I was in art history class when I first learned about the Bamyan Buddhas. Being the gamer that I am I almost immediately thought of the Desert Collosus from Ocarina of Time. I am not sure if this was actually the inspiration for the temple or not but the similarities are there (well not anymore, since they were blown up in 2001.)
A part in Sonic Adventure is clearly inspired by the Mexican pyramids. It's in the Mystic Ruins section of the game.
I got to wondering, where did the developers of some other games with great scenic locales draw their inspiration from? Is there a story behind the library level in Halo Combat Evolved? The architecture reminds me of that of the movie Total Recall.
What are some other games that you guys can think of whose fantasy realms aren't much different from some places here on Earth?