[Irongiant909]

Do many of you leave a long period (intentionally or not) between replaying old, much-loved and completed adventure games? If so, do you think that, on replaying the game, it's better or worse than you remember?

I originally played Syberia when it was first released in 2002, loved it and deliberately haven't played it since. I'm now replaying it for the first time and am finding that it's just as good as I remember, perhaps even better.

I guess it at least partly depends on mood, but a much cherished game should be able to stand the test of time .......... or so you would hope.

[Cactusgod]

Good question. I generally find that, personally, I do not return to many adventure games, at least not for a while. After playing it and enjoying the experience I like to wait long enough so that I forget most of what I needed to do to solve puzzles and such. The stories are definitely worth seeing again, the problem is that there are just too many new things out that I haven't played to spend time going through the same game again ;p

Definitely agree that the cherished games do stand the test of time though. I think the monkey island releases proved that!

[Irongiant909]

Regarding forgetting how to solve puzzles - that's one reason that I haven't played Syberia for so long, ie wanting to forget how to solve them. On playing it again I'm finding that I vaguely remember some of them, but by no means all. I'm also appreciating the artwork and the atmosphere even more than I remember.

[Fantasysci5]

I love to replay my favorites, and even not-so-favorites, to give them another chance to wow me. I try to leave space between playing old favorites, but if I'm in the mood, I'll replay it. It's always as good as I remember, unlike childhood movies that I could mention, and I always love replaying till I've memorized every line (of the games I like).

[Venkman]

I generally don't replay games these days. When I do, it's almost always adventure games (or the occasional old 8 or 16 bit console games). In the '90s I used to replay a lot though, and played through the KQs, LSLs, PQs, etc. multiple times. Most of those would not pose much of a challenge because they're so ingrained in me.

Recently I have played a few adventure games that I hadn't played in a decade and a half or so. GK1 was really great, better than I expected. Best voice acting I've seen in any video game past or present. I remembered plenty, but there was definitely still some challenge and I got stuck a few times (I looked at a walkthrough once or twice, but the problem was always a timer issue due to fast modern PCs, except for one time). GK2 I'm still playing - it's definitely worse than I remember, because the wannabe Hollywood thing is now hilarious whereas in 1996 it was really cool. The production values are worse than a soft-core porn. It's still very solid as an adventure game though. GK1 and GK2 I had only played through a couple of times each back in the day, unlike LSL/PQ/SQ etc. which were probably 5+ times each.

I played DOTT a couple of years ago, after 10+ years away from it. Unlike the GK games, I remembered most of it and it wasn't much of a "new" experience.

Part of this is how memory works - it's so odd. If I played an adventure game 3 times in 1994 when I was a teenager, I can play it now 16 years later and it's going to be very familiar to me. But games that I played literally only 2-3 years ago I'll have forgotten all about. I remember MUCH less of the Sherlock Holmes Rose Tattoo game (played once in 2007) than Space Quest 1-3 (played many times, but the last time was probably 1997 or so) It's partly the repetition and partly the youth. I also used to remember movies in far greater detail as a kid than I do now.

[orient]

I'm not one for replaying games to be honest, no matter the genre. I don't think I've replayed any PC adventures, apart from Broken Sword but that was on DS.
In fact, I could probably list all the games that I've ever completed more than once:

Sonic The Hedgehog
Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Shenmue
Shenmue 2
Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars
Another Code
Resident Evil
Resident Evil 2
Fallout 3

[SamandMax]

Adventure games are probably the least replayable games out there yet they're the ones I return to the most. The Monkey Islands, Police Quests, Gabriel Knights - these are games I've played many, many times and can finish with my eyes closed yet I still return to them every few years. I guess it's like watching a movie or reading a book again, you just want to revisit a story you like.

[LeftHandedGuitarist]

I do replay old adventure games from time to time, though sometimes it can be years between playthroughs. I decided to have a mass playthrough earlier this year and have gone through King's Quest 1-6, Police Quest 1-3, Monkey Island 1 & 2 and am now on Fate of Atlantis.

With the Sierra games I could notice the flaws much more strongly than I used to as a kid, but I still really enjoyed them again (especially KQ6). I also played the fan remakes of KQ1, 2 and 3 and they were spectacular.

Because I'm in an adventure game mood these days I am also using this opportunity to play games I completely missed the first time around such as the Gabriel Knight games, Sanitarium, Grim Fandango, Blade Runner, Journeyman Project. I can't wait!

[harald]

Since adventure games are more or less the only type of games I play, I do occasionally replay them even if they don't offer much replayability.

Of all my friends, I've only managed to convince one that adventure games are worth playing, and even he doesn't like playing without me by his side as support. I enjoy introducing him to my old favourites, while I watch and offer hints if he needs any. It's especially interesting to compare how he approaches the puzzles to how I did myself. Sometimes he gets past my old pitfalls on the first try, and sometimes the most obvious small task stumps him.

When I was young and didn't have many games, or any money to buy new ones, I used to play the ones I had over and over. At the time, that was basically the first two Monkey Islands and Leisure Suit Larry 1. I know, I'm one of those "teenagers who played Larry even though they shouldn't", only that I was barely even teenage at the time.

I'm still tempted to replay a particularly good game now and then, but I usually restrain myself unless I'm sure I've forgotten most of the puzzles. On the other hand, I've noticed the exact same pattern as Venkman - most of the details from games I played during the last years are already gone.

There is a small number of titles that I replay almost regularly. The Monkey Island series is one example. For some reason, I don't want to forget anything about them. Also, the Neverhood and Bad Mojo are two games I sometimes feel the need to re-visit, because of their spectacular atmosphere.

And lastly, I've replayed certain DOS games after soundcard upgrades, to enjoy the improved MIDI music.

[DustCropper]

I used to replay games a lot, precisely because I COULD remember the solutions to the puzzles.

When I was a child I used to get stumped on the puzzles very easily, particularly the more difficult Sierra and LucasArts titles, and would often spend many hours stuck in one part of the game until going to the book store to look at a hint-book or (in later years) finding a walkthrough online.

Replaying the game gave me the opportunity to focus my attention on the game's narrative or gameworld without breaking my immersion by forcing me to quit and look up hints.

These days though I have little time and I can usually play through games without getting stuck for very long, because I'm older and developers seem to make games easier now. So I don't see much of an advantage anymore to replaying the games until I've completely forgotten the story and puzzles.

[Red_Lizard2]

I rarely replay them, as usually I remember too much about the story to make it feel the same it did the first time. Right now Indigo Prophecy is the only game I've played twice (never finished it the first time, so not sure it counts), and thankfully I've forgotten a lot of what happened so it is almost like a new game again.

[terhardp]

I'm occasionally replaying games, but mostly outside the genre. First that comes to mind are "Hitman" and "Commandos" series. These are among my favourite titles and they (IMO) really offer plenty of room for replay. I've also replayed "Max Payne" series and the latest three "Tomb Raider" games, because of their story and atmosphere and / or the fun factor.

I must admit that I rarely venture outside the adventure genre these days, but I've played and was very pleased with "Batman Arkham Asylum" and "Mafia II". I've played them only once so far, and missed quite a lot of details, so I'll probably replay them while waiting for the new adventures.

As for the genre itself, replay value is IMO a moot point. In most cases, their gameplay is just too linear and don't offer much room for improvisation on the second playthrough. On the other hand, many of them have such good story, characters, settings and atmosphere that one sometimes just want to reexperience this. I know a lot of people that have read their favourite books several times despite the fact they know almost every word. I think that replaying adventure games is similar to that, but it would certainly be the best experience if you wait quite a long time since you played them last time.

[Lee in Limbo]

I have a fabulously scatty memory. I remember certain things in breathtaking detail, but other things just won't come no matter how recent and how intense the experience. I actually like to load up old games to see if I still enjoy them (and if I can still get them to run), but I have a terrible tendency of not finishing games, even if I'm enjoying them. Basically, I still suffer from anxiety issues that really rob me of the ability to enjoy a game for too long. It's really frustrating.

I made it through a handful of recent adventure games in the last couple of years, mainly because I sucked my wife into 'playing' them with me (she mainly sat and watched while I played, making suggestions as we went along). She kept me going until I finished, and we both enjoyed ourselves. Sadly, if the game has shoddy production values or bad voice acting, she loses interest. She enjoyed the Monkey Island remakes, and Tales of Monkey Island, too. Sam & Max. The first Secret Files game. TLJ. Dreamfall. I can't remember if she sat with me through Still Life or not. But I've started and failed to finish several games in the last half decade, largely because Dawn wasn't into them.

I've been trying to get her interested in some of the older, classic adventure games I've been wanting to replay, but she's been pretty heavily on a British period soap opera kick lately, and I can't drag her away.

[Weare6]

Well I gave Sierra's Space quest 1-3 a go recently and although I still love the games I found I was getting impatient with the gameplay.
I guess I had a different mind set back then with a lot more time on my hands... Now my head is full of all the worries of modern day living ha. But at least I have those great memories from back in the day.