Grey picture Casablanca was boring and I'd never want to be there.

I come back to watch this video every three months or so and i dont know why. Still everytime i watch it I get amazed how beautifuly crafted and produced this video is. I think you deserve a love letter yourself in your achievment on doing a video on the greatest game of all time(in my opinion) better than the actual game!

I’ve had this ritual since 2015 where every couple years I eat an entire Delissio deluxe pizza to myself and watch this video.

People thought Glottis was annoying? I always thought he was really, really funny. I always assumed others felt the same. He’s one of my favorite video game characters of all time.

This is the best video on youtube i've ever watched. Tears of joy wander down my cheek. Thank you so much.

a great movie, but a very flawed game. "Grim Fandango" really needs a animated movie adaptation... so they can shorten it up, butcher the character development and ruin the story.

I have a friend who bought grim fandango for his (then) new pc. I remember also he was stuck in a particular elevator level because the game was not optimized for such a fast pc.

words cannot describe how much I fucking love this game... no .. masterpiece.

Always wanted to play this game. It was in some gaming magazines that I had lying around my brothers room when I was a lil kid. But fuck, point and click is so antiquated idk if I can put up with it :(

i needed a walkthrough to get through this fucking game but i still like it alot. the story is lovely and the puzzles were just ridiculously obtuse sometimes. it's the sort of game that, these days, i would just watch an LP of it instead of playing it myself, or perhaps play it with one or two other people who could brainstorm solutions with you

No more reviews of this game are needed. Art to art. Cheers to intellect.

What happened to your pants? Herman Toothrot: What pants?!? Oh, good times with M.I.

This is a remarkable channel. And I'm glad someone else loves both Manny and Kvothe.

0:25 "Mexican communities all over the world"... I think you mean the US mate. I've never even seen a Mexican.

Oh Lola...

There are many backgrounds, that would have looked much better if painted, rather than modeled in 3D.

What the hell is with your attempt to sound interesting. You sound like you're trying to seduce us. Please stop it's really off putting.

This was a joy to watch! Impressive scope and ace editing.

this video should be in spanish. I can understand english, but it´s not the same. Thank you a lot for this video

Absolutely adore your love letter -- thank you for making it!!! You're a great storyteller.

My poor soul didn't get to enjoy this game yet, i leave a like and come back later so i won't get spoiled :D

A wonderful video on a truly wonderful game!

you can tell these people are western. because people love to use the stereotypical desert area. anyway, it makes not being white easier and more bearable.

I like that you savor a good book. I'm a fast reader, but with a good story, I love to linger on every page, just letting the prose wash over me like music.

First VTM and then this. You have really good taste.

all of your videos are amazing

Dude your videos are great, but you have a way of speaking that sounds as if you're addressing a bunch of five year olds. It's really distracting haha

You have great taste in games my friend.

5:40 Oh my goooooooooooo

this game is my first taste of noir genre and i fall in love with the genre ever since. do you think that adventure games are on the rise again from its own ashes with telltale games, and now more and more games like until dawn, life is strange, or that one with ellen page is becoming more mainstream than ever

After seen some of your videos i feel guilty of not been one of your subscribers... Until Now :) Keep up to the good work

I loved the game and to actually see some mexican tradition in games