Here are some of the seminal works from that dark age that you should check out.
These games would inform the kinds of graphic adventures that managed to survive in the late 00s.
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In 2001, LucasArts released its final adventure game,Escape from Monkey Island.
Sierra was no longer developing games by that point.
In 2000, Erik Wolpaw wrote a piece on Old Man Murray titled Who Killed Adventure Games?
I recently came across a cache of old jewel cases while cleaning out a cabinet.
Its not just that I hadnt thought of them in the years since Id played them.
Its that, outside a few niche websites, Id never heardanyonetalk about them.
So I played a few of them, to see what I could remember about them.
And I found several that are still absolutely worth playing today.
Microids
Itd be hard to talk about the adventure games of the post-LucasArts era and not mentionSyberia.
For those who find it compelling, both games feature interesting female protagonists.
Thats why dialogs are so important.
The yearSyberiawas released, theNew York Timespublished a column about the state of adventure gaming.
Microids managed to stay afloat through the mid 00s, but Grassiano said it was a very hard time.
The last two notable releases wereAgatha Christie: The ABC Murdersin 2016 and the aforementionedSyberia 3in 2017.
Syberia,Syberia 2, andStill Lifeare all available on Steam.
I remember some real duds on that list, but there were a few with great charm and personality.
Keepsakeis available on Steam.
Frogwares
Curiously, this time period saw games dipping into their literary roots more than ever before.
Games came out starring legendary detectives like Hercule Poirot, Nancy Drew, and of course Sherlock Holmes.
Its a lovely game, in my opinion, better at being a mystery than most games like it.
First person perspective seemed to fit Frogwares better.
AfterSilver Earring, Amr said the company wanted to go in a new direction.
Frogwares, meanwhile, has continued making and publishing the series.
Amr says the company is quite happy to eschew the point-and-click graphical style of the dark ages.
It was due to Publishers.
Frogwares latest Sherlock Holmes release wasThe Devils Daughterin 2016.
The company is also set to release the horror-adventure gameThe Sinking Citylater this year.
BothSilver EarringandThe Awakenedare now available on Steam.
A child of theMystseries, this first-person adventure series started withSecrets Can Killin 1998.
Her Interactive would go on to publish 20 more Nancy Drew games.
Story byRachel Kaser
Rachel is a writer and former game critic from Central Texas.
She enjoys gaming, writing mystery stories, streaming on Twitch, and horseback riding.
Check her Twitter for curmudgeonly criticisms.
