The Longest Journey

[Michael Rabattino]

Anyone ever play this game? I'd heard excellent things about it, that it's one of the best graphic adventures ever.

I'm in line to dld it on FilePlanet, wanted to give it a try for a while now.

[Kevin Matchstick]

Verbal,

I didn't complete it. I found it pretty boring. It's kind of like the old "King's Quest" games, but there is little puzzle-solving, and a lot of listening to dialog. It's not horrible by any means, and it looks good, but the game just grew tedious for me. However, another dialog intensive game - "Planescape: Torment" - is one of my all-time favs. Let me know what you think. I made it about halfway through.

[Michael Rabattino]

Ok, thanks. Just finished dlding the demo, gonna try it out....

[Big Black]

I owned this as well - not very engaging, but pretty to look at and probably great for die-hard adventure fans. I did not complete the game.

[Michael Rabattino]

I completed the demo and would love to get it when I have a chance.

I used to be a die-hard adventure gamer, but haven't played one since Grim Fandango, since they pretty much have been dead since that game.

[voltes5]

Verbal Kint Fears Yoda:
I completed the demo and would love to get it when I have a chance.

I used to be a die-hard adventure gamer, but haven't played one since Grim Fandango, since they pretty much have been dead since that game.Adventure gaming is quite possibly dead. For it to be revitalized, it must have a new concept of playing it. Here is my idea:

You know how unrealistic a third person character would move when you make him walk and jump over, say, a sofa? How about giving full physics movement of a person interacting with that sofa?

In this sense, as the gamer, you become part of a truly interactive world. Clues might be lodged in the sofa on the right side (along with a remote control and some coins). You get the drift.

One of my favorite adventure games is "Gabriel Knight." I would like to have full control over Gabriel Knight and would like for him to be able to manipulate EVERYTHING in his enironment. This is probably difficult to implement, but I feel that for adventure gaming to survive and thrive, it must have gameplay that reflects current gaming standards today (first person/third person type games, for example like "Alice" or "Jedi Outcast").

Well, enough of the rant. "The Longest Journey" is one of my favorite adventure games ever. It has a good story (though some voice acting was pretty bad) and a challenging game to boot. One of my gripes is that in Disc 3, there is this unbelievably MYST-like puzzle that really tore my brain apart. After that though, the puzzles are a bit easy to handle. I also employed the use of Universal Hint System (UHS) -- because, frankly, unless you know the brains of the game's creators, there is no way you can solve these puzzles on your own. With the UHS, it nudges you in the right direction and I like that (I've been using UHS since 1991 or so).

[voltes5]

Verbal, dammit, I'm on adventure gaming mode here.

Dreamcatcher is one company that is trying to revitalize the dying adventure gaming market. Sadly, their games mostly, well, suck. I got "Arthur's Knights" and "Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde" and boy did they totally sucked big time.

I also found out that Arthur's Knights has a sequel out. Dear God, how did that happen?

Well, I just wanted to share my Dreamcatcher hate in this thread..... :p

[Michael Rabattino]

Playing crap games like that makes you want to just pop in some LucasArts classic from the mid-90's, doesn't it? wink

I hope adventure gaming isn't TRULY dead. LucasArts is the company that will have to bring them back through sequels. Stick with characters like Sam & Max, Bernard from DotT, or Manny from Grim Fandango. I want sequels to those games.

Although, if I remember correctly, Tim Schafer left LucasArts about a year ago. So unless they have someone else as witty as him (which I doubt), then we won't get another great adventure game. But who knows?

[Xymog (Mike Toot)]

Count me in as another long-time adventure gamer. I prefer these over nearly every other type of game, as I need a good storyline to draw me in. Sitting back and racking up yet another kill just doesn't do it; finding out who stole the figs and triggered the silent alarm gets me every time.

I've always thought that LucasArts had some great adventure games in the mid-90's, like Loom, Indiana Jones & The Fate of Atlantis, &tc. Right now I'm midway through Year 2 of Grim Fandango and have The Longest Journey on deck. These games really draw you in, and the best ones artfully blend plot, puzzles, and exploration into one seamless storyline.

Ahh, adventure....

[voltes5]

Xymog, glad to hear from another adventure gamer. You, Verbal, and I are like a dying breed. Anyway, I just want to reflect on why I love adventure gaming.

Talking to Star-Wars Cantina-like aliens in CALLAHAN'S CROSSTIME SALOON..... Wondering whether I will "die like a man, or die like a dog" in CIRCLE OF BLOOD..... Seeing a heart ripped out in BROKEN SWORD..... Exploring the freaky circus of SANITARIUM..... Just being in the bizarro world of HARVESTER..... Solving the mystery of SHERLOCK HOLMES & THE CASE OF THE SERRATED SCALPEL..... Being in the Nazi concentration camps of I HAVE NO MOUTH AND I MUST SCREAM (and just hearing Eliison as the voice of AM is just too cool for words)..... Seeing Ben fly across the gorge with his bike in FULL THROTTLE..... Finally solving all those insane mathematical equations in RAMA..... Just being in the wonderful world of BLADE RUNNER..... Killing the master wolf in the end of GABRIEL KNIGHT: THE BEAST WITHIN in a very original manner..... Reaching the end of MISSION CRITICAL which just gave shivers down my spine..... SHANNARA had a FFVII-type of brutal death moment that brought tears in my eyes.....

I can go on and on. I haven't even touched on the older titles!

Verbal, thanks for bringing up these topics up! Long live adventure gaming!

[Blofeld]

It's been an awfully long time since I've adventured. Now that I have some time...

[Michael Rabattino]

Now that you brought it up, I LOVED Sanitarium!!! Reminded me of Jacob's Ladder. The game almost made me cry during the flashback scene in that mansion...I REALLY need to revisit these games!!

I'm about to install Full Throttle and beat it after coming so close and then just stopping.

I also loved Blade Runner--it got somewhat bad reviews when it came out, but it was so perfectly atmospheric and charismatic.

I have never played the older Gabriel Knight games, but i've always been aware of their god-like status amongst most adventure gamers. I have GK3, but never got to play it much.

BTW, you guys ever play Beavis and Butthead in Virtual Stupidity? That game, to me, had the classic adventure feel.

Another adventure game I liked: The X-Files. It was so underrated!!!!!

I also never got into the Monkey Island series, but would love to. I also hear "The Dig" was excellent as well, but it's another one I missed.

Myst 1 was great too, but I never played the sequels.

Long live adventure gaming!

[Xymog (Mike Toot)]

I first got the adventuring bug playing most of the Zorks, Leather Goddesses of Phobos, Planetfall, Stationfall, and got partway into A Mind Forever Voyaging before my system crashed and took my save file with it. (*sigh*)

Now I've got a collection of Infocom's text adventures on CD, along with PDFs on disk of the in-box goodies and Invisiclues hint guides. When I'm old and gray, I'll still be playing those games -- no need for those newfangled hologram PS9 systems.... <g>