The adventure game genre has seen a major revival in recent years following its absence from the mainstream video game industry after many of the genre’s biggest franchises failed to successfully transition to 3D in the early 2000s. Recent projects like Double Fine’sBroken Ageand Terrible Toybox’sThimbleweed Parkhave breathed new life into one of gaming’s most fundamental genres, and the rise of indie games has opened up a brand-new future that has caused it to receive some genuine growth throughout recent years.
Thanks to the recent rebirth of the genre, 2022 has been one of the strongest years for adventure games (or point-and-click adventure games) in decades, with groundbreaking new indie releases and some big additions to the genre from some of the video game industry’s most beloved developers. With that in mind, it’s worth taking a look atwhy 2022 is proving to be a great year for adventure game fans.
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Syberia: The World Before (March 18)
Syberia: The World Beforemarks the return of the beloved adventure game series with thefinal entry to be led by late series creator Benoît Sokal, who unfortunately passed away in May 2021. Thankfully, Sokal’s final entry in the European-based steampunk adventure game series has been praised by fans as one of its strongest entries, coming off of 2017’s underwhelmingSyberia 3. This entry follows series protagonist Kate Walker as she continues her adventure from the previous entries, however players now swap between Kate and a woman living in 1930s Vaghen named Dana Roze.
While the game released for PC on March 18, console players looking to experience Benoît Sokal’s finalSyberiagame will be happy to learn that the game will be released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S on November 15, with PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch versions set to arrive in 2023.
Norco (March 24th)
The first major indie adventure game release of the year might have gone under the radar in the mainstream, but made a big splash with fans of its genre.Norcois a point-and-click adventure game that released for PC and Mac on March 24th. The game is set in a Southern Gothic fictionalized version of Norco, Louisiana, and follows a young woman as she investigates the disappearance of her young brother following her mother’s death. The game is heavily inspired by Hideo Kojima’sSnatcherandits writing has been favorably compared to games likeDisco ElysiumandKentucky Route Zero.
Despite releasing so early in the year,Norcois still being regarded by many that played it as one of the best games of the year overall, with many praising its blend of strong storytelling with its point-and-click gameplay. Fans on consoles looking to experienceNorcowill be glad to hear that the game is coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on October 20, andwill be part of Xbox Game Pass for consolejust as it is right now on PC.
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Chinatown Detective Agency (April 7th)
Inspired by games such as Westwood’s 1997Blade Runneradventure game and theCarmen Sandiegoseries,Chinatown Detective Agencyis a detective noir adventure game set in 2037 cyberpunk Singapore. The game follows a detective named Amira Darma who takes on a series of bizarre cases following her transition from Interpol officer to private investigator.Chinatown Detective Agencyblends its dystopian world with gameplaythrough forcing players to carefully manage Amira’s time and money so that she can successfully continue investigating without going broke. The game also features multiple puzzle that require real world research outside the game in order to complete.
Chinatown Detective Agencylaunched on April 7, and is available now for PC, Mac, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. The game is also available on Xbox Game Pass for PC and consoles.
Immortality (August 30th)
It’s hard to catch lightning in a bottle once, let alone three times, but somehowHer StoryandTelling Liescreator Sam Barlow has more or less achieved this, especially considering his most recent gameImmortalityis one of the biggest surprises of the year so far. Similar toHer StoryandTelling Lies,Immortalityis an FMV adventure game that centers around the disappearance of actress Marissa Marcel, and tasks players with investigating the found footage of three films she starred in that were never released. These are the 1930s erotic horror filmAmbrisio, 1970s thrillerMinsky, and 1990s surreal drama filmTwo of Everything.
Immortalityis an outlier on this list because it is part of the FMV subgenre of adventure games, similar to games like Late Shift and even shares some DNA withPhantasmagoriaandGabriel Knight 2.Immortalitydelivers a story that is incomparable to anything else in modern gaming, even Barlow’s previous work, and is one of the best adventure game and narrative experiences of the year. The game is available on PC and Xbox Series X/S, and is also available through Xbox Game Pass. A mobile release is planned through Netflix and a Mac version is also in development.
Return to Monkey Island (September 19th)
Return to Monkey Islandis the triumphant return of the iconic point-and-click adventure game series that helped put the genre on the map and has continued to be an influence to creators since its debut in 1990. This entry not only marks the end of a 13-year hiatus for the series, but also the first new entry from series creator Ron Gilbert in over 30 years.Picking up right from the end ofMonkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge,Return to Monkey Islandtells the tale of how Guybrush Threepwood finally found the Secret of Monkey Island and features the return of plenty of fan favorite characters as it reveals what seems to be Threepwood’s final adventure
Return to Monkey Islandis exactly the game that fans have been waiting for, taking every opportunity it can to wink and nod towards them, while also swiftly tugging at their heartstrings in all the right ways. The game also introduces many new gameplay features and design elements to help onboard newcomers to the genre without confusing them too much with ridiculous puzzle designs.Return to Monkey Islandis currently available on PC and Nintendo Switch, however it is only a timed Switch console exclusive.
Pentiment (November 15th)
The final major adventure game of 2022 is one that is still yet to release. While many fans expected Obsidian andFallout: New Vegaswriter Josh Sawyer’s next gameto be a major RPG similar toThe Outer Worldsor the upcomingAvowed, Sawyer has been very adamant thatPentimentwill be a “narrative adventure game”, putting the adventure game mechanics first and foremost above the usual stats and combat. If games likeDisco Elysiumhave demonstrated anything, it’s that the line between adventure games and RPGs can sometimes grow very blurry, andPentimentseems to be taking full advantage of that, hoping to craft a story and world that engages fans of both genres.
Pentimentis set in 16th century Bavaria and follows an artist who is investigating a series of murders that take place over the course of 25 years. The game is written so that the canonical murderer will never be revealed, leaving it up to players to come to their own deductionssimilar to games likeDisco ElysiumandParadise Killer.Pentimentfeatures a gorgeous period-accurate art and will apparently heavily rely on choice-driven storytelling, much like Obsidian’s previous work.
Pentimentwill release on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on November 15th 2022. The game will launch as part of Xbox Game Pass.
