Grim Fandango Gets New-Fangled At Last, But...

Also in 'hey, PS4, get orf moi land' news, it seems Sony's latest under-telly monolith has managed to hoover up a surprise remastered version of beautifully bittersweet, death-themed adventure game Grim Fandango. No fair - so many of us PC types have been desperately wailing for these last ten years or so. The last great LucasArts game would enormously benefit from some modern spit'n'polish, especially to see its wonderful, weird scenes looking sharp and clear on our big, high res screens. To think that we may be denied it on our PCs is heartbreaking.

Fortunately, I spotted an update from Tim Schafer on the matter, clarifying that PS4 won't be the only platform, when I was only halfway through necking that bottle of bleach, so perhaps I'll be out of hospital in time to play the strongly-implied PC version.

Admittedly "Talk about other platforms soon!" is all we've got to go on, but the main thing is that it means no doors are shut. Also, news that this is a licensing collaboration between Double Fine and Disney is extremely exciting - perhaps the new LucasArts owners will prove fairly liberal about giving access to the older gaming jewels in their titanic crown.

The re-release was revealed as part of Sony's E3 conference, but again that's just where it's getting its initial promotional boost - I'm sure this will arrive on PC too. Whether before, simultaneous to or after the PS4 version we just don't know yet.

There's also no word on just what will be involved in the re-release on any platform, but I'm absolutely certain that releasing even a 15-year-old game on a next Jennifer console will necessitate a graphical upgrade (specifically resolution) and a control overhaul. Limitations in both regards have held Grim Fandangao back from the fan modernisation projects that its 2D predecessors have enjoyed. That said, a recentish mod has done some splendid things with the game's notorious shopping trolley controls.

Ah, the thought of playing Grim with sharp edges and non-batshit controls is delectable. Though I'll still scream blue murder about the cat racing puzzle, naturally.

Very important P.S. - the above image is not from whatever this remastering turns out to be, it's from an attempted fan overhaul a few years back. But relevantly illustrative, no?