I’m a pretty big fan of games in general. I love playing them, making them, watching the impact they make – everything about the industry is pretty awesome. While I was certainly a Nintendo kid, gaming really started for me on the Commodore 64, and enjoyment grew into a true appreciation with adventure games and my first PC, as I talk about here.

Where Did the Adventure Go?

The gaming market has changed in some very distinct ways over the years for a number of reasons. One of these changes that has been talked about quite a bit is the decline of the adventure game market. These games used to dominate, and now are the stuff of homebrew projects and small corners in software stores. While it’s sometimes difficult to discern if the market shapes corporate decisions or vice versa, we are indeed in a place where giants like Activision abandon clearly sought titles (read: Ghostbusters) as the profit margins are deemed unworthy by their market research and finance personnel. A business must survive and prosper to continue to push out product, but there is that point where an organization becomes more concerned about their profit than their product. And we are in no shortage of companies that subscribe to these views.

The Gallant Few

On the other side, there are those gaming companies that understand they can make a profit but still have a soul – staying true to the heart of the gaming community. I speak of Telltale Games, makers of the Sam and Max series, Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People, and the upcoming Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventure. They are a group of people whose passion lies in adventure games, even in a time where the typical market research would suggest this is not as profitable a route as creating a string of Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto clones. Makes sense, since Telltale was founded by veterans from LucasArts, the company that at one time had produced masterpieces such as the Monkey Island series, Maniac Mansion, Day of the Tentacle, and yes – Sam and Max Hit the Road.

Screenshot from Sam and Max Season 2 Episode 3: Night of the Raving Dead

Having played through both season 1 and season 2 of Sam and Max, and the first episode of Strong Bad, it’s clear to me that Telltale puts out simply awesome games. Packed with humor, beautiful illustration, and quality gameplay, these adventures are truly fun to play. They also go to show that adventure games are not confined to the retro, homebrew, and Myst clone market.

Give Them a Visit

If you haven’t yet, take a moment and check out their site, there are even some free downloads to get a taste of what their fare is all about. And if you like what you see, give them some money! I know I for one would like to see a little more diversity in my gaming selection, but it can only happen if we support companies that are in it for the games, not just the revenue.