Xbox – Series X|S / One / 360Best Adventure Games

Memoria is an alluring journey nestled in a beautiful setting, but lacks the character depth and narrative focus necessary for true greatness.

Chains of Satinav boasts incredible artwork and atmosphere, though it’s populated by weak characters that spoil some of the appeal.

Oniria Crimes introduces a welcome variation on mystery adventure conventions in an intriguing, attractive futuristic noir world with a rich backstory to be discovered. While some aspects could be improved, it’s definitely worth a look for players seeking out something different from the usual kind of detective game.

While its story relies on well-worn clichés, Call of the Sea is an otherwise compelling supernatural tale of self-discovery that will dazzle your eyes, delight your ears, and delightfully rack your brain.

Though its puzzles are simplistic, Nine Witches: Family Disruption is both an audio-visual retro treat and an amusing supernatural WWII romp that is bound to be a winner for those who can handle a little combat in their adventures.

Visage drapes over you like some ghastly blanket, smothering you with unsettling ambiance and high-quality scares. Though it fumbles a certain stretch of gameplay, its otherwise meticulously designed structure, head-scratching puzzles, and creative manipulation of level design more than pick up any slack.

It’s a bit too relaxed at times, but Carto is full of heart and almost impossibly cute, sending players on a warm, fuzzy journey into the not-so-wild blue yonder to discover what it means to be far from home.

While it doesn’t do anything new and even scales back its pure horror atmosphere, Little Hope greatly impresses in other ways with a more intriguing narrative and incredibly tense – and fun – interactive sequences. If you’re new to Supermassive’s games, this may be the best jumping-in point so far.

A polished, immersive trek through a world so alluring it’s a shame it doesn’t actually exist, Eastshade is a must-play for anyone with the heart and mind to devote to this art- and craft-themed adventure.

In Grim Fandango Remastered, one of the best games of all time has been resurrected for modern audiences. It’s still a classic, and it absolutely belongs on every gamer’s (digital) shelf.

A masterly remastering of the LucasArts classic. If you haven’t yet contended with Earth’s vilest extremity, it’s time to finally embrace the Day of the Tentacle.

Full Throttle is another cherished page from the annals of genre history restored for a brand new audience. Though the remake will have limited appeal to those familiar with the highly polished original, the game belongs in the library of every adventure gamer, and it’s as enjoyable now as it was two decades ago.

Though not as memorable as its acclaimed puzzle-platforming inspirations, Stela manages to carve out an identity of its own and is worth playing for its interesting world, atmosphere and excellent music.

A huge city in a state of entropic decay to explore, a diverse and memorable cast to meet, and an engaging new spin on adventure game navigation make for a highly compelling sci-fi experience in Cloudpunk.

Short on challenge but full of moments that can make you laugh or cry, Welcome to Elk is an intense and memorable narrative experience about a group of people dealing with the hardships of life.

From simple magnetism and gravity mechanics springs the fiendishly challenging Relicta, a highly polished environmental puzzler through a lunar space station with your every move being watched.

The Last Campfire is a wonderful way to while away a few evenings, pondering your own mortality while having a fun time doing it by solving puzzles in a lovely fantasy world.

Wet Dreams Don’t Dry is an excellent addition to the Larry brand. Fans of the original games will not be disappointed, and newcomers will find a solid series introduction playing the lovable loser updated to present day.

Lair of Clockwork God blends adventure and platforming to mixed effect, but it’s a very accomplished game overall, bursting with enough variety, style and humour to keep you surprised and entertained throughout its surprisingly generous play time.

Football Game’s dark tale makes up for its short play time and lack of graphical polish with a satisfying and well-crafted story and creepy vibes throughout.

Managing six different detachable body parts takes some getting used to, but Helheim Hassle is a consistently fun, creative blend of narrative adventure and puzzle-platformer with an amusing spin on Norse mythology.

A surreal trip through an Alice in Wonderland-like dreamscape, Superliminal delights and surprises with level after level of inventive, bizarre puzzles.

Though the gameplay isn’t particularly inspired, Darkestville Castle is a winner thanks to its prank-prone principal character, delightful cartoon environments, and witty humour.

Though it takes a while to find its own identity and the puzzles are all too simple, Guard Duty is a nostalgia-laden charmer that shows nothing but love and respect for the classic point-and-click titles it most resembles.

Creaks has beauty, creativity and invention to spare, but don’t let its flighty facade fool you: there’s challenge aplenty here too.

We Were Here Together provides a great assortment of co-op challenges that will test your ability to communicate vocally as well as to solve them together.

Short but very sweet, A Fold Apart is a hug in game form that’s sure to warm even the hardest of hearts.

Arise uses creative level design, gorgeous visuals and challenging environmental puzzles to explore the length and breadth of a full lifetime. A few presentation issues aside, it’s a moving, thought-provoking experience that tells a complete story with scarcely a word.

A grander take on Her Story‘s FMV database search idea, Telling Lies proves Sam Barlow is still the master of the carefully crafted reveal, even if at times this particular web of deceit unravels a little too slowly.

If you can get past all the timed events and repetition from multiple deaths, the slick-looking Deliver Us the Moon will reward you with an an evolving story and interesting characters in an evocative sci-fi setting filled with challenging obstacles to overcome.

Obduction is clearly not aimed at impatient gamers with older hardware. But Myst enthusiasts and exotic-world explorers will find a whole new stupendous universe to fall in love with, and fans of mind-bending challenges will find themselves in paradise… most of the time.

Though definitely not aimed at impatient or directionally challenged gamers, Woven’s splendidly fashioned locales, likeable heroes and amusing transformations are tailor-made for a unique experience.

Once The Complex enters full-on thriller mode, this compelling choice-driven tale of a trapped scientist facing terrorists and moral decisions doesn’t let up and even provides enough prompting and interesting options to weather multiple plays.

Moons of Madness ditches the cold New England setting of Lovecraft’s eldritch tales for the dry, arid wastelands of Mars, and what results is a textbook example of how “cosmic” cosmic horror truly can be.

Kentucky Route Zero’s short, elegiac coda sweetly and sadly puts a pin on this drawn-out but richly rewarding magical realist episodic series.

Although disappointingly short on actual gameplay, the funny yet surprisingly touching STONE is one of the most engaging and enjoyable bite-sized adventures of the year.

Life Is Strange 2 explores a touching, special relationship between two brothers that will make your heart hurt in the best possible way.