Not 2, Not 3, Not 10... Just ONE!!!

I know this is a toughie.... but name me your ONE ULTIMATE ALL-TIME Favorite Game! And i would love to know the reasons too of cuz....

Ok. Here's the Tablet of Truth!!!

******** THE TABLET OF TRUTH ********
i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i

• American McGee's Alice - 1

• Deus Ex - 1

• Divine Divinity - 3

• Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within - 3

• Grim Fandango - 1

• Journeyman III: Legacy of Time - 1

• King's Quest 2 - 1

• Myst(Masterpiece) - 1

• Myst III: Exile - 1

• Phantasmagoria - 1

• Rama - 1

• RealMyst - 2

• Riven - 3

• Rollercoaster Tycoon - 2

• Syberia - 1

• Tex Murphy: Pandora Detective - 1

• The 11th Hour - 1

• The Last Express - 1

• The Longest Journey - 4 **

• Thief Gold - 1

• Zork: Nemesis - 4 **

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RealMyst.

American McGees Alice. Excellent in every aspect. And Fun! Fun! Fun! Serious Sam is a close runner up too for the fun factor. This is overall. If youre talking just adventure it would have to be TLJ. PS Havent you learned to never say "just one".

Now, you just said "game" so I can give my favorite "Thief Gold". Some people say that isn't an adventure game but its adventure/action.
Why my favorite? Because I never get tired of replaying this game (with pregnant intervals) and always find it challenging. It, along with its sibling Thief II and many of the Thief Fan Missions, are the only games I have been so engrossed in that hours pass before I reluctantly turn it off until another day.

Easy for me. The Last Express. I found it totally engrossing. The real time aspect really put me inside the game. It was plenty challenging such that I had to really think about events and goals before realizing what needed to be done or tried. I liked the story, characters and music. The intelligent rewind feature would take me back to the point I needed to be to do something differently or go someplace different. Finally, I like the nostalgia of trains.

Divine Divinity. Reason - it was engrossing and fun to play and had a great story. Only negative thing I can say about it is the long time it took to load and save games.

If you mean just from the adventure genre - I guess The Longest Journey would qualify.

Riven.
It was the first adventure game I played. I was fascinated by this other world where I could explore to my hearts content. There was so much to see and experience. I was immersed in another culture, gathering information from abandoned buildings and manipulating gadgets, the function of which I would eventually discover. This was the epitomy of the gaming experience for me, and the standard by which I judge all the other games I play.

colpet took the words right out of my mouth. The tram, the Sunners, the submarine, touching the beetle and the marble puzzle to name a few had me in awe.

~Dee

Impossible for me to do. I might be able to narrow it down to four or five, but which one is my favorite depends on what I am in the mood for on any given day. If I want to laugh, it's Curse of Monkey Island. If I am in the mood to squirm it's Sanitarium. If I'm in the mood to puzzle it's Riven. If I feel like mystery and derring-do then it might be The Last Express or, if I'm more in the mood for a boat than a train today, Titanic: Adventure Out of Time.

They are all my favorite. On any given day.

I find naming one almost impossible. Even the twisty list's 15 is too few. I have played so many different kinds of games over the years and yet each had some great aspect that made the game memorable. If I really had to give every adventure game away except for 1, I would keep TLJ. The ending just awed me and I loved the fantasy aspect of the game. (Of course, I would have stashed Zork GI, The Crystal Skull, Nancy Drew, Curse of MI, Dracula, Sanitarium, Timelapse, etc. where they wouldn't see that I still had them )

Now Burpee, Shame Shame.

Myst, probably the Myst Masterpiece Edition version, though I like realMyst a lot. It's not the only game out there and it's not the best game out there. I like and love so many other games now, and they aren't all lonely 1st person games, either.

BUT, Myst became my world. It still is my world. I feel as if I've been there. I have memories, just like in the "real" world.

Well.. All time favorite GAME makes it difficult. I'm going to have to say Rollercoaster Tycoon..

For favorite adventure, defintely Grim Fandango though

If I have to pin it down to just one, I'd have to say "Riven". It was the second adventure game I ever played (after Myst) and I was just enthralled to think that people could create such magical worlds for us to explore right there on our own computers.

You know I was addicted to RCT for a whole year. I had parks hundreds of years old with millions of dollars to play with. That was probably the most addicting game of all time for me, and I still check on my parks every now and then. If I would have thought of it, it probably would have made it more difficult to choose Alice. Another one was Ultimate Ride. I also adored that game.

Oh no! How can I pick, between TLJ, Syberia, Curse of Monkey Island, Sanitarium, Jazz and Faust and Blackstone Chronicles? Okay..pick ONE huh? I pick...TLJ! Final answer!
Why? The story was very interesting, the character (April) was written so well, that I actually started to think of her as a person! The puzzles were very logical and fit well with the story...All in all...a game that I was deeply involved with...loving April made me want to help her succeed! And I cried several times in this game...which means it was emotional...how can you NOT love a game that is emotional?
Now...Senor Calavera, it's only fair that you tell yours! AND why!!

I agree with Burpee and Titan, One game!! I had a chore just narrowing it down to top 15!

That would be like saying one book, one song or one movie. Isn't going to happen.

Depends on my intertests and mood that week I suppose.

Laura

I totally agree. To name just one is to slight all the others you love.

Now if you wanted me to name just one of every type, that task would be some easier. Although for funny games, it would still be tough, because how can you pick between the MI series or Grim Fandango or Sam & Max?

This just makes my head spin to even attempt it. I must go lay down to avert a headache.

Zork Nemesis............although Riven is a tight second!

Nemesis was my first adventure game, and although it had a very dark storyline, I found it absolutely fascinating. I loved all the interaction, all the puzzles. I had never realized these types of games existed! (Of course, I never touched a computer, period, prior to about 3 years ago! ) Nemesis hooked me on adventure gaming AND it is the reason I found Gameboomers!

Divine Divinty - was my first RPG and has made the one's I've played since pale in comparison. It is also a great game for RPG newbies.

Kim

First of all, i know it's . In your quest for the Holy Grail im sure sum of you will <img border="0" alt="" title="" src="graemlins/cry.gif" /> , others mite even be ! But let me assure you, it was never <img border="0" title="" alt="[Razz]" src="tongue.gif" /> of me to see you <img border="0" alt="" title="" src="graemlins/woozy.gif" /> . Heeeeeeee..... maybe just a lil.

My choice: ~Grim Fandango~
i have to admit that im just starting out. i haven't played many MANY of the games i have read about here. Let me put it this way: i wouldn't be here chatting about gaming without Manny. On a side note, i would like to talk about my pre-conceived notions about PC Games before GF; i thought it was "uncool", "a plain waste of time" and reeking of geekdom. And then, getting introduced to Manny changed all that. im fascinated with the badly-3D-rendered character that laid before my eyes. Manny possesses an unassuming charm; knowing his place in the world, both sarcastically-witty and world-weary at the same time like a melancholic shrugging his shoulders in the cold air with a dangling cigarette for a companion(James Dean comes up, yes?), aware of all the temptations and trappings of the world that he could have easily succumbed like many before him but tired as he may be, chooses to do good in search of a hope; a hope that things will change(like Benecio del toro's character in the film Traffic) and then realises that he can't change the world but he can change the immediate world around him and that lies in that thing called Love, with Meche.... And as i watch the Mariachi band of calaveras walk off before the credits come up, i knew i was very VERY wrong about gaming(even extended to sum other things in life); that maybe it was i who was losing out by not giving myself a chance at new experiences. After playing GF, i thought to myself what a great "INTERACTIVE FILM" this game was. And im hooked. GF would have made a GREAT animated film that will make both the commercial studios AND the critics happy.....

I'd have to say Deus Ex is my favorite game of all time and I can't wait for the sequel, which is coming out later this year. But if I can squeeze in this: Infocom's Zork trilogy is the standard by which I measure greatness, Planescape Torment was painfully emotional because of its great story and writing, and American McGee's Alice was so much fun and so disturbing at the same time, that I thought about that game for days after.

Gabriel Knight 2 The Beast Within. Great plot, character development, and the enjoyment of playing the game as both Grace and Gabriel.

Senor Calavera, that was very interesting insight to your feelings about gaming in general. I believe that those are some of the same feelings that I have with a game when I am loving it. There have been so many that made me feel that way while playing and why I can't name just one.

Outcast had the best ending in a game that I have seen to date. I actually cried! A nice long ending too.

Faust brought weirdness to the forefront in this game. Cool music with disturbing feelings while playing it.

I can replay indefinitely, the Tomb Raider series and they are the only games that I have ever replayed...yet.

Curse of Monkey Island is very funny but you must think "outside the box" to solve the puzzles.

Myst Exile has that peaceful, unhurried feeling and beautiful graphics with involving puzzles.

The Crystal Skull is a full motion video game. Corny but made me laugh.

The Longest Journey made me really care what happened to April.

Now, I ask you, how can a person pick just one? (Asked while guarding my teetering tower of games with a shotgun)

My all-time favorite and most replayed game is JOURNEYMAN III (LEGACY OF TIME).

I never tire of the beautiful graphics and the fascinating characters...the beloved side-kick Arthur and the wonderful Ferryman--even the "evil" Genghis Khan. They have all become like old friends to me and each time I replay the game I look forward to meeting them once again.
Cynch

All these modern high falootin' games listed and I have to say King's Quest 2. It was the first adventure game I ever played and it got me hopelessly hooked on graphic adventures.

I had a computer for word processing mainly and I heard about something new called King's Quest that everyone was talking about. The only one I could find was King's Quest 2 and I'm glad because it was much better than KQ1 and I got so absorded in the game that I worked around the clock on it. I missed getting the correct thing from a horse and spent days trying to squeeze through poison vines in the vampires castle until I finally got a hint from Sierra and found that had I handled the horse correctly I could get a potion or something (don't remember now) that made me immune to the poison.

There have since been much better games with great graphics, puzzles and all but it's because Roberta Williams paved the way with here King's Quest games.

That's why I have to say that my all time favorite is my first, King's Quest 2.

If we're talking current games that have given me the most enjoyment and consumed my time the most it would have to be Morrowind because it is long, involved and very replayable.

Matt and I played this game together and we both wept at the ending. Actually I am glad that didn't come out with the proposed sequel. I thought the game ended with such clarity and greater resolution than most games.

Amazing game .. amazing.

Laura

for adventure game, that would be easy: The Longest Journey. but there are so many other great ones too.

but if you include all games ever played. I couldn't pick one. There are just so many wonderfull RPG's i have played over the years there is no way to say which one is my favorite.

Senor>>>>
Would you be really ticked off if I could NOT say ONE....many GB's have given some good games and I can think of several that are so close together that to name one I would have a cow in naming just one (plus I would feel like I betrayed the other games).
Ok...Ok Senor Calavera which is a good game but <drum roll, please> the one I would have to say is THE BEST is ZORK NEMESIS !! There..I just Pi--ed off aboubt 20 other games.
The reason would be that it had some very good puzles in it (the best part was that some of the puzzles were connected to a person you were to help). and All the 4 person's puzzles gave you clues to the WHOLE story/game. You first had to solve a puzzle to help a person then go their "land", then solve more puzzles to "awaken them". The game also had a great twist at the end that forced you to make a crucial decision.....BASED on trust. Truly a great game, not too hard but not too easy either and the fact that it had many layers in it added to the suspense and fun of the game itself. I have played this game several times and still get a twinge when trying to awaken someone to get to their land, I also get a twinge in the monestary (one part being the rope puzzle), the auditorium (orchestra puzzle to turn up lights ) or the sanitariam/hospital puzzles !!!!!!
I think that all of the Zork series should be counted as one as they play on one another and the same land..But I'll be fair and say Just "Zork Nemesis" ARRRRGGGGHHH!!!
Senor...if I cant get my other games to play for me now becasue I ticked them of...I'll be sure to mention your name and e-amil ..so they can tell you themselves how mad they are !! LOL
VERY GOOD QUESTION !!!! I commend you !!
Take Care...I wish you had put a vote in for hardest puzzle as I would have liked to know your answer... if you get this and can give me an answer before I make my final tally I'll take it but I'm going to to that right now>>>>so HURRY !!
hanksdog

This one's easy for me - Rama.

[...waits for boos to die down]

I know, I know, I can choose almost any area (graphics, acting, plot,...) and easily name several different games that surpass it. But I loved that game and can remember how thrilling it was to figure out another piece or to suddenly discover another section. Those were my kinds of puzzles.

Pandora: See my comments about Rama in the "Games I Didn't Finish" thread. hehehehehehe

Okay, Pandora, I thought I liked you. Now, it seems you are trying to steal my man.

Innocent! I'm innocent! Look up my last year's Top 15 in the archives! (This year's list was different - top 15 recommendations for newbies.) And I just looked at that "Games I didn't finish" thread. He doesn't say he particularly likes Rama, he just defended it.

So you can keep on liking me, Lucky's Rainbow!

Ya'll are all too much!!!!

But.... you'll also see Rama made my list in the "Who Is This New Guy?" thread. I loved loved loved this game. Smart-but-fair puzzles and an intriguing plotline. And only Journeyman Project 3 did as good a job of blending FMV and drop-dead gorgeous rendered backdrops and animation. My only quibble was the limit on how many "moves" you could make once the nuke was armed.

And bake all ya want, Pandora, I know how delicious LR's chicken pot pie is. The crowbar doesn't exist that is strong enough to pry me away.

I just cant do it, I would have to list probably 5.

Now there are some phenomenal games out there these days, and I have to admit that Syberia is breathtakingly beautiful, but... no game can compete with The 11th Hour. I loved playing against Stauff, with his taunting and rideculously difficult puzzles. To this day I still hum "If you only had a brain!".

Silver

gabriel knight 2. that game is perfection, IMO.

(okay, except for what happened at the very end btwn gabe and grace... or to be more precise, what *didn't* happen...)

emily

All-time favorite would have to be Syberia!

Uhm, SenorCalavera, I somehow showed up in your Greatest Games list
I'll have to see who voted for me .

I'll vote for you, Colpet!

Oh me Three - Woot! Go Colpet. :kiss:

Laura

Heeeeeeeeee...... Colpet gone! (Pains me to do that Colpet) Too late over at this part of the rock...

Just read that Joe Napolitano(Director of the X-Files) did Zork:Nemesis. wow.

Wow, didn't think we were voting on gameboomers people now! Nope, can't do it - I like you all!

I'm sticking with my choice for absolute favorite game, though Manny Calaveros (from Grim Fandango) has a special place in my heart. I really like him.

On Manny, notice how he's really a city guy? I think of him as a bit of a dandy, except he doesn't have a choice of wardrobe! He doesn't like to get dirty, I remember that from the game. He also seems so right, running a nightclub.

I also like the atmosphere, the afterworld is not how I pictured it. I remember an early bar scene. It looked like a 50s beat scene in Mexico - the dark bar, the black clothes, the beat poetry, the cigarettes. Inspired!

Just when I was starting my own fan club!

I`m guessing you all know whats my favorite. Check my signature *hint* *hint*

Riven

Divine Divinity. Has a huge amount of humor so lacking in most games, and never takes itself too seriously; exceptionally easy learning curve; intelligent and sometimes playful AI, open ended skills, great amount of interactivity, seamless world to romp in, and a huge dollop of charm.

Boy, there have been a lot of good ones, but I'd have to say Tex Murphy - Pandora Directive. (even though I only played it once, when it was 1st released)

Louis

Since we can't pick Colpet--GK2 is my favorite... :kiss:

Its tough to pick just one--sometimes you need humor, sometimes a good scare

Phantasmagoria..........cuz it's FMV and that is the coolest of the cool.......especially when it first came out......wow, was I impressed!!!!!!

Zork Nemesis, for the sheer beauty of it, when I was brand-new to gaming. Had just finished Myst, and didn't find anything that held up visually to 'til then. Was probably only my 4th or 5th game, and it had just come out, so there was lots of fun interaction on the boards. Sure knocked my socks off.
Loved the "real" people in it (how many, I think about 8 characters, between the wicked sorcerors or whatever they were, and the entombed "good guys"- compared to Myst's 3 people).
Se

I still love Myst/realMyst best of all.
(and I consider Riven part2 of the story)


(Zork:Nemesis made a strong impression on me too when I played it. Very involving!)

Myst III: Exile

The reasons are almost too many to mention. Great story, very immersive, beautiful worlds, fully 360 degree movement, incredible artwork, just all-around amazing. Challenging puzzles that made me actually think and made me feel proud when I solved them. I just don't think there has ever been a better game, although there are other games that I loved ALMOST as much....it will always be my number one.

TLJ, and yes it has flaws, but it just draws you into the story, and has you rooting for April Ryan. Definitely my numero uno!

GF is a great collection of American pop culture retro-isms. That Blue Casket Café features open mic nite for poetry readings with bongos & finger-snapping. It just reeks of '60s beatniks at Greenwich Village(not that im from that era! but 'lest thats how hip i imagined it to be!). There's sumthing benevolent about Manny as well; being both a big biznessman and being part of Salvador's Revolutionaries. Heeeheee Could it be possible- A biznessman with a soul??? (In Casablanca, Rick, played by Bogart, runs his own café as well as "running guns" for the revolutionaries which he insists on not taking credit by claiming he was merely doing it for the money) Glottis himself is into the whole HotRod sub-culture; the clothes, living&breathing custom cars, always talking about "upgrades", never satisfied....



Looks like TLJ & Zork:Nemesis are tied at 4votes! Just got my Zork:NM from the mailman yesterday: and im... done! its alrite.

"Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time". Quality production, well written, great beginning and great ending.

AAh, Peter, you have GREAT taste!!!!

Well I have to say ......Amber Journeys Beyond!
It was my first game I ever played ad I really enjoyed it.! I have a whole list of others that I liked but I think because it was my first adventure game I put it #1 on my list.!

Timmy says he likes Gabriel Knight 1 Sins of the Father the best.! ALthough he did not like when he had to leave the room between days because of the video clips.!!

I thought the dreams Gabriel Had were a little too much for a 6 year old.!

Kellee & Timmy

I had given up adventure gaming for a couple of years... and then I played

Curse of Monkey Island

and I haven't been away since.