Will casual games evolve into Adventure games?

Becky semi-suggested starting a new topic.

I've been struck by how casual games seem to be evolving. Some of the games ("Azada" for one) have apparently both a story and puzzles.

Do people think casual games will evolve into Adventure games in all but name?

Something I've always wondered -- do a lot of people play casual games BECAUSE they don't have a story? Is it too difficult to keep track of a story when you only play a game, say, once a week?

Does the very idea of "casualness" mean that a complex story won't be welcomed by the gamer? Or does the idea of "casualness" mean more about the interface (you can pick up this game and play it without having to study the manual and tweak the controls and then having to practice just to move around in the game).

It might be interesting to see if the casual games that are popular/bestselling on a site like Big Fish trend more and more toward those that are experimenting with adding stories. If they have puzzles and a story, but no gameworld to explore, are they still not technically an adventure game?

I don't want to see casual games evolving into adventure games at all. The reason I like casual games, to pick up your point Becky, is that the interface is easy & I can play for a few minutes up to a few hours every now & then without having to worry about what I've forgotten in the storyline. I mainly play hidden object games - but also 1 or 2 time management ones e.g Diner Dash (there's not that many that appeal to me!) I think it adds a a little if there is a thread of a story running through it - but to be quite honest I wouldn't care if there wasn't! For me casual games are a nice diversion when I haven't got the time to launch 100% into an adventure game. They are my preference but, I get more out of playing them when I can play consistently - they are like a good book in that if you put it aside for a few days it loses the flow a little & you find yourself having to flip back to remind yourself of the plot.

I am obviously behind - what's a "casual" game?

Christine, Wikipedia defines casual games as



They include games such as the hidden pictures, match 3, card games, etc.

For my part, I like the pick up/put down nature of casual games, but really enjoy the ones with a good story thread running through it. The first casual game I played was Ravenhearst, and I was really hooked on it.

ces, come check us out Here.

Ana

Big Fish Games now list some Adventure games on their site. I get a feeling that casual game developers are looking for something to differentiate a new game from the ones that have gone before.

The timing of this thread is perfect. One of my adventure games just went on Playfirst yesterday, and so far the reaction has been... mixed. Mostly negative, I admit, but I was expecting a weird reaction because its a totally different audience.

The casual market and the adventure game audience do overlap a bit. Alot of adventure gamers are in that "game boomer" demographic (i.e., 40 and above), but that's because most of them they played adventure games when they were younger. The hardcore casual gamers only started in the last couple of years, so they've never played an adventure game before.

Of course, this is all based on of reading the reactions to the game on the hardcore casual websites over the last 24 hours, so I could be totally off base. Still, the comments they are giving the game are interesting, even if they are 75% negative. At least I'm learning something about the casual market.

I think, as the casual games become more and more popular, we'll see more adventure games try to become more "casual like".

I like your games, Dave, and have bought both Blackwell games.

That's very interesting Dave - 25% positive I would say is not bad in that context. A space to be watched!

I don't know if it's accurate to say that casual games will evolve into adventure games. I think it's just a matter of what can be downloaded in a reasonable amount of time. Any genre that can get their games small enough to be put on a portal will end up there.

Sure, some of the newer titles are using AG elements, but many are also using RPG elements, strategy game elements, etc. I see casual games as being a huge umbrella - not a genre in itself, under which are all of the other genres are sitting. LOL, that's probably why when you go to a portal, you see all of the games broken out into their genres (Arcade, Puzzle, Strategy, etc.):)

Thanks JennyP, that's kind of you to say.

And Peter - good point. As I said it's only been up for 24 hours, so it's hard to make judgements quite yet.

As for the topic at hand, old-school RPGs have made a major splash in the casual space. Well, one has anyway. The success of Aveyond is an inspiration.

To me "casual game" simply means that it can be played in shorter increments of time, also I guess that it has easy controls/interface. So under my guidelines (which granted are just the ones I've made up), a true adventure game could never be a casual game.

I think just because a game is available for download, does not make it a casual game. I know some sites that are primarily casual games sites also have games for download that I would not consider casual.

All just my opinion, of course.

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I don't think Casual Games will evolve into Adventure Games, but it is entirely possible that some Casual Gamers will evolve into Adventure Gamers after they have played The Blackwell Legacy.

There is an interesting article on Gamezebo that I found to relate to this discussion. I especially found paragraph 9 and 10 quite interesting.

Ana

Thanks for that Ana, relevant indeed! My gaming is escapism for me.