LucasArts' last big adventure seller
 

I came up with this list of LucasArts adventure games.
Dates are from the Pagoda Game Database.

1987 Maniac Mansion
1988 Zak MacKracken and the Alien Mindbenders
1989 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
1990 Loom
1990 Monkey Island 1: The Secret of Monkey Island
1991 Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge
1992 Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
1993 Day of the Tentacle
1993 Sam and Max Hit the Road
1995 The Dig
1995 Full Throttle
1997 Monkey Island 3: The Curse of Monkey Island
1998 Grim Fandango
2000 Monkey Island 4: Escape from Monkey Island


Which game was LucasArts' last big selling adventure game?

My guess would be Monkey Island 3

I think we need to establish a definition. Big selling is a bit vague. ...bysmitty

I think by most definitions of "big selling," we can pretty safely assume that CoMI was LucasArt's last hit adventure game. Grim Fandango got a lot of critical praise but sold pretty poorly. EfMI also didn't seem to make much of a splash, so I'm guessing it wasn't that hot either. Probably not a failure, but definitely not on the same level as KotOR.

mag

Are you guys so sure about CMI being such a hit? I know it wasn't as huge a financial failure as Grim, but I want to say it wasn't a huge seller (at least initially, I'm certain it had healthy long-term sales).

EMI, on the other hand, at least sold decently. I don't know if it fits your definition of "big selling" (my guess for last slam dunk is Sam & Max), but it did well.

Now, someone tell me how wrong I am.

Zak McKracken.

Something tells me that MI4 sold better than MI3... but I don't really have any reason to back this up with other than that MI4 was also on PS2.

EMI at least charted in the top 20 both in the US and Europe. "Big selling" kind of comes down to who you ask, and in comparison to what.

"Big selling" was probably not the best way to put it.

I meant which was their last adventure game to be able to hold its own with other genres saleswise. I don't think that would be MI4 or LucasArts would have made another adventure game.

Episode II? ;)

But they did make another adventure game. Management at the time obviously felt it was viable enough to greenlight. If only the lame temps that followed didn't chicken out, we'd be playing it now.

As for the other games being big sellers, it's hard to answer, since LEC adventures still sell well in JC versions.

Did you say KoTOR? As in Knights Of The Old Republic? Mmmmm.... http://forums.idlethumbs.net/images/smilies/drool2.gif

Word. The Curse of Monkey Island sold better than the first two Monkey Island games combined, anyhow. And despite the common belief, Grim Fandango didn't do that poorly. It wasn't the run-away hit it should've been, but it did OK.

I wish computer game sales figures were as accessible to the public as movie box office figures are so that we could know such things.

My reason for asking this was to try to figure out around what year a really well-made adventure game could no longer be expected to bring in the same sales as hit games in other genres. I chose LucasArts' games as an example because I think most people agree their adventure games were well put together.

EMI may have sold well enough to be profitable, but I don't know that it rivalled the best selling games in other genres. (I don't have the numbers though).

I think that a lot of developers would like to know exact sales figures, too. :)

I know nobody here wants to hear it, but for nine years an adventure game was the best selling PC game of all time. (Until it was finally surpassed by the combined Sims franchise.) It is still the second bestselling PC game of all time. Yeah, I'm talkin' about Myst.

If you want to pinpoint the marketplace shift away from adventure gaming, jump in the Wayback Machine and visit 1996.

Are you sure it's still second bestselling pc game? I'm afraid it has been beaten by Half-Life or Diablo2 or something like that.

Yeah, I'm sure.

Myst reminds me that mass market success isn't necessarily a good thing.

EMI sold well enough for them to start both Full Throttle 2 and Sam & Max 2.

"Current market realities", poor project leaders and lack of true management made them stop it.

I believe I said this (minus the titles). ;)

Myst's success isn't an indicator of genre popularity. It was something no one had every really seen before (in concept and quality combined), and was one of the first games to effectively showcase CD technology. I'm sure there were many people that never bought an adventure either before or after Myst and/or 7th Guest, but picked up one or both of those just to see what all the fuss was about. Just like many people bought the Sims, and some will never buy another.

I would love to say "LOOM", but I know I would be lying...



Aw, screw it.


LOOM! It was LOOM!


- :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Hi, my name's Bobbin. Have you seen my mother? :D

I always have to pick that dialogue option.

You sure about that? I don't have the numbers to back myself up either, but I'm pretty sure Monkey1 and 2 were hot sellers in their time, while CMI wasn't (unless longterm sales boost CMI up by a lot).

It's not total sales over several years time that I'm interested in. Publishers don't look at sales over years. They want instant gratification. So Myst isn't really applicable here unless you want to say the year Myst came out (1993) was the last year an original adventure game could have rivalled a non-adventure in units sold. If there had never been a Myst game before, would Myst IV have sold as well as hit non-adventures? I doubt it.

Could Sam & Max 2 or Full Throttle 2 be expected to sell as well as hit non-adventures, had LucasArts finished them instead of closing down their game production? (Do they even make their own Star Wars games anymore or do they farm them all out to developers like Bioware?)

Grim Fandango was an original adventure game rather than the most recent game in a successful series, or the followup to a successful adventure game. It didn't sell as well as expected.

It looks to me like Full Throttle in 1995 was the last original adventure game LucasArts made that was successful enough to stand on its own merit - and to rival sales of non-adventure titles. So is 1995 the last year when an original adventure game could be expected to bring in as much money as a non-adventure? If you can think of another adventure game which is not a sequel, that came out after 1995 and which sold as well when it came out as hit non-adventures, I'd be interested in knowing. It doesn't have to be a LucasArts game.


edit: I see Broken Sword 1 came out in 1996. Was it a top seller?

Tehe...me too. Although it is actually never said in "LOOM"



- :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Didn't the Dig sell really well? I remember that when it first came out it was sold out at several stores I went to.

Of course all this is only speculation.

Well, based on your specifications, I'd say 1995 is about right.

I thought Full Throttle didn't sell that well either. There certainly was a surplus of FT boxes around the Lucasarts warehouse, or I wouldn't have gotten it for free when I bought Grim Fandango.

I could have sworn Full Throttle sold well.

What's this about a free copy? Tell!

well in 1993 sam and max and maniac mansion 2 sold really well..i know sam and max sold more than 500, 000 ... i'm not sure an adventure game since then reached those numbers so 1993 was probably the peak of AG sales.. the following titles did okay but wernt really explosive.. when grim fandango came out i read a lot of great reviews for it but i couldnt get it because my computer was 2 old and i didnt have enough money 2 get an upgrade..i swear this is a large reason why PC game sales have declined..every1's got the same consoles(ps2, xbox) they aint got the same PCs.. a proper adventure game if they got the control system down right( i suggest usin the analog stick as a kind of mouse) could really do some nice sales..i think sam and max 2 would have really worked on consoles..its the type of game that would have broad appeal.. i think people want more humorous games you cant just be slashing up or shooting enemys all the time..

When I bought Grim there was a mail-in offer inside that basically said, attach sticker from inside box to this form, send it in, and we'll send you a free copy of Full Throttle. It took me about two months to get it though, so it was one of those things where you forget about it, then get a pleasant surprise one day.

That's kind of overgeneralizing, the situation has been the same since the 1980's with the 8 bit Nintendo system and all. And if you think about it, LucasArts and other major adventure houses would support several platforms (PC, Amiga, Atari ST et cetera) back then, now they can't even come out with just a PC version. So the reason lies somewhere else.

Besides, the game sales per se haven't declined - The Curse of Monkey Island sold more than the first Monkey Island games combined. Their profitability perhaps, due to the increased production costs.

Well, also the market increased dramatically between 1991 and 1997. Obviously I don't have numbers at hand, but it clearly grew a lot.

He's right. On the first spot for a long time to come is The Sims, by the way. Diablo 2 is in the top 10 too, but near the bottom.

Definitely, which is all the more reason why PC game sales (or adventure sales) haven't declined. :P

well if pc sales havent declined how come when i go to a store i see about 5 pc games and about 400 console games? i know which is now the bigger market..adventure games need to get in on that

Let's put it this way. Pretend that back in the day there were 10 gamers. 5 of them bought PC games and the other 5 bought console games. Now, the market has grown and there are 100 gamers. PC game sales have not decreased, in fact maybe they've increased a bit. So now 6 of those 100 gamers buy PC games and 94 of them buy console games.

That's obviously an exaggerated example, but just because PC game sales haven't decreased doesn't mean they've grown with the market--they clearly haven't.

Wow, nice deal. I wouldn't say that means anything about the game's sales, though.