What do you love about adventures that define the genre for you?
 

I know it's a long title, but I want to be quite specific. :)

One of the problems with threads about disliking things in adventures is that, as a developer, it can only tell me what to avoid. They also bring about such strong feelings that some of the statements read as though no one should ever contemplate liking the thing they hate. And when you look at a thread like that it can make you wonder why anyone ever plays adventures at all.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not trying to tell people what they should and shouldn't like. The purpose of this thread is to find out what it is that you love about adventures that, for you, are part of what defines the genre. Tell me what gives you a buzz when playing an adventure and perhaps give a couple of examples from games where this works particularly well.

I realise this is sounding like a school homework assignment, but I really would like to know what it is that players see as the positive aspects of adventures.

Thanks for your time.

Well...for me the thing that is really hard to find in adventure games is a good story. That includes good dialog and interesting characters. That's the main reason I like adventure games. Puzzles are not my primary concern, though there are occasions where bad puzzles ruin a game.
I also find that voice acting is extremely important. If the story and dialog are good enough, I prefer having no voice acting at all than a mediocre one.

Examples for voice acting are everything from lucas arts...
For story, games that come to mind are TLJ/Dreamfall, Grim Fandango, Moment of Silence, Still Life, Culpa Innata, Sanitarium...

I absolutely agree. The only thing that I might add is a variety of locations.

I'm another story-phile, but I'll add that the little details often make the difference between good and great. For example I want proper reasons or even hints if I try something wrong but vaguely reasonable. And if there a little jokes or interesting comments when I look at background details that encourages me to explore your world. Initial dialogues with a character can (and often should) have relatively lenghty introductions, but when I go back several times a short greeting is best.

I love the sense of immersion they can produce, making you enjoy even just strolling around the environments looking at things and interacting a bit without too much sense of purpose. I also love that I'm not being rushed and can spend as much time as I want thinking things out or even just plain doing nothing.

Free exploration and clever puzzles.

I love bitching about the flaws of all the adventure games I played ;)

But seriously, I love exploring and looking at tiny details. I don't mind not having to solve many puzzles so much, but I do enjoy a good story. That's why I liked Dreamfall so much.

Most of my points come from the Broken Sword games. :)

A really good, interesting storyline that pulls you in from start to finish. Believable/likeable characters that have plenty of background history. Good voice acting, which helps towards characters being believable/likeable. If it's a serious game then there's no harm in the occasional witty/sarcastic remark (providing it's funny and doesn't fall flat). Believable worlds that make you think that the places you visit actually exist. Like seeing attention to detail in the locations you visit or the buildings you see. Having little things in the background like birds flying above, traffic coming and going, flags swaying in the wind or hearing certain sound effects really helps give a sense of realism.
A beautiful music score that's well written, composed and memorable (but not necessarily catchy). Puzzles that make sense and aren't just there for the sheer hell of it. Puzzles that actually fit into the storyline and help the story move along. It's good if the puzzles are actually fun to solve (like detective work in Broken Sword or Gabriel Knight) and aren't just some sort of obstactle.

I agree on the good story.
And for me personally, I'd say you can never go wrong with "if we don't solve this the world collaspse" or something along that line.
Add a little suspense and love in all the wrong places, then I'm set. :)

I also agree on the time to freely explore without feeling rushed.
And be able to see other none playable characters walk around doing their business. (I would love to one day actually be able to talk to them about stuff, that has nothing to do with the game.) :P

For me, an adventure game is escapism. I want a fantasy environment as far away from the real world as possible. I feel most immmersed in a game where I can explore the environment and have time to think about what's there and why. I love looking at things and gleaning information from books, journals, or notes left behind. I want to be by myself ; I don't want to talk to anyone, and I don't want to be pressured to hurry. The game should feel like a peaceful vacation spot that I can access at the push of a button.That's what attracted me to adventures in the first place, and unfortunately for me, there seem to be less and less of this type being made.

Steve

What defines the adventure genre for me can be summed up in one word "Thinking". I fell in love with adventure in the mid 90's because they made me sit back and think. I would think about a particular conundrum or task I had to complete in a game for days. At work, driving, in the shower even in bed I would be asking myself how I would get into that locked room or locate that vital clue to decode some ancient text. I would stare at the screen thinking asking how am I, why this or where that. I loved it. It was most gratifying when you finally did solve a major puzzle in the game and proceeded with the story.

Unfortunately the genre has seemed to have lost some of this thinking of late. Games are coming out pretty much telling you what to do next or the main character mentions where to go. Some games go as far as completing the task for you so you don't have to think. Please, Let me figure it out, and if I get so hopelessly lost or stuck... I will find the answer... from somewhere.

Some games today are dumbing down the game play. They are being made to help the player along instead of making them think. It might be because the majority of adventure players are now impatient or don't wish to think. That is never more evident than looking at the number of hits at the help forums or walkthrough sites (not that this is wrong). I believe you can have the best of both worlds by making the game more on the thinking side (harder for some) and incorporate a choice of easy mode or hint mode in options for the impatient gamer. The lead character making a statement like " I need to check out the basement in the old church" should be part of a hint system not part of the game.

Thanks for asking and I hope I explained this well enough.

What defines the Form for me is storytelling. But I can't point to more than two or three adventures I've played whose storytelling I loved. Photopia, maybe Conquests of the Longbow. Actually, I think "love" is too strong a word even for those. I'm still waiting for a great adventure.

Edit: How silly of me! I'm playing Phoenix Wright right now and its story is fantastic! I don't know how I didn't think of it instantly.

Well I hate in an adventure games where- Oh, wait. What I like? Geez, let me think... This is hard... :P

I agree that a story is important, but that doesn't mean it has to be this huge, deep plot. I was happy with "Stop Purple Tentacle from taking over the world" to be honest. And it isn't the most important thing to me, really.

More than story, I look for an adventure game to be FUN and make me happy. It's great when a game can make you feel sad or anxious or disgusted, but that's not why I play games. I play games for fun, and to make me happier. That's one of the reasons I love humor-based adventure games so much. To be honest they're about the jokes and laughs, not nearly so much the story and puzzles. It's like an interactive cartoon.

I also like how in (most) adventure games you don't have a lot of pressure. You can wonder around as much as you want without worrying that you're going to have to go back to the beginning. Leave that for action games, which I find fun because they are what they are.

I also like when an adventure game doesn't make me use a walkthrough. What I mean is it never gets so hard or obscure that I feel I need help from an online source.

Also I love when things that have nothing to do with the story are funny and make you want to check them. For example Murray the Demonic Skull in Monkey Island 3. There was no reason at all to talk to him, but I exhausted every line of conversation because it was hilarious and I wanted more. That's why I don't think the story drives the best adventure games (for me). It's the humor and little clever details that have me coming back for more.

Very well said, Colpet. I agree completely and can think of nothing to add to that.

Also, GreyFuss has a really good point about "thinking" being the heart of the genre (in which case, we need a good cardiologist!)

I like things in a game that make things easier on the player (and I'm not referring to puzzles here).

1. in-game map that let's you travel to places you've already found - having to traipse back and forth over areas that you've already gone to, loses something for me, no matter how beautiful

2. the ability to pick up objects that you'll need later without knowing why - how frustrating it can be to get to the finale, only to find that you need that rope you couldn't pick up at the beginning

3. the ability to repeat and skip dialog - having clicked through a bit too fast, and having missed significant dialog, causing you to go back to a save game, so you can repeat a bit or being in an area where you need to repeat one part, but being forced to listen to unskippable dialog for the umpty-ninth time

4. descriptions of items in an inventory (when highlighted) - how often have I struggled to figure out what that green glob is that I picked up, never mind where or how to use it

5. I love the concept of having a sidekick, especially a funny and sarcastic one - it enables the unfolding of the story, as well as giving the player a push in the right direction (Keepsake did this very well, I feel)

6. I, too, like lots of areas to explore, from weird to mundane, with many objects to look at and consider, preferably without having a monster leap out at you, and killing you unexpectedly

7. I enjoy learning from a game, regardless of the subject, but don't make me leave the game to look things up on the net - have an in-game reference if it's needed

8. unlimited and identifiable saves - these should be de rigeur by now

Thanks, Steve, for asking our opinions - I wish more game developers thought to do this!

FGM

Curiosity is the driving force in any adventure game that I play. I'm not into challenges to my IQ or my reflexes. I don't pay much attention to the music and I'm not dazzled by today's 3D graphics. How do I explain that being curious about what happens next in the game and to the character I'm playing (even when pushing crates!) is what entertains me. Inventory is good because of my curiosity as to how it will be used later in the game. I like walking paths to see where they lead, but I hate hallways with all those doors that look alike, how boring. I don't care for and don't play the spooky, horror games because I'm not curious about ghosts and they don't scare me.
Having said that about ghosts, I want to add that I completely enjoyed The Blackwell Legacy and Blackwell Unbound even though one of the main characters is a ghost! But what a very interesting and entertaining ghost he is. Which fired my curiosity as to how he would solve his problems with the help of 2 different characters, both very good and likeable indeed. Long live Joey, if one can say that about a ghost?

Most of what I like in an adventure is listed above already:
I like a good story.(TLJ, Syberia, B.S 1, G.K 1 and 2)
I like puzzles. (Myst games, Zork G.I, Still Life)
I want atmosphere that absorbs me and makes me forget about the every day life. (Still Life, Grim Fandango, Dark Fall The Journal)

Completing puzzles that give me a sense of accomplishment, the humor, great characters and great stories.

I love reading stories and I feel the main focus of adventure games should be to do that, to tell a story. I enjoy feeling involved with the story and watching it unfold. No other game genre can really do that for me better than an adventure game. Playing an adventure game is like opening a book and just entering that world.

Also in adventure games I like to look at everything and hear the character's comments about said object or whatever it may be. It keeps things fun. :)

I'll consult my TOP-5. So, the things I love about games are
Monkey Island 1-2 - wonderful humor, rich gameworld
Gabriel Knight - solid story and puzzles, deep characters
TimeQuest - complete nonlinearity, unique design
Conquests of Longbow - freedom of choice and exploration

I like the ability to explore a story, particularly in a non-violent fashion. I don't write games in other genres because I feel it severely limits the kinds of stories I can interactively illustrate.