Samorost

[Polecat]

http://www.samorost2.net/samorost1/

A neat and quirky flash adventure! The artwork is rather unique

[sergiocornaga]

While this has already been posted before, I wouldn't be surprised if it was news to some of the members here. And that would be great. Played the sequel?

[Anym]

Since you've brought it up again, I'd like to seize the opportunity to ask (and maybe discuss) what the appeal, both to casual gamers and (appearantly) also to adventure fans, of all these flash-based point-and-click games, be it Saromost, Hapland or The Crimson Room is, because I don't get it.

Sure, the graphics and audio are beautiful, but the gameplay? To me, it's just hotspot-hunting and trial-and-error. It's not completely random clicking, but close enough. None of them ever captured my attention long enough to play with them much longer than getting past the first screen, because it seemed so tendious to me, that not even the visual design and the story could save it.

But it seems that I'm a minority, so I'd like to hear just what I'm missing (and maybe what that might tell us about casual players, who seem to like those games as well, but never played any of the IMHO better designed and executed graphical adventure games). Is it all because it's over quickly and it runs in a browser window?

[Polecat]

While this has already been posted before, I wouldn't be surprised if it was news to some of the members here. And that would be great. Played the sequel?

Whoops!  :o I did a search on it but didn't bring anything up, so I thought it'd be safe! Haven't actually played the sequel yet as I'm still working my way through the original one.

Anym, for me at least, the design of the puzzles and its carefee pacing is what attracts me. For lack of a better word, the game is just plain casual. There is no hurry to solve the mystery, or save the girl. And normally the whimsical and almost nonexistant story allows the creator the use the most inventive and absurd puzzle they can think of.

Not many story-based games have the leisure to take it slow in the mid and end-game, as these are the places where buildup and climax are crucial. The overly lauded Myst-series was able to do it, as was Syberia, just to name a few but those were circumstancial to their unique presentation and stories.

And to be truthful, these sort of games don't appeal to me all the time but they're a nice break when I'm not in a rush to figure out how to save the world.

EDIT: Finished the first, onto the second!