[dekaneas297]

1. Nice story
2. 2/2.5D
3. Character development

[SamandMax]

1. The quality of the writing has to be worthy of something being commercially released. If I'm playing a game like Art of Murder where it feels no effort has been put into a proper translation and the writing is, at best, perfunctory then it's not going to be worth playing. There is no excuse for bad writing.

2. All puzzles need to feel logical in the game's universe. A gritty murder mystery shouldn't have a puzzle in which you have to solve a Rubik's Cube just like a game like Myst shouldn't have a locked door with a key in the doorknob that you have to poke out onto a newspaper. If puzzles have to be made a little easier or harder to fit in the universe, I think that's a fair compromise to keep a consistent tone.

3. There has to be atmosphere. There's nothing worse than playing a game set in a bustling city only to find nearly every street you visit eerily devoid of life. The developers are the ones choosing the locales, if they can't make them feel alive then they're to blame, there's no technical or budget limitations that should hurt a game's ability to pull the player into the world.

[Weare6]

Originally Posted by marvio

But we can agree to disagree...

Indeed we can sir. Your point is duly noted.

[skeeter_93]

1. Characters. For me personally, I don't like lots of empty places - I like people to talk to, to find out information from.
2. Story. I like a good story, especially if I can get extra info from books or letters or bits and bobs lying around. Stuff that's not needed to finish the game, but enhances the back story.
3.Second chances if you can die. I have a habit of not saving when I am really engrossed in a game (and i grew up a fanatic saver from playing Sierra games!) and hate having to start from ages back. I like when the game takes you back to just before you died.

[Lee in Limbo]

Originally Posted by marvio

...but pixel hunting is something I definitely not miss, it's just a mindless and methodical scanning of the screen, you're not exploring, you're fighting the interface, and at that point you're completely out of the game, and very aware this is a computer...

As usual, my lost-at-birth twin brother has nailed it on the head. I can't tell you how many times I've complained about the same sorts of things, particularly in games that hew a little too closely to the supposed AG conventions. If your clever gameplay feature thoroughly breaks my immersion in the story/environment, you've lost me, and the game goes back in the box. End of story.

Pixel hunts are not challenging; they're irritating and they waste my valuable time. Hotspots are absolutely necessary to maintain sanity. I won't play 2D/2.5D AGs without them, period.

[VampireNaomi]

1. Like others have said before me, puzzles must feel more like problem solving rather than puzzles. If there's a mechanism I have to put back into working order to open a door, I want it to be there because someone had a very good reason for blocking the door. I don't want to solve it just because it's there. I uninstalled Keepsake in disgust after half an hour because I couldn't take that many mechanical puzzles that didn't seem to serve any narrative purpose.

2. The world must feel real and like it doesn't revolve around the protagonist. If there's someone standing at a street corner, it makes no sense if they're only willing to talk about some puzzle-related fact and seem to have no backstory or personality of their own. I want to feel like the protagonist has stumbled into a rich and colourful world and must adapt to it, not that the world is there to cater to what the protagonist needs. I really loved all the random conversations in the first Broken Sword game, but in the fourth one I felt that the NPCs were only there to serve some purpose in George's adventure and nothing else.

3. An engaging story. I don't really care if it's a mystery, love triangle, a treasure hunt or what, but it has to be interesting. It needs to be well-written and have a few twists that spice things up. The story is the most important gaming element to me, so I'd rather play an amazing visual novel with no puzzles than a great puzzle game with a horrible story.

[tsa]

1. A complicated, layered story
2. Interesting characters with a background.
3. Interesting dialogues. Doesn't matter how long they are.

[Oscar]

1. No rules
2. No rules
3. No rules

Honestly, I feel adventure games would be restricted by too many rules. I want it to evolve. Even dead ends had their roles in Space Quest and Maniac Mansion. And puzzles should be whatever the developer feels like making.

[Weare6]

Originally Posted by Oscar

1. No rules
2. No rules
3. No rules

Honestly, I feel adventure games would be restricted by too many rules. I want it to evolve. Even dead ends had their roles in Space Quest and Maniac Mansion. And puzzles should be whatever the developer feels like making.

mmm.... no rules.... I like it. yeah why not

[cmac739]

Good story - The number one factor why I play a adventure game

Point and click - I can't stand full character controls...makes things far more complicated then they need to be. (This being said, I am willing to give Gran Fandango a shot)

Logical puzzles that don't piss me off - Enough said.

Also 2D/2.5D graphics are a plus in my book

[mrLOL]

Originally Posted by Oscar

1. No rules
2. No rules
3. No rules

Honestly, I feel adventure games would be restricted by too many rules. I want it to evolve. Even dead ends had their roles in Space Quest and Maniac Mansion. And puzzles should be whatever the developer feels like making.

Haha interesting point, tho most of the advice in this thread is really good that I wish managers would force their game-designers to play by, I also feel that some of the rules are way too restricting, for example saying that it has to be mouse-controlled IMO probably is your oppinion because of flawed keyboard-controlled games you've played so far but that doens't mean that one of these days someone won't make a adventure-game that follows no rules just a inspiration and it might turn out to be better than mouse-controlled games.

Another example is those saying "no 3d", talk about unnessesary limitation.

[Deano]

1. No unmarked dead ends: by all means un-winnable fail-states are tolerable, but should be accompanied by a message informing the player they have screwed up and giving them the option to re-start at a point just prior to getting stuck.

2. If you're going to have voice-acting, hire voice actors or at least some very good amateurs. Most programmers, family members and graphics artists cannot act. Don't use them to do your voices. Bad voice acting destroys the immersion in a game, if you can't afford to do it well, don't do it at all, text would be better. If you're unsure, have an option to turn voices off.

3. If you're translating a game, hire a native speaking proof-reader at least. Preferably a script-editor too. Languages work differently, and localisation isn't just doing a literal translation of every line. Your words have to make sense. Conversations and text descriptions are a huge part of nearly every adventure game. They're the building blocks of the world you are creating. Why would you skimp on this?

[crabapple]

Originally Posted by colpet

1. Lots of places to explore
2. multilayered, challenging puzzles
3. minimal character interaction.

That's the closest I've seen to mine.
1. Lots of places to explore, and freedom to explore them.
2. Puzzles that are FUN to solve. No random trial and error puzzles that have to be solved by brute forcing every possible solution. No "try everything on everything." Brute force solutions aren't a test of puzzling ability -- they're a test of patience.
3. No story-leading-you-by-the-nose-the-whole-game. I hate not being able to pick up an item that I know will be useful just because I haven't had a conversation with some character somewhere -- or because I haven't done something to trigger the availability of the item.

[billy7777]

Originally Posted by Lee in Limbo

Hotspots are absolutely necessary to maintain sanity. I won't play 2D/2.5D AGs without them, period.

I noticed a couple people mentioning "hotspots" are necessary... but just to clairify... do you mean the cursor changes when the mouse is over the hotspot? (like mostly all games) or do you mean a "hotspot key" for revealing "every" and ALL hotspots.

Just curious since I am working on my newest game Last Half of Darkness: Society of the Serpent Moon... right now I have it setup so the TAB key show all available exits (but not all hotspots for everything)

Thanks
Bill

[Oscar]

I think definitely the cursor should show something where there is a hotspot, but I don't think the "press space to show all hotspots" is a great idea all the time. Players should have to use their eyes to find things, not have them pointed out to them. Otherwise it's too easy.

[Gledster]

Originally Posted by Oscar

I think definitely the cursor should show something where there is a hotspot, but I don't think the "press space to show all hotspots" is a great idea all the time. Players should have to use their eyes to find things, not have them pointed out to them. Otherwise it's too easy.

Completely agree. Some cursor indication such as a glow, cursor turns into an eye/magnifying glass or similar; is a definite essential and the game should have the option (maybe turned on in a menu) of an "all hotspots" button. That way, if you want the challenge, you leave the option off, if you want to whizz through the game, you turn it on!

[Lee in Limbo]

Hmmn. Well, I personally don't like to use the hotspot finder button scheme (I have, but I don't like to, and have successfully avoided it for some time now). However, I think it's functionality that is more or less needed for those who truly are lost, but are afraid to look at hint systems or walkthroughs, in case it breaks the immersion worse than a mere leg-up approach like hotspot indicators. That said, such functionality is not deal breaking for me, one way or another. But having cursor functionality is a requirement. I honestly don't see how anyone can play adventure games otherwise (especially their beloved 2D/2.5D AGs. Seriously, with that little faded yellow pixel being your only clue, what sane person would want to guess?).

[Weare6]

Originally Posted by Oscar

I think definitely the cursor should show something where there is a hotspot, but I don't think the "press space to show all hotspots" is a great idea all the time. Players should have to use their eyes to find things, not have them pointed out to them. Otherwise it's too easy.

I love you man! .... aahhh.... I mean I love your thinking... umm, YES I agree totally.
But of course there are those who would strongly disagree with us.

[Weare6]

Originally Posted by Deano

2. If you're going to have voice-acting, hire voice actors or at least some very good amateurs. Most programmers, family members and graphics artists cannot act. Don't use them to do your voices. Bad voice acting destroys the immersion in a game, if you can't afford to do it well, don't do it at all, text would be better. If you're unsure, have an option to turn voices off.

HA, its funny you mentioning this because at the moment I am playing
Black Mirror 2 and although most of the voices are bearable (not great,
even Darren's voice is a little annoying sometimes) you get over it as you
progress... but the moment I stepped into the Sanatorium (Willow Creek)
the voice of the owner in the reception area (can't remember name)
made me cringe. I immediately thought they where using one of the programmers
or the guy that comes in once a week to cleans the toilets...to do the voice.
its really bad!

[Red_Lizard2]

The voice thing is interesting. as long as they aren't too bad usually you end up not noticing them (early one I found the voices in AlternativA to be pretty mediocre, but stopped noticing it about 25% of the way in). If they are bad though, you'll remember forever (again in AlternativA there is a point involving kids, which the kids voice acting is the worst thing I've heard in my life).

As for my rules:
1) Logical puzzles that fit into the game. The best example (from what I've played) is using Still Life and Broken Sword. In Broken Sword I didn't mind the puzzles like the door, etc. as they fit into the game. If they were in a murder mystery game, I'd probably hate them because, well they wouldn't fit AT ALL. Why does Still Life come up? Why first, the least logical, least "fit in" puzzle I've ever played....the cookies. Who is the idiot who thought "Lets add a puzzle about making cookies, with names for ingredients like "Heart" and "love" and other bullshit"? The lock puzzle was also annoying, but could be excused as fitting in at least a little bit. Really in Still Life, there were quite a few puzzles that seemed added mainly to have a puzzle. If it didn't fit, oh well, its a puzzle!

2. Good dialog with dialog trees. This I can be okay without, but much prefer them to be there. So far I can't think of any adventure game on my "like" lists that didn't at least have a dialog tree. I love the long ones, and don't mind if a wrong answer can lead to being stuck/killed as long as you can go back and replay it (had that in some cases in AlternativA, and made you really have to think about it before making a choice). Granted I love the murder mystery games, investigations, etc. so dialog is pretty big for me most of the time.

3) Story Story Story. Story is quite important for me, a lackluster story can really drive me away from a game. Having a hard time wanting to even go back to playing Mata Hari because the story just wasn't drawing me in, sure it might get better latter on, but if early it isn't exciting in any way, why keep going? All of my "liked" games also tend to have a story that really drew me in early on to them. Indigo, Still Life, AlternativA (great story imo), Broken Sword, Culpa Innata, and so forth. There really isn't any diehard rule on how to write the story, just make it worth my time to go through the puzzles, the cut-scenes, etc. Obviously, certain genre I personally like, but willing to go away from it for a great story.