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A quarry about the “essentials”
what do i think an essential adventure game is; one in history that had a certain impact, that created a chain reaction.
Let’s start from the end and the beginning, Obduction is a great game but not essential, Myst is, Mystery House of course, and even Tunguska.. maybe, but for a single feature.
MI series, for another example, I guess only the first can represent it.. if you wanna have the third or the Fourth, then that is a debate for another Criteria/Impact.
Syberia possibly for merging, and reinventing the Myst experience within the classical one? or was it The Neverhood before it?
It’s a sketchy debate, i guess anyone can suggest a title and everyone is welcome to tear it apart, i don’t think (now) there could be a legit ‘essentials’ list for adventure games, but it could be a game by itself
King’s Quest V: Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder!
(probably more King’s Quest games)
The icon menu, the graphics, voice-actors for every bit of text in the cd-rom edition. I’ve read some contractory stuff about the first “fully voiced adventure game”, but the talkie version of KQ5 game out in ‘92.
edit: it’s also a staple of classic adventure charm and a crash course in moon logic.
Zork: The Grand Inquisitor, for coining the term AFGNCAAP (Ageless, Faceless, Gender-Neutral, Culturally-Ambiguous Adventure Person) and defining a certain type of first person adventure game.
The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Serrated Scalpel, Holmes debut in adventure games which in my opinion marked a milestone in investigation games.
Currently translating Strangeland into Spanish. Wish me luck, or send me money to my Paypal haha
King’s Quest V: Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder!
(probably more King’s Quest games)
The icon menu, the graphics, voice-actors for every bit of text in the cd-rom edition. I’ve read some contractory stuff about the first “fully voiced adventure game”, but the talkie version of KQ5 game out in ‘92.
that would never have crossed my mind, really, bc its a media/medium impact with a great certain length of chain reactions!, for sure, it affects all gaming (genres), in general, more than adventure games, as well, brilliant!
The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Serrated Scalpel, Holmes debut in adventure games which in my opinion marked a milestone in investigation games.
i have never played any SH game, but that (i am sure) is a very worthy point.
I think one of the undeniable ones is Colossal Cave Adventure.
I guess Mystery House too.
From there it gets very debatable.
I personally consider Broken Sword as one of the best, maybe even the best, adventure games ever created, but there are many who don’t share that view at all.
I once even saw Broken Sword in some YouTube video that was about “obscure adventure games” that people don’t know about.
If the number of times when other games refer to a game mean anything, then The Secret of Monkey Island would be one as well, although critically thinking that game didn’t do much of anything for the first time, it only did most things better than games before it. So where do you draw the line here?
The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Serrated Scalpel, Holmes debut in adventure games which in my opinion marked a milestone in investigation games.
If you are referring to that 1992 point-and-click adventure, that was nowhere near the first Sherlock Holmes game.
Before that there was at least Sherlock from 1984:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_(video_game)
and Sherlock: The Riddle of the Crown Jewels from 1987:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock:_The_Riddle_of_the_Crown_Jewels
The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Serrated Scalpel, Holmes debut in adventure games which in my opinion marked a milestone in investigation games.
It wasn’t Holmes debut but it was a game that popularized a type of map on which new locations open up when you learn about them. Anyone knows if it was first game to have such a map? In PQ2 you had to learn about locations too before visiting them but you actually had to type where to drive.
If we are talking about popularizing a feature, Indy and The last Crusade did this to choosing between on screen dialog choices in adventure games. Again, i am not sure that it was first adventure game where that feature appeared and i think it appeared before in some rpg-s.
I think one of the undeniable ones is Colossal Cave Adventure.
I guess Mystery House too.
From there it gets very debatable.
I personally consider Broken Sword as one of the best, maybe even the best, adventure games ever created, but there are many who don’t share that view at all.I once even saw Broken Sword in some YouTube video that was about “obscure adventure games” that people don’t know about.
If the number of times when other games refer to a game mean anything, then The Secret of Monkey Island would be one as well, although critically thinking that game didn’t do much of anything for the first time, it only did most things better than games before it. So where do you draw the line here?
Well I like Advie’s definition of essential and Monkey Island certainly had a big impact and created a chain reaction. Whether or not it (or Broken Sword) did anything for the first time, I would probably say they are essential regardless.
And in contrast, there are quite a few adventure games I can think of which did do something the first time and which are not essential. Their existence (or hypothetical non-existence) didn’t impact the rest of the scene.
AKA Charo
Amanita’s games are pretty damn influential, Samorost series and Machinarium in particular, even though there’s not much unique about pixel hunting puzzle solving. But they gave birth to a new wave of similar games, and Machinarium is still one of the best-selling adventures in history.
PC means personal computer
Essential, to me, means “must play” even if it’s not the best game in a particular genre, or even the best game in its own series.
Example: I consider MYST to be essential. It was groundbreaking on so many levels. It forced Sierra, which had a pretty good game portfolio, to create “Myst clones” such as Shivers and Lighthouse, which most people know I love. But they were not as good as MYST. Although Shivers II came close.
As to the second part of the definition, MYST is essential, even though Riven is a better game.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
Maybe, after thinking about my last post, I think there are two categories.
The first is the top 100 games of all time. That is being discussed on another thread.
The second is the top 100 essential games of all time.
These are not, nor should they be the same list. There may be games that exist on both lists, but that’s not a given.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
90’s Sierra,Lucas arts and Cyan,00’s Microids 10’s,Telltale & Quantic late 10’s Dontnod adventures are essential.
“Going on means going far - Going far means returning”
You might have fond memories of such games, but who wants to play them today anymore. Take a look at Myst. The presentation, game-design and -play is outdated. It sold millions but it wasn’t even a good game when it was released, too static, focus on artificial mechanic puzzles etc. These games don’t breath. There is no life in them.
The fab 3DS had an influence on many cheap rendered looking games, for quite some time. Even GF had this ‘background art’.
An essential list is even shorter than a good top 100. Depending on how essential it is, this could range from 7 to 34 games, for an individual. Adventures you truly enjoy playing today, so that they’re essential to you, that’s an manageable amount.
An essential list is even shorter than a good top 100. Depending on how essential it is, this could range from 7 to 34 games, for an individual. Adventures you truly enjoy playing today, that’s an manageable amount.
Such a list is going to be outdated in a few years. It’s inevitable.
You think Myst is unplayable in 2022, well what do you think people are going to say about the 3DS in 2042? “Whaaaaat? You mean it doesn’t have octogenic sensory simulation, 4D neuronal direct-to-brain input/output navigation mode or 720-degree ambisonic immersive encapsulated audio? Pffft.”
AKA Charo
You might have fond memories of such games but who wants to play them today anymore. Take a look at Myst. The presentation, game-design and -play is outdated. It sold millions but it wasn’t even a good game when it was released, too static, focus on artificial mechanic puzzles etc. These games don’t breath. There is no life in them.
The fab 3DS had an influence on many awful looking games, for quite some time. Even GF still had this ‘background art’.
An essential list is even shorter than a good top 100. Depending on how essential it is. This could range from 7 to 33 games, and you wouldn’t miss a single adventure. Adventures which you once enjoyed and you still enjoy playing. That’s not a long list.
You are stone-cold meteor, but you could be more considerate of other people’s ideas. I think people are capable of finding arguments for their suggestions beyond “I really liked the game back in the day”, so I wouldn’t just dismiss them out of hand.
Advie’s asking about games that have made an impact on AG history. This can be due to excellence in sales, use of technology, innovative (and inspiring) design. Myst is definitely one of them.
A game that holds up, which is subjective beyond just nostalgia, might go up on the top 100 list. But it might be excluded from this thread, if it was just an excellent rendition of the games that preceded it.
I think you judge Myst on top 100 standards. The standard for this thread is in a sense more objective, as you can judge the games in retrospect, based on the amount of games in similar style they’ve inspired, or because they’ve caused a market resurgence of sorts, or by setting a new standard in UI, graphics, sound, etc. We’re obviously not doing academic research into this, but it’s fun to do this off the cuff, making the connections in your mind.
This might be your opinion. [Btw. Don’t quote me too early. I still might edit.]
The way I see it:
essential = my games for an island.
top 100 = essential games plus games you enjoy less, till you fill up the flask
historic = milestones, for some reason or another, like E.T.
@Charophycean
I wasn’t talking about the console but the software 3D Studio.
Well, it’s a living document, where you save its state from time to time. There exist well aged old games and good new ones. The majority of games sooner or later fades away due to different reasons, being not essential anymore.
rtrooney’s post sounded to me like a timeline, which shows all the games which made a splash for one reason or another.
You think Myst is unplayable in 2022, well what do you think people are going to say about the 3DS in 2042? “Whaaaaat? You mean it doesn’t have octogenic sensory simulation, 4D neuronal direct-to-brain input/output navigation mode or 720-degree ambisonic immersive encapsulated audio? Pffft.”
Please tell me you are not some combination of Neo and the Terminator, because that sounds like the metaverse future of my nightmares.
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