Monday, January 30, 2017

Are point and click adventures dead?

I just finished playing one of my favorite games of my childhood: Toonstruck.
I really enjoyed playing it again because it took me back to a time when games weren't about the best graphics and you actually had to use your head to make progress.
As a kid I loved playing point and click adventures because they told a compelling story, were usually funny and you got this rewarding feeling of achievement when you were stuck and finally figured out what item would solve your problem or found that tiny detail that you missed 20 times before. This was a time before looking up a walkthrough on the internet was the natural instinct after being stuck for 5 minutes. I would patiently wait for my dad to come home from work because collegues of his were playing or had already plyed the same game and he could get clues from them where to look more closely in order to progress.
Unfortunately this game genre kind of went dormant for years when graphics became better and gameplay offered more possibilities. Only recently I have noticed that this kind of game is on the rise again. The most famous example Telltale's Walking Dead is a little more story driven than it is puzzle heavy but still fits the genre. Also other adventures with more puzzles have made an appearance lately. Other great examples are Shardlight, Broken Age, Life is strange and the fan sponsored Broken Sword 5 - the Serpent's Curse.
I am honestly glad that this genre is making a comeback and I am looking forward to playing old as well as new point and click adventures in the future.

In case you are interested in my mentioned playthrough of Toonstruck check out my Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCniVeCi6npg63zlNBEYNeaQ





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