The GWJ Adventure Game Club - Main Thread

Longest Journey is back. Kinda.

I finished Whispers of a Machine. It was good! A little short and railroady, but I think I appreciate that. It did a good job of closing off unhelpful areas to you, getting rid of no-longer-useful items, to help you find the right track. I still had to look some solutions up. I'd say only one was a dumb solution (a door code, why is it always a code?)

I suppose there are multiple endings but Im more likely to go find them on Youtube than play again; I can't imagine the game changing significantly at any point due to earlier choices, probably just a handful of conversations and the final scene or two.

The poll is now closed! I’ll have results and the new thread up soon.
SooOooOooOoon..........

And the eighth game of the GWJ Adventure Game club is.......

What Remains of Edith Finch!

With 17 participants casting 58 votes, folks voted for 3.4 games on average, slightly more compared to last time (3.1). What Remains of Edith Finch came in first with 11 votes (64.7%), so a very clear majority.
Everybody's Gone to the Rapture and Blackwell Convergence share second place (9 votes, 52.9%), Gray Matter placed third with 6 votes (35.3%). Grim Fandango and Botanicula tied for fourth with 5 votes each (29.4%), then we have Darkside Detective and King's Quest 6 in fifth place with 4 votes (23.5%). Loom comes in sixth with 3 votes (17.7%) and finally Resonance (2 votes, 11.8%).

The thread for the game is over this way (it's already in the OP).

Excellent news. I really want to play it (especially as it’s been recommended on the conference call) but didn’t want to until it was picked for the adventure club. Now I just need to get myself to stop jumping about in Hollow Knight for a bit.

Remember what day it is today? That's right, it's June 10th, and that means another game is going out tonight to a lucky recipient. Who that is, no one knows! Seriously, even I don't know right at this moment, because I set it up so long ago, I forgot. I don't even remember what the game is, so let's spin the wheel look it up in my spreadsheet find out! Drum roll, please...

IMAGE(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/220090/header.jpg)

The Journey Down: Chapter One is a delightful game, a point-and-click adventure rooted in Afro-Caribbean culture. The art is gorgeous, the voice acting is really well done, and the puzzles are fairly accessible.
Don't believe me? See what others have to say about it (it got good reviews):
"Inventory puzzles, minor theft, and mischief will make any adventure game fan feel right at home, while the use of macabre masks and black African themes and characters make it feel fresh." (Destructoid)
"A short but vibrant indie adventure that far exceeds the quality of many full-blown retail games." (Adventure Gamers)

June 18th edit: That's right, it's June freakin' 18th. Time sure flies, right? Winner has been notified, but that's what I'm here for. The poll for next month is ready, and I'm really itchin' to get things going. I just can't wait to share these great choices with you folks!

I'm feeling like I'm up to speed at the moment so looking forward to hearing what the candidates are for our next game.

You know it's coming, so here we are! The survey for the ninth game is now live!! The poll will close at midnight on June 27th. General descriptions below with playtime estimates from HLTB (How Long To Beat).

  • The First Tree (2017, HLTB 2) - A beautiful, 3rd-person exploration game centered around two parallel stories: a fox trying to find her missing family, and a son reconnecting with his estranged father in Alaska. Uncover artifacts from the son's life as he becomes intertwined in the fox’s journey towards The First Tree.
  • Botanicula (2012, HLTB 4) - Charming puzzle game that will give you the warm fuzzies.
  • Firewatch (2016, HLTB 5) - Firewatch is a single-player first-person mystery set in the Wyoming wilderness, where your only emotional lifeline is the person on the other end of a handheld radio.
  • Gray Matter (2010, HLTB 12) - Brilliant Jane Jensen wrote this game which takes place in Oxford and, to a lesser extent, in London. It follows the story of Samantha Everett, a street performer and magician, and Professor David Styles, an acclaimed and mysterious neurobiologist. Highly recommended by yours truly.
  • Life Is Strange (2015, HLTB 14) - A young girl learns how to manipulate time and investigates bizarre disappearances.
  • Grim Fandango (1998, HLTB 15) - Another classic. Drawing inspiration from film noir and the Aztec afterlife, this Tim Schafer game most definitely a serious contender to the "best adventure game of all time" title. Also has one of my favorite game soundtracks of all time.
  • Solstice (2016, HLTB 6) - Set in a gorgeous, vibrant city in the middle of a frozen wasteland, you play as two characters investigating a major catastrophe that has befallen the city. It's a beautiful game, in every single way.
  • Day of the Tentacle (1993, HLTB 6) - You're trying to save the world from an evil Purple Tentacle. 'nuff said. It's a classic, and for good reason.
  • Night of the Rabbit (2013, HLTB 12) - A point-and-click adventure video game developed and published by Daedalic Entertainment (excellent track record!), this game invites you to join young Jerry and follow a peculiar white rabbit to the wondrous realm of Mousewood, a land where critters can speak and where mystery abounds.
  • Eleima's Pick: To the Moon (2011, HLTB 4) - Play as one of two doctors attempting to fulfill a dying man's wish to travel to the moon, using artificial memories (Not Actually A Thing). As they delve into the man's life memories, they uncover more secrets. While criticized for its extremely basic gameplay, the game has been celebrated for his story, music and emotional impact. This one is very near dear to my heart because REDACTED. ;)

Exercise your right to vote, everyone!

Resists the urge to vote for them all.

Right exercised .

Higgledy wrote:

Resists the urge to vote for them all.

I “only” voted for five.

I remember starting To The Moon years ago but never finished for some reason.

I restricted myself to only 4 of the games that I've started but never finished from this list.

Oh it's not just me then, whew.

Stele wrote:

I remember starting To The Moon years ago but never finished for some reason.

Funny; To The Moon is the only game on that list that I have finished. And it's fantastic.

I've finished none, though I got pretty far into Grim Fandango when it was new, and I voted for a batch of 'em

Regardless of who voted for what, we can't let Botanicula lose for the third month in a row, right? RIGHT?

Mario_Alba wrote:

Regardless of who voted for what, we can't let Botanicula lose for the third month in a row, right? RIGHT?

Oh, I must've misread that list item.

That has to be the strongest line up yet.

Resisting urge hack the poll and vote for To The Moon multiple times.

Shadout wrote:

That has to be the strongest line up yet.

Resisting urge hack the poll and vote for To The Moon multiple times.

I’m watching you.

Merphle, I see what you did there, and I can't blame you for it.

Spoiler:

Merphle wrote "merphle (who isn't voting for To the Moon because he doesn't want to cry over it... again)" as a handle.

Already 11 votes in, and the results are... not what I expected. Keep them coming, folks!

Eleima wrote:

I’m watching you. ;)

Well, I'll be really sneaky.

IMAGE(https://lparchive.org/Dreamfall/Update%2013/dreamfall%202007-06-24%2015-58-27-87.jpg)

IMAGE(http://www.thepostturtle.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/I-Voted-Sticker.jpg)

Franchise: exercised.

Voted

Life Is strange, Grim Fandango, and Day of the Tentacle are also included in the Flash Sale that starts today on the PS Store, if anyone is interested.

Right! So tomorrow is the 27th, so if anyone forgot to vote, be sure to do so right over here!!!

And the ninth game of the GWJ Adventure Game club is.......

To the Moon!

With 17 participants casting 64 votes, folks voted for 3.8 games on average, another increase compared to last time (3.4). To the Moon came in first with 10 votes (58.8%).
Day of the Tentacle came in second (9 votes, 52.9%), and then Life Is Strange third (8 votes, 47.1%). Botanicula is only fourth (7 votes, 41.2%). The First Tree and Grim Fandango tied for fifth (6 votes, 35.3%). Firewatch and Solstice also tied, for sixth place (5 votes, 29.4%). Finally, Gray Matter and Night of the Rabbit came in seventh (4 votes, 23.5%).

The thread for the game is over this way (it's already in the OP).

Ooooh nice! I played it recently so I can participate. Very interesting story. Lots to digest.

So folks, real talk time. Today's the 10th, so you're probably wondering if there's going to be a giveaway or not. With Steam gifts being delicate to manage (requiring scheduling of gift delivery), and the last recipient off the radar (if anyone's heard anything from Stevintendo, let me know, I'm starting to get worried), and the unfair aspect of limiting myself to the PC platform... well, I've decided to discontinue the giveaway at this time. It's a bit of a bummer, but it's a bit of a logistical nightmare, and at this point, I figure we all have too many games anyway at this point, right?
I hope that's okay with folks. You're all a lovely bunch, and I hope I'm not letting anyone done.

Totally understandable! The giveaway was more than generous.

While I’ve not played (or finished) all the games this year, this club has given me a lot of joy. Thanks for all you do!