[rtrooney]

It's interesting that one of the main things players use to differentiate a "real" adventure game from a casual game is the HOG element.

Every inventory-based game is a HOG. The objects just may not all appear on the same screen. And let us not forget true pixel-hunt puzzles such as the mural puzzle in Post Mortem. HOG in the extreme!

I'm guessing that many AG Players who find themselves gravitating to casuals are doing so because of the criticisms we all have been leveling at AG developers for years.

Not the least of which is "Arbitrarily extended game play."

I've not given up on the AG genre as most people think of it. But, I haven't run across a "must play" AG in the last five months.

I'm sure there will be a "Top Ten" or "Best Games of the Decade" poll coming out soon. I have my own list, and it averages out to less than one really great game per year. That's what drives people to Casual Games. At least that's what drove me to them. What do you do the other eleven months of the year?

I play something short, usually under six hours total playing time. Graphically exciting, unlike several recent AGs. And, interestingly enough, with a compelling storyline. See above for the unlike. (Did anyone other than myself find the Dire Grove storyline more compelling that Still Life 2?) And you get all this for an average price of $6.99US.