Point (and Click) me in the right direction
September 2, 2017 6:42 PM Subscribe
Lie any good 90's kid, I grew up playing point and click computer games. For the sake of nostalgia, I'm on the hunt for a new favorite to play. Details inside!
I have played many of the LucasArts games,my favorite being The Curse of Monkey Island. I also really liked Grim Fandango (natch). Other favorites have been Nearly Departed and the companion series What Makes You Tick and A Stitch in Time. I'm looking for something that can be played on a computer, has similar looking graphics (cartoony, nothing too outdated and pixelated), and has a good storyline. I'm also looking to find something that comes with a personal reccomandation, so tell me your favorites!
I have played many of the LucasArts games,my favorite being The Curse of Monkey Island. I also really liked Grim Fandango (natch). Other favorites have been Nearly Departed and the companion series What Makes You Tick and A Stitch in Time. I'm looking for something that can be played on a computer, has similar looking graphics (cartoony, nothing too outdated and pixelated), and has a good storyline. I'm also looking to find something that comes with a personal reccomandation, so tell me your favorites!
Though you said LucasArts, you didn't mention it specifically; I have good memories of Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, though I haven't played it since floppy drives were still around.
posted by Zalzidrax at 7:20 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Zalzidrax at 7:20 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
I heartily recommend Broken Age, a recent game by the creator of Grim Fandango. It has gorgeous art, an intriguing story, and good voice acting. Some of the puzzles (especially in the second half of the game) are trickier than the ones in the LucasArts games I remember.
My favorite of the old LucasArts games was Loom. It's a very short game, well worth playing if you haven't before.
posted by mbrubeck at 7:37 PM on September 2, 2017 [3 favorites]
My favorite of the old LucasArts games was Loom. It's a very short game, well worth playing if you haven't before.
posted by mbrubeck at 7:37 PM on September 2, 2017 [3 favorites]
The Samarost series (there's 3 of them) has amazing art and is bursting with imagination. You can play the first one here for free. Machinarium, by the same makers, is supposed to be good too.
posted by ejs at 8:10 PM on September 2, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by ejs at 8:10 PM on September 2, 2017 [5 favorites]
Best answer: I'm not quite sure if you're looking for older games or newer games, but I'll give you some recommendations for both. And I don't know if you're aware but GOG (Good Old Games) is a fantastic resource if you're looking for a way to play older games on modern computers.
Older:
Gabriel Knight series - Dark, moody, supernatural theme, original voice cast featured Tim Curry, Mark Hamill, Leah Remini, and Michael Dorn!
Broken Sword series - Goofy Indiana Jones-ish fun
Syberia I and II - Steampunk adventure with mammoths! I think a third one may have just come out, but I don't know that it's any good.
The Longest Journey - Epic fantasy adventure, which also has a sequel (Dreamfall) and a modern reboot (Dreamfall Chapters)
Day of the Tentacle (original or remastered version) - Just in case you haven't played this one, it hits a lot of the same notes as Monkey Island and Grim Fandango, which isn't surprising, since, y'know, Tim Schaefer.
Newer:
Almost any of the Telltale Games series, particularly The Wolf Among Us, The Walking Dead, or Tales from the Borderlands. These are all amazing in their own way, and practically revive the adventure genre for the current generation. They even have a Back to the Future series, if you really want to scratch that nostalgia itch.
King's Quest - I never played the original games, but I found the reboot to be pretty fun.
Emerald City Confidential - Fun cartoony style set in noir-themed Oz
The Shiva - Retro pixel style, and kind of dark, but it's an amazing noir mystery with a rabbinical twist!
The Night of the Rabbit - Adorable, very gentle fantasy, like if you crossed Peter Rabbit with Narnia
The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav - High fantasy nonsense from Germany, but surprisingly satisfying
Life is Strange - Not sure how to describe this, and honestly, it's probably a better game the less you know about it, but it has a killer indie soundtrack, and it was my gamer brother's surprise favorite from that year
posted by Diagonalize at 8:15 PM on September 2, 2017 [7 favorites]
Older:
Gabriel Knight series - Dark, moody, supernatural theme, original voice cast featured Tim Curry, Mark Hamill, Leah Remini, and Michael Dorn!
Broken Sword series - Goofy Indiana Jones-ish fun
Syberia I and II - Steampunk adventure with mammoths! I think a third one may have just come out, but I don't know that it's any good.
The Longest Journey - Epic fantasy adventure, which also has a sequel (Dreamfall) and a modern reboot (Dreamfall Chapters)
Day of the Tentacle (original or remastered version) - Just in case you haven't played this one, it hits a lot of the same notes as Monkey Island and Grim Fandango, which isn't surprising, since, y'know, Tim Schaefer.
Newer:
Almost any of the Telltale Games series, particularly The Wolf Among Us, The Walking Dead, or Tales from the Borderlands. These are all amazing in their own way, and practically revive the adventure genre for the current generation. They even have a Back to the Future series, if you really want to scratch that nostalgia itch.
King's Quest - I never played the original games, but I found the reboot to be pretty fun.
Emerald City Confidential - Fun cartoony style set in noir-themed Oz
The Shiva - Retro pixel style, and kind of dark, but it's an amazing noir mystery with a rabbinical twist!
The Night of the Rabbit - Adorable, very gentle fantasy, like if you crossed Peter Rabbit with Narnia
The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav - High fantasy nonsense from Germany, but surprisingly satisfying
Life is Strange - Not sure how to describe this, and honestly, it's probably a better game the less you know about it, but it has a killer indie soundtrack, and it was my gamer brother's surprise favorite from that year
posted by Diagonalize at 8:15 PM on September 2, 2017 [7 favorites]
Broken Age is great. Telltale Games also has you covered. Their updated Sam & Max series is straight out of the 90s, and their Walking Dead is great (although more like a graphic story with some clicking). You can also play some of the old titles that have been remastered with new graphics. Available on Steam, I have loved to re-play King's Quest, Monkey Island, and the Gabriel Knight series. Also, of course, you can re-play the best ever adventure game in Dreamfall: The Longest Journey, and the follow-on Dreamfall games as well.
On preview: What Diagonalize said.
posted by gemmy at 8:16 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
On preview: What Diagonalize said.
posted by gemmy at 8:16 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
The earlier titles in the series are bit on the rough side as far as being pixelated or what have you, but the Blackwell series is really great.
Leaning towards more up-to-date in the graphics department, I've also really The Journey Down series which is awaiting a third and final(?) installment.
posted by juv3nal at 8:19 PM on September 2, 2017 [2 favorites]
Leaning towards more up-to-date in the graphics department, I've also really The Journey Down series which is awaiting a third and final(?) installment.
posted by juv3nal at 8:19 PM on September 2, 2017 [2 favorites]
I recently bookmarked the complete packs of King's Quest and Police Quest, both of which I played at least one or two editions of as a kid and got super into. The earliest editions did require you to type things, like "pick up rock." But most of the games in those bundles will be point-and-click. Steam actually has a category for point-and-click you may want to check out since it features new/recent games too. I'm not really a gamer, but I've heard the Batman Telltale Series is popular/good.
posted by AppleTurnover at 9:36 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by AppleTurnover at 9:36 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
If you're a fan of LucasArts, "The Dig" is something of an overlooked gem. Stephen Speilberg was involved in making it. The characters look animated, and there are cartoonish elements, but the story is more serious (but adventure) than silly. There is one puzzle in it that many fans consider non-intuitive and no fun; if you get really stuck at some point there are online hints and walkthroughs.
There is a newer game called "Gemini Rue" that you may like. It does have a deliberately "retro" pixelated style, but has a great sci fi storyline (very allusive to Blade Runner and Phillip K Dick novels.) Was released a few years back for PC and Linux, and was popular enough that they released a tablet version later. The publisher, Wadget Eye Games, seems to release a lot of point and click style games.
Seconding "The Journey Down" and "Samoroast," and gog.com as a great place to buy old (and sometimes new) computer games.
Oh, you're familiar with Myst, right? POV point and click puzzle masterpiece from the 90s?
posted by ethical_caligula at 9:44 PM on September 2, 2017 [2 favorites]
There is a newer game called "Gemini Rue" that you may like. It does have a deliberately "retro" pixelated style, but has a great sci fi storyline (very allusive to Blade Runner and Phillip K Dick novels.) Was released a few years back for PC and Linux, and was popular enough that they released a tablet version later. The publisher, Wadget Eye Games, seems to release a lot of point and click style games.
Seconding "The Journey Down" and "Samoroast," and gog.com as a great place to buy old (and sometimes new) computer games.
Oh, you're familiar with Myst, right? POV point and click puzzle masterpiece from the 90s?
posted by ethical_caligula at 9:44 PM on September 2, 2017 [2 favorites]
It's short and pixelly but Milkmaid of the Milky Way is lovely.
posted by aubilenon at 10:13 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by aubilenon at 10:13 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
Telltale also has a Monkey Island game out. It's not quite as amazing as the originals, but it's still pretty good if you want to scratch that itch.
posted by tobascodagama at 10:34 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by tobascodagama at 10:34 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
The Lost Crown is one of my favorites. It came out in 2008, but it's still very playable with nice graphics. It has a great atmosphere and compelling storyline. It's on sale for $2.49 at Steam right now. There's also supposed to be a sequel coming out in the Fall of this year, but honestly the developer has been saying that for the past 6 years, so I have my doubts.
From the same developer there's also an earlier game (2002) called Dark Fall: The Journal that's also really good. Very spooky, but in a ghost story sort of way, not a Saw V sort of way.
There are also the Drawn games by BigFish, which are simply beautiful, elegant, games, with a whimsical story and gorgeous art and music. The Painted Tower is the first game, Dark Flight the second and the third one is called Trail of Shadows.
posted by katyggls at 10:49 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
From the same developer there's also an earlier game (2002) called Dark Fall: The Journal that's also really good. Very spooky, but in a ghost story sort of way, not a Saw V sort of way.
There are also the Drawn games by BigFish, which are simply beautiful, elegant, games, with a whimsical story and gorgeous art and music. The Painted Tower is the first game, Dark Flight the second and the third one is called Trail of Shadows.
posted by katyggls at 10:49 PM on September 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
Lumino City is a delightful, beautifully constructed point-and-click puzzle + narrative game. Its sets and characters were actually handmade out of paper, cardboard and glue, miniature lights, and motors.
It is playable on iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows. Links to get the game are at the very bottom of the page linked above.
posted by D.Billy at 6:15 AM on September 3, 2017 [3 favorites]
It is playable on iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows. Links to get the game are at the very bottom of the page linked above.
posted by D.Billy at 6:15 AM on September 3, 2017 [3 favorites]
There's the Tex Murphy franchise, and there are some now-free games to be had at SCUMMVM: Beneath A Steel Sky and Flight Of The Amazon Queen are pretty good.
posted by farlukar at 7:04 AM on September 3, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by farlukar at 7:04 AM on September 3, 2017 [2 favorites]
Under A Killing Moon (which is one of the aforementioned Tex Murphy games) is available on GoG. It's a bizarre little game, but quite fun. Gabriel Knight is also a great suggestion. I remember Sins of the Fathers being some fun evenings of gameplay.
posted by wierdo at 3:25 PM on September 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by wierdo at 3:25 PM on September 3, 2017 [1 favorite]
Forgot to mention the Deponia series.
posted by farlukar at 8:46 AM on September 5, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by farlukar at 8:46 AM on September 5, 2017 [1 favorite]
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