Looking for games... Adventure games.

[InCreator]

Huh. I have this serious urge to play a good adventure game for last few weeks.

Problem is, nobody makes really good adventure games anymore...
And classic ones, It kind of feels like I've played them all. But that can't be truly possible!

I would really appreciate some hints on gems I hadn't discovered yet.

What do I like?

I like murder mysteries. Point'n'click interface. A good story. Decent graphics. Third-person (!).
I like either serious or truly humorous themes. But no cartoons (sorry Sam'n'Max).
I loved everything LucasArts did. I played almost every Sierra game (minus later Space Quest, later King's Quest and Quest for Glory games).
I hate action sequences and billion-verb games (the ones where you can select 6+ action verbs from list).
I don't like text parser much. But it's a game with REALLY good story, I don't mind (completed Gold Rush! few days ago).

Games that can be described as "deep" are probably my favourite. I mean Prodigal, Pleurghburg, BJ series (to name some AGS-made), and of course others - Dreamweb, KGB, Fascination, anything that leaves a strong impression...
But anything well thought-out would do. I had gazillion favourite games, but I suddenly feel old: I can't remember any good titles!

Deep isn't really required. They could be comedy games. I never got into Monkey Island games, found them only well-crafted and playable but not very interesting. To crack me up, it takes Gobliiins or DOTT, semi-serious games won't fall either side. I liked Leisure Suit Larry series...

Sci-fi with spaceships and time totally unlike current one is out of the list. I have nothing against science fiction (like X-files, Dune, anything else semi-realistic), but if it leaves modern boundaries and becomes totally some alien-races-in-intergalactic-bar, I won't like it. That's why I skipped last 3 games of Space Quest. Also, as hardcore fantasy settings aren't interesting for me too. Medieval times or historic settings are cool, but finding pixie dust for a troll in order to  acquire letter for Elf king - no-no.

Can anyone name something that's worth picking up?
9.99 out of 10 that I've already played it, but I still have a hope for some good gaming experience. Also, after excellent graphics wasted on horrid crap of a story in Syberia 2 I lost all hope into modern adventure games so I don't know much about games made after 90's. Maybe there's some quality stuff to recommend here?

Ah, and name AGS games too! I've played yahtzee things and BJ series, but there's surely some gems in AGS history I've missed.

[Lionmonkey]

How about Beneath a Steel Sky? It's point and click. It's got a mystery and murders. Also the graphics are somewhat decent and realistic:




It's serious, but contains humorous moments. It's setting is in future, but I wouldn't call it Sci-fi (no aliens), more like a dystopian future.

You can download it for free by following This link. Klick "get it" to start downloading.

Also, I recommend you This site. In there you can download a lot of old games from 80-ties and 90-ties, including adventures.

[jetxl]

So a list of less knows yet good adventure games? Have you tried hotu or mobygames? (I'm sure you have but just in case someone comes across this topic in the future while searching the site)

Jet's recommendations of adventure games that started with a "huh?" and ended with a "heh":
Blue Force
Innocent Until Caught (sci-fi but maybe you can forgive that)
Woodruff (was that Sierra too?)
Jack Orlando
Hopkins FBI
Normality (first person but I liked it)
Amazon: Guardians of Eden
Countdown
The Riddle of Master Lu
Bud Tucker

edit: Oh wait, you DO like sci-fi.
Orion Conspiracy (the hacked version is missing speech and cut-scenes...)
Tex Murphy
Dark Seed

There is a new rating system for ags games so finding good games shouldn't be a problem (though Pleurghburg should get at least 4 cups!).

Also, try finding adventure games on youtube.

[TwinMoon]

If you don't know Fate by Numbers you might like it.
Orginally it was commercial, but it sold poorly and as a promotional stunt to raise money for a sequel, they put it out for free. (It's a pretty hefty download: 0.8 gb minimum or 1.2 gb for the full version, but you get FMV for that.)

It has a great noir mood; you play a detective who needs to find a suitcase but of course the story quickly gets complicated.

[Frodo]

You can also find a lot of lovely adventures here  -  http://www.reloaded.org/Adventure-Games/

[InCreator]

Thanks for suggestions so far. Of course I'm aware of abandonia, combed through the-underdogs many times and tried much from reloaded, and have depleted anything playable there...
It isn't simply "introduce me to the wonderful world of old games" thread, because as a game enthusiast and very active pirate for last 17 years, there's very little of well-known games I haven't played... So this thread has a bit higher "difficulty" rating... thanks though. 

Of course I've played Beneath a Steel Sky. You wrote a lovely post about the game... but I never really understood what gives it cultlike love among many AGSers: I find it as mediocre as Monkey Island series. It's nicely done, has good puzzles and simple interface, but in-game action never reached me. I've completed it twice and I can't remember at all what happened there. So main point I'm searching for in games is entertaining or interesting story. BASS didn't really have one, in my opinion.

I loved Blue Force, It's like taking all good from Police Quest and making a separate game.

New, not played names named so far are Woodruff, Jack Orlando, Hopkins FBI, Normality, Bud Tucker and Orion Conspiracy. I've heard of Hopkins FBI but never encountered other ones.

I always hated Tex Murphy games, interface is so clunky and graphics so broken that it's impossible for me to "get in"...
Countdown was simply too sick and cool to miss, even though I died more than playing Space Quest 3 drunk.
Dark Seed longplay was on youtube and last week I managed to watch it through, so I won't probably be downloading this... cool game though. Fate by the numbers... downloading now, expectations high, impression (checked homepage) too.

Waiting for more!
With newer games it's probably simpler to surprise me, even those rare cases where I checked demo of some newer adventure, I usually ended up with badly translated german half-assed attempt on broken engine, graphics so beautiful that  it made me angry for developers wasting it on pointless game... so I haven't tried much after few times.

[Frodo]

Have you tried...

Noctropolis - http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/noctropolis
Lost Eden - http://www.mobygames.com/game/dos/lost-eden

They are both excellent games, although Noctropolis doesn't work on Win Vista.

[Ozzie]

Woodruff is basically Goblins but as full-fledged adventure. I love it!

Personally, I am a collector of odd games so I might recommend you the one or another interesting game.
It sounds like you are well versed in the adventure genre, so you may know already some of those titles I will tell you about.

Gene Machine - This is a fantastic game. It starts out in London in the 1880s. You are an adventurer and just came back from travels to North America. As you come home a talking cat comes by and tells that she escaped from the evil Dr. Dinsey who built a Gene Machine and strives for world domination.
Okay, you have the cliched bad guy here, but the rest is wonderful. The game is a satire on the culture of London at that and as you could expect it's very witty as a result. It uses many motives of Jules Verne novels, like a journey to the moon. It has beautiful graphics, logical puzzles,.....well, I love it! MobyGames

The Quivering - This is a very obscure game, sadly. From a visual perspective it's 1st person, but from a narrative one it is not, since you don't play as yourself, no. You control Spud, who spouts many sarcastic remarks along the adventure.
I have to be honest, I played the game only for some minutes and hadn't time for more, so I can't tell you if it's really good. Head to MobyGames for more info, and to Legacy for screenshots!

The Adventures of Valdo & Marie -  I got attentive to this game because I searched for earlier titles of Michel Ancel. Well, actually he isn't responsible for this one, he is only thanked in the credits. Well, I'm too lazy and tired to write about it now (it would only result in gibberish anyway), so I redirect you to Mobygames. And yep, it's an adventure for kids and has educational content, but rest assured that it is far from boring. Even as an adult I thought it was interesting. Worth a look!

This should be enough for now. I think you shouldn't know all of these.

[Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens]

Based on what you've listed I'd avoid games like Bud Tucker in Double Trouble (it's a really, really intensely boring back to the future pseudo-spoof), Innocent Until Caught (involves aliens and conspiracies), Woodruff and Schnibble (really sophomoric zany humor), and Jack Orlando (just generally a really boring game).

Some of the others mentioned you may like, as well as Rex Nebular (if you are fond of a better written space quest knockoff with far less sadism and a lot more sexual humor).  I was pleasantly surprised by it, at any rate. 

It's a shame you don't like action in games, because otherwise I'd highly recommend the first four quest for glories for the sheer volume of options for solving puzzles (and a welcome departure from Sierra's typical sadistic design model).

Have you considered Eco Quest 1/2?  I'm not a proponent of Sierra by any means, but after many years of avoiding this series I found it to be rather enjoyable, if childish (it is geared for kids, after all).

KGB is a good possibility, since you mention you like mysteries and more serious gameplay.    I will say that it's difficult to get into, but you may find it worth it.

Bargon Attack is one that I thought I'd bring to your attention but I'm doubtful if you'll like it since it has 'aliens'.  The game itself has really well-executed visuals and animations, though, and takes an interesting approach to gameplay.  Again, it may not be for you.


Dreamweb you may like, and it focuses largely around a virtual reality system and conspiracies.

Bloodnet puts you in a future world with vampires where early on you're infected and are slowly turning into one.  The game focuses around your investigation to save yourself and also to solve a series of crimes.  I enjoyed it when I played it years ago, but it may not be as good as I remember.

It Came From the Desert is probably one of my favorite Amiga games ever, and it was ported to the pc.  This is another one you may or may not like since it does feature some combat (mainly shooting giant ants) but the 50's horror movie vibe is great.

Two games I highly recommend for you are the Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes games.  The Case of the Serrated Scalpel and The Rose Tattoo are both pretty brilliant for adventure games and feature (for the most part) logical puzzles and allow you to deduce solutions through research.


That's about all I can think of right now.

[jetxl]

The problem with modern adventure games is that they aren't that good and aren't that many that one might slipped through the cracks.
Runaway,
Broken Sword (They lay on top of my computer for months)
Sinking Island (is still wrappen in pastic)
Nibiru,
Tunguska (are amusing Broken Sword clones)
Vampire Story (is about to be released)
Freddi Fish (it's different every time you play it!...)

You could browse through the database at adventuregamers.com though they stretch the definition of adventure game.


Oh, Lost Eden sucks.

[Ozzie]

Based on what you've listed I'd avoid games like Bud Tucker in Double Trouble (it's a really, really intensely boring back to the future pseudo-spoof), Innocent Until Caught (involves aliens and conspiracies), Woodruff and Schnibble (really sophomoric zany humor), and Jack Orlando (just generally a really boring game).

Some of the others mentioned you may like, as well as Rex Nebular (if you are fond of a better written space quest knockoff with far less sadism and a lot more sexual humor).  I was pleasantly surprised by it, at any rate. 

It's a shame you don't like action in games, because otherwise I'd highly recommend the first four quest for glories for the sheer volume of options for solving puzzles (and a welcome departure from Sierra's typical sadistic design model).

Have you considered Eco Quest 1/2?  I'm not a proponent of Sierra by any means, but after many years of avoiding this series I found it to be rather enjoyable, if childish (it is geared for kids, after all).

KGB is a good possibility, since you mention you like mysteries and more serious gameplay.    I will say that it's difficult to get into, but you may find it worth it.

Bargon Attack is one that I thought I'd bring to your attention but I'm doubtful if you'll like it since it has 'aliens'.  The game itself has really well-executed visuals and animations, though, and takes an interesting approach to gameplay.  Again, it may not be for you.


Dreamweb you may like, and it focuses largely around a virtual reality system and conspiracies.

Bloodnet puts you in a future world with vampires where early on you're infected and are slowly turning into one.  The game focuses around your investigation to save yourself and also to solve a series of crimes.  I enjoyed it when I played it years ago, but it may not be as good as I remember.

It Came From the Desert is probably one of my favorite Amiga games ever, and it was ported to the pc.  This is another one you may or may not like since it does feature some combat (mainly shooting giant ants) but the 50's horror movie vibe is great.

Two games I highly recommend for you are the Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes games.  The Case of the Serrated Scalpel and The Rose Tattoo are both pretty brilliant for adventure games and feature (for the most part) logical puzzles and allow you to deduce solutions through research.


That's about all I can think of right now.

Well, Woodruff certainly isn't everyone's cup of tea, but since it is very similar in terms of style to the Goblins series he may like it. It certainly has its fans and I think it's underrated.

Bargon Attack.......well, I like that too, but the pixelhunting may annoy some people. It's not that bad since you are mostly limited to one location before you go to the next, but it's not exactly fun either.

Dreamweb...........either you love or loathe it. The recent Adventure Gamers review showed this clearly.

You could browse through the database at adventuregamers.com though they stretch the definition of adventure game.

Hm, I'm not exactly sure why you think that. Contrary to Just Adventure, Quandaryland or Four Fat Chicks they don't test crossover titles.

[Frodo]

Jex, your link doesn't really show what Lost Eden is like.   
It's a fantastic adventure game with beautiful graphics, great atmosphere, wonderful puzzles etc.

Here's a short trailer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elxqYQ-qiqo
And here's a mini-film that shows off the graphics - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wj2wfi8f5Q4

[InCreator]

Hm. This thread surely got the depth I was looking for, though I was afraid that all I would get are links to abandonia and mobygames. Kind of messy so I try to filter things a bit.

Progz, you didn't really read my posts...  ...because

* KGB is my most favourite adventure game ever. I mentioned name in the first post too. There's no games like this, or if there is, I want to own them. It's serious, deep, unlike anything I've ever seen, has really good interface, blood-pumping story, gore and feeling that makes Bourne Identity in comparasion, lame as a Disney movie. I've completed it more I could count. Even frustrating death around EVERY corned can't ruin this game. If I said serious and deep, this is what I meant.

* Dreamweb is one of those rare cases where I really enjoyed an experience of cyberpunk. Even though story gets a bit cheap, it fills all my requirements for description "cool".

* Innocent until caught: Played it with both characters and enjoyed very much. Falls a bit onto simple side, but chemistry between characters is really good, so is humor at the times. Also, it has all things AGSers call good: logical puzzles, simple - yet not oversimplified  interface, high replay value, etc.

* I hated Bloodnet. It's hit or miss game, I think. The kind of overdone cyberpunk I can't get into.

* Eco Quest? Never tried. I don't like kiddie games much, but I think I'll give it a try.

* It Came From the Desert... I love this game. Few weeks ago I even made painful attempt to use amiga emulator to play Amiga version (and 2nd part which isn't available for PC). Didn't turn out well though, but I've completed PC version once, and like things as this. Pity noone ever made a playable, high-color and mouse-supported remake. I had this crazy urge to remake it myself, but never got so far.

* Played SH: Case of Serrated Scalpel, excellent adventure game. Never tried the other, but surely will - now as I know it exists.

* As far as sci-fi and Lost Eden goes, I maybe didn't myself clear. I like sci-fi, I like fantasy. To an acceptable level.
With sci-fi, it's same as fantasy as I described:

"but finding pixie dust for a troll in order to  acquire letter for Elf king - no-no."

in sci-fi, this level of overdone-ness goes like this:

"but finding subspace modulator for a Rag'naards in order to acquire holowarp boosters for Magnitaurus Emperor - no-no."

So what I meant was X-files or even Dig is acceptable, but the sick depth of Space Quest or Stargate SG-1 is a bit too much for me.
Lost eden seems to be mix of fantasy and sci-fi and surely out of boundaries.

* Bargon Attack -- will check out.
* Runaway -- I played this long time ago. Despite cartoony GFX it was quite good so I will try to find it again.
* Broken Sword -- not my cup of tea.
* Sinking Island -- One of very few adventure games I've bought, and I quite liked it. Unfortunately it suffers from same problems as all new adventures -- miles to walk, zero to do.
* Secret files of Tunguska -- one of those "broken german translation" examples. Not necessarily a bad game but nowhere near anything made during 90's. Loads of beautiful graphics, but nothing to play. Why do they make new adventures so simple and boring? Why don't I ever need a walkthrough because every puzzle is a textbook example or something that could do as standalone flash game (sliding blocks puzzles etc)?
* Vampire story -- "to be checked out" list
* Freddi Fish -- I will try this

All that ozzie recommended -- absolutely nothing I've heard before. Will also surely check out.

Quite a list! Thanks all, so far.

[jetxl]

I was kidding about Freddi Fish. It's a kids game.
There is a runaway 2, dark seed 2 and innocent until caught 1 (seems you played part 2). Just so people know.

I'm sure you played most of the amiga adventures too, but just in case you can search and watch some here http://recordedamigagames.ath.cx/modules/news2/ .

How do you feel about survival horror and 2.5D games?

[Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens]

Yeah, I didn't notice that you mentioned kgb and dreamweb before.  I suppose you might like Waxwork, Elvira 1/2 if you haven't tried those.

[Akatosh]

I was kidding about Freddi Fish. It's a kids game.

Oh, yeah, I remember that... the first adventure game I played, evar. (Although I believe it was named "Fritzi Fisch" over here). Although I liked the sequel a lot more, back in the day. 

Kidding aside, have you tried Discworld Noir yet? It has quite a bit of fantasy elements mixed in, but the setting itself has a very "contemporary" mood - kind of like Film Noir with the occasional dwarf/elf/werewolf/golem/whatever. It's third person, sort of like a "murder mystery" (it's more than one and they aren't the main focus for most of the game), Point'n'Click, etc. You might need some sort of PC Emulation software and a copy of Win98 to run it if you're unlucky, but I the game is very worth it.