[Fairygdmther]

I do find it interesting that in Adv Gamers forums, the genre is stagnating, yet on GB, and to a lesser extent, on JA+, the genre is seen to be growing again. The perception may be part of the categorization, however. What I mean by this, is the "I hate Myst vs. I love Myst" issue. If you see all the newer games as Myst clones, and you hated Myst, then you see the genre as clichéd and derivative. If not, you may see that there are many sub-genres that have some good games, and see the genre as growing. Some games that use licenses (Law & Order, ie.) tend to bring in some non-game players, on impulse buying.

As far as your comment about what games are known by non-gamers - the same is true in other genres. GTA, for example, is now known by many due to its negative press. How many non-gamers could name 3 FPS games? My stance on this is that as much as we criticize TAC, they have brought many into the gaming fold by reaching the impulse buyers. They have pretty boxes, use Egypt and Atlantis liberally, (both popular themes), and they sell in stores like Staples, or Office Max.

If you are aiming toward a non-gaming public, you might do well to emulate TAC in this respect. If, however, you are aiming toward a knowledgable adv gamer, then the forums is where to take your game info. If you are aiming toward gamers who don't usually play adv games, it is, IMHO an uphill battle you are facing. These people know Myst, but it is often not a positive view. They know MI, which generally is positive, but so are TLJ and Syberia, neither of which fall into the empty-world-with-obscure-puzzles realm, nor are they cartoony like MI.

FGM-Lyn