You may have noticed that not once in the whole article did I use the
term 'indie', because I don't believe it is an excuse for being an
amateur. Being an independent game developer with a small budget is not
an excuse for making an awful game and you don't deserve special
leniency when it comes to the final result. When I buy a game I
shouldn't care about how many people were involved in its production and what
their actual budget was.
For the next part I will write a very short description after each one of those 180 games to describe why that game is or isn't a proper adventure game release fit for gamers in 2020.
The 13th Doll – A Fan Game of The 7th Guest
[Fan made sequel a decade in the making with obsolete graphics which managed to get the seal of approval from the IP owners and not get cancelled.]
3 GEEKS
[Amateur graphics and art design.]
3rd eye
[Horror/exploration game with casual gameplay and very small duration (1 hour only).]
7th Sector
[Action, puzzle-platformer with small duration (about 3 hours).]
Adventure Boy Jailbreak
[Zero production values, amateur game.]
Adventures of Isabelle Fine: Murder on Rails
[Late 80s graphics, awful sound & music department, amateur production.]
AI: The Somnium Files
[Visual novel.]
Alt-Frequencies
[Nothing to do with adventures at all, also very short.]
Alternate Jake Hunter: DAEDALUS – The Awakening of Golden Jazz
[Visual novel.]
Angelo and Deemon: One Hell of a Quest
[Almost an adventure, technically it is one, but it is more of a demo than a full release since it lasts less than 3 hours. It also has rather poor and mateur graphics.]
The Antidote
[Another 'demo' of an adventure game, decent but very short.]
Apartment 327
[Horror exploration game with very few very simplistic puzzles, less than 1% adventure.]
Argonus and the Gods of Stone
[That's the 1st proper adventure on this list!]
Arise – A Simple Story
[Not an adventure at all.]
The Beast Inside
[Horror exploration, walking simulator with FPS elements.]
The Black Widow
[Absolutely nothing to do with adventures.]
Blacksad: Under the Skin
[Unfortunately NOT an adventure game, more like an interactive movie.]
Blair Witch
[Just another walking simulator with a horror theme.]
Blind Souls
[Yet another walking sim that tries to be unique and fails.]
Blindfold VR
[VR walking sim.]
The Bradwell Conspiracy
[2hr walking sim with very amateur graphics.]
Brukel
[More like a tech demo that aspires to be a walking sim.]
The Castle
[Maybe if we were still living in 1982 and still using 8bit home computers I would consider it, but not today.]
Chook & Sosig: Walk the Plank
[2hr demo of an amateur adventure game with no voice-overs.]
The Cinema Rosa
[Another average walking sim with a horror theme.]
Clam Man
[Atrocious graphics, a kindergartener could have drawn them better, less than 4hrs gameplay.]
Close to the Sun
[Walking sim with a couple of puzzles to pad the duration to the amazing number of 4 hours.]
Corpse Party: Sweet Sachiko's Hysteric Birthday Bash
[Visual novel.]
Corpse Party 2: Dead Patient
[Casual / lite / super easy 'adventure' game that almost plays itself as you walk around and click when you are prompted.]
The Cult: Marduk's Longest Night
[Another game with super amateurish graphics and bad overall production.]
The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets
[This one has absolutely nothing to do with adventure games so there is no point to write anything further.]
Cursed Roots
[Maybe if it was released on the Amiga in the early 90s I would count it as a release, but not today. An amateur production that hides under the retro label.]
Cutish
[Again this looks like an adventure game that should have been released 20 years ago. Everything in it is outdated although technically it is an adventure game.]
Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey
[At first I thought we had a winner, but then I realized the 'game' was just another interactive movie without any real gameplay.]
Dark Hope
[Yet another horror walking sim.]
The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan
[An interactive movie with almost zero gameplay.]
DARQ
[A side-scroller walking simulator that lasts less than an hour.]
The Death of Erin Myers
[Walking simulator that wants to be an adventure game but lasts only one hour.]
Demons Never Lie
[Just awful graphics, amateur game.]
Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders
[Super-low resolution and graphics from the early 80s.]
Devotion
[Yet another horror walking simulator that lasts only 4hrs.]
Disco Elysium
[This is an isometric RPG, although you mostly walk around speaking to everyone.]
Discolored
[Amateur graphics, simple puzzles and lasts only one hour. Is that even a game?]
Discrepant
[A horror walking sim that pretends it isn't.]
Doll
[This is 'intentionally' bad which somehow is supposed to make it good, but it does not.]
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
[Another game with super-low resolution and graphics that you wouldn't touch even in the early 80s.]
Draugen
[This one tries to be different. It is a mystery walking sim that lasts about 3 hours! At least it has modern graphics.]
Drawn Down
[The graphics are just so bad! Even 40 years ago it wouldn't have seen a release! It's as if a 5 year-old kid in the 80s decided to make a game!]
Dry Drowning
[Visual novel. No gameplay mechanics at all. You just read text.]
Eastshade
[Walking sim. At least it has decent graphics.]
Ellen
[That's a horizontal scrolling walking sim with pixel graphics from the early 80s.]
Elsinore
[Amateur production, average graphics, not real puzzles or anything to do really, but at least it tries to do something different.]
Epitasis
[Amateur first-person puzzle game that lasts about 2hrs.]
Escape Lala 2
[Puzzle game with 8bit graphics.]
Exorcise the Demons
[Walking sim with horror theme and graphics from 20 years ago.]
The Eye of Borrack
[Text adventure from the early 80s that mimics Magnetic Scrolls' user interface. The images are photographs that have gone through a filter on purpose to make them look BAD!]
The Fall of April
[The 14th Carol Reed game. I want to add this to the list but in 2020 this is just another amateur game with production values from 20+ years ago.]
Felix the Reaper
[A 2hr puzzle game that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Feria d’Arles
[Pixel graphics from the early 90s and duration of a demo.]
A Fisherman’s Tale
[VR walking sim with mediocre graphics.]
Forgiveness
[3hr puzzle game. Its major problems are the simplicity and the duration.]
FRACTER
[Isometric puzzler in black and white that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Fractured Minds
[This is NOT even a demo! It lasts only half an hour and has awful graphics.]
Frog Detective 2: The Case of the Invisible Wizard
[It lasts barely more than half an hour and has childish graphics.]
Gangsters 1920
[Isometric with black and white graphics walking sim. Another game that you almost do nothing but walk around although just not in 1st person.]
Ghetto Conspiracy
[Tries to mimic adventure games of the 90s with amateur graphics and bad, bad results. Amateur with capital A.]
Ghost Giant
[VR walking sim for kids with cutesy graphics and no gameplay.]
Gibbous: A Cthulhu Adventure
[Finally! An adventure game!]
Golden Treasure: The Great Green
[Visual novel.]
The Great Perhaps
[Side-scroller walking simulator that barely lasts an hour.]
Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son
[VR interactive movie with very simple graphics.]
Guard Duty
[Early 90s pixel graphics with simplistic gameplay and 2hrs duration.]
Headspun
[Nothing to do with adventures.]
Heaven’s Vault
[Not an adventure game at all.]
The House of Da Vinci 2
[Yeah! I found another adventure!]
Hypnospace Outlaw
[This is a "90s-Internet simulator" so it is obvious that is has nothing to do with adventure games.]
Interactivity: The Interactive Experience
[Just another barely 1 hour walking sim with bad graphics.]
Interrogation: You will be deceived
[That's a conversation simulator with black & white graphics.]
Investi-Gator: The Case of the Big
[NOT an adventure game. In my opinion not even a game!]
Irony Curtain: From Matryoshka with Love
[Yipee! Found another adventure game and it looks like a good one!]
Jenny LeClue – Detectivú
[Casual game with some puzzles and super-stylized graphics.]
Journey for Elysium
[VR walking sim.]
Jupiter & Mars
[VR dolphin simulator. Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Krabat and the Secret of the Sorbian King
[This seems like an adventure, but I can't find a single video or review anywhere to be sure!]
Ladderhead
[Amateur text adventure with childish graphics.]
The Land of Crows
[Side-scroller interactive movie with black & white graphics.]
Last Labyrinth
[VR puzzle game that lasts only an hour.]
The Last Letter
[VR interactive movie with some light puzzles.]
Layers of Fear 2
[Another horror walking sim without any actual gameplay.]
Leprechaun Shadow
[Amateur adventure game with production values from the late 90s.]
The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince
[Visual Novel.]
Life Is Strange 2
[Interactive movie. Simple as that.]
Lightstep Chronicles
[Interactive movie that lasts 100 minutes only.]
Little Misfortune
[Amateur stylized childish graphics, duration around 3 hours and no real gameplay.]
Lorelai
[Side-scrolling horror walking sim with casual interactive movie elements.]
Lost Ember
[Amateur graphics on a walking sim that barely lasts 3 hours.]
Mage’s Initiation: Reign of the Elements
[That would have been a great adventure game if it was released in 1993. Unfortunately now it is 2020.]
Mars Underground
[8bit NES graphics in a game with no gameplay.]
Massïra
[Platform game with pre-N64 3D graphics.]
Memorrha
[Dry puzzle game with no background or story and graphics from the previous decade.]
Monkeys & Dragons
[Short, simple, amateur game with early 90s graphics and animation.]
Moonrise Fall
[Top down wordless adventure with pixel graphics.]
Moons of Madness
[Horror walking simulator that lasts about 3 hours.]
Mosaic
[3rd person waling/stalking simulator that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Mr. Maze
[Walking sim with interactive movie elements and duration less than 3 hours.]
Murder Mystery Machine
[Interactive movie with casual gameplay and rather average graphics.]
Mutazione
[Interactive movie with graphics made by a 4-year-old.]
Myha: Return to the Lost Island
[Ok, here's another real adventure game!]
The Mystery of Woolley Mountain
[Very amateur graphics and animation. Feels like a game that was made in the late 90s.]
Nancy Drew: Midnight in Salem
[Casual gameplay with little to no challenge. More like an interactive movie.]
Nauticrawl
[Basically a submarine simulator.]
Night Call
[Visual novel in black & white.]
Night Lights
[Puzzle game with awful amateur graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
NITE Team 4
[Hacking simulator. Nothing to do with adventures.]
Nobodies
[Amateur game with casual gameplay.]
Nordlicht
[Amateur adventure game with childish graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
Now You See
[Dungeon crawler with adventure game elements and awful graphics. Amateur game.]
Nubla 2
[Side scroller walking sim that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Observation
[I was willing to give this a pass but then I saw it lasts only about 3 hours.]
The Occupation
[Half walking sim and half interactive movie. No actual gameplay.]
Odysseus Kosmos and His Robot Quest
[Low resolution amateur adventure game that lasts an hour.]
Outer Wilds
[Graphics from the PS2 era. Amateur production. At least it has a decent duration.]
Over the Alps
[Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Pendula Swing
[Isometric game with casual gameplay and zero puzzles.]
Phoenix Tales
[Amateur fan game with production values from the late 80s.]
Photographs
[Amateur pseudo-puzzle game with pixel graphics from the 80s.]
Pilgrims
[Card based game. Simply not an adventure game mechanic.]
A Place for the Unwilling
[Interactive movie with stylized cartoon graphics.]
Platonic Paranoia
[Amateur game with simplistic game mechanics.]
Profundum
[VR Escape-the-room game.]
Rainswept
[Interactive movie with awful 2D graphics.]
Reality Incognita
[Amateur adventure with very low production values.]
Repressed
[Amateur black & white puzzle game with awful graphics.]
ROOM 208
[Horror walking simulator.]
Sally Face
[Amateur side scrolling 'adventure' with little gameplay and very low production values.]
Sea of Solitude
[3D platform game with no puzzles at all.]
The Secrets of Jesus
[Amateur game. Everything about it is so amateurish. Graphics are especially atrocious.]
Shadow Point
[Amateur VR game with bad graphics.]
Shadows and Dust
[Amateur walking sim with very bad graphics.]
She and the Light Bearer
[Interactive movie with a few very simple puzzles and simple cartoonish stylized graphics.]
A Short Hike
[Pixelated graphics in a game that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Silver Chains
[Horror walking sim that barely lasts an hour.]
SIMULACRA 2
[Smartphone simulator. You play with another person's phone and that is all.]
The Sinking City
[AAA game that tries to appeal to as broader audience as possible. Not an adventure game.]
Smile for Me
[Completely amateur game. Bad graphics. Bad gameplay. And lasts only 3 hours.]
Sole
[Walking sim with very simple graphics.]
Some Distant Memory
[Not an adventure game. Besides walking around and watching cutscenes you do nothing else. And it lasts only 3 hours.]
The Sojourn
[Walking sim with a few puzzles, simple graphics and duration around 4 hours.]
Spirit Hunter: NG
[Visual novel.]
STARDROP
[Interactive movie with a lot of walking around.]
Stela
[Side-scrolling platformer that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Still There
[Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Sumatra: Fate of Yandi
[Pixel graphics from the early 80s in an AGS 'adventure' that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Superliminal
[1hr walking sim.]
Tangle Tower
[Interactive movie with casual gameplay, a few simple puzzles and childish stylized cartoon graphics.]
Telling Lies
[You just watch Full Motion Videos for about 4 hours and that's it. You'd better stick with Netflix.]
Terror in the Atomic Desert
[Your average horror walking sim.]
Through Abandoned: The Refuge
[Amateur puzzle with very simple graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
Tick Tock: A Tale for Two
[Amateur puzzle game with simple graphics that lasts about one hour.]
Time, Space and Matter
[3D puzzle game with no story and graphics from 20 years ago.]
Trails and Traces: The Tomb of Thomas Tew
[You wouldn't play this game even if it was still 1992. Completely amateur game.]
Trüberbrook
[Yeah! This is an adventure! Although it has many, many flaws, at least it is an adventure!]
Twin Peaks VR
[VR walking sim.]
Vane
[3D platformer with no puzzles and 90 minutes duration.]
Vasilis
[It can't get more amateur than this! Graphics hand-drawn by a 3-year-old probably.]
The Walking Dead: The Final Season
[Interactive movie.]
The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature
[Surreal walking sim with no gameplay.]
Wanderlust Travel Stories
[Visual novel.]
We. The Revolution
[Strategy game with RPG elements.]
We Were Here Together
[3D casual escape-the-room game.]
Weakless
[Casual puzzle game.]
Where the Bees Make Honey
[Arcade platformer that barely lasts half an hour.]
Whispers of a Machine
[If it had been released in 1992 it would have been an amazing adventure game. In 2020 it's just another sad attempt at nostalgia. Also it doesn't have many actual puzzles. Everything is solved by talking to people.]
Witch Loraine’s Death Game
[RPG-maker-style graphics. Enough said!]
Woven
[Kiddie game with simple graphics and even simpler puzzles.]
Yet Another Hero Story
[Decent amateur adventure but it lasts only about an hour. More of a tribute to the classic adventure games of the 90s.]
Your Future Self
[Nothing to do with adventures at all. It also lasts about one hour.]
YU-NO: A girl who chants love at the bound of this world.
[Visual novel. A great one though.]
Yuppie Psycho
[Pixel graphics straight from 1981.]
ZED
[Just another walking sim with no puzzles or anything else actually.]
[Fan made sequel a decade in the making with obsolete graphics which managed to get the seal of approval from the IP owners and not get cancelled.]
3 GEEKS
[Amateur graphics and art design.]
3rd eye
[Horror/exploration game with casual gameplay and very small duration (1 hour only).]
7th Sector
[Action, puzzle-platformer with small duration (about 3 hours).]
Adventure Boy Jailbreak
[Zero production values, amateur game.]
Adventures of Isabelle Fine: Murder on Rails
[Late 80s graphics, awful sound & music department, amateur production.]
AI: The Somnium Files
[Visual novel.]
Alt-Frequencies
[Nothing to do with adventures at all, also very short.]
Alternate Jake Hunter: DAEDALUS – The Awakening of Golden Jazz
[Visual novel.]
Angelo and Deemon: One Hell of a Quest
[Almost an adventure, technically it is one, but it is more of a demo than a full release since it lasts less than 3 hours. It also has rather poor and mateur graphics.]
The Antidote
[Another 'demo' of an adventure game, decent but very short.]
Apartment 327
[Horror exploration game with very few very simplistic puzzles, less than 1% adventure.]
Argonus and the Gods of Stone
[That's the 1st proper adventure on this list!]
Arise – A Simple Story
[Not an adventure at all.]
The Beast Inside
[Horror exploration, walking simulator with FPS elements.]
The Black Widow
[Absolutely nothing to do with adventures.]
Blacksad: Under the Skin
[Unfortunately NOT an adventure game, more like an interactive movie.]
Blair Witch
[Just another walking simulator with a horror theme.]
Blind Souls
[Yet another walking sim that tries to be unique and fails.]
Blindfold VR
[VR walking sim.]
The Bradwell Conspiracy
[2hr walking sim with very amateur graphics.]
Brukel
[More like a tech demo that aspires to be a walking sim.]
The Castle
[Maybe if we were still living in 1982 and still using 8bit home computers I would consider it, but not today.]
Chook & Sosig: Walk the Plank
[2hr demo of an amateur adventure game with no voice-overs.]
The Cinema Rosa
[Another average walking sim with a horror theme.]
Clam Man
[Atrocious graphics, a kindergartener could have drawn them better, less than 4hrs gameplay.]
Close to the Sun
[Walking sim with a couple of puzzles to pad the duration to the amazing number of 4 hours.]
Corpse Party: Sweet Sachiko's Hysteric Birthday Bash
[Visual novel.]
Corpse Party 2: Dead Patient
[Casual / lite / super easy 'adventure' game that almost plays itself as you walk around and click when you are prompted.]
The Cult: Marduk's Longest Night
[Another game with super amateurish graphics and bad overall production.]
The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets
[This one has absolutely nothing to do with adventure games so there is no point to write anything further.]
Cursed Roots
[Maybe if it was released on the Amiga in the early 90s I would count it as a release, but not today. An amateur production that hides under the retro label.]
Cutish
[Again this looks like an adventure game that should have been released 20 years ago. Everything in it is outdated although technically it is an adventure game.]
Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey
[At first I thought we had a winner, but then I realized the 'game' was just another interactive movie without any real gameplay.]
Dark Hope
[Yet another horror walking sim.]
The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan
[An interactive movie with almost zero gameplay.]
DARQ
[A side-scroller walking simulator that lasts less than an hour.]
The Death of Erin Myers
[Walking simulator that wants to be an adventure game but lasts only one hour.]
Demons Never Lie
[Just awful graphics, amateur game.]
Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders
[Super-low resolution and graphics from the early 80s.]
Devotion
[Yet another horror walking simulator that lasts only 4hrs.]
Disco Elysium
[This is an isometric RPG, although you mostly walk around speaking to everyone.]
Discolored
[Amateur graphics, simple puzzles and lasts only one hour. Is that even a game?]
Discrepant
[A horror walking sim that pretends it isn't.]
Doll
[This is 'intentionally' bad which somehow is supposed to make it good, but it does not.]
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
[Another game with super-low resolution and graphics that you wouldn't touch even in the early 80s.]
Draugen
[This one tries to be different. It is a mystery walking sim that lasts about 3 hours! At least it has modern graphics.]
Drawn Down
[The graphics are just so bad! Even 40 years ago it wouldn't have seen a release! It's as if a 5 year-old kid in the 80s decided to make a game!]
Dry Drowning
[Visual novel. No gameplay mechanics at all. You just read text.]
Eastshade
[Walking sim. At least it has decent graphics.]
Ellen
[That's a horizontal scrolling walking sim with pixel graphics from the early 80s.]
Elsinore
[Amateur production, average graphics, not real puzzles or anything to do really, but at least it tries to do something different.]
Epitasis
[Amateur first-person puzzle game that lasts about 2hrs.]
Escape Lala 2
[Puzzle game with 8bit graphics.]
Exorcise the Demons
[Walking sim with horror theme and graphics from 20 years ago.]
The Eye of Borrack
[Text adventure from the early 80s that mimics Magnetic Scrolls' user interface. The images are photographs that have gone through a filter on purpose to make them look BAD!]
The Fall of April
[The 14th Carol Reed game. I want to add this to the list but in 2020 this is just another amateur game with production values from 20+ years ago.]
Felix the Reaper
[A 2hr puzzle game that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Feria d’Arles
[Pixel graphics from the early 90s and duration of a demo.]
A Fisherman’s Tale
[VR walking sim with mediocre graphics.]
Forgiveness
[3hr puzzle game. Its major problems are the simplicity and the duration.]
FRACTER
[Isometric puzzler in black and white that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Fractured Minds
[This is NOT even a demo! It lasts only half an hour and has awful graphics.]
Frog Detective 2: The Case of the Invisible Wizard
[It lasts barely more than half an hour and has childish graphics.]
Gangsters 1920
[Isometric with black and white graphics walking sim. Another game that you almost do nothing but walk around although just not in 1st person.]
Ghetto Conspiracy
[Tries to mimic adventure games of the 90s with amateur graphics and bad, bad results. Amateur with capital A.]
Ghost Giant
[VR walking sim for kids with cutesy graphics and no gameplay.]
Gibbous: A Cthulhu Adventure
[Finally! An adventure game!]
Golden Treasure: The Great Green
[Visual novel.]
The Great Perhaps
[Side-scroller walking simulator that barely lasts an hour.]
Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son
[VR interactive movie with very simple graphics.]
Guard Duty
[Early 90s pixel graphics with simplistic gameplay and 2hrs duration.]
Headspun
[Nothing to do with adventures.]
Heaven’s Vault
[Not an adventure game at all.]
The House of Da Vinci 2
[Yeah! I found another adventure!]
Hypnospace Outlaw
[This is a "90s-Internet simulator" so it is obvious that is has nothing to do with adventure games.]
Interactivity: The Interactive Experience
[Just another barely 1 hour walking sim with bad graphics.]
Interrogation: You will be deceived
[That's a conversation simulator with black & white graphics.]
Investi-Gator: The Case of the Big
[NOT an adventure game. In my opinion not even a game!]
Irony Curtain: From Matryoshka with Love
[Yipee! Found another adventure game and it looks like a good one!]
Jenny LeClue – Detectivú
[Casual game with some puzzles and super-stylized graphics.]
Journey for Elysium
[VR walking sim.]
Jupiter & Mars
[VR dolphin simulator. Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Krabat and the Secret of the Sorbian King
[This seems like an adventure, but I can't find a single video or review anywhere to be sure!]
Ladderhead
[Amateur text adventure with childish graphics.]
The Land of Crows
[Side-scroller interactive movie with black & white graphics.]
Last Labyrinth
[VR puzzle game that lasts only an hour.]
The Last Letter
[VR interactive movie with some light puzzles.]
Layers of Fear 2
[Another horror walking sim without any actual gameplay.]
Leprechaun Shadow
[Amateur adventure game with production values from the late 90s.]
The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince
[Visual Novel.]
Life Is Strange 2
[Interactive movie. Simple as that.]
Lightstep Chronicles
[Interactive movie that lasts 100 minutes only.]
Little Misfortune
[Amateur stylized childish graphics, duration around 3 hours and no real gameplay.]
Lorelai
[Side-scrolling horror walking sim with casual interactive movie elements.]
Lost Ember
[Amateur graphics on a walking sim that barely lasts 3 hours.]
Mage’s Initiation: Reign of the Elements
[That would have been a great adventure game if it was released in 1993. Unfortunately now it is 2020.]
Mars Underground
[8bit NES graphics in a game with no gameplay.]
Massïra
[Platform game with pre-N64 3D graphics.]
Memorrha
[Dry puzzle game with no background or story and graphics from the previous decade.]
Monkeys & Dragons
[Short, simple, amateur game with early 90s graphics and animation.]
Moonrise Fall
[Top down wordless adventure with pixel graphics.]
Moons of Madness
[Horror walking simulator that lasts about 3 hours.]
Mosaic
[3rd person waling/stalking simulator that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Mr. Maze
[Walking sim with interactive movie elements and duration less than 3 hours.]
Murder Mystery Machine
[Interactive movie with casual gameplay and rather average graphics.]
Mutazione
[Interactive movie with graphics made by a 4-year-old.]
Myha: Return to the Lost Island
[Ok, here's another real adventure game!]
The Mystery of Woolley Mountain
[Very amateur graphics and animation. Feels like a game that was made in the late 90s.]
Nancy Drew: Midnight in Salem
[Casual gameplay with little to no challenge. More like an interactive movie.]
Nauticrawl
[Basically a submarine simulator.]
Night Call
[Visual novel in black & white.]
Night Lights
[Puzzle game with awful amateur graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
NITE Team 4
[Hacking simulator. Nothing to do with adventures.]
Nobodies
[Amateur game with casual gameplay.]
Nordlicht
[Amateur adventure game with childish graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
Now You See
[Dungeon crawler with adventure game elements and awful graphics. Amateur game.]
Nubla 2
[Side scroller walking sim that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Observation
[I was willing to give this a pass but then I saw it lasts only about 3 hours.]
The Occupation
[Half walking sim and half interactive movie. No actual gameplay.]
Odysseus Kosmos and His Robot Quest
[Low resolution amateur adventure game that lasts an hour.]
Outer Wilds
[Graphics from the PS2 era. Amateur production. At least it has a decent duration.]
Over the Alps
[Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Pendula Swing
[Isometric game with casual gameplay and zero puzzles.]
Phoenix Tales
[Amateur fan game with production values from the late 80s.]
Photographs
[Amateur pseudo-puzzle game with pixel graphics from the 80s.]
Pilgrims
[Card based game. Simply not an adventure game mechanic.]
A Place for the Unwilling
[Interactive movie with stylized cartoon graphics.]
Platonic Paranoia
[Amateur game with simplistic game mechanics.]
Profundum
[VR Escape-the-room game.]
Rainswept
[Interactive movie with awful 2D graphics.]
Reality Incognita
[Amateur adventure with very low production values.]
Repressed
[Amateur black & white puzzle game with awful graphics.]
ROOM 208
[Horror walking simulator.]
Sally Face
[Amateur side scrolling 'adventure' with little gameplay and very low production values.]
Sea of Solitude
[3D platform game with no puzzles at all.]
The Secrets of Jesus
[Amateur game. Everything about it is so amateurish. Graphics are especially atrocious.]
Shadow Point
[Amateur VR game with bad graphics.]
Shadows and Dust
[Amateur walking sim with very bad graphics.]
She and the Light Bearer
[Interactive movie with a few very simple puzzles and simple cartoonish stylized graphics.]
A Short Hike
[Pixelated graphics in a game that has nothing to do with adventures.]
Silver Chains
[Horror walking sim that barely lasts an hour.]
SIMULACRA 2
[Smartphone simulator. You play with another person's phone and that is all.]
The Sinking City
[AAA game that tries to appeal to as broader audience as possible. Not an adventure game.]
Smile for Me
[Completely amateur game. Bad graphics. Bad gameplay. And lasts only 3 hours.]
Sole
[Walking sim with very simple graphics.]
Some Distant Memory
[Not an adventure game. Besides walking around and watching cutscenes you do nothing else. And it lasts only 3 hours.]
The Sojourn
[Walking sim with a few puzzles, simple graphics and duration around 4 hours.]
Spirit Hunter: NG
[Visual novel.]
STARDROP
[Interactive movie with a lot of walking around.]
Stela
[Side-scrolling platformer that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Still There
[Nothing to do with adventure games.]
Sumatra: Fate of Yandi
[Pixel graphics from the early 80s in an AGS 'adventure' that barely lasts 2 hours.]
Superliminal
[1hr walking sim.]
Tangle Tower
[Interactive movie with casual gameplay, a few simple puzzles and childish stylized cartoon graphics.]
Telling Lies
[You just watch Full Motion Videos for about 4 hours and that's it. You'd better stick with Netflix.]
Terror in the Atomic Desert
[Your average horror walking sim.]
Through Abandoned: The Refuge
[Amateur puzzle with very simple graphics that barely lasts an hour.]
Tick Tock: A Tale for Two
[Amateur puzzle game with simple graphics that lasts about one hour.]
Time, Space and Matter
[3D puzzle game with no story and graphics from 20 years ago.]
Trails and Traces: The Tomb of Thomas Tew
[You wouldn't play this game even if it was still 1992. Completely amateur game.]
Trüberbrook
[Yeah! This is an adventure! Although it has many, many flaws, at least it is an adventure!]
Twin Peaks VR
[VR walking sim.]
Vane
[3D platformer with no puzzles and 90 minutes duration.]
Vasilis
[It can't get more amateur than this! Graphics hand-drawn by a 3-year-old probably.]
The Walking Dead: The Final Season
[Interactive movie.]
The Wanderer: Frankenstein’s Creature
[Surreal walking sim with no gameplay.]
Wanderlust Travel Stories
[Visual novel.]
We. The Revolution
[Strategy game with RPG elements.]
We Were Here Together
[3D casual escape-the-room game.]
Weakless
[Casual puzzle game.]
Where the Bees Make Honey
[Arcade platformer that barely lasts half an hour.]
Whispers of a Machine
[If it had been released in 1992 it would have been an amazing adventure game. In 2020 it's just another sad attempt at nostalgia. Also it doesn't have many actual puzzles. Everything is solved by talking to people.]
Witch Loraine’s Death Game
[RPG-maker-style graphics. Enough said!]
Woven
[Kiddie game with simple graphics and even simpler puzzles.]
Yet Another Hero Story
[Decent amateur adventure but it lasts only about an hour. More of a tribute to the classic adventure games of the 90s.]
Your Future Self
[Nothing to do with adventures at all. It also lasts about one hour.]
YU-NO: A girl who chants love at the bound of this world.
[Visual novel. A great one though.]
Yuppie Psycho
[Pixel graphics straight from 1981.]
ZED
[Just another walking sim with no puzzles or anything else actually.]
-Walking(!) simulator... Quite true description.
ReplyDelete-Poor, childish graphics, a new fad in some cases labeled as "retro"..
-Most of them (there are few exceptions) are cheap productions trying to mimic the once thrilling adventure genre.
Another ignored fact: older games used CRT scanlines that made them to appear quite better from a modern monitor.
Perhaps it's better for someone want to play this kind of genre to go directly on old school adventure games, made by serious developers, than searching for hours trying to find something good in new controversial "adventure" releases of poor quality.