A new month, a new theme! Point and click adventure games weren’t a particularly requested genre, but I thought they’ve been overlooked enough in recent years that they’d make a great theme for a slow release month. Bonus: it’s a genre I’m not really familiar with at all, so it’s all new territory for me!
According to Wikipedia, point and click adventure games are a form of adventure games distinct from text adventures where players are required to search out items in graphically-represented environments to advance the plot. Hence their other nickname of graphical adventures. My general impression was that point and click/graphical adventure games were largely western-developed affairs, so imagine my surprise when I learned the game that’s largely considered the first point and click adventure title, The Portopia Serial Murder Case, was created by Yūji Horii of Dragon Quest fame!
The official hashtag for August will be #AdventureAugust, so use that to share suggestions, screenshots, and impressions of the graphical adventure games you’re playing! Long form content such as blog posts, podcasts, or videos are also highly encouraged. If you’re stumped with what to play, here are a few suggestions:
Clock Tower series (various platforms) – How could I miss a chance to mention Clock Tower?! These point and click survival horror titles are focused on real survival, rather than combat, and often have the player running away from enemies and hiding, rather than combating them directly. Unfortunately, the later titles moved more towards straight survival horror rather than graphic adventure, so you may need to dig up an old copy of one of the earlier games in English, or purchase one of the Japanese PSN versions.
Bonus obscure Japanese title: Metal Slader Glory – this sci-fi graphic adventure game was the final title released by HAL Laboratory! Unfortunately, it never got an English release officially. If you’re lucky enough to have a Japanese Wii U, you can grab it on the Virtual Console.
Grim Fandango Remastered (various platforms) – This title actually has the honor of being the game that inspired this month’s Community Game-Along theme. Combining a striking art style with film noir-style storytelling, Grim Fandango remains a favorite Tim Schafer game for many. You can grab it on Steam, iOS/Android, PlayStation Vita, and PlayStation 4, making it a great title to pick up if you’re looking for something to play this month!
Flower Insect (browser) – If it isn’t apparent yet, I often try to pick relatively unknown yet still accessible titles to recommend for each game-along theme. While browsing for interesting point and click adventure games, I came across this interesting Japanese-developed browser title, which you can play for the amazing price of free. What’s more accessible than a free browser game?! Not only that, but the artist, Akira Noyama, has an eery, distinct art style that is definitely worth a look. The game is available in both Japanese and English, so why not give it a try?
I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream (Steam) – I’m mostly including this because it’s what I’ll be playing this month! It’s apparently a brilliant horror graphic adventure based on a short story by the same name. Care to play along with me?
I know I’m terribly out of the loop when it comes to point and click/graphic adventure games, so I would love to hear what titles everyone will be playing, or what you would recommend others try! See you in #AdventureAugust!
