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The adventure game genre post 2000’s - question
Hi everyone!
I will be delivering a lecture on the subject of “the adventure game renaissance” at an upcoming sci-fi convention in Israel. In my lecture, I will discuss the resurgence of the genre since the mid-90s and early 2000s, when it was annonced as “dead”. I’m interested in getting a sense of how hardcore fans perceive the most meaningful and interesting events and milestones during the period 2000-2023, with a focus on the last three years. So, what do you think were the most exciting events in adventure games in this time period?
I would also appreciate referrals for good resources on the topic (articles, videos, etc.). I’m having a hard time finding articles about the genre itself in recent years - especially hard data like number of sales/users of games in our beloved genre.
Thanks in advance,
Rinat
It’s a curious topic to research! Adventure gaming during the 21st century survived several unofficial deaths, changed its face dramatically and now occupies a niche with more games released per year than ever. Their quality is another question, but many adventure gamers who played them during the 1980-90s seem to be happy.
I’d say of utmost importance was the move from big-budget adventure projects to indie games (the AGS engine games, games by Jonathan Boakes, Amanita, Telltale, Lucas Pope should be probably mentioned as well as Kickstarter, GOG, Steam and other platforms that help indie developers) which currently constitute like 90% of adventure market;
the fall of American adventure titans (Lucas Arts, Sierra, Legend Entertainment, Cyan, Access Software, Activision’s adventure department) and the rise of European and Japanese developers (Funcom, Microids, Daedalic, Frictional, Shu Takumi’s and Professor Layton’s teams, Quantic Dream, Life Is Strange developers);
new subgenres and playing tactics which became associated with adventure games: episodic gaming, walking simulators, Portal-inspired physical puzzle games, games based around quick time events and choices, horror stealth games, casual/hidden object games, VR adventures — they brought many new people to the genre, although most of them hold little interest in traditional adventures which are currently in the minority.
From what I recall, the best-selling adventure-associated games of this century are Machinarium, games by David Cage, Portal 1+2 and The Talos Principle, Papers Please and Return of the Obra Dynn, The Walking Dead and other Telltale games, Life is Strange, Syberia 1+2, The Outer Worlds, Amnesia, Ace Attorney and Professor Layton series. I think Wikipedia usually provides links to selling figures, not sure if there’s a single portal that lists them. Steam also leads its own selling stats, but they call pretty much every game “an adventure game”.
PC means personal computer
I was going to answer, but Doom did a terrific work.
I would point the importance of Dave Gilbert and Wadjet Eye Games and the use of Kickstarter for funding adventure games (we all know they don’t always deliver, but we can’t ignore the impact of Tim Shafer’s campaign for Broken Age).
And finally, the resurrection of Monkey Island.
Currently translating Strangeland into Spanish. Wish me luck, or send me money to my Paypal haha
Doom and walas74 - great responses. Really helps me build the narrative of the lecture.
Out of curiosity - what do you think will help drive the genre forward? Make it more mainsteam? Maybe have an AAA adventure game?
Doom and walas74 - great responses. Really helps me build the narrative of the lecture.
Out of curiosity - what do you think will help drive the genre forward? Make it more mainsteam? Maybe have an AAA adventure game?
Nothing, its a niche genre, unless you pretend non adventure games are adventure games, aka stuff like walking simulators. Im very gatekeeper when it comes to genre and i know that. But 95 percent of telltale games are not adventure games but visual novels. the quantic dreams games are slightly closer to ags but not really. Calling Detroit become human an adventure game is like calling GTA5 a racing simulator. Both games have cars but that is pretty much where similarities end.
In a sense, adventure games are as mainstream as they can be, or to put it better, almost every other genre of games has taken features from adventure games and implemented them. Things that used to make adventure games special, like puzzles, story, exploration, you name it, can now be found in almost every other genre of games.
Nothing, its a niche genre, unless you pretend non adventure games are adventure games, aka stuff like walking simulators. Im very gatekeeper when it comes to genre and i know that. But 95 percent of telltale games are not adventure games but visual novels. the quantic dreams games are slightly closer to ags but not really. Calling Detroit become human an adventure game is like calling GTA5 a racing simulator. Both games have cars but that is pretty much where similarities end.
We are in the minority though. All of them had been reviewed and popularised as adventure games by AG and other adventure and non-adventure websites, nothing could be undone now. And it doesn’t seem like anyone wants to. On the contrary, everyone is happy to include more and more genres, like it’s now happening with cinematic platformers, stealth and RPG hybrids. At least walking sims and QTE were relatively new and unexplored at the time people labeled them as ag subgenres. But yeah, if people want the genre go mainstream, all-inclusiveness is the perfect recipe. As someone once said, “If you can’t beat them, lead them”. Not sure if this is moving the genre forward though, but I agree with tommit in that you can get more adventure vibes from games like Baldur’s Gate 3 or a new Zelda than from many games released as adventures today.
PC means personal computer
Nothing, its a niche genre, unless you pretend non adventure games are adventure games, aka stuff like walking simulators. Im very gatekeeper when it comes to genre and i know that. But 95 percent of telltale games are not adventure games but visual novels. the quantic dreams games are slightly closer to ags but not really. Calling Detroit become human an adventure game is like calling GTA5 a racing simulator. Both games have cars but that is pretty much where similarities end.
We are in the minority though. All of them had been reviewed and popularised as adventure games by AG and other adventure and non-adventure websites, nothing could be undone now. And it doesn’t seem like anyone wants to. On the contrary, everyone is happy to include more and more genres, like it’s now happening with cinematic platformers, stealth and RPG hybrids. At least walking sims and QTE were relatively new and unexplored at the time people labeled them as ag subgenres. But yeah, if people want the genre go mainstream, all-inclusiveness is the perfect recipe. As someone once said, “If you can’t beat them, lead them”. Not sure if this is moving the genre forward though, but I agree with tommit in that you can get more adventure vibes from games like Baldur’s Gate 3 or a new Zelda than from many games released as adventures today.
I agree but then they are diluted beyond any degree of being an adventure game, because for them to go truly mainstream, one of the other genres has to take the dominant place. Take Uncharted it has many Adventure game elements to it, but it’s foremost a third person action game.
Going back to The Walking Dead the first season I remember the first episode was an adventure game barely… but it did actually have a couple of real puzzles in it, but then by episode 2 every single one of those puzzles were gone and it became a walking simulator where you hit just a couple of buttons. God I hate those games.
I think it would be good to mention that there are more adventure games being released now than ever before.
The problem is that many of them go unnoticed, sometimes even adventure websites miss many of them. And the quality is really mixed, but then again, hasn’t it always been?
General gaming magazines/websites/channels don’t usually notice anything that happens, unless it’s something really big like the original creator releasing a new Monkey Island game. That can give the false impression that the genre is “dead”.
But if you spend time hunting those games, checking some obscure titles that pop up only on itch.io or Game Jolt or where ever, you can find many hidden gems that the rest of the world is oblivious about.
What we are kind of missing are notable releases from bigger companies, especially after Telltale went bankrupt and Daedalic stopped developing games.
What we are kind of missing are notable releases from bigger companies, especially after Telltale went bankrupt and Daedalic stopped developing games.
That’s not true. Microids - a massive company I think we all agree - just released a game which is going to be HUGE.
Dolphin Spirit - Ocean Mission
Explore the island of Maupiroa and discover its deep-sea secrets!
Embark on an amazing adventure on the tropical island of Maupiroa! Take to the seas and discover the secrets that surround the island! Dive into the ocean’s depths, teeming with life and color, with your dolphin friend Keanu. Learn about marine life and ecology while helping the local environmentalists save the island from impending disaster.
Your holiday on the island of Maupiroa is not going to be easy! Fortunately, you can count on your grandfather and the island’s inhabitants to lend you a helping hand in your quest. Learn about the folklore and traditions of the island to save it from destruction. Embark on a fantastic adventure and immerse yourself in the heritage of your ancestors to unlock the secrets of magic totems.
Discover the hidden treasures of the underwater world with your sidekick, Keanu the dolphin. Take part in the conservation missions of the local people and take photos of the island’s wildlife to complete your codex.
Marvel at the ocean’s rich ecosystem and learn how to preserve it. Use your power to help endangered marine life.
Dolphin Spirit - Ocean Mission is an educational adventure game with a touch of fantasy, set on the beautiful tropical island of Maupiroa.
Features
-An original story full of mystery and magic
-A fun way to learn about ecology with well-researched information
-A codex of different marine species to complete
-Wild, colorful landscapes to explore
AKA Charo
What we are kind of missing are notable releases from bigger companies, especially after Telltale went bankrupt and Daedalic stopped developing games.
That’s not true. Microids - a massive company I think we all agree - just released a game which is going to be HUGE.
Dolphin Spirit - Ocean Mission
Explore the island of Maupiroa and discover its deep-sea secrets!
Embark on an amazing adventure on the tropical island of Maupiroa! Take to the seas and discover the secrets that surround the island! Dive into the ocean’s depths, teeming with life and color, with your dolphin friend Keanu. Learn about marine life and ecology while helping the local environmentalists save the island from impending disaster.
Your holiday on the island of Maupiroa is not going to be easy! Fortunately, you can count on your grandfather and the island’s inhabitants to lend you a helping hand in your quest. Learn about the folklore and traditions of the island to save it from destruction. Embark on a fantastic adventure and immerse yourself in the heritage of your ancestors to unlock the secrets of magic totems.
Discover the hidden treasures of the underwater world with your sidekick, Keanu the dolphin. Take part in the conservation missions of the local people and take photos of the island’s wildlife to complete your codex.
Marvel at the ocean’s rich ecosystem and learn how to preserve it. Use your power to help endangered marine life.
Dolphin Spirit - Ocean Mission is an educational adventure game with a touch of fantasy, set on the beautiful tropical island of Maupiroa.
Features
-An original story full of mystery and magic
-A fun way to learn about ecology with well-researched information
-A codex of different marine species to complete
-Wild, colorful landscapes to explore
I disagree, micronoids might be huge to us but not to the General Public. I mean I’m super excited about the new Broken Sword remake and 6th game, but the general public is not talking about them. The official trailer on their YouTube channel is around 41k which is a drop in the bucket for most games. I mean go look at the new Spider-Man trailer it’s got a million views same thing for Final Fantasy games.
I just think context and language matters. I mean the biggest adventure games these days probably are from quantiatic dream and I still say they’re not much of an adventure game and do not leave much of a cultural footprint after heavy rain, even though I enjoy some of them.
Back to revolutionary software and broken sword that’s why I laughed when Charles says he hopes these new games will bring new younger fans into the genre and I’m like that’s just not happening. My son does not want to play a broken sword game he wants to play fortnite and it is what it is. So unless they switch genres, and be more something like Tomb Raider or Uncharted that’s just not happening.
Then go to something like telltale. One massively popular game does not make a studio. After Walking Dead Season 1 everything else lost money which is why they went out of business. The fans they did have grew tired of playing a game that was not a game and I still can’t believe a lot of people give that crap passes. Those games are awful, they never updated the engine and always stuttered, gameplay became less and less involved and while the story sometimes could be engaging, the gaming element was so completely lacking that I’m glad people started holding them to a higher standard. Which from what I can tell their new game based on the expanse bombed because once again it was not really a game, it’s more qte crap.
Back to revolutionary software and broken sword that’s why I laughed when Charles says he hopes these new games will bring new younger fans into the genre and I’m like that’s just not happening. My son does not want to play a broken sword game he wants to play fortnite and it is what it is. So unless they switch genres, and be more something like Tomb Raider or Uncharted that’s just not happening.
I can’t blame your son.
The thing is, when I was growing up I didn’t want to play pacman and tetris, which were the latest thing before I was born. I wanted to play adventure games, which at the time were new, innovative and made by designers in their 20s and 30s. Now when we talk about games like Broken Sword 6, well, Charles Cecil must be in at least his 60s by now. Expecting kids to be able to relate to anything made by that age-group whether games, books or music is like being dismayed that today’s kids aren’t interested in the latest AC/DC or KISS albums.
AKA Charo
Back to revolutionary software and broken sword that’s why I laughed when Charles says he hopes these new games will bring new younger fans into the genre and I’m like that’s just not happening. My son does not want to play a broken sword game he wants to play fortnite and it is what it is. So unless they switch genres, and be more something like Tomb Raider or Uncharted that’s just not happening.
I can’t blame your son.
The thing is, when I was growing up I didn’t want to play pacman and tetris, which were the latest thing before I was born. I wanted to play adventure games, which at the time were new, innovative and made by designers in their 20s and 30s. Now when we talk about games like Broken Sword 6, well, Charles Cecil must be in at least his 60s by now. Expecting kids to be able to relate to anything made by that age-group whether games, books or music is like being dismayed that today’s kids aren’t interested in the latest AC/DC or KISS albums.
well yes and no, if broken sword changed genres and released a banger trailer it would maybe blown up. If it looked like an action adventure game akin to Uncharted it might have had a chance to connect with a younger generation. I always look at The Witcher games the first two really did not have a huge cultural impact even though I love The Witcher 2 even more than the Witcher 3. But The Witcher 3 trailers and premise was so interesting it became a global phenomenon.
well yes and no, if broken sword changed genres and released a banger trailer it would maybe blown up.
If what it takes for today’s 20-something audience to get interested in adventure games, as we know them, is to become something that is no longer an adventure game, then I fear the battle has already been lost.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
well yes and no, if broken sword changed genres and released a banger trailer it would maybe blown up.
If what it takes for today’s 20-something audience to get interested in adventure games, as we know them, is to become something that is no longer an adventure game, then I fear the battle has already been lost.
yes the battle is lost. not to be grim. Do I think some of the younger generation has and will become fans, of course. Do I believe it will ever be enough of them to move the needle past about 100 to 200k fans, no not really. But then again some of the “bigger” adventure games of the last couple of years, I dont consider adventure games at all, more akin to other genres like walking simulators, just bc there is an occasional input does not mean that it is an adventure game. Just like some games have puzzles but that doesnt mean they are truly adventure games either. I love half life 2 and there are some great gravity puzzles in the game, that got expanded on in the portal series, but half life 2 itself, is an fps with some adventure game elements in it.
For the record, I am gatekeeping but not in the traditional sense. If you love walking simulators, great; there is a market for them and they deserved to be played by the folks that love them. But genre matters and so do tags and I think the adventure game tag gets thrown around way too loosely these days. I guess the reason im passionate about it, is bc I do belong to several adventure game groups, and new “adventure” games are constantly posted, so I click on the link only to discover they are a waking simulator disguised as an adventure game. I am just advocating for truth in advertising. Dont get it wrong, the story and characters are hugely important to me, one of the reasons why the witness never captured me, great gameplay but the passive story did not hold my attention. I just hate the opposite end of the spectrum as well, a qte is not a puzzle, nor is picking up the one object in the room to interact with the only other object in the room. It is just busy work. I feel like some devs say oh well there is the internet and walkthroughs everywhere, so who needs puzzles and a challenge and I think that is not the way to go about things.
My take on new genres: i used to think that things like walking simulators are atypical adventure games. But traditional adventures aren’t that much more popular than those new genres, so calling games from those new genres adventures muddles what is typical.
Then again, visual novels are older things, just they were less known in west. And some classical adventure games are like visual novels with some puzzles smuggled in. Laura Bow games, visual presentation aside, have some puzzles but are mostly about dialog and exploration. Games like Rise of Dragon and Heart of China have some puzzles but mostly rely on dialog and branching paths etc.
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