Publisher: Freeware Developer: Legend Year: 1998 Platform: DOS
I’m stretching this by calling it an adventure game, as it is more of an edutainment title. But it was developed by Legend Entertainment and written by Bob Bates, so I’m going with it. This game is actually an ethics training program designed by the U.S. Government and used as an ethical training tool for its employees. As it was fully funded by the government, the game is freeware, and worth a play by anyone who is interested in ethics.
Publisher: Sierra Developer: Sierra Year: 1993 Platform: DOS; Windows; Mac
Sierra hired Daryl F. Gates, the former LAPD chief and founder of SWAT, to help design the fourth installment in this best-selling series. His lifetime of experience no doubt helped ensure Police Quest 4 felt realistic when it came to police culture and tactics. However, his ability to design an adventure game is not readily apparent.
Publisher: Sierra Developer: Sierra Year: 1992 Platform: DOS
Score: 6
Out of the many remakes that Sierra released of their original adventures, Police Quest fared the best. But as is the case with most of them, they failed to actually improve the game.
For the most part, the game follows the events of the original, though a lot of the ancillary camp is toned down or removed completely. For example, your coworkers act much more professionally and there’s less locker-room talk, matching the more serious tone of Police Quest 3. I might have appreciated this had the game’s serious moments been dramatically improved. Unfortunately, the atmosphere feels so dry that moments like the loss of Jack’s daughter aren’t any more moving than they were before. On the other hand, Sonny is surprisingly funny. His deadpan delivery made me chuckle a few times.
The interface has been switched to point-and-click, which removes a lot of the parser-type Easter Eggs, while admittedly removing some of the parser frustration. But the driving is similar to that of Police Quest 3, which is needlessly cumbersome. And, sadly, the MIDI soundtrack somehow does a worse job of conveying tension than the internal soundboard of the original. When I play the EGA version, I find myself on the edge of my seat during several scenes. Here, everything felt muted.
Publisher: Sierra Developer: Sierra Year: 1995 Platform: DOS; Windows; Mac; SEGA Saturn
Score: 4
Never before has Roberta Williams, or rather any game designer, integrated horror and humor to such monumental proportions. Of course, the humor derives from the George Lucas-type dialogue and poor acting, and much of the horror comes from the realization you had spent quite a bit of money to play this mess.
Publisher: LucasArts Developer: LucasArts Year: 1991 Platform: DOS; Amiga; Mac
While equally as lauded by most to the first game in the series, I didn’t get quite as excited about Monkey Island 2. It begins well, with our hero pirate Guybrush stranded on an island in search of the means to discover the treasure of Big Whoop. But about a third of the way in (pardon me) it jumps ship, and barely gets on track in time for a raucous ending.
Publisher: Access Software Developer: Access Software Year: 1991 Platform: DOS
On the successful heels of Mean Streets, Access Software released a sequel, attempting to build off their charming private investigator Tex Murphy, thrusting him into another save-the-world case filled with beautiful women, ruthless villains, and post-apocalyptic mayhem. From a technical level, they improved the game in nearly every imaginable facet. Unfortunately (but not as a direct result), the story and characters themselves take a bit of a downturn.
LucasArts’ first adventure game was an enormous success across several computer systems and the NES, helping to launch a successful empire in the industry. But while the creativity and ingenuity that would bolster the company is here in this offering, it more than makes up for it with questionable design choices and misguided puzzles.
Publisher: Sierra Developer: Evryware Year: 1988 Platform: DOS; Amiga; Apple II
Score: 4
The most original idea Sierra picked up, Manhunter unfortunately fails to capitalize on its premise.
Aliens landed in New York, circa 2002. It took them less than three days to destroy the city, and less than a year to end the human resistance. Or so they thought. You have been assigned by the alien “orbs” to be a manhunter. The tracking devices they implanted in every human were not entirely compatible with human physiology, so you (along with many others) need to help them. You have no choice. You must investigate humans who are not obedient and report them to the aliens.
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