Favorite Adventure Games - Never Forgotten: a Foster's Home Community

emperor26 · 05-16-2007, 07:53 AM

So far, the only ones I can consider adventure games are Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64 and Psychonauts.

They're really enjoyable, very humorous and if not, have memorable characters that are also inspiring.

As for the ones on the PC, I never had the chance to play the games that were available at the time (ie Day Of The Tentacle, Monkey Island series, Grim Fandango, The Dig or Full Throttle). I would really wish I had try to play those games once, as they look very interesting.

Oh well.

montitech · 05-16-2007, 10:23 AM

my favorite adventure game has always been "Zork" next to that I like most adventure games, and I have played many of them on the PC.

Toonstruck was one of the best I played. as for the games you listed above, all those are Lucas Arts titles, but there are many other brandnames for adventure games: myst series, infocom, and the ever popular Sierra games. in fact adventure games use to be called Seirra Games back in the early 90's due to the crossplatform and popularity of the King Quest, Lesure Suit Larry and Space Quest series.

I am still very disapointed that Activision canceled on the Zork trilogy they anounced in '97

Monty

Subzeroace · 05-18-2007, 08:20 PM

Subby loves her classic LucasArts games, Monkey Island is wonderful! You can still pick up a copy of the PS2 version of Escape from Monkey Island. It's very newbie friendly, sure you won't get some of the in jokes but it won't leave you clueless. (and Grey Delisle is in it! Yay for minor Grey roles!)

Psychonauts is my all time fav game though, it's just... Wonderful. I own a signed copy of the game (signed by the games creator Tim Scahfer) and I also have the shirt that some of the camper wear (except mines grey and not orange/yellow like the kids have in the game) My fav character is Sasha Nein... He's hot XD I also love Crispin Whytehead "You are -NOT- Dr. Loboto, so kindly step away from my elevator and DIE!"

Crash-N-Cortex · 05-18-2007, 08:22 PM

I kinda like the Crash Bandicoot games, Spyro games, Jak and Daxter, and Jak II if they are consider adventure games, seeing as those games are about adventures.

Mr. Marshmallow · 05-18-2007, 10:00 PM

Jak and Daxter's games to me are the greatest adventure video games ever made. I rarely get into these games, I'm more into playing fighting games and Star Fox and Sonic games but this series was just too amazing for me to pass up. The first one really is a weird game considering the rest of the franchise.

I felt that the darker tone in Jak 2, 3, X: Combat racing is what made the games so amazing. The deep, intricate story lines, deeply developed characters, and original ideas with this whole new species, gods, monsters, and just a really riveting game play that while can be frustrating, was extremely compelling.

It's the bad ass story line and characters that actually made me WANT to finish the game so I could see what happens next. I rarely come across a game that makes me really compelled to finish it, only this and Star Fox Adventures have done that to me.

Ditchy McAbandonpants · 05-19-2007, 03:11 AM

To be honest, the term "adventure" always struck me as a rather inadequate and overly vague way of classifying videogames. With terms like "platform", "first-person shooter", "real-time strategy" "3D fighter" or "sports simulation", you know what genre the game's going to be and what kind of gameplay mechanics to expect...all "adventure" tells you is that the game's setting involves, well, some kind of adventure, which to me seems like it describes 90% of all fiction...not very useful as a method of categorisation, really.

Myself, I prefer to stick with the old-school definiton of "adventure game", before the term became so unhelpfully all-encompassing; namely, the story and puzzle-based "graphic adventures" (aka "point-and-clicks"), which enjoyed their heyday on the PC in the early 90s. In that field, I have to agree with Subzeroace; LucasArts were the indisputable kings, and were the driving force behind my interest in videogames in the first place. This is a Foster's fansite, so I know all of you here are fans of offbeat humour, wacky character design, richly imaginative settings and quirky storytelling; as such, I have no hesitation in recommending everyone play the following games:

The Monkey Island series: Probably the most famous graphic adventures of all time, and with good cause, Monkey Island wrote the book on lovingly reverential yet slyly tongue-in-cheek pirate adventures, long before Jack Sparrow was ever conceived, and in the cumbersomely-named pirate wannabe Guybrush Threepwood it had one of the unlikeliest, most hapless yet most loveable heroes in videogame history. To play now, 1990's The Secret of Monkey Island seems relatively short, but it remains a very sweet Caribbean romp, and of course still boasts the legendary "Insult Sword Fighting" section (in which you must become the greatest duellist in the land by amassing a huge repertoire of brilliantly witty insults and comebacks). 1992's Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge is the series pinnacle for me, with richer locales, a better script, better puzzles, and a somewhat darker plot; not everyone will go for the utterly BIZARRE ending, but it's certainly memorable. Series creator Ron Gilbert had left the company by the time 1997's The Curse of Monkey Island was made, yet despite a slightly underwhelming and anticlimactic plot, it remains very compelling, featuring still-gorgeous and stylised cartoon graphics, a beautiful score, a still very funny script, and voice acting for the first time (Dominic Armato's Guybrush is amusingly Zach Braff-esque, and look out for LucasArts and Craig McCracken favourite Tom Kane in a minor role), not to mention the debut of Murray, the somewhat deluded "Invincible Demonic Skull". 2000's Escape From Monkey Island, for me, was the weakest by a long way - the 3D graphic style didn't suit the series and has aged quite badly, the controls are awkward, and worst of all the plot and script really miss the point of Monkey Island, trading in the funny-yet-involving piratey atmosphere for silly and smugly OTT comedy about commercialism. Nevertheless, it still has its moments, with some memorable characters (like Ms. Rivers and her pirate rehabilitation school) and some nice voice acting (look out for Grey DeLisle, like Subz said, but also for Tom Kane and Tom Kenny). All in all, a gaming legend, especially the first two, and still well worth playing.

Sam & Max Hit The Road: You may have seen Steve Purcell's Sam and Max characters before, whether in a cameo in another LucasArts game, in the underground comic which launched them, or in the short-lived but decent animated series on Fox in the late 90s, but this game is the real source of their legendary status. Centering on sardonic dog detective Sam and his psychotic rabbit buddy Max's journey around the USA's tackiest tourist traps in search of a missing carnival bigfoot, Sam & Max's puzzles and interface weren't quite as refined as other LucasArts games, but it more than made up for it with an absolutely hilarious script and characters, filled with amusing references and offbeat satire. I've yet to play Telltale Games's recent episodic follow-up series, but they'd have a hell of a job living up to this...

Day of the Tentacle: Masterminded by Psychonauts' Tim Schafer (you have his autograph, Subz? I can't pretend I'm not a little jealous...but then, I have Super Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto's, so I guess it balances

), DotT is probably the most ingeniously structured puzzle game ever. Playing as three oddball kids, you must thwart the world conquest-based plans of a megalomaniacal genius tentacle, all in one night at a run-down motel. The twist, however, is that a time-travelling mishap has left one kid in the present, one 200 years in the past (complete with hilarious interpretations of George Washington and the other founding fathers), and the other 200 years in a tentacle-dominated future, leading to all manner of time-bending puzzles as you alter history, manipulate the future and create all sorts of amusing paradoxes in order to extracate yourself from this bizarre pickle. It's brilliantly structured, hugely imaginative, and, naturally, really very funny.

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis: Now this is how to handle a film licence! Fate combined everything that's great about the LucasArts adventures with everything that's great about the classic movies to create an involving and really authentic original Indy adventure, that sees Indy teaming up with a slightly questionable ex-colleague to stop the Nazis from unlocking the powerful mysteries of Atlantis. As ever, great characters, snappy dialogue, and well-realised locations abound, with multiple puzzle solutions and three alternate paths to the finish offering the game an unusual amount of replayabilty in a normally linear genre. Plus, good MIDI music and excellent voice acting (Doug Lee doesn't really sound like Harrison Ford, but does a great Indy nevertheless) really sell a credible Indy atmosphere...really recommended to fans of the films.

Grim Fandango: LucasArts' crowning glory. There aren't enough superlatives that I can bestow upon this, Tim Schafer's masterpiece; it's definitely amongst the top five games of all time for me, and stands simply as an astonishing piece of imaginative fiction. Set in the Mexican eight underworld, the twisting, epic plotline follows Manny Calavera, a likeable yet lowly soul whose job is a combination of Grim Reaper and travel agent; he collects souls from the Land of the Living and provides them with travel packages, based on how well they lived their lives, to facilitate their passage to the Ninth Underworld (Heaven). Manny's just trying to work off a debt to the powers that be, hopefully selling enough top-class packages to earn his own ticket out, but recently his career's been on the skids with a procession of low-rent clients. However, when he tries to work the system to muscle in on his office rival's promising new client, a saintly woman named Mercedes, he inadvertedly uncovers a murderous web of corruption and deceit and is catapulted on a four-year journey across the Land of the Dead. If that sounds film noir-ish, it's because it is, and indeed, the parallels to Bogart classics like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon grow especially pronounced in the story's second year, that sees the enterprising Manny, now a casino owner, mixing with the rich, shady and powerful in a stylish, dangerous city. But that's hardly the only influence on this unbelievably unique, rich tale; the universe and art direction is astonishingly realised, seamlessly fusing American noir stylings, art-deco design and ancient Mexican/Mayan mythology, backed by a beautiful jazz/Mexican score. But incredible aesthetics and imagination are only a part of the experience; more importantly, Grim tells a gripping, epic and emotional story, driven by a smart, witty, moving and funny script, and some wonderfully realised characters, from the weary yet optimistic Manny, rambunctious demon mechanic Glottis, your smarmy, arrogant rival Domino, to the softly-spoken yet strong-willed Mercedes. People often say that Grim Fandango would make an excellent film, but for me that overlooks the fact that Grim is amongst the greatest achievements yet for videogames as a narrative medium, using its interactivity and leisurely, user-defined pacing to make its story and universe more immersive and richly realised than it could ever hope to be as a two-hour movie. Sadly, the game more or less marked the end of the graphic adventure era, but it couldn't have asked for a better swansong, and I have no qualms about recommending to absolutely everybody...you truly owe it to yourself.

montitech · 05-19-2007, 09:51 AM

once again, I would completly agree with Ditchy McAbandonpants

THere is a difference between Adventure games and Platform games. To be more precise, an advenure game is more similar to a RPG, without the fighting. if the majority of the game requires quick reflexes and presise jumping it is not considered an adventure game. A little reflexes is ok for an adventure game, as Lucus Arts Traditionally does, (Sam N Max, Full Throttle) but the biggest part of an adventure game is exploring the screens, and trying to figure out what to do at different stages. some games are filled with puzzles while others are more simplistic (like BFAHP) but typically if action and quick reflexes are a major requirement it is not considered an Adventure game.

RPG are not adventure games either, but they are more similar to adventure games, than platform games. (in my opinion)

Monty

Partymember · 05-19-2007, 09:53 AM

Pacman

Subzeroace · 05-19-2007, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ditchy McAbandonpants

(look out for Grey DeLisle, like Subz said, but also for Tom Kane and Tom Kenny).

See now I can see myself forgetting Tom Kenny was in it but Tom Kane was Pegnose XD I loved Pegnose Pete! QUACK! (I made Guybrush say "QUACK!" to him... many times... Pete's fearful screams never get old :3)

Now who was Tom Kenny in it again... *grabs Manual* LOL DeadEye Dave(and one of the Lawyers)! He was pretty cool too! The b/g music in his shop was the best in the game (except maybe the main theme and LeChuck's theme, but thoses wern't really new)

OH! Rob Paulson was in it too! Now I NEED to reply this and be in VO heaven! Tonight; all night EMI season, just me and my PS2.

Also, I've talked to Tim through Email before, I sent him some fan art and he even posted it on double fine action news! Also I sent him pics of my Razputin and Sasha plushies, he said they were awesome! He's my hero :3

05-16-2007, 07:53 AM	#1
emperor26 Foster's Legend Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: California Posts: 725	Favorite Adventure Games So far, the only ones I can consider adventure games are Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64 and Psychonauts. They're really enjoyable, very humorous and if not, have memorable characters that are also inspiring. As for the ones on the PC, I never had the chance to play the games that were available at the time (ie Day Of The Tentacle, Monkey Island series, Grim Fandango, The Dig or Full Throttle). I would really wish I had try to play those games once, as they look very interesting. Oh well. __________________ See ya!

05-18-2007, 08:20 PM	#3
Subzeroace Has a PhD in Horribleness Burning things is fun and useful! Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: A place to live, a place to grow, Ontari-ari-ari-O Posts: 500	Subby loves her classic LucasArts games, Monkey Island is wonderful! You can still pick up a copy of the PS2 version of Escape from Monkey Island. It's very newbie friendly, sure you won't get some of the in jokes but it won't leave you clueless. (and Grey Delisle is in it! Yay for minor Grey roles!) Psychonauts is my all time fav game though, it's just... Wonderful. I own a signed copy of the game (signed by the games creator Tim Scahfer) and I also have the shirt that some of the camper wear (except mines grey and not orange/yellow like the kids have in the game) My fav character is Sasha Nein... He's hot XD I also love Crispin Whytehead "You are -NOT- Dr. Loboto, so kindly step away from my elevator and DIE!" __________________

05-18-2007, 08:22 PM	#4
Crash-N-Cortex Permanent Resident I'm back with my Chimchar! Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Barstow, California Posts: 389	I kinda like the Crash Bandicoot games, Spyro games, Jak and Daxter, and Jak II if they are consider adventure games, seeing as those games are about adventures. __________________ "Talking don't pay the rent, nay!" - Kaz (Hi Hi Puffy Ami Yumi)

05-18-2007, 10:00 PM	#5
Mr. Marshmallow Not-So-Hopeless Romantic Gotta love being in love Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Orland Park, IL Posts: 1,924	Jak and Daxter's games to me are the greatest adventure video games ever made. I rarely get into these games, I'm more into playing fighting games and Star Fox and Sonic games but this series was just too amazing for me to pass up. The first one really is a weird game considering the rest of the franchise. I felt that the darker tone in Jak 2, 3, X: Combat racing is what made the games so amazing. The deep, intricate story lines, deeply developed characters, and original ideas with this whole new species, gods, monsters, and just a really riveting game play that while can be frustrating, was extremely compelling. It's the bad ass story line and characters that actually made me WANT to finish the game so I could see what happens next. I rarely come across a game that makes me really compelled to finish it, only this and Star Fox Adventures have done that to me. __________________ http://www.youtube.com/user/BionicSlime http://www.fanfiction.net/~nukem999

05-19-2007, 03:11 AM	#6
Ditchy McAbandonpants At Home Sorry, you must have me confused with some other Harrier jet. Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Here, there and everywhere Posts: 191	To be honest, the term "adventure" always struck me as a rather inadequate and overly vague way of classifying videogames. With terms like "platform", "first-person shooter", "real-time strategy" "3D fighter" or "sports simulation", you know what genre the game's going to be and what kind of gameplay mechanics to expect...all "adventure" tells you is that the game's setting involves, well, some kind of adventure, which to me seems like it describes 90% of all fiction...not very useful as a method of categorisation, really. Myself, I prefer to stick with the old-school definiton of "adventure game", before the term became so unhelpfully all-encompassing; namely, the story and puzzle-based "graphic adventures" (aka "point-and-clicks"), which enjoyed their heyday on the PC in the early 90s. In that field, I have to agree with Subzeroace; LucasArts were the indisputable kings, and were the driving force behind my interest in videogames in the first place. This is a Foster's fansite, so I know all of you here are fans of offbeat humour, wacky character design, richly imaginative settings and quirky storytelling; as such, I have no hesitation in recommending everyone play the following games: *The Monkey Island* series*: Probably the most famous graphic adventures of all time, and with good cause, Monkey Island* wrote the book on lovingly reverential yet slyly tongue-in-cheek pirate adventures, long before Jack Sparrow was ever conceived, and in the cumbersomely-named pirate wannabe Guybrush Threepwood it had one of the unlikeliest, most hapless yet most loveable heroes in videogame history. To play now, 1990's The Secret of Monkey Island seems relatively short, but it remains a very sweet Caribbean romp, and of course still boasts the legendary "Insult Sword Fighting" section (in which you must become the greatest duellist in the land by amassing a huge repertoire of brilliantly witty insults and comebacks). 1992's Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge is the series pinnacle for me, with richer locales, a better script, better puzzles, and a somewhat darker plot; not everyone will go for the utterly BIZARRE ending, but it's certainly memorable. Series creator Ron Gilbert had left the company by the time 1997's The Curse of Monkey Island was made, yet despite a slightly underwhelming and anticlimactic plot, it remains very compelling, featuring still-gorgeous and stylised cartoon graphics, a beautiful score, a still very funny script, and voice acting for the first time (Dominic Armato's Guybrush is amusingly Zach Braff-esque, and look out for LucasArts and Craig McCracken favourite Tom Kane in a minor role), not to mention the debut of Murray, the somewhat deluded "Invincible Demonic Skull". 2000's Escape From Monkey Island, for me, was the weakest by a long way - the 3D graphic style didn't suit the series and has aged quite badly, the controls are awkward, and worst of all the plot and script really miss the point of Monkey Island, trading in the funny-yet-involving piratey atmosphere for silly and smugly OTT comedy about commercialism. Nevertheless, it still has its moments, with some memorable characters (like Ms. Rivers and her pirate rehabilitation school) and some nice voice acting (look out for Grey DeLisle, like Subz said, but also for Tom Kane and Tom Kenny). All in all, a gaming legend, especially the first two, and still well worth playing. *Sam & Max Hit The Road:* You may have seen Steve Purcell's Sam and Max characters before, whether in a cameo in another LucasArts game, in the underground comic which launched them, or in the short-lived but decent animated series on Fox in the late 90s, but this game is the real source of their legendary status. Centering on sardonic dog detective Sam and his psychotic rabbit buddy Max's journey around the USA's tackiest tourist traps in search of a missing carnival bigfoot, Sam & Max's puzzles and interface weren't quite as refined as other LucasArts games, but it more than made up for it with an absolutely hilarious script and characters, filled with amusing references and offbeat satire. I've yet to play Telltale Games's recent episodic follow-up series, but they'd have a hell of a job living up to this... Day of the Tentacle: Masterminded by Psychonauts' Tim Schafer (you have his autograph, Subz? I can't pretend I'm not a little jealous...but then, I have Super Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto's, so I guess it balances ), DotT is probably the most ingeniously structured puzzle game ever. Playing as three oddball kids, you must thwart the world conquest-based plans of a megalomaniacal genius tentacle, all in one night at a run-down motel. The twist, however, is that a time-travelling mishap has left one kid in the present, one 200 years in the past (complete with hilarious interpretations of George Washington and the other founding fathers), and the other 200 years in a tentacle-dominated future, leading to all manner of time-bending puzzles as you alter history, manipulate the future and create all sorts of amusing paradoxes in order to extracate yourself from this bizarre pickle. It's brilliantly structured, hugely imaginative, and, naturally, really very funny. *Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis: Now this* is how to handle a film licence! Fate combined everything that's great about the LucasArts adventures with everything that's great about the classic movies to create an involving and really authentic original Indy adventure, that sees Indy teaming up with a slightly questionable ex-colleague to stop the Nazis from unlocking the powerful mysteries of Atlantis. As ever, great characters, snappy dialogue, and well-realised locations abound, with multiple puzzle solutions and three alternate paths to the finish offering the game an unusual amount of replayabilty in a normally linear genre. Plus, good MIDI music and excellent voice acting (Doug Lee doesn't really sound like Harrison Ford, but does a great Indy nevertheless) really sell a credible Indy atmosphere...really recommended to fans of the films. Grim Fandango: LucasArts' crowning glory. There aren't enough superlatives that I can bestow upon this, Tim Schafer's masterpiece; it's definitely amongst the top five games of all time for me, and stands simply as an astonishing piece of imaginative fiction. Set in the Mexican eight underworld, the twisting, epic plotline follows Manny Calavera, a likeable yet lowly soul whose job is a combination of Grim Reaper and travel agent; he collects souls from the Land of the Living and provides them with travel packages, based on how well they lived their lives, to facilitate their passage to the Ninth Underworld (Heaven). Manny's just trying to work off a debt to the powers that be, hopefully selling enough top-class packages to earn his own ticket out, but recently his career's been on the skids with a procession of low-rent clients. However, when he tries to work the system to muscle in on his office rival's promising new client, a saintly woman named Mercedes, he inadvertedly uncovers a murderous web of corruption and deceit and is catapulted on a four-year journey across the Land of the Dead. If that sounds film noir-ish, it's because it is, and indeed, the parallels to Bogart classics like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon grow especially pronounced in the story's second year, that sees the enterprising Manny, now a casino owner, mixing with the rich, shady and powerful in a stylish, dangerous city. But that's hardly the only influence on this unbelievably unique, rich tale; the universe and art direction is astonishingly realised, seamlessly fusing American noir stylings, art-deco design and ancient Mexican/Mayan mythology, backed by a beautiful jazz/Mexican score. But incredible aesthetics and imagination are only a part of the experience; more importantly, Grim tells a gripping, epic and emotional story, driven by a smart, witty, moving and funny script, and some wonderfully realised characters, from the weary yet optimistic Manny, rambunctious demon mechanic Glottis, your smarmy, arrogant rival Domino, to the softly-spoken yet strong-willed Mercedes. People often say that Grim Fandango would make an excellent film, but for me that overlooks the fact that Grim is amongst the greatest achievements yet for videogames as a narrative medium, using its interactivity and leisurely, user-defined pacing to make its story and universe more immersive and richly realised than it could ever hope to be as a two-hour movie. Sadly, the game more or less marked the end of the graphic adventure era, but it couldn't have asked for a better swansong, and I have no qualms about recommending to absolutely everybody...you truly owe it to yourself. __________________ Well, well, well; if it isn't... Ditchy McAbandonpants "Is not dead, despite all external indications suggesting otherwise." Last edited by Ditchy McAbandonpants; 05-19-2007 at 08:11 PM. Reason: Denis Lawson.

05-16-2007, 10:23 AM	#2
montitech Foster's Legend Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: ny Posts: 752	my favorite adventure game has always been "Zork" next to that I like most adventure games, and I have played many of them on the PC. Toonstruck was one of the best I played. as for the games you listed above, all those are Lucas Arts titles, but there are many other brandnames for adventure games: myst series, infocom, and the ever popular Sierra games. in fact adventure games use to be called Seirra Games back in the early 90's due to the crossplatform and popularity of the King Quest, Lesure Suit Larry and Space Quest series. I am still very disapointed that Activision canceled on the Zork trilogy they anounced in '97 Monty

05-19-2007, 09:51 AM	#7
montitech Foster's Legend Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: ny Posts: 752	once again, I would completly agree with Ditchy McAbandonpants THere is a difference between Adventure games and Platform games. To be more precise, an advenure game is more similar to a RPG, without the fighting. if the majority of the game requires quick reflexes and presise jumping it is not considered an adventure game. A little reflexes is ok for an adventure game, as Lucus Arts Traditionally does, (Sam N Max, Full Throttle) but the biggest part of an adventure game is exploring the screens, and trying to figure out what to do at different stages. some games are filled with puzzles while others are more simplistic (like BFAHP) but typically if action and quick reflexes are a major requirement it is not considered an Adventure game. RPG are not adventure games either, but they are more similar to adventure games, than platform games. (in my opinion) Monty

05-19-2007, 09:53 AM	#8
Partymember super-scientist GO TEAM VENTURE! Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Lake George Posts: 1,500	Pacman __________________ Think you used enough dynamite there, Butch?