The point-and-click adventure was once a mighty pillar of PC gaming. From LucasArts' wacky and wonderful creations to the countless classics churned out by Sierra, these games were cerebral, narrative-rich alternatives to the often-cheap thrills of '90s console fodder.
Back then, few games outside of this genre offered the same levels of personality, storytelling and escapism as the likes of The Secret of Monkey Island, the King's Quest series, and the myriad similar adventures they inspired. They often fell short of blockbuster sales, but these games were, and still are, treasured by us old-school PC gamers.
LucasArts and Sierra were prolific in this space during their heyday, great rivals and endless conveyor belts of quality point-and-click fare. Yet the genre hit a fallow period somewhere between the fifth and sixth hardware generation, struggling to find a foothold in a world where cutting-edge tech was taking console gaming to new heights and audiences.
Indeed, the PlayStation 2 and original Xbox were harsh environments for the adventure game to survive in. But it endured, and the hardware generations that followed proved more accommodating, with features such as digital downloads and touchscreen tech convincing publishers to revisit it once more and attempt to push it outside of its natural PC habitat.
A golden age of adventure
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Fast forward to modern times and we're living in a golden age of indie adventure games. Just look at some of the fantastic point-and-click titles that have emerged from independent studios in recent times, such as The Excavation of Hob's Barrow, Old Skies, Rosewater and Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer, all of which showcased the best the genre has to offer.
These games, and others like them, are worthy spiritual successors to Sierra and LucasArts' combined gold mine – though emulating their marketshare has proven difficult.
At this point you might be questioning what any of this has to do with the Switch 2. Well, given that the Nintendo eShop has proven to be a home-from-home outside of PCs for these games, and several of the console's hardware features – mouse mode, in particular – feel tailor-made for them, I couldn't help wonder how much potential there is for point-and-click adventures on the new Nintendo system. Could its arrival help a re-emerging genre become something more than an indie corner of the market once more?
This is a question I put to Shaun Aitcheson of Cloak and Dagger Games, the studio behind the moody folklore-infused Excavation of Hob's Barrow – which proved to be a great fit for the original Switch.
"I definitely think the Switch 2 is a better platform than its predecessors for these games," he says. "Giving the player the option to play traditional point-and-click adventure games in a similar manner to how they would play them on PC is certainly a plus. A mouse-based control scheme is generally the most natural way to play a game within this genre. That said, many point-and-click games which have been ported to consoles feature specifically adapted control schemes that may not be immediately compatible with the Switch 2 mouse mode, so developers will also need to ensure every control option is covered."
Despite struggling to find its footing on consoles, the rise of digital downloads during the seventh hardware generation and the renewed interest in retro that came with them helped the point-and-click adventure maintain a presence outside of PC gaming circles. But modern control pads have proved to be no substitute for a trusty old-school mouse.
All the right attributes
As Aitcheson points out, the Joy-Con 2 controllers sporting a mouse mode allows the Switch 2 to deliver something close to the definitive point-and-click experience, minus the bulky computer monitor resembling a 1980s microwave oven. But he also hailed the Switch 2's larger screen size as a major attribute, and given that adventure games often involve scouring every pixel for clues and points of interaction, it's hard to disagree that the extra display real estate will come in handy.
The genre already has a firm presence on the Nintendo eShop, which stocks several big name point-and-click brands, from Monkey Island to Broken Sword, alongside these modern indie greats and hidden gems. Can the Switch 2's hardware features see the genre grow its stake on the storefront even further?
"It may encourage more players to pick up traditional point-and-click adventures on Switch 2," says Aitcheson. "I believe some players are adverse to playing such games with a console controller rather than a mouse setup - so this might change. If more games of this genre are ported or released on Switch, and if some can become popular there, this will certainly shine a light back on a genre that many may be unfamiliar with or had forgotten about."
Perhaps this is what it will take for the genre to reclaim old ground in the mainstream: a modern release to really bang outside of the PC clique, compelling its fans to seek out similar adventures from years past, a treasure trove of which was amassed during the '90s.
Could a point-and-click adventure on the Switch 2 be the spark that lights this proverbial, and hypothetical, powder keg? I sought the opinion of Grundislav Games founder Francisco Gonzalez – the mastermind behind Lamplight City and Rosewater – and he was somewhat skeptical about the possibility of the genre finding a new audience on Switch.
"It's hard to say whether the Switch 2 will attract many newcomers to the genre but I don't see a downside to having another platform for the games to be available on," he says. "Will it suddenly make people who have never played an adventure game discover the genre and give it a chance? Probably not, but there's at least a small chance of it happening."
Clicking with a new audience
Studios like Grundislav Games, Wadjet Eye Games and Cloak and Dagger Games are now leading the way in adventure game development, following the path carved out by LucasArts and Sierra all those years ago. All of these companies released games on the original Switch to glowing reviews, though according to Aitcheson, sales of titles such as Hob's Barrow are markedly lower on the Nintendo system, and other consoles, compared to PC.
"Generally speaking, sales of point of click adventure games on consoles, including the Switch, are generally considerably less than what they are on Steam," the Hob's Barrow designer explains. "Perhaps the Switch 2 may be able to make some ground here."
So, what would it take to attract more players to the point-and-click cause on Switch 2? Gonzalez believes Nintendo must improve discoverability on its eShop as a starting point. This is a problem that impacts all genres, but if addressed, it would be a rising tide that raises all boats, including those headed to Monkey Island and other adventures.
"Discoverability on Nintendo's store is notoriously bad, so unless you know exactly what you're looking for, chances of finding games organically is fairly low," he says. "The benefit is gamers who no longer play on PCs and would have the option to play on their Nintendo Switch, but they would probably already have to be aware of or fans of adventure games."
The point-and-click adventure game is thriving today thanks to a new wave of indie studios proudly flying its flag as well as the steadfast dedication of genre veterans like Revolution Software. Their efforts to keep it alive would, however, be in vain without the undying support of a fanbase that discovered this genre in its heyday and have never turned their backs on it.
Maybe the point-and-click adventure will remain a niche pastime, catered for almost entirely by indie developers. That's certainly no bad thing if more games like Hob's Barrow, Old Skies, Rosewater and Kathy Rain 2 come along to keep our clicking digits busy.
And yet, it is possible the genre's spotlight could peak once again and reach those beyond devotees who have been playing these games since they rose from the ashes of the text adventure. The Switch 2 could well have a part to play in that.
We've pulled together a list of the best Switch 2 games you can play now, along with these upcoming Switch 2 games that are yet to come
