At what point does an adventure game become an action/adventure game for you?

Give examples of games that fall on both sides of your boundary line.

Ooooh. Good question. This one will take some thought.

Timed puzzles! I'm a purist!!!!

Examples?
Are you saying Myst is an action/adventure because of the Channelwood elevator?
What about the Gabriel Knight games? All had timed sequences. Are they all action/adventures then?

This is the kind of thing I'm getting at.
Where do you draw the line?

The Harry Potter games and Arabian Nights are action/adventure in my book. I play them and often wish I could get further than I do, but I'm a real geek when it comes to combat and quite frankly I stink at it.

Timed sequences are usually annoying to me and usually I don't see the point of them in most adventure games but if there's only a few I guess they are still (loosely) adventure.

Where to draw the line? Well, I wish there were none in an adventure game at all, but I am starting lately to read the reviews looking for action/timed sequences and not rushing out to buy games that contain more than a couple of them.

happy trails,

Carolyn

The way I class a game to be action/adventure is any game where I have to fight using more than one click of the mouse, to defeat my enemy, and have to fight most of the way through it.

I'm not explaining this very well am I? My examples are, I think the King's Quest series were adventures, up until King's Quest 8, which I would definitley call an action/adventure.

I would class the Blair Witch games as action/adventure too, even though I quite enjoyed them.

But I would class Gabriel Knight games as adventure

Sue

If I have to shoot something or avoid getting shot, or have to jump, run, etc then I don't buy that game.
Timed puzzles may not be "action" in my book, but I avoid them too.

Many games I've played had a small amount of action in them, but I would still consider them adventures. The action parts stick out like a sore thumb because I find action generally difficult and frustrating. Here's some that come to mind:
Gabriel Knight games : Having a timed action ending was stressful, and didn't seem to fit with the rest of the game. The absolute worst sequence for me was the pendulum in GK3. I spent the better part of 2 hours on that one sequence.
Tex Murphy games : Each of the ones I've played had stealth/action in them. Probably any more and I would have called them action/adventure.
Traitor's Gate : Here's another one that was borderline for me.
The Watchmaker and The Ward : Both of those had action end sequences that necessitated getting a saved game for me to finish.
Uru Chronicles: this is a true action/adventure in my book. It took me about a year to finish this. The action bits would get me so frustrated, that I would have to let the game go for a while. The only reason I persisted
was that I loved the environments (and the fact that it was a Myst game )

Action in adventure games is a very hot topic right now in some of the other gaming forums.
The problem I have with action is that it always relies on your reflexes. Many times you know what has to be done. For example in Uru, you need to jump to a rock. If you can't get the timing right, you fail. No walkthrough can help you with that task.
The other aspect of action is that it often accompanies 3D games. I guess they figure if they give you this huge environment to explore, jumping and moving things would be interesting challenges.
Lastly Action and 3D usually means keyboard control. I prefer to play point and click games.

Well, good question Jenyy100!
Personally, I feel that timed actions, as in: if you don't sneak out quick enough, or you don't move to the right spot quick enough, and it goes without saying any...any....defeating a bad guy scene...is action! I didn't consider the getting key from the track, in The Longest Journey an action thing...that was logical! So I would say, as far as timed goes...if it defeats you, in timing, it's action!
And that's my 2 cents worth!

I agree with the other opinions so far. I find it extremely frustrating and don't finish a lot of great games when I get stuck because of a timed action sequence.

GK1, Tex Murphy UAKM, Shivers 2 and a lot of other games are sitting unfinished on my computer until I finally beat them right now.

Melanie

Melanie, you leave the games unfinished in your computer? I could never do that. If I can't finish it then out it goes. More games then I like to admit were uninstalled because of my inability to get through a scene.
If I truly love the game I'll ask for a save game but not too often. I am not quick enough for action games thats for sure. Many adventure games have action in them now so I'm waiting till I read reviews or get some opinions here.

Hi, Jenny!

I'd say KQ8 and the Alone in the Dark series would be considered action/adventure games because there was combat from start to finish. There were a few action sequences in the Tex Murphy and Gabriel Knight series, but 99% of the games were adventure.

Susan

I do leave them, Doreen. I go back to them periodically to try again. If I really get frustrated I ask for a save game but since I can never wait for one to arrive and have so many unplayed games waiting that I can't wait to get into, I start new ones in between.

The only times I remove a game is when it has too much action to bother with getting saves constantly and that's the only way I can get through it, I don't like the game, or I'm doing my cleanup routine before installing something really huge and my hard drive is less than 40% empty.

Melanie

Edit: Or if I finished the game and won't be replaying for a while.

maybe we should reclassify action into 2 parts, true action ie shooting, fighting etc and skill action ie jumping etc!!

I have the same problem with URU, just can't get into the rhythm of jumping at a specific time and in a particular way... The Atlantis games have fights where you can get killed...

It's an action-adventure if I can only get through it in god mode. (Star Trek: Hidden Evil)

It's action-adventure if the movement challenges are consistently more difficult than the puzzle challenges. (The Harry Potter games)

It's action-adventure if there are level end-bosses that require repeated "hits" to defeat. (Rayman: The Great Escape)

It's action-adventure if there are frequent episodes of player-controlled combat. (Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace)

It's NOT an action adventure solely because there are timed puzzles or a handful of physical or stealth challenges. I think Broken Sword 3, Ring II, and Uru, for instance, are adventure games.

adventure games with isolated pieces of action i do not consider action adventures. sure i may need a save to get past them but that is because i have terrible reflexes and have no control with a mouse.

adventure games with action sequences include uru, wanted, broken sword 3

action adventures would be lemony snicket, arabian nights, outcast, realms of the haunting , silent hill series

That is a good way to split em!!!

I pretty much agree with Becky: it's action/adventure if the skill/timing/dexterity challenges consistently outweigh or overshadow the mental challenges. Also if your exploration of new territory seems devised simply to locate new means of blowing things up and new terrors to avoid and/or destroy. I don't relish timed activities in my adventure games, but I can deal with one or two.

I guess another thing I notice is that in what I would term adventure games it is at least theoretically possible to get through the timed or action sequence the first time, whereas action oriented games make that impossible. There's a steep learning curve and you have to practice over and over again to get the pattern/coordination etc. just right. I like to feel, when I'm playing a game, that "this is an experience I could actually have and succeed/survive." When you die over and over again just to learn the task, it destroys the reality: this is something (dying over and over) that you actually don't get to do in reality. One death is it.

Action adventure: Thorgal's Quest (EEEWWW!), Traitor's Gate. Those are the two that really, really stand out for me--the two that purported to be adventure and just weren't. Atlantis I (The lost tales) is skirting the edge, too.

WW

I take each game individually. For example, before I bought Sherlock Holmes: The Silver Earring, I read the reviews that said there were a couple really tedious timed sequences. But I like the idea of a Sherlock Holmes game (or any detective) that I bought it anyway. Then I yelled at my computer the whole time I was trying to evade that stupid dog. On the other hand, if a review mentions that there are numerous timed sequences - especially if they could result in death - forget it.

As far as fighting: If the review talks about defeating enemies, monsters, etc. - I won't buy it. I won't buy a game if the review mentions anything about weaponry. There are a few games I've played where I've used a gun, for example the Blue Dahlia when you have to shoot a gun once. But when I bought The Messenger, started to play it and realized that the game required stealth and lots of weapons - well, it's in my "sell it" pile.

As far as arcade games - well, I think that all the Nancy Drew games have some type of arcade game. But I like those games so I play them and swear a lot. I also swear at the timed sequences - especially when I can't finish the game. Every time that happens (ND: Blackmoor, for one), I tell myself I'll never by another ND game - but I will. But on the whole, I won't buy games that have arcade games - I just don't have the speed or flexibility.

Another type of game that I will not buy is any game that uses the keyboard and not the mouse. So no Grim Fandango for me. I just have a heck of a time maneuvering the characters. Then I become too frustrated and quit the game - Broken Sword 3 is a prime example. I didn't know it was keyboard only, played it up until Nico has to avoid being killed, and now it's in that pile with the Messenger.

After being disappointed so many times, now I read as many reviews of each game that I can to make sure that it is likely that I will finish the game.

tuesday next

As much as I'm not fond of timed sequences, I would not consider an adventure game with a few timed puzzles an action-adventure. Myst 4 is an adventure game.

The Feeble Files, The Space Bar, and Dracula: The Last Sanctuary are adventures with action. There are some timed bits in which you can die, but the learning curve isn't steep.

I would agree with WW that Traitor's Gate is an action-adventure, but I think it's just over the edge into action. Much of the game involves inventory collecting and exploring, but stealth with a time limit is required in several spots, and there is some (thankfully) easy shooting. Other than the online game, Pharoah's Tomb, I haven't played any other's which I would call action-adventures.

Edit: Tuesday Next,
The Messenger is a fairly easy adventure game with a couple of timed spots. Once you know what to do, the game gives you plenty of time to complete the timed sequences. (I always completed the timed sequences on my second try.) The crossbow is used mostly with the grappling hook for climbing, and the knife is used for breaking and entering. All you have to do is click the inventory items in the correct spot and anything that needs to be done is accomplished with a cut scene.

WW, are you sure of that? I wonder if on Trail's Planet they get more than one? Are they clones? Does that count? And how bout monky's--since they seem to be a whole new species (see other thread for this astounding announcement)--what is their life cycle like?

So do you think all of these games are action/adventures?

I cannot tell a lie, I shot at least a couple of guys with my crossbow. So sorry...........

happy trails,

Carolyn

Jenny100 - Maybe this is a cop-out answer but, if I play them, they're adventure; if I refuse to play them, they're action. Seriously, of the games I mentioned, I would call them adventure with minimal action - one or two timed sequences, cannot die, and I'd allow ONE arcade game. Black Dahlia is straight adventure - the one sequence where you have to shoot the bad guy is pretty much a no-brainer. Once you know where to shoot it's really easy.

But I played the first two Gabriel Knights (I could never finish the third) and I don't remember any timed sequence in the first (doesn't mean it wasn't there since I have the memory capacity of a gnat), but I remember a timed sequence at the end of the second. With that I just grabbed my WT and followed it to get me through it. In fact, if I know there are any timed sequences in a game, I'll go straight to a WT to get me through it. I know this is silly to others - but my anxiety level goes sky high when I do any type of action at all. It makes the gaming experience very unenjoyable for me. For example, ND:Blackmoor was completely ruined for me because I couldn't get the $^%& oil in the hole in the floor and couldn't finish the game (I think I played that before becoming a member of GB - otherwise I would have begged for a save).

Did that answer your question? In fact, what was the question?

In GK1 there's one time where you have to get something in an office while a person isn't looking. Later on you are chased around by evil mummies in some sort of tomb.

I do that too, not because of anxiety but because I want to get the %$@! thing over with as soon as possible.