[Games] Full Throttle Remastered Released

Guys, we're living in a magical time when all of my favorite games are coming back from the dead...in HD! We already got Day of the Tentacle Remastered and Grim Fandango Remastered and now we get the most badass game of them all - Full Throttle Remastered. With the completion of this game, I think this just about rounds out the efforts to restore all of Tim Schafer's greatest adventure games from the 90's during his LucasArts period.


Full Throttle Remastered - Full Intro Video
The game is available for multiple platforms including PC, PS4, and PS Vita with other platforms to follow.

[Games] Costume Quest (PC)

I had been without a gaming-capable computer for some time, and so I often feel like I'm still playing catch-up with several games. And it probably doesn't help that I've invested in quite a number of Humble Bundle deals over the years in anticipation of getting a better computer. But now that I have one, I'm a little overwhelmed with how any games I have in my Steam library.

Costume Quest wasn't exactly a game that I thought I would get into based on the title alone. But given it's a Double Fine game, I figured that it wouldn't hurt to try it out sooner or later. A few Humble Bundles later I realized that I already "owned" a copy of the game and it was just a matter of installing it and trying it out.

The game looks pretty simple compared to a lot of games on the market, but it has turned out to be nice little casual game that once can pick up after a long day at work. And while it was originally designed for consoles, the PC translation works pretty well and has eaten up quite a bit of my time.

[Games] The Cave (PS3)

My participation in the Double Fine Adventure Kickstarter certainly helped me become very aware of the company and its various projects. And while I typically try wait for a game to be on sale before buying it, picking up a virtual copy of The Cave was just too tempting given all the geeky hype that had built up around the game.

The Cave is rather clever given it's a puzzle platform game, similar to old classics like The Lost Vikings. And it was a game created by the great (and grumpy?) Ron Gilbert , the same man behind games like Monkey Island. And so I took the plunge and bought the game at retail via the PlayStation Network - one of my few online purchases via PSN.

And hey, it's a great game. That much is clear.

[Games] Broken Age - Act I

So I finished the first act of Double Fine's new adventure game, Broken Age, in about 4 hours. And that's not a bad thing at all - if anything the whole experience felt almost religious at times. I was actually back in one of the amazing stories crafted by the mind of Tim Shafer - and it was like being home again.

The signs were everywhere - the design of the puzzles, the way the different dialog trees touch on clues that become important later to finding more solutinos. And of course there's the humor - the quirky, oddball jokes and puns that are pretty much a signature of Tim's creative efforts.

I can't really say that this is a formal review yet - we only have one half of the game after all. But I do have some things that I want to say about this game now that I've come this far.

[Gaming] Now YOU Can Get the Double Fine Adventure Game

As I had mentioned yesterday, I'm one of the adventure game loving geeks who decided to help back the Double Fine Adventure on Kickstarter - now known as one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns ever and an interesting twist in the whole video game publishing market.

And while the fundraising project ended last March 13, Double Fine has recently announced on the Backer-only forums that they're now open  to latecomers to join in the fun! Not only can you still become one of the first to get the completed Double Fine Adventure game, but you'll also get access to the Backer-only forums where you can participate in the game development discussions and help shape the game, but you'll also get access to the exclusive documentary videos that show the behind-the-scenes moments as the game developments.

The documentary alone is more than worth your minimum $15 contribution since it's quite the special journey about how the likes of Tim Schafer goes through his creative process and how such games start as concepts and turn into reality. While the other reward tiers that include the Double Fine T-Shirt or the art book are no longer available, at least you'll still get access to the documentary, which is just amazing to watch, believe me.

You can read up on this new option at the Double Fine website, which contains a link to their PayPal account where you can may your donation. Remember that the email address you use for the PayPal transaction needs to be the same email address that you'll use to sign-up for the Double Fine Backer forum.

So what are you waiting for? Get your PayPal account ready and I'll see you on the forums!

[Gaming] The Final Double Fine Adventure Kickstarter Tally

That's all she wrote, folks! After what could be termed as one of the most interesting Kickstarter campaigns yet, the folks at Double Fine Productions ended their KickStarter project to create a classic point-and-click adventure game ended with over $3.33 million in pledges despite only having a goal of $400,000.

The deal was definitely a record-breaker by many standards. It reached its original goal within the first 12 hours and holds, the record for raising the most funds within 24 hours. The 87,000+ backers have helped this project become the most supported Kickstarter project ever AND they've also raised the most funds ever. That's a lot of serious love for adventure gaming.

Image via Wikipedia

If anything, this just goes to show that the classic adventure gaming genre is not dead and fans like me are not alone in this big geeky world. Beyond that, we've also tapped a potentially new and highly disruption distribution model that puts the power back in the hands of the creative teams and brings them closer to their end users instead of dealing with the fluff and pomp of the distributors.

And it's not like we're pirating the game or anything - backers like me have just paid for a game that doesn't exist yet. But because of the strength of the concept and the credentials of the creative team, we're all fully behind this project and can't wait to see what they come up with.

And if this game turns out to be as cool as we all hope for it to be, then we're definitely going to be really, really happy, plus a new adventure game is bound to be just around the corner...

And yes, this geek is extremely happy and proud to have participated in this momentous gaming undertaking. And I can't wait to see what the final product will be like!

[Gaming] Double Fine Adventure Kickstarter

Almost two years ago, I wrote a post about how much I miss adventure games - you know, those point-and-click games where you followed a character (or several) through a linear story (with possible alternate endings) in order to complete the adventure. Games like Loom, Day of the Tentacle and The Dig, to name a few. But those types of games rarely get made anymore, at least not outside the independent game market.

Image via Wikipedia

Enter Tim Schafer and Double Fine Productions. Tim is the same guy who gave us unforgettable adventure games like Full Throttle, Grim Fandango and my all-time favorite Day of the Tentacle, so he knows his stuff when it comes to adventure games. They've launched a Kickstarter project to help fund a point-and-click adventure game since no conventional game publisher will buy into that kind of a concept anymore based on the industry's perception of the types of games that we want to play.

The project reached its $400,000 goal within the first 8 hours of the project posting and is well on its way to generate more than a two million dollars and more for this project alone. But it's totally worth getting involved still since even a modest donation of $15 means you'll eventually get a copy of the game plus you'll get to participate in an online community for the game where you'll get to participate in some of the brainstorming and a whole lot more. High donations get you other freebies, but even just $15 is already an amazing deal.

Projects like Kickstarter are great since it gets the developers in direct contact with the fans and the players. Instead of going through the three ring circus of distributors, market research and all that jazz, now the game is being supported directly by the people who are going to play it. Sure, we've all just "pre-ordered" a game that doesn't even exist. But then what's so wrong about that if it means that it ensures we actually get the game that we want?

I've already pledged my $15, although I'm tempted to change it to donate more. This makes me a "Backer", which means that I'll have access to the online documentary and the dedicated community. And if adventure games are your thing too, then you probably need to get over to the project page and pledge your donation before Mar 13. Let's celebrate the beauty of adventure games together!