The Art of Point & Click Adventure Games is the sixth book that I have bought and read by UK publisher, Bitmap Books. I have previously read through five volumes of their "Visual Compendium" series which show off the fantastic pixel art for various games from a given console or computer, such as the Commodore 64, Amiga, NES, SNES and Master System. These books are a mixture of double page spreads that show off the art from the game and lengthy, in depth interviews with the creators of some of these stone cold classics.
This new book takes the same approach and applies it to a genre of game rather than particular system - which is of course the point and click adventure genre. The book takes you all the way from the early days of the genre with games like King's Quest and Maniac Mansion from the two powerhouses of the genre, Sierra and LucasArts, through to games from a few years ago. Pretty much all of the big names from the world of point and click adventures are here, both in terms of games and the people who are interviewed. Further into the chunky, 450 page book you will find the likes of Charles Cecil talking about Beneath a Steel Sky and Broken Sword, Simon Woodruff discussing the Simon the Sorcerer series and The Feeble Files, Greg Barnett breaking down the creation of the Discworld games, and many many more.
I absolutely adore this book and I read it from cover to cover, eagerly taking in each new screen shot and interview. It will take you a while to read, too, as those interviews can be pretty lengthy - that's OK though because if you're anything like me you will really want to savour your time with it. While it is fairly expensive at £30, that is actually very good value for money for something of this size and quality. The book is a chunky hardback that will look good on a coffee table but it isn't too large or heavy to hold in your hands and read. A small detail that I appreciate is that most Bitmap Books include a tassel that can be used as a bookmark.
So if you enjoy wallowing in nostalgia for games that you enjoyed in your youth, or if you are interested in playing some of them now and you're not sure where to start, then I would recommend picking up a copy of The Art of Point & Click Adventure Games. Reading it has inspired me to seek out some of the games that I never got around to playing back in the day - I was always more of a LucasArts fan than a Sierra fan, so I am unfamiliar with most of Sierra's output. I would like to change that, in time, but first I think I am going to replay the amazing Blade Runner from Westwood Studios, which was recently made available for the first time in several decades thanks to Good Old Games!
This new book takes the same approach and applies it to a genre of game rather than particular system - which is of course the point and click adventure genre. The book takes you all the way from the early days of the genre with games like King's Quest and Maniac Mansion from the two powerhouses of the genre, Sierra and LucasArts, through to games from a few years ago. Pretty much all of the big names from the world of point and click adventures are here, both in terms of games and the people who are interviewed. Further into the chunky, 450 page book you will find the likes of Charles Cecil talking about Beneath a Steel Sky and Broken Sword, Simon Woodruff discussing the Simon the Sorcerer series and The Feeble Files, Greg Barnett breaking down the creation of the Discworld games, and many many more.
I absolutely adore this book and I read it from cover to cover, eagerly taking in each new screen shot and interview. It will take you a while to read, too, as those interviews can be pretty lengthy - that's OK though because if you're anything like me you will really want to savour your time with it. While it is fairly expensive at £30, that is actually very good value for money for something of this size and quality. The book is a chunky hardback that will look good on a coffee table but it isn't too large or heavy to hold in your hands and read. A small detail that I appreciate is that most Bitmap Books include a tassel that can be used as a bookmark.
So if you enjoy wallowing in nostalgia for games that you enjoyed in your youth, or if you are interested in playing some of them now and you're not sure where to start, then I would recommend picking up a copy of The Art of Point & Click Adventure Games. Reading it has inspired me to seek out some of the games that I never got around to playing back in the day - I was always more of a LucasArts fan than a Sierra fan, so I am unfamiliar with most of Sierra's output. I would like to change that, in time, but first I think I am going to replay the amazing Blade Runner from Westwood Studios, which was recently made available for the first time in several decades thanks to Good Old Games!
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