Top 100 All-Time Adventure Games

Loom is No. 61??? It would be a sin to not include it in the top 25.

You guys did tremendous work here so one really shouldnt complain butDreamfall on 51? I mean in terms of gameplay it might not be perfect but storywise its by far the best game ever made! Imo it deserves a place in the top 20 but then again its not my call. Still I think not even in the top50 is very harsh on such a magnificent and awe inspiring game.

Im not looking at the rankings at all. Already half the games posted are ones I havent played, and thats why I read these lists. I dont really care whether my favorite game is at 1 or 100 if its on the list.

This would also be a good reminder for the games still to play, ive already got my eye on Faust from Day 1.

Maniac Mansion should be in the top 20 the least

Awesome, thisll be something to look forward to each day! 🙂 Nice to see that Gold Rush! made the list.

Hand me that rag, moonbird. My monitors dripping, too.

@Jackal: I see, that makes sense. Thanks for clarifying that.

These games are clearly RPGs in essence. If these are featured on the list, then also The Elder Scrolls series (and maybe others) should be featured aswel

Wont there be a vote for top 2011 adventure games?

In our books, they should. QFG is a breed all its own, but clearly as much adventures as RPG, unlike Elder Scrolls or any other RPG series.

IMHO its very dangerous to make all-time lists. But i think this list is very successful and useful so far. or was until 64, The Book of Unwritten Tales. it musnt be in top 100 (imho again.)

List continues to look very good. Quest for glory 2 is a favorite of mine and would definitely rank better on my list (especially if you count the drastic improvement by the agd remake), but still a solid write-up of the game.

So far I cant agree or disagree with any selection. When it gets closer to the top ten or twenty is where my hackles might rise.

already have to disagree, strongly. Toonstruck is far better than The Dig, for starters, yet precedes it. Runaway is just tripe not worth revisiting.. not sure I will bother with the rest to be honest.

from other comments here too, i see that the Loom is the first miss in this nonetheless great list..keep on giving them!as you may say the list depends on the staffs views on each game but still the readers show otherwise. i didnt expect it to reach 1 as it is in my own list (And yes im playing adventure games for 20+ years now) but it should be among t he 25 best titles based on story, MUSIC, interface ,g raphics (For its age)…

I just recently started playing Black Dahlia again so Im really happy to see that it made it into the top 100. Its a wonderful game!

Adventure games have been around for! Hard to believe, isnt it? Weve seen plenty of classics over the decades, and new gems are still being produced today. With such a rich history, just how many deserve to make a list of all-time greats? Our previous compilation of top adventures had 20 games listed, but that was nearly ten years old itself. So what would it be this time? 25? Youd be amazed how quickly those slots filled. 50? That leaves far fewer casualties, but some seriescan easily stake a claim to three or four slots.

Awesome list, Ill save it for future reference!

What a fun feature! Several of these games bring back fond memories. I also see quite a few classics I havent played, some of which I had completely forgotten. Im enjoying those informative write-ups as well.

Oops, actually thats not correct. The further I get the more the ratings drop. That cant be right, can it?

Cant be bothered reading the whole article? Or just cant handle the suspense?Click here for the complete, full-spoiler list.(But you dont know what youre missing!)

Im really enjoying this list, too. I know the greatest game of all time probably wont make the pinnacle but I can live with thatI guess. Its entertaining to read what seem to be well considered opinions about so many games I havent played and might like to one day.

Its nice to see Spycraft and The Dark Eye made it to the top. While not mainstream or well-known, they fully deserve it.

Syberia II: you might also like: A New Beginning *tries to clean up coffee that slpashed around the screen*

Some great choices on Day 2! Good to see Laura Bow. Also, very pleased to see Dark Fall 1 – a classic I only recently played. The 7th Guest absolutely had to be included on this list. Its hard to overstate how exciting it was when my brother and I got a CD-ROM drive and loaded up this game. It was so different and exciting.

QFG is definitely adventure with RPG elements more than the other way around. It also helps they come from Sierra.

But nice work! , i love these lists although you can never agree 100% with them.

While much of the world probably couldnt even name 100 adventure games, those of us who cut our teeth on the groundbreaking early text titles, basked in the Golden Age of graphic adventures, suffered through the dark times and lived to see the modern-day (relative) renaissance know better. Its not only possible to think of 100 quality adventures, itstillleaves some painful omissions.

Steam just now has an excellent offer of the Frogware Sherlock series including Awakened. Bargain prices.

Looks good so far. Iv played half of these first 10 games and i agree with their positions. Iv never been a big fan of the dig, despite its nice production values. The puzzles are boring and tedious and the story goes real flat imo. The atmosphere is nice though and its certainly worth a look for anyone who considers themself an adventure-gamer.

So far Ive only got one big complaint – The Dig. It is not only a great adventure game on its own, but it is also one of the best sci-fi games, with an original, developed story and universe. It is one of the earliest and most organic adventure/puzzle mixes that overshadow Myst. And Im not even talking about the music, which is arguably one of the best scores in gaming history. The game is at least TOP 50 material.

Kudos for giving respect to The Dark Eye! That said, I will very disappointed if there are no Legend Entertainment titles featured.

Thats the Aggie Awards Totally different animal. And yes, thatll happen in February, as usual, including the reader vote.

I think the last Top 20 list was in April 2004, so this Top 100 list is long overdue. There have been some great games in the last 7 years so its natural to expand the list. Plus, it helps people like me who like to organize lists of games theyve played, plan to play, etc.

Sharing ones lack of motor control doesnt tell us anything contructive. I stand by the Syberia 2/ANB recommendation 100%.

It would be nice to have the year of release next to each title.

I already love AG’s top hundred! I’m surprised and delighted to see The Space Bar and Spycraft included. So what if nobody agrees with the ranking. I bet not even the staff members themselves agree with it.

Nice idea I cant wait to see top games. My favorite games so far are not on the list

So its like playing for the first timeall over again 🙂

Review scores have nothing to do with this list. Obviously most will be highly rated in both, but not all. For one thing, a review is ultimately just one persons opinion, and this is a full staff effort, and a review is also frozen in time. It doesnt factor in legacy, subsequent enhancements, etc. The Awakened, for example, was considered at least in part because of its remastered version, which did something no other game has ever done.

And Im also with Kurufinwe with hopes for DoTT. It has seen enough first places already

Im very excited to discover the remaining 80!

The first snow fell yesterday and now THIS! I cant believe that 2 of my wishes became true on the same day! I have to quote the great Homer on this because I am at a loss for words. Tramampoline! Trampopoline!

Oh yes, there will be a complete list of all the games at the end, with links to their respective article pages, if thats what you mean.

In any case, this list has already given me ideas for good games I havent played yet and that I should give a chance to, and Im sure there will be many more in the coming days, and for that I am grateful.

Agreed, Loom is one of the most unique and wonderful adventure experiences, way ahead of its time. And BoUT, Drawn, The Awakened might belong to the Top decent adventure games of the last 5 years, but Top 100 Well, at least Shadow of the Comet made it. Now my soul can rest in peace.

Should the Quest for Glory series even be nominated for the TOP100 Adventure game?

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Bugger the fact you allready went through the ***1/2 section probably means no BS3, SF: Tunguska or Lost Horizon on the list. I never expected them to end up very high but not at all? Shame. Also imo: Runaway 2 wipes the floor with Runaway 3 whom I consider to be the least good of all installments.

)) Also this list is going to help me find out about games I missed to play.

I just hope Day of the Tentacle does not retain its 1. =)

Why dont you review some of these games, like Space Bar and Gold Rush? I would love to read your take on them, but theyre conspiciously absent from the review boards.

Seriously, I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I cant help but see how inherently silly it is to try to rank things as wildly different as Faust and Toonstruck on the same scale- and no amount of handwaving in the introduction is going to change that. But on the other hand, Im already getting caught up in the horse race, glad to see that the Runaway series ended up with the dregs where it belongs, hoping that Day of the Tentacle will join it soon (rather than being at the very top of the list as it was last time), hating that The Dig is at such a low spot, wondering whatIwould put on the top spot (I guess Monkey Island 1 is, for better or worse, the quintessential adventure game), etc.

And this is undoubtedly the most interesting part. When we’ve reached 35-40, the territory will become all-too familiar: Syberia, Still Life, MI, more LucasArts, the Gabriel Knights, more Sierra, TLE, TLJ, etcetera

I would have liked to see Toonstruck and Loom a little higher. Theyre both very charming. Im hoping to see The Curse of Monkey Island near the top.

The answer is: all of the above or none! Theres no scientific formula. Its a combination of factors that depends entirely on the context for each individual game. You can debate each choice, each placement, and we hope you will! The beauty of opinion lists is that theres no right or wrong, and we argued long and hard among ourselves just to arrive at ours. Sometimes we even contradicted the sites own reviews. But were completely confident that our final selections are deserving candidates and a wonderfully diverse representation of the genres best to date. Not every game will suit every taste, but theres plenty of must-play gaming for all in our top 100 all-time adventure games.

Sordy-wordy, the release year is listed in each and every write-up. Have to give people

We reviewed Gold Rush, but yes, there are some we havent, and revisiting these older games for the list has motivated us to get those covered. Really its as much a matter of availability and compatibility at this point. We dont all still have 20-year old games on hand anymore, or have success getting them to run. But well try! Kurufinwe, thats the spirit!

Its funny that this sites review is 2/5 stars, but the game made it onto this list. Huzzah!

With a number in mind, that left one important consideration. What constitutes the best? How do you compare games spanning decades of styles and technology? Is a now-antiquated genre pioneer from 1985 still a classic today? Does it need to be? Do new games have any right to stand alongside their forebears that paved the way and have stood the test of time? Whats really important? Longevity, innovation, production values, historical relevance? Whats more crucial? Story, exploration, puzzles?

Woot, this is so much fun! I cant wait to see how many of the games in the list I have played! And its a perfect opportunity to find out what games I missed but really must play. And yes, of course I already hate this list but of course when composing a list like this you are like a politician in the sense that you never do it right. One request: when everything is published, can you then make a list of links to the descriptions of all the games?

Agree with our choices? Disagree? A little of both, somewhere in between? Have your say in the reader comments below.

I Already Hate[TM] this list

Finally, the TOP 100! Every thematic website should have one of those) I remember earlier TOP 20s on AG, but they werent that fulfilling, and they were really only one mans point of view.

I like Black Dahlias inclusion. Its a great game, apart from some extremely difficult puzzles and a silly ending. The first 2/3 or so of the game are fantastic AG storytelling.

I have to put this list on my Top 100 things that happened this year

Yay SH: The Awakened made it to the list! You might wanna review that review though considering you placed right in the middle of 4 star territory. Plus I think it deserves that extra star.

The only linking thing between the two is that they are 3rd person adventures. Even if I think my brain to breakpoint, I cant see anything else in common. Even the gameplay is totally different. Syberia is uninteractive, ascetic and includes a lot of running, while on the other hand ANB is a crystal clear oppisite: Rich in hotspots, detailed and no running at all. I really would like to hear an explanation for this recommendation. Im not trying to brag, im really just curious, because I cant find the point there.

I found an installer that extracts all 8 cds into one neat bundle on your HD so you can play if from there with no cd swapping. Also had an option to remove those lines from the FMV sequences and to slow it down on dual core machines so it runs really well on XP.

Great idea, i loved the Top 20 list. Though, Im already sad to see Toonstruck go this high, but oh well.. thats the thing with the lists.