To click or not to click, that is the action

Being one of the few people who’s still a good ‘ol point-and-click adventure game fan, a lot of people will probably skip this post. But my fellow clickey adventurers, hear me out. And possibly provide me with the answers I’m in dire need of!

I vividly remember the days spent infront of my 386 with it’s VGA screen, pondering on a puzzle or two in some of the classic adventure games of “back in the day”. Games like the Monkey Island series, Grim Fandango, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, Day of the Tentacle and not to forget the popular Space Quest, King’s Quest and Leisure Suit Larry series’. Going back even further, we see games like Hugo’s House of Horrors making the rounds.

What made these games special, was the sheer attention to story and the way it was presented to the player. In short, they had Charm. Which is more than one can say for the current generation of offerings. The current generation of point-and-click (P&C) Adventure games feel more like projects that somebody simply flung together to get through a story as quickly as possible. They don’t feel like a game made to be enjoyed at all.

But a few gems do shine through the rough around it though. The recent introduction of two new series of Sam and Max adventures did the older games justice. The humour and adventuring, although bland in a few places, was carried over from the past and the heart of the game remains true. But what we want, is another Full Throttle level of greatness. Another The Dig! And games like Fahrenheit / Indigo Prophecy and Still Life have certainly delivered the goods. We don’t want some rehashes and meagre offerings. Which brings me to the latest Simon the Sorcerer game.

I was a humongous fan of the original Simon the Sorcerer games in the 1990’s. So when I heard a fourth installment was on it’s way, I sat tapping my feet impatiently waiting for it’s release. And a few days ago, the time had finally arrived for the game to be ripped open, and installed on my PC. But first things first. I believe there are two stages that are important when looking at a game. Initial feeling of the game (the first 10 minutes you spend with it) and nearly finished feeling. Of which my first stage feeling is quite grim.

What my ears had to endure in the first 10 minutes of the game, was atrocious. I could easily play that pyramid game with words when I think about it: Horrific……..Excruciating. The voice acting hurts the game in a big way. The voices are juggled between voice actors who are audibly trying to be funny to those who have no emotion whatsoever in their voices. It really is a big disappointment and it set the expectation for the rest of the game pretty low. But true to it’s adventure game roots, the option to turn the voices off was included in the game. Which is what I did within the first 5 minutes of gameplay.

And thank goodness for that. The familiar charm of the game was slowly but surely returning to the game. Kind of like the colour returning to somebody’s face after you’ve been strangling them. The initial grimness I felt is starting to melt and I’m starting to enjoy the game more and more. The developers did an excellent job with the graphics. There’s that certain “charminess” that has been absent in so many of the latest P&C offerings. Which is a big relief. Maybe this will be the turning point and the adventure genre might return in full force.

Another recent game in the genre that was poorly received, is Dead Reefs. It doesn’t quite fall into the category of point and click, but it is an adventure game. But yet again, voice acting was the biggest thorn in it’s side.

Nevertheless, if you’re one of the few hardcore adventure game fans still around (alive? ;P), I would most certainly recommend taking a look at the latest Simon the Sorcerer game. Also, if you haven’t played them, Still Life, Fahrenheit, Dead Reefs and Sam and Max season 1 & 2 are all worth having a look at. Also, keep an eye out for the upcoming Dracula Origin. I still intend on playing Overclocked: A History of Violence as well, so maybe check back in the future for some thoughts on that.

Happy clicking!