In many modern adventure games the characters and sometimes a few objects will be 3D rendered. But these are then placed in a 2D environment with painted backgrounds etc. This is what I'd call 2.5D. Secret Files: Tunguska looks to be a prime example. In a 3D game the gameplay environment is rendered in 3D (some objects could still be 2D sprites though). Tex Murphy 3-5 are good examples of first person 3D adventure games, and Dreamfall or BS4 of 3rd person 3D adventure games.
In a 3D game you could _theoretically_ take control over the camera, and explore the game. In a 2.5D game you couldn't, because the world itself isn't 3D.
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