“Basic vocabulary” edition.
Adventure games are the bastard stepchild genre of the medium. Sure, once upon a time they were cute, but somewhere in-between all those irritating deaths and those irrational mindgames, they somehow became as welcome as a fart at a funeral.
And yet, like Lazarus, they live on. To anyone interested in building a greater appreciation of gaming as a medium generally, they’re important; for many years, adventure games were the staple. Forget about your FPSs and forget about your RTSs – back in the day, most of what was available were magnificently mindbending masochistic experiences, and we liked it that way, damnit!
This week, we’re taking a look at five games that, if played, should help build a basic appreciation of some of the high points of the genre; unlike many other examples, these still hold up today. It’s not an exhaustive list and nor are they the best of the genre. However, they’ve had enough of an impact that as far as staples and meme creation go, they’re among the strongest. Continue reading →