[Jackal]

The H-o-M has once again received some lovin' , and before everyone starts moaning, let me say first that ALL 10 were the top vote-getters in our recent poll. So if you have issues with what's on the list, feel free to argue amongst yourselves.

As always, this is no reflection on the quality of any game not listed. But in the end, there can be only 10. Here's a brief look at today's list:

1. Dreamfall I know, no one saw THIS surprise coming! Yes, charging out of nowhere is this sequel to the virtually unknown Longest Journey to take top spot on the Hype-o-Meter. We're all shocked.

2. Fahrenheit After a brief hiatus, Fahrenheit returns to the rarified air of the #2 slot. Its combination of innovative storytelling and cinematic presentation has "potential" written all over it. A loss of publisher is devastating for most games, but Fahrenheit didn't skip a beat, announcing they had arranged a new (as yet unnamed) publisher almost immediately. Let's just hope it's still on schedule for a February release.

3. Still Life A dark, atmospheric serial murder mystery... using the same engine and many of the artists from the Syberia games? Sign us up!

4. A Vampyre Story Public interest peaked recently, as AVS announced a publisher. With great early artwork, it's tugging our nostalgic heartstrings with shades of vintage LucasArts. We're excited by the possibilities, but the game is so early in development, we're being cautiously optimistic.

5. Lost Paradise Two words... Benoit Sokal.

6. Beneath a Steel Sky 2 Although deserving of a higher place on interest alone, we're holding our ground on moving BASS2 up the charts. We know it exists in concept, but we need to see some evidence that it will ever move beyond that - a screenshot, storyline, Joey bobblehead doll... anything!

7. Runaway 2 Runaway 2 looks to recreate the charming, old-school feel of its predecessor, and with the experience the developers gained from making the first game, we're expecting bigger and better things from Pendulo.

8. Nibiru With an intriguing story and eye-popping screenshots starting to appear, it seems this remake of the Czech-only Posel Bohu (The Messenger of the Gods), from the creators of The Black Mirror, is set to take the world by storm this time around.

9. Scratches First Dark Fall, now Scratches... the indie scene proves that you don't need a big budget to build (psychological) terror. From first-time developer Nucleosys, it's a testament to the game's word-of-mouth popularity that it secures a place on the Hype-o-Meter (well, that and its incredibly creepy screenshots and playable demo). Look for more AG coverage of this game in the near future.

10. Boyz Don't Cry Upstart Polish developers L'Art have captured our imagination with their game's zany premise, offbeat humour, and bizarre artistic style. We sure hope they can find a publisher willing to take a chance on it.

[remixor]

Grumble grumble bitch bitch...

[Ninth]

Originally Posted by Jackal

The H-o-M has once again received some lovin' , and before everyone starts moaning, let me say first that ALL 10 were the top vote-getters in our recent poll. So if you have issues with what's on the list, feel free to argue amongst yourselves.

So that's the reason behind the poll... I mean, I already knew you were messing with the results, but I had no idea why.

[Jackal]

Well, of course we mess with it. That's how it works.

People can bitch at ME about their placement, but not about their inclusion.

[Toefur]

I can forgive you for leaving BASS at position 6, because the reasons you mention are very good reasons. I just trust the AG will move it up the list, as soon as we have some more info and evidence of the games existence!

[LauraMac]

I just trust the AG will move it up the list, as soon as we have any some more info and evidence of the games existence!

Yes -

[Ninth]

Originally Posted by Jackal

Well, of course we mess with it. That's how it works.

People can bitch at ME about their placement, but not about their inclusion.

Nah, I meant that you mess with the results secretly before you mess up with them again officially.

Anyway, great hype-o-meter. I guess I'd have put Nibiru higher and BASS2 lower, and I'm not that hyped about Boyz don't cry, but I'm not going to say it because it would be useless bitching...

[Jackal]

Originally Posted by Ninth

Nah, I meant that you mess with the results secretly before you mess up with them again officially.

Oh, like vote tampering? No, not me. I'm Canadian.

Anyway, great hype-o-meter. I guess I'd have put Nibiru higher and BASS2 lower, and I'm not that hyped about Boyz don't cry, but I'm not going to say it because it would be useless bitching...

Not useless. Won't change this one, but future updates take forum buzz into account. Hype away!

[Mattsius]

Originally Posted by Jackal

Oh, like vote tampering? No, not me. I'm Canadian.

Hehe, it's good to be non-American these days.

[nordic_guy]

I think you should add small symbols next to each title to indicate wether it has gone up, down or stayed at the same place since the last update. That would be neat.

[Mattsius]

Originally Posted by nordic_guy

I think you should add small symbols next to each title to indicate wether it has gone up, down or stayed at the same place since the last update. That would be neat.

Great idea. I second that.

[Jake]

Spoiler:

Keep your eyes on the front page of AG in the coming months, because you're not the only one who has suggested that feature

[Zack]

Personally, I'm excited about Still Life, Runaway 2, Dreamfall, and Lost Paradise. Those are the next adventure games I am so looking forward to playing.

[Zack]

One more update to my list: A Vampyre Story

That's mainly because it's an adventure game about Vampires.

[EasilyConfused]

I thought the hype-o-meter was cool. It seemed to reflect the, um, hype. Arrows would be extra neat, but then, you would want to know why. How about clickable arrows with little pop-up explanations from the Mods? And also, what if the avatars in the explanations sing and do Broadway dance numbers? Just a thought.

[Ninth]

Originally Posted by EasilyConfused

I thought the hype-o-meter was cool. It seemed to reflect the, um, hype. Arrows would be extra neat, but then, you would want to know why. How about clickable arrows with little pop-up explanations from the Mods? And also, what if the avatars in the explanations sing and do Broadway dance numbers? Just a thought.

Oh yeah!

[Mattsius]

Originally Posted by EasilyConfused

I thought the hype-o-meter was cool. It seemed to reflect the, um, hype. Arrows would be extra neat, but then, you would want to know why. How about clickable arrows with little pop-up explanations from the Mods? And also, what if the avatars in the explanations sing and do Broadway dance numbers? Just a thought.

I don't think we have enough slaves employees to that.

[LauraMac]

Well we were going to sneak a hidden link to Jack's home phone, so you could call with comments or just let it ring a bunch of times and then when he answered hang up. But he uncovered our plan said he didn't think it was such a great idea threatened us with bodily harm so we ditched that forumite friendly option.

You mean like that?

[Jackal]

Originally Posted by EasilyConfused

And also, what if the avatars in the explanations sing and do Broadway dance numbers? Just a thought.

Actually, we tried this once, but it looked a lot more like "A Night at the Improv". Which sounds a lot funnier than it was. Really. It was painful.

[Leonard Shelby]

Hum i m surprised Runaway 2 is already on the hype when there s so little about it but well i guess it s because there s not enough adventure games to put into this ranking.

Anyway i m glad seeing Fahrenheit and Still Life so high, murder mysteries are the cream of adventure gaming to me, can t wait to solve both cases in 2005