What happened to The Adventure Company?
They used to publish 3 or 4 games a year and were the most prominent adventure game publishers. Apparently they're still active but haven't published anything since 2009. Anyone know what happened? Are they still alive?
|
The Adventure Company was part of DreamCatcher Interactive.
DreamCatcher was purchased by JoWood Entertainment in 2006. JoWood recently declared bankruptcy. |
Quote:
|
isn't Jowood the one that has the Gothic series?
|
Quote:
http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13236 A couple of days after that announcement the Dreamcatcher site was no longer accessible. |
Quote:
|
It is like it was mentioned above. Dreamcatcher and the Adventure Company were bought from the now obsolete Jowood. You can forget all three of them.
|
they might have closed but i imagine the human resources are gonna be absorbed to a point from the existing companies or they might even start anew.i doubt they are gonna be wasted like that.
|
The Adventure Company would buy good licenses and ruin them. I honestly think TAC being out of business does more good for the adventure genre than bad. For a struggling genre, you have to put out good games or else you give the genre a bad name. They would just put out massive amounts of games to turn a profit.
|
yeah but closing down in an already struggling industry is not a good sign either.
|
I think that has more to do with TAG's mismanagement than the adventure industry as a whole. They litteraly ran everything they touched into the ground. One poor decision follwed by another.
|
Quote:
|
it might be........i've heard that this also stands for generic programmer's in software companies.
our future looks bleak:P |
They are only publishers, not developers but I don't know how much of a role game publishers have in the content of a game. It's a shame because I think they made available games which wouldn't have had the funding or publicity otherwise to publish independently.
|
i thought they also had a studio.....apparently i'm wrong...........anyways.it is a shame.....just look at the games that got out because of TAC:
A Vampyre Story Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express Agatha Christie: Evil Under the Sun Amerzone Atlantis: The Lost Tales (Rerelease) Atlantis II: Beyond Atlantis (Rerelease) Atlantis III: The New World (Rerelease) Atlantis IV: Evolution Atlantis V: The Sacred Legacy Aura: Fate of the Ages The Black Mirror Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon The Cameron Files: Secret at Loch Ness The Cameron Files: The Pharaoh's Curse The Crystal Key Cypher / Traitors Gate 2 Dark Fall Dark Fall: Lights Out Dead Reefs Dracula: Origin ECHO: Secrets of the Lost Cavern Evidence: The Last Ritual The Experiment The Hardy Boys: The Hidden Theft Keepsake Martin Mystère: Operation Dorian Gray (also known as Crime Stories) The Messenger Missing: Since January Mysterious Journey II The Moment of Silence Next Life Nibiru: Age of Secrets Outcry Post Mortem Return to Mysterious Island ROTS-1 Riddle of the Sphinx ROTS-2 The Omega Stone Sam & Max Season One Safecracker: The Ultimate Puzzle Adventure Schizm: Mysterious Journey Sentinel: Descendants in Time (AKA Realms of Illusion) Secret Files: Tunguska Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis Still Life Syberia Treasure Island Voyage: Inspired by Jules Verne some of 'em i haven't even heard of but the majority are good titles. |
Quote:
|
Revolution are developing Broken Sword 5, though :) I won't say this is the end of the adventure as a genre, but maybe the old publishing methods will be more or less gone, as digital publishing is obviously the new way to go.
Just take a look at Telltale. They've done a great job without any publishers, except Ubisoft where they got hired to do a job. |
Quote:
|
I'm pretty sure I said it before in another thread of the same flavour, but while I feel bad for anyone still awaiting payment from TAC, or anyone awaiting the next installment of the Atlantis franchise, over all, I suspect TAC had outlived its usefulness. It really does come down to the fact that they clearly had no real interest in developing and solidifying the future of Adventure Games.
Most of the games they published were throwbacks to the kind of games we were playing in the early 90s. Some of them were games I enjoyed greatly; others were a distinct letdown, and meaning no insult to the fans of some of the games I'm thinking of, were also an embarrassment to the genre. Nothing breeds failure more than fostering mediocrity and rewarding failure with more of the same. It also does no one any good sacking one amateur studio to put funding into another equally green studio for the next installment. they should have had the courage of their convictions to back a team until it had the product truly ready for the current market, or halted production before costs ran too high. Either maintain a respectable level of commitment to quality game development, or start selling toiletries, because believe me, those will always be in high demand. |
Quote:
|
for me it's just disappointing that a publisher for adventures has shut down.now i just hope that the developers that were getting published by TAC are gonna find publishing elsewhere.i just want the games to get released.
|
I've heard bad things about The Adventure Company, but I'm surprised some people seem to dismiss the games they published as mediocre. If we were discussing the old Cyro I'd agree, but I see lots of good adventures on the list, by various developers. All the Kheops ones are solid, Dark Fall, Still Life, Moment of Silence, BS3, Black Mirror, Syberia.
|
Quote:
If you want companies not interested in the future of adventure games, look to where all the hundreds of casual/hidden object games are streaming out from every year. |
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
Quote:
|
I guess it depends what you look for in adventure games, there's definitely a stronger crossover between adventures and casual/hidden objects than between for example adventures and first person shooters (not to say that somebody can't like both, just that the two genres have less in common so less people are likely to like both)
personally I don't like the idea of buying a game I can finish in an hour, no matter how cheap it is. for people who love puzzles but don't have much free time though, I'd imagine the casual games are perfect, since if you tried to split up a big game playing it in small chunks occasionally you'd probably end up forgetting what happened in earlier parts by the time you get to the end |
Quote:
|
Quote:
Personally, I really enjoyed the Drawn games, and would happily play future games in the same light genre. That doesn't mean I've stopped playing the more "pure" adventure games, though. I'm still buying those, too. There may be some players who are really making an "exodus," but I don't think it can be assumed that everyone who plays casual games no longer plays adventures. Many of us enjoy more than one genre. |
Quote:
|
It is sad about TAC. They published a ton of stuff.
As for casual... well... I like some casual games... no hidden object stuff, but more of the plants vs. zombies fare. I'm sure BTTF by telltale should probably also be considered a casual game but that's just me. When it comes to adventures though I want it to be big, awesome, and full of memorable moments with a main character or story that is something exciting. |
Incredible news - Nordic Games has just bought The Adventure Company brand, along with JoWood, and they're planning on supporting existing games catalogue:
"Nordic Games has also acquired The Adventure Company and has expressed plans to relaunch all the old franchises of both companies." Quote:
|
Great news but i'm not sure what it means... ALL the old franchises? What does that mean, more Agatha Christie and Riddle of the Sphinx games?
|
Quote:
While another commentator seems to think casual games are the cause of the demise. I think they might be the salvation. I see no reason why BFG, for example, might not publish "true" adventures as long as they fit into the BFG business model. |
Quote:
The only adventure game they specifically mentioned, though, is Safecracker only: Quote:
|
Well that's great news - Safecracker is one of my favorite TAC games.
I'd also love sequels to: -Keepsake -Outcry -Post Mortem -Nibiru -The Experiment |
by relaunch I'd guess they mean ensure that they're still available, maybe on Steam or GoG or something, rather than actually make sequels to all of them. although some sequels would probably come for the more popular franchises
|
True, but they are just a publisher, to begin with. but having ip's "alive" gives us more chance of potential sequels. afterall, having one more adventure publisher back in business doesn't hurt :P
|
That may give us a tiny ray of hope...
I would like to see sequels to my BS game and even Keepsake which I like, (even with those empty corridors :P) I would like to see Lydia and Zack again... |
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 09:25 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Design & Logo Copyright ©1998 - 2017, Adventure Gamers®.
All posts by users and Adventure Gamers staff members are property of their original author and don't necessarily represent the opinion or editorial stance of Adventure Gamers.