I am finally going to get around to letsplaying a point and click on Bay12! So a bit of history.
Hello I am Neonivek and I love point and clicks, they are probably one of my favorite genres and have such variety in both main characters and locations. I'd MAKE a point an click if I could.
Yet I often see people having a lot of trouble with point and clicks or even dismissing the entire genre entirely. So one day I thought "Hey, why don't I include an instructional video of how to play point and clicks?" and I immediately said "No, no one will like that" at which I responded "Well, lets just do letsplays and try to give people pointers for how to go about puzzles" and here I am.
Unfortunately I have a huge collection of point and clicks so before I give up and chose one for myself I'll let the people who will likely see my letsplays decide. Don't worry I'll be happy no matter what we decide to play. If you have a point and click you would like to see but isn't on the list, go ahead and vote for it. There are some games I didn't put on the list that I own (yes my collection is a black hole) and it is because I don't want to play them (Flight of the Amazon Queen or the Chozo games)
Don't bother posting to follow or Posting to Watch, this won't be the official post (well unless you want to see the result). I'll lock this as soon as we get a general consensus.
The Blackwell Saga
-Classic Point and Click, Mild difficulty, Unknown Death, Text Heavy
-Synopsis: You play a crime fighting duo except What the? One of you is a ghost! You play Sam a woman who can see ghosts and Joey Mallone a ghost in a series of adventures to find the solution to a series of supernatural murders, however all is not what it seems as it turns out both Sam and Joey are 'living' on borrowed time. How can you help anyone when you can't even help yourself?
-Protagonists: Sarcastic Sarcastic Sarcastic. Everything out of their lines is a sarcastic quip.
-Personal Feelings: The game is alright actually. I know I make the main characters seem like annoying douches but honestly their sarcastic banter is probably the highlight of the game mostly because the voice acting of the other characters, as well as the general writing, isn't as strong. The gameplay is generally about combining ideas and verbs.
Broken Sword Series (5 Games, of which we can only play 4)
-Classic Point and Click, Moderate Difficulty, Rare Death, Medium Text (3 and 4 become Free Roam)
-Synopsis: You are George Stobart a small time journalist sitting in a café when your entire world gets flipped upside down. What seems like a simple bombing turns out to be a much deeper mystery. You will go across the world and uncover ancient secrets, hopefully the next clue being your last.
-Protagonist: A somewhat laid back protagonist but not one afraid to show when he is mad at someone. Kind hearted, somewhat sarcastic, and with a great voice.
-Personal Feelings: The first game is excellent, the second is weak, the third is weak, and I don't own the 4th, and I havn't played (but own) the fifth. Honestly it is quite solid.
Deponia Series (3 games)
-Classic Point and Click, Easy Difficulty, No Death, Text Light
-Synopsis: On a Planet covered in garbage a mysterious girl is found. Maybe now you can get off this trash heap and into that nice paradise in the sky.
-Protagonist: A lazy jerk who cares only for himself, at least at first...Well... the Jerk part. He is still pretty lazy.
-Personal Feelings: Daedelic games really know how to make unique protagonists. This is definitely a game you play for the humor and characters. The story actually is a bit deeper then I shown but anything more then that is a spoiler.
Gemini Rue
-Atypical Point and Click, Moderate-hard difficulty, Lots of uninteresting death, Text Light
-Synopsis: In the distant future! You are a hard-boiled detective looking for his brother as his brother is locked up in the most secure prison in the known universe. This is an introspective game with a few twists and turns. It is also blissfully short if you know what you are doing.
-Protagonist: Hard boiled detective and his Kind Hearted yet intelligent Brother
-Personal Feelings: Honestly I wasn't expecting much out of this game at first as it just seemed to go from one puzzle to the next. Yet this game not only features some very smart and intuitive puzzles but also makes you think along the way. Its a solid game... Just... play without portraits on.
Gabriel Knight Series (3 games)
-Classic Point and Click, Insane difficulty, Text Heavy (Later game becomes FMV and then 3d)
-Synopsis: Gabriel Knight combines real world history with the supernatural and blends them seamlessly. You play Gabriel Knight a author who must discover the sources of these mysterious murders. In the first game your enemy is Louisiana Voodoo Witches, second it is German Werewolves, and Third Transylvanian Vampires.
-Protagonist: We play Gabriel Knight a smart ass detective who basically holds nothing sacred. He is a witty hero who will play the rogue if it means doing the right thing... But deep down he is still a Mamma's boy.
-Personal Feelings: I love this series. The blend between Fantasy and History are often so well thought out you could imagine these games actually taking place, as well the amount of research these games made is staggering. If you want to learn about Voodoo, this game isn't a bad place to start. The sequel is humorously cheesy as the actor is much older and "southern" then the previous one making the FMV game wonderfully B-movie, yet it still has its appeal. The Third game I havn't played and I really havn't heard good things.
Kings Quest (7 Games... 8th I don't count, though I might consider the incomplete Silver Lining)
-Verb Point and Click (Later classic), Hard difficulty, TONS of gratuitous death, Low Text
-Synopsis: You play Graham a guy who is constantly needing to save the kingdom.
-Protagonist: Kind Hearted Graham who likes to do the right thing because that is the right thing to do. A hero through and through... Ohh and his crazy family.
-Personal Feelings: I love this series as well, but its difficulty will turn off a lot of people as well as its constant deaths. Yet this is "the" classic point and click. Sure it has been done to death, but this isn't so bad as it can be a decent starting off point.
Maniac Mansion (2 games, soon to be 3. The second is called "Day of the Tentacle")
-Classic Point and Click, Easy-hard difficulty (kind of), No death, Medium Text
-Synopsis: A weird and wacky haunted mansion... Can you solve the mystery of... wait... what are we doing again? Well, lets just stop this evil scientists.
-Protagonist: Mostly non-descript with some personality quirks. In the second you play a Nerd, a Ditz, and a Spaced out Rocker.
-Personal Feelings: I like the second but I am not a general fan of the series as it just hits all the wrong buttons for me. Yet it is a solid series.
Memoria (2 game series)
-I never played Memoria even for a test, so if you chose this it will be 100% a blind run.
Monkey Island (3 games... we don't talk about the 4th...)
-Classic Point and Click, Easy difficulty, No death, Medium Text
-Synopsis: You are Guybrush Threepwood a Mighty Pirate, or at least you wish to be. This is a comedy game made by Lucas Arts and is one of the pioneers of the point and click genre as a whole.
-Main Character: Guybrush who is kind, often incredibly dumb, and usually sarcastic. He walks this fine balance between being a pathetic wannabe yet somehow cool in his own right.
-Personal Feelings: Excellent game through and through... BUUUUUUUT everyone has done this. It makes a good starting point.
A New Beginning
-Classic Point and Click, Medium Difficulty, Death?, Light Text
-Synopsis: You play a Planeteer from the future hoping to prevent the world from becoming hopelessly polluted. What? My description isn't accurate? Ok well then... You play a woman from the future hoping to prevent the world from becoming hopelessly polluted. This game is incredibly preachy and that is why I kind of love it.
-Main Character: You play a woman who constantly talks about the environment and how badly you treat it who sheds tears for all the world's creatures... And some old guy
-Personal Feelings: This game is kind of amazing in its concept because it honestly doesn't care how hamfisted its message is, this is like the Captain Planet point and click that never got made in that respect. The game is also incredibly difficult because Daedelic games tend to have very well hidden items that blend into the background. As such it is perfect for games of "Can you find the inventory object?".
Phantasmagoria (2 games, though they are unrelated)
-FMV Game, Medium Difficulty, End game gratuitous death, Light Text
-Synopsis: You brought a mansion and it is almost too good to be true. In fact it is, as your husband slowly seems to be becoming distant from you and weird things seem to happen around the house. Something is wrong, very wrong... A horror game created by Sierra.
-Main Character: Dawn is a kind woman and somewhat studious in her disposition. She has a very "Fish out of water" feeling in these games in that she is barely equipped for adventure.
-Personal Feelings: A underrated game in my opinion, but it takes its time before it gets truly scary. Though the horror clearly wont translate onto text, but that might be a good thing for the squeamish. Its sequel is terrible in the best way.
Police Quest (4 games)
-Classic Point and Click, Insane difficulty, LOTS AND LOTS of death (sierra give it a rest!), Medium Text
-Synopsis: Ever wondered if you had what it took to be a police officer? Well wonder no more as you will solve murders, drug trafficking, and simple parking violations... But you better do it by the book or else something might go wrong.
-Protagonist: You are pretty much a blank slate. Don't expect to be endeared by our hero.
-Personal Feelings: I will tell you now. The draw to this game is in both how much the game adheres to police procedure... AND how the game will just kill you for the lightest slight. Infamously in the first game if you do not check every single tire of your car the game will kill you!
Primordia
-Synopsis: A world ruled by robots
-A blind run, but this time I know the premise.
Quest for Glory Series (5 games, but if I do this game I'll throw in Heroine's Quest)
-RPG Point and Click Hybrid, Medium-Hard difficulty, Lots of death, Heavy Text
-Synopsis: You just finished your hero correspondence course and are ready to set forth adventuring! Using nothing but your wits can you become the greatest hero the world has ever known? Or will you become bones on the roadside? These games take place through lots of themes and locations the first starting in a Fantasy Germany. The series is part comedy but it never lets the jokes get in the way of the situation. So you don't defeat any named enemies by throwing a pie in their face.
-Protagonist: Personality wise mostly a blank slate... However you can play as a Warrior, Mage, and a Thief and while they all have their own combat abilities this game is also a point and click hybrid and each one has their own tools to solve puzzles. Will you be a thief and steal from the sheriff to get his gold, or will you be a mage and collect gems using telekinesis, OR will you be a Warrior and... uhhh... what do warriors do?
-Personal Feelings: Honestly THIS is the game I most want to Letsplay.
Resonance
-Another Blind Letsplay. I played two sections. It is a atypical point and click and is very difficult.
Simon the Sorcerer (2 games)
-Classic Point and Click, Hard difficulty, No death, Low Text
-Synopsis: You seem to have fallen into an odd fantasy realm and made an honorary wizard. Only problem is you don't do any magic... HELP!
-Protagonist: Simon starts off sarcastic but mostly helpful in the first, then becomes sarcastic and REALLY mean in the second...
-Personal Feelings: This game charmed me as a child, and as an adult once I played the whole thing I hated it. Want to know why? Vote for it.
Syberia (2 games)
-Free Roam Point and Click, Easy Difficulty, No Death?, Heavy Text
-Synopsis: An Inventor who has created sentient clockwork machines has gone missing and seems to be looking to find a lost herd of Woolly Mammoths. As you search for him you can see his touch everywhere you go, truly he is a genius.
-Protagonist: You play a pushover who lets everyone walk all over her... Yet she is clearly an intelligent independent woman... Perhaps something needs to change.
-Personal Feelings: This game is odd... I either love this game or hate it depending on when I play it. Sometimes I am drawn in by the intrigue and world designs and other times I am just bored. This won't make an exciting letsplay, but it will be a calm one.
Telltale Games (TOO MANY!)
-Back to the Future, Wallace and Grommit, Monkey Island Adventure, and a few Sam and Max games
-Personal Feelings: I am not a big fan of Telltale and how they make point and clicks but they are by FAR the easiest out of any games you can chose... thus they make a good jumping off point for people to understand point and clicks. In fact the only games around as difficult as a telltale game are the old children point and clicks like Spyfox (I'd totally Letsplay Spyfox!)
Whispered World
-Classic Point and Click, Hard difficulty, Death?, Medium text
-Synopsis: The World... is doomed and you are the one who is going to do it. You play Sedwick the Clown the more depressed and incompetent clown the world has ever known... is he supposed to save us?
-Protagonist: Sadwich is basically depressed and will constantly bemoan his situation and talk about how dismal the world is... Yet there seems to be a glimmer of hope in his voice.
-Personal Feelings: Whoosh! If you want a character who talks a lot about how terrible the world is and objects hidden in plain sight this is the game for you! Definitely a hard mode game!