Thoughts,Comments,and Surprises About The List

I was wondering if you had as many problems as I did in coming up with your twenty choices for the list. Why did you vote the way you did and what games did you feel bad about having to leave off your list?

The biggest surprise for me personally is that Gabriel Knight 2 "The Beast Within" is still the number one game for me. The game is 14 years old and usually my favorite games are the puzzle games with humor. This was the first game I ever played that I actually cared about the characters as if they were real people. I also loved that you get to play the game as two different characters. The map feature that let you know if you still had tasks to complete in an area was also very helpful. I really can't say enough about how awesome the plot was in not just this game but the entire Gabriel Knight series. If you have not played any of the Gabriel Knight games please do yourself a favor. You will be glad you did.

As far as the rest of my list since I enjoy the puzzle games with humor so it was easy for me to list the Monkey Island, Discword, Simon the Sorcerer, Day of the Tentacle, Ankh, Tony Tough and Fable games.

Black Mirror, Broken Sword "Circle of Blood"
and Secret Files Tunguska were all games that I thought had excellent plots.

I loved how different Grim Fandango and Runaway were from any other games I had played before.

Legend of Kyrandia Book One and The Longest Journey were games that I found visually stunning with great plots and music that really added to the gaming experience.

The last game I listed does not really stand up to todays graphic standards but the game was so funny and the puzzles were so wicked that I just wanted to cast a vote for Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders.

There were so many games that I wanted to cast a vote for but didn't have the room. It was tough not to vote for Syberia, Dreamfall, and Sanitarium and I hated to leave them off my list but twenty picks goes fast.

Please let me know what you all think and if you could only list one game this year what would be your best game ever?

If I could choose just one game, it would be a struggle between TLJ and GK3. Yes, there are so many more games I could recommend. That's the problem with lists like this, different mood, different fav game! My advice, don't look at lists or reviews, just play all the AG's you can get.

I have a preference for strong story-type games, so it was very easy for me to recommend Culpa, The Longest Journey, Grim Fandango, and the Gabriel Knight games. These are definitely my favorites.

In fact, all of the games on my list have what I feel are very strong, engaging story lines, albeit for different reasons.

It was difficult for me to leave off Next Life (Reprobates) as I personally loved it, but it doesn't seem to be very well received in general. I also wanted to include Murder in the Abbey, but it is pretty vague in direction at times, so I eventually decided to leave it off.

I thought about including a Space Quest game or two, but as my list was already pretty Sierra heavy, I decided against it. Though I loved the Space Quest series, I preferred King's Quest overall.

I also would have loved to have included Zak McKracken, but it seems as though it would be difficult to find nowadays, so I ended up leaving it off as well. Glad to see it got a vote, though.

After spending hours being totally ruthless I got my list down to 64 !!!!



So it was back to the drawing board - and what a painful experience THAT was

I think the year had been a respectable year for the genre. Coverage by mainstream press was still poor, though games from Telltale and Her Interactive managed to gain some traction for a few releases.

There had also been a significant uprising in the indie adventure scene. Developers such as Dave Gilbert and Jonathan Boakes are getting attention as poster boys for the genre.

Lastly, there was a slight shift in adopting the adventure genre to the causal game market. I am unsure if this has been a successful translation. It may be too early to tell for the genre. Chris Jones and Aaron Conners had launched a valiant effort with TCM.

This year may be a good year after all...

My problem is that when I finally finished my list and carefully reread it, it made no sense. There are old and new games of completely diffrent types. There are great stories and silly stories. There are great graphics and barely adequate graphics. I don't appear very consistant in what I like. (However, as usual, the first two games I wrote down were URU and Drowned God, which are both rather old about as dissimilar as games can get!)

There's nothing wrong with that, Haze. Unless you know the person's tastes, you might as well recommend a wide variety of games to try rather than just one sort. (I don't consider Uru to be very old either).

By the way, Haze, I notice you listed The Last Half of Darkness: Beyond the Spirits Eye twice. Did you mean for one of those to be The Last Half of Darkness: Shadows of the Servants?

Mad, I have the same problem. There are so many games I'd have liked to put on the list. I didn't have any room for any of Jon Boakes' games, for example, and my only current game was Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper. And I'd like to have recommended ALL the old LucasArts adventures, not just two of them.

The past few years have seen me play fewer games, so my lists were relatively similar. This year did present a quandary as I thought Outcry needed to be on there. I printed up a list of all my played games, then quickly went through and underlined the memorable ones - 30 games. Then I went back and picked the ones that I had fun with the most. My end result was different from last's years by 5 games, but we could pick 21 last year.
Alida, Amber, Beyond Atlantis, Morpheus and Under a Killing Moon,
were replaced by Outcry, Shivers 1 and 2, and Timelapse.
I still have a large proportion of older games, most are before 2000. I do have a lot of unplayed games with 'list potential' - Rhem 3, Myst 5, Rhiannon, Darkness Within, Beyond the Spirit's Eye - but by the time I get to playing them, they wil be older games too.
One thing that's caught my eye in the 2009 list so far is the multiple mentions of Yoomurjak's Ring. Pretty good for a download only game.
One other thing that is useful about the lists, is that I get to see who has similar tastes to mine (ex. Greyfuss, Jenny100). Then when they post about games they like or dislike, I'm much more interested in their comments.

I have the same proplem and so decided to only included 1 from each series -e.g. Syberia 1 but not 2 - I hope that the friend who I send the list to will get a taste of the wide variation of adventure games and will be able to buy the followups if they like the 1 st game.
I would liked to have included Discworld, Agatha Christe, Rama - the list goes on and on
I was so deep in thought about my list that I forgot that I'd put eggs on the stove to hard boil - thank heavens for smoke alarms

Old lady, you are not alone! Thinking about The List is very distracting.

colpet,

I do the same thing as you every year with the list. I always look at peoples lists who vote for the same style of games that I enjoy. Oldman, Mad, and Nickie seem to come to mind and I always scan their lists. It is really helpful every year to look at the results and try to find some hidden gems that I might of missed out on playing. I know Venus mentioned that she liked Zak McKracken so I need to eyeball her list too. I'm getting the feeling that I will have quite the list of must haves once the results are posted.

I am still struggling with my List! as I enjoy just about every game I play! I include just one of a series because if you like that you may be interested in the others & helps to free up space for other games! I thought I was nearly there until I read a post above mentioning a game that I just need to include There are others I would love to include like Outcry & Nextlife & some I have to let go but I have decided to let go of the one's where I've forgotten the plot - if I replay them again they will probably turn up again on next years list!

chrissie I am the same way. I had about fifty games that I wanted to vote for.

Well, this was my first time to try to make a list and I left off all games from the last millennium. Oops, not counting Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, but I'm a huge fan of Indy's and since I played that game 6 times (!) I felt it should get a mention. Otherwise, I'm going with today's games.

sierramindy I loved all the Indy games too. Fate of Atlantis really had some great puzzles.

Hi, Space Quest Fan,
Plus Fate of Atlantis also has that never-to-be-forgotten intro with the Indy music and Indy trying to find the artifact while falling through one trap door after another. I consider that a classic in its own right!

I'm still trimming and it's harder this year than ever. I've had to say goodbye to some old friends on my game lists that I have always been fond of because some new friends have come along.

There is always the first game I ever played that got me hooked into adventure gaming and I just can't remove it from my list as it would seem disloyal somehow.

I will eventually whittle it down to the top 20 but for a time I'm still holding on to some of the old memories.

"Plus Fate of Atlantis also has that never-to-be-forgotten intro with the Indy music and Indy trying to find the artifact while falling through one trap door after another. I consider that a classic in its own right! "

Oh, do I agree !!!!

When that game first came out I used to play the intro several times just because it was so darn good

Me too, Mad, that's why I remember it so well. Wonder how many others are out there who did the same thing?

Hi oldman,
Would it maybe help you to whittle your list if you decided to keep your old memories for yourself, while recommending your new memories to new gamers coming along? (Okay, I did go with Indy, but that was the exception.) That's what I tried to do because to my mind there really isn't much sense in recommending old games and ignoring the new ones. Besides if they get hooked on the new ones, they will certainly learn all about the old games. That's how I found out about George Stobbart from everybody posting about Broken Sword and the crates! That's a game that I missed during my hiatus away from games for several years.

If I left off games from the last millenium, I wouldn't have much on my list at all.
My newest games - Safecracker 2006, Outcry, Ghost in the Sheet,
The Lost Crown, Nancy Drew Castle Malloy and White Wolf of Icicle Creek - were all fun, but only Outcry made the grade.
It's pretty hard to find something I like when Riven is the game that I compare all the others to. As Mad said in the other thread, hopefully the games I like will become popular again and I'll have more to choose from.

If I could only list one game I would say Dreamfall is the best game ever.

It would be interesting to see the differences in individual peoples' "Most recommended games of all time" versus their "Most recommended games of the past 5 years." Even games as recent as Syberia and The Longest Journey would be excluded from such a list.


What about RHEM 3? That was 2007 and qualifies as new (I can't remember if you've played it or not. Is that why you didn't list it?) And those others you list didn't make it because of the competition... I also have many newer games that didn't make my list because of the competition with older games (that I honestly think are more enjoyable games). It's hard not to recommend a game with as many positive aspects as Gabriel Knight 2 or Obsidian over a game like Nancy Drew or Ghost in the Sheet (not that I didn't enjoy those games too -- and if limited to newer games some of them would be on my list). But the way I understand it, the Twisty List is a list of most recommended games for all time, not just recent games.

Yes, but why *recommend* an old game for a new gamer? I thought we were trying to encourage game developers here, not discourage them by repeating and repeating old stuff. Memories are strange things, they gain a halo over time, new games can't compete with that unfair competition!
I come from Sierra and LucasArts games, but I'm making room in my mind and heart for City Interactive, Atropos Studios, Wadjet Eye, and Bug Factory to mention a few of the new game developers out there. I want to encourage someone who is thinking of maybe making an adventure game to try, rather than decide that making a movie might be a better career move!

I would recommend an old game over a new game because it was a better game than a newer one. By recommending these older games perhaps developers will look to what made those old games great and use it an example for their new creations. By contrast, if we only recommended new games then new developers might think that this, in my opinion, "cookie-cutter" approach many seem to be taking is what all gamers prefer.

I'm trying to save it and play other, less compelling games right now. I also have Myst 5, Darkness Within, Rhiannon, and Beyond Spirit's Eye yet to be played.

Unfortunately, I don't play many new games anymore - too much dialogue, 3rd person inventory types - are not my cup of tea. Having said that, I did buy Immortals of Terra and Diamonds in the Rough, but I probably won't play them for a while.

And what they are, are open to your own viewpoint after taking into consideration Flotsam's opening comments! :

".....It isn't meant to be a list of the 20 best games of all time. It isn't meant to be Adventure Game 101. It might end up being both those things, but first and foremost it is a list of games that you would recommend to someone else to play.
For that reason, you might not include something that is notoriously difficult to get to run, or which has clunky graphics by today's standard, or has no sound apart from a tinny midi soundtrack. You might not recommend a game that you found awesomely wonderful on the basis that no one else has your particularly strange sense of appreciation. You might not recommend every Myst clone you have ever played because even though they are your passion, a whole list of them might be, well, a little dull.
Or you might - many players have old game rigs and there are numerous programmes that help get old games to run on new machines, who said you need flashy graphics to tell a good story, and perhaps elaborate soundtracks simply cover up the flaws in a bad script. There might be someone out there just like you who doesn't know about your awesome game, and too many Myst games is actually never enough.
The point is its up to you - if you think a game you have played is worth recommending to someone else to play, you can put it on your list......"

My question was WHY put those old games on the list and orchgamer gave a very good answer.
However, I'm not sure that a creative mind can use past games as a guide to what makes a game a favorite among many gamers, while other games don't even get a mention. Sometimes it is more a matter of luck than anything else, methinks. Like being in the right place at the right time or whatever. People have a way of jumping on the bandwagon of anything (movies, books, TV series) that gets a lot of publicity or word of mouth attention. They want to be "in the know" and go with the latest trend, regardless of its worth, that's immaterial. In other words, the media makes the choice and people copy it and think it is their own idea. Group think never is! However, it is safe and people do like that, nobody wants to stick their own neck out and be thought a fool. Not counting me, of course.
For those who are not even playing the new games, or have them in their "to be played" pile, the list is nothing but nostalgia for the good old days they so fondly remember.

Before this thread might get closed because the same old arguments seem to be starting up again ....

I just want to say that I, personally, don't choose ANY of the games on my list with developers in mind AT ALL.
And I don't understand why "developers" keep being dragged up in relation to it anyway.
The List was surely not conceived and instigated as a "message to developers"

With that in mind, I make a list which recommends particular games because I enjoyed playing them myself and feel that others might also.

[And whether the game is old or new, easily available or not, isn't a consideration because if a person really wants to play a game they will search for and somehow find a version and play it !! ]

Nor are my old games just pure nostalgia. I replay them constantly - between the newer and new games which may or may not in time also become treasured oldies themselves

And I certainly don't "jump on bandwagons"
I have a mind of my own and I have always used it to make my own decisions

There are over a thousand old games and, ehh, less newer ones.
A reason for recommending could also be to direct attention to a game that might stay unnoticed between all the famous ones.
I never thought of trying Return to Zork, but it appeared a few times already, so I might check it out (if I ever find it).
Personally I hope to find recommendations like that in the list.

I'm not sure yet if I will compile my list that way though. Somehow it feels better if it's just the 20 games I enjoyed most.
On the other hand, my taste in games is not shared by most, so maybe I should recommend the very few games I disliked (Gabriel Knight 3, Syberia)? I'm the one that thinks Escape from Monkey Island is the best in the series and The Sacred Rings surpassed Aura...
Decisions.

Anyway, to (not really) answer the original question: if I could list only one game it would be a tie between The Pandora Directive and Gabriel Knight 2.

Everybody's list is a personal and subjective group of games that they enjoyed enough to recommend to others. Trying to defend a list is like trying to defend a review. It is an opinion, and as such has as much value as everybody elses opinion. What criteria the list makers use is personal too. Nostalgia, technical issues, best puzzles, good voice acting, new games. etc. - it doesn't matter. The end result is having a say in this compilation that Flotsam generously donates time to. We are the one of the few (if not the only) adventure forum to do this. Let's be happy that we all have our say our way.

I agree colpet

And I am very happy too

So you still have a lot of bandwagons there in merry old England Mad?

A surprise for me is the amount of Syberia 2 votes. I found the first Syberia to be a very good game but I found number two a little dull. I also was thinking that Tunguska would get more votes.

"So you still have a lot of bandwagons there in merry old England Mad? "

Geo !!!!

There's at least another 2 weeks to go yet Gandalf!, so more votes for Tunguska may turn up or if not I think it's done okay in previous lists?

The best adventure games for is either TLJ or Overclocked.

Both games have the courage and the audacity to demand something of the gamers that play them; they're also somewhat creative, daring to try new things in adventure game genre. I like that

Well, that was fun reading, but jeepers, I thought all along that we gamers were of one mind in trying to get more people interested in adventure games and helping developers to put out the best games possible. That was a given, I thought, with everything else being ideas, opinions, and personal experiences which by its nature would have a lot of variety snd differences. I see no value in going backwards and frankly, I'm getting tired of good old Gabriel Knight. I even think that Jane Jensen would be happier if gamers moved on and let Gabe rest in peace. I'm sure if she was as crazy about making another GK game as some gamers are to play one, it would have been made already. Please, think about that for a few minutes anyway.

Gandolf

If others are like me I view Syberia and Syberia II as one game. Due to the rules of the list they had to be listed as 2 games. I don't see Syberia II as a stand alone game if you didn't play the first one. Can't really see it as a series but a climax to an epic journey.

sierramindy, if the lists contain many older games (and I do not know), there must be a reason. Could it be that many newer games do not measure up to the mark compared to older games as far as Boomers are concerned? The fact that Boomers are enthusiastic about the "Tex Murphy" games being available for XP makes a statement. There are probably a dozen recent games that Boomers have already forgotten. I do not believe that you will attract many new adventure gamers to second-rate games just because they are new. If you wish me to support studios that produce "Moment," "Overclocked," "Experiment," "Lost Crown," I will do so with enthusiasm, but do not expect me to encourage the studio that developed the boring puzzle game "Nikopol."

Right on, Gobobby, nobody should list second rate (in their opinion) games as that would not be in the spirit of the list. All of the games on my list are top-notch games! I enjoyed each and every one wholeheartedly, every bit as much as I enjoyed Gabe, Guybrush, Rosella, King Graham, and last but not least Indy!
BTW, the lists have helped me to find a game that I had meant to play but never found it at Amazon at the time and then forgot about it. Belief and Betrayal and it was mentioned on several lists. I checked out Becky's review and it sounds like a game I will like, which is what I remember thinking way back when it was first released.

sierramindy,

Every year I look at the results of the list and I never fail to find a game that garnered many votes that I had missed somehow. One year it was Sanitarium, and another year it was Amber. I remember I had never heard of AmerZone until I saw the list one year. I think I first heard of Moment of Silence and Black Dahlia from the list too. I am looking forward to finding another hidden gem on this years list.

Every year I always pay special attention to other Boomers lists who seem to share the same gaming interests as I do. I seem to like the third person games the best. The one thing I do know when the list is complete is that I am going to some extra cash for dealing with my serious case of baags.

I never did vote on the list, how do you place your votes?

Trinny, check the stickied topic near the top of the page - "2009 - The List Returns".

Thanks Rushes
I just now found it myself, I started at the bottom of the page and was working my way up. So I didn't see it at first.

I must say that I am surprised that Dreamfall does not seem to be getting many votes this year. I left it off my list this year but now I wish I would of voted for it.

I loved Dreamfall, Space Quest Fan, but have never included it in Flotsam's list because the interface is difficult & there are timed sequences. My view is that if The Longest Journey does well then perhaps players will be tempted to try!

I've been looking with interest at some of the older games that have been mentioned quite a few times in the lists! But I'm so far disappointed at the lack of enthusiasm for a lot of newer games - I can see that quite a few have been included in lists so far but not enough in comparison to the number that have been released over the last couple of years!

I had just as much difficulty in "leaving out" newer games as I did older ones - and I'm sure others did too ??

But I enjoyed more older ones so that's why there are more of them on my particular list

Gotta stay true to one's feelings

I like the older games for some reason. It also seems to me that the original game in a series is usually the best. I loved Syberia and Runaway but the sequels to these games were not very good at all. The one game I really wish that I had room on my list for was Secret Files 2.

chrissie,

I loved Dreamfall too but your right the keyboard and timed sequences did detract from the enjoyment of an otherwise excellent game.

Dreamfall's interface was not very good but the game was so good I had to include it on my list. I really am surprised that Syberia 2 is getting so many votes and that Gabriel Knight is getting so few. I would of guessed that Runaway would be more popular in the voting. What I really like about the list is that I find alot of games that I can read about in the reviews section of this website.

There are several games that I have been looking to pickup that didn't seem to receive many votes. I hope this is not a bad sign. I really loved Ankh 1 so I have been waiting for the combo pack of Ankh 2 & 3. Simon 4 is another game that I want and I think only Becky voted for so far. Jack Keane and Al Emmo were a couple of others that don't seem to be getting many mentions. I really enjoyed Tony Tough 1 but I don't think Tony Tough 2 has even received one vote. Do any of you who have played any of these games have any comments about them?

Just a thought Space Quest Fan, I haven't played any of the Simon the Sorceror games yet but I have played Ankh 1 & 2, Jack Keane, Tony Tough & also Al Emmo which I know I included on my list in the past! I've enjoyed all the game some of which I would have included if I had a few more choices than 20, but they are all 'cartoon' style & as much as I love them I prefer games with more 'realistic' graphics. Tony Tough 2 as far as I know hasn't had an English version release?

No English release for Tony Tough 2. Ankh 2 and 3 and Simon 4 have not yet had a release in North America, so it's likely that they haven't been played by as many gamers as some of the other new games. Jack Keane is a very good game, and I'm surprised that it hasn't received more votes too.

Sometimes developers who have released several games are at a bit of a disadvantage -- I find myself more likely, for instance, to vote for one game by Deck 13, one by Her Interactive, etc -- leading (at least, for me personally) to a de facto choice between either an Ankh game or Jack Keane, and pitting all the Nancy Drews against one another for one available slot on my list! I figure that if a gamer tries Ankh and likes it, for instance, they'll try the other Ankh games and Jack Keane. Same thing with Nancy Drew games.

Thank you chrissie and Becky. I know I will be purchasing Ankh 2&3 and Simon the Sorcerer 4&5 when they become available since I loved Ankh 1 and Simon 1&2. It is good to hear about Jack Keane and Al Emmo because cartoon looking games do not bother me at all. I didn't know that Tony Tough 2 was not out in an english format. I guess that explains why when I googled it I received a german website. to both of you for the information.

Simon 4 and 5 are by a different developer than Simon 1, 2 and (I think) 3. If you want to get a sense of what Simon 4 and 5 are like, you might want to try Everlight, which is by the same developers as Simon 4 and 5.

Cartoon games don't bother me at all either Space Quest Fan, I included So Blonde in my list, & I enjoy them as much as other games but I need to be in the mood to play them as I do for 'the other end of the extreme' Myst-like games!

Becky, I know that Ankh 3 hasn't had an English release yet? but I've definitely got an English boxed copy of Ankh 2 - perhaps it just hasn't been released in NA yet?

Hi chrissie -- yes, Ankh 2 was released in the UK, but the combo of Ankh 2 and 3 hasn't been released in NA yet -- it's been put on hold for the moment.

I just recently bought the Ankh 2&3 combo as a download from Steam for $19.99.

And Jack Keane is definitely list worthy.

Thanks to everyone for all the input. When they compared Jack Keane to Monkey Island I knew I had to have it. Becky thank you for the Simon information. I am going to checkout Everlight. It is a game that I had never heard of before.

With a week to go I must say the biggest surprise of the list so far is how many votes that Syberia 2 has received. GreyFuss I think your comment might be right on. I think I might not of appreciated Syberia 2 enough because I compared it to the original game. I know I am going to replay it again.

It is good to see that Grim Fandango is doing well but I expected to see more Gabriel Knight votes.

Hmm, it seems to me my curiosity for what will happen in a new game overcomes my nostalgia for the older games. The enjoyment of adventuring into the unknown is what makes a game worth playing in the first place. Also the likeable factor of the third person character adds to my enjoyment. Much as I liked Gabe and Grace, I also liked Max and Nina. Therefore I found it easy to choose the newer games for the list. Even though I did not manage to find 20, only 13 and one oldie, well ... Indy happens to be extra special to me!

sierramindy,

Make sure you read SkeeterUK's post about Steam making several of the old Indiana Jones games available if you are interested.

I have no idea what Steam is or where to find it. I have been sort of thinking about maybe trying it, but I'm not keen on downloading from a place I don't know, too many surprises! So I have just been coasting along just thinking, not doing.

Info on Steam on the Steam site here
https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?p_faqid=6

Some people have problems with Steam. One example ***here***.

It does look as if the problems encountered are to do with restrictions on distribution i.e. it seems that some players have bought cheaper downloads along with the activation keys from 'legitimate' third party sources outside their region, e.g. Thailand, without realising that they're not valid in other parts of the world & have found their games de-activated - in some cases after a few years!

It doesn't look like there should be any problems downloading directly from Steam as it seems to identify your region & games offered are priced in the appropriate currency.

To get back on topic I'm very tempted to try some of the older games mentioned in many of the lists posted, which are being offered on Steam very cheaply e.g. Indiana Jones & the Fate of Atlantis is only £2.99!

I left Black Mirror off this year because for a first time player they might wonder what's going on if they can't get an inventory item or info right away. I know I found it tedious wandering around until I got a key or photos or info from the priest and doctor. As much as I loved the game, those parts were boring.

I'm surprised we haven't seen more mention of A Vampyre Story.

Maybe because the "whole" will comprise several "parts"

I absolutely loved Tales of Bingwood but didn't put it on my list for that same reason

And I put Tales of Bingwood on my list because it IS in several parts and I want to see the rest of it, so my thinking is that the more people hear about it and PLAY it, the sooner the next 2 chapters will be made. Everybody likes encouragement ... and money helps too.

P.S. About Steam, I went to both links and ended up so confused that I decided to skip it. Also, I'm psyching myself to stay with the new games, so that is the way I will go. Onward and upward, or whatever!

I was really shocked by the final list. Several of the games that finished in the top ten were a total surprise to me. That is why I love doing this list every year.

It's time for my annual sulk because Azrael's Tear wasn't the top vote getter. My evil revenge will be taken as soon as I get around to it, after my nap.

Well, it has an interesting Wikipedia entry as compensation.

Becky.

You did remember to read the part about the game 'getting fanmail'?

Very nice, I think.

I wonder if any other games ever get fanmail? say like the Syberia games?

Obviously very good games, since they top the list very year

Having just had a browse at The List I can't disagree that the top 20 are all good games, in one capacity or another , except for Sanitarium & Riven which I just don't know about as I just haven't played them!

It was nice to see that Overclocked made the top 20 just! & that some newer games got a few votes i.e. Rhiannon, Nostradamus, Belief & Betrayal, Yoomurjaks's Ring, &
Sherlock Holmes Vs Jack the Ripper which I thought might have done better

It was also good to see that Culpa Innata was still there & Diamonds in the Rough got a few votes as well as a respectable number of other Indies getting a mention e.g. Carol Reed & Shady Brook !

But now, as a result of The List, I've got intrigued by some of the older games that have been mentioned over & over again!

For me I would say that there were three big surprises. The biggest being the showing of Syberia 2. I loved the first Syberia game and Syberia 2 had the same excellent graphics but for some reason the game did not really stand out to me. Maybe I was spoiled by how good Syberia was. The next surprise for me was Lost Crown beating out The Longest Journey. I personally enjoy the third person games the most and have not played The Lost Crown but it must be pretty special to have come in ahead of The Longest Journey. I read the review and it said Lost Crown was a third person game with a first person twist so I might have to check that out. The last surprise for me was Sherlock Holmes cracking the top ten. Somehow I totally missed out on this game. That is why I love this list every year. There are at least five games that I have on my must have list now due to the list.

There are still a lot newer games that I haven't played, but I think I know wich ones I'm most likely to enjoy.
So I'm specially interested in the older/less known entries.

Never gave the following much thought, but now I think I should:
Obsidian
Return to Zork
Azrael's tear
Dark side of the moon
Inherent evil
Drowned god

And yes, I like to check Isabelle too. The site claims it's free for download, but the link doesn't go anywhere. Does anyone know more?

BTW, I think 'The riddle of master Lu' and 'Ripley's believe it or not' are the same game.

What site Handsfree?

Ana

This site.

Thanks Handsfree, it doesn't appear to be an active site anymore unfortunately. Every page has very old updates. I wonder if they stopped hosting the download. It's a shame.

Ana