This last week of January has been a pretty awesome one for adventure games and those of the same ilk. If you’re looking for a phenomenal story in your gaming life in between the parkour excellence of Dying Light, be sure to check out these titles!
The MacVenture Series Games
Originally released on 3.5′ floppy disks, the MacVenture Series consisted of a number of text-based adventure games. Released for the Mac and eventually ported to DOS, Gameboy Color, and other platforms, they more closely resemble Japanese visual novels than any other medium.
Every single one of the four MacVenture Series titles, courtesy of publisher Reverb Triple XP and developer Zojoi, were brought forward in time from their original, pixellated glory. Shadowgate features a high fantasy adventure, Deja Vu and Deja Vu II are classic film noir detective stories, and Uninvited steps into the bleak horror genre. Each of the games is an ancient classic in their own right. No HD remastering, no updates except for some gameplay tweaks here and there – these games have been carefully preserved. And they’re still excellent, for those looking for some old-school, text-based, semi-graphical adventure goodness. They’re on sale now at a discounted price, so grab ’em while they’re hot.
While you’re at it, check out the remade Shadowgate, currently on sale 75% off!
Grim Fandango Remastered
There admittedly have been some mixed reviews regarding this game. While the reviews themselves seem conflicted, Grim Fandango leaves its fantastic writing, story, and wit unaltered. Better yet, its classic soundtrack has been newly recorded by the Melbourne Symphony; conversely, the brand-new HD graphics and resolutions apparently brought with them a moderate share of bugs.
Still, it is uncontestable that Grim Fandango is one of the greatest adventure games of all time. A treasure from the LucasArts golden age, Grim Fandango Remastered is undoubtedly a classic in the truest sense of the word. If it’s wit, humor, and puzzle goodness you want, then this game is for you.
Just make sure your PC can handle the high minimum system requirements.
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Fahrenheit, or Indigo Prophecy as it was titled in North America and Canada, was the first major commercially successful game to be released by David Cage’s studio Quantic Dream. Self-styling itself as an “interactive film,” this adventure game is noted for its heavy use of unconventional controls and highly mature themes. This is a game that featured sex scenes (one of which is interactive) long before Mass Effect drew the unwanted attention of popular media.
It’s also a game that did extremely well in its original release. With a deep, branching story and many different endings Indigo Prophecy is a great adventure game. The remastered edition on Steam has been updated for the PC, and is completely uncensored and uncut compared to its original North America release. If you want to see the game that led to Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls, look no further.
Life Is Strange
If you happened to miss the hubbub surrounding this game, check out the good stuff here. Life Is Strange is the latest in high quality adventure gaming to hit the market since TellTale Games’ latest episodic series. It’s crisp, pretty, and packed with potential.
Life Is Strange is the first in what is planned to be a series of five episodes. The player controls Max, and with the additional power to rewind time, plays through an adventure unlike any other. Rife with well-written drama and chock full of player-influenced endings, this is a game that promises to take interactive storytelling to the next level.
eden*
It wouldn’t be a week filled with adventure games if Japan didn’t get its say. eden*, fortunately, is a gorgeous addition to the rest of the stellar games on this list and well worth investigating.
Set in a day and age when mankind is facing extinction, this sci-fi story tells the tale of love as apocalyptic certainty is brought to the West with gorgeous artwork and fantastic musical background. Originally an adult game, the all-ages version has been released on Steam with the full version available at MangaGamer (NSFW).
eden* doesn’t feature any choices of the usual adventure game sort, but its story is excellent enough that you won’t even notice. It’s currently on sale both on MangaGamer’s site and on Steam.
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