[Intrepid Homoludens]

Here is the rift. The adventure genre would greatly benefit from new fans, new players. And many of those new players may not care WHAT GENRE IT IS, so long as it's fun to play. But even they have their requirements for what consitutes a good game, a fun game. Would they enjoy pointing-&-clicking all over the place on a static screen? Would they enjoy combining a bunch of inventory items?

The adventure game fans (us) know exactly what they want and how it should be done, which is why they play only adventure games. Potentially new players don't, and may not want to. To them it's not categorically an adventure game, it's just a game, and if it's good and fun they'll buy it. Who knows what their criteria are, maybe they want more things happening on the screen, maybe they want real time 3D all the way, maybe they want A.I. as an integral part of the puzzle solving process. Maybe they've played many adventure games and want a new one, but one that gives something they've never experienced before. If the game doesn't give them that they'll look elsewhere.