The Extended Edition of Anna is a definite improvement over the original, though there’s still nothing that really jumps out for horror fans (except for the now-dangerous poltergeists).

While the overly convoluted plot devolves into a straight visual novel near the end, until then you’ll be drawn in by the intuitive gameplay, vibrant side-scrolling world and the intriguing mystery that make Evan’s Remains such a satisfying puzzle platformer.

Its bold mixture of traditional adventure with a turn-based RPG combat system means The Girl of Glass won’t be for everybody, but those who are open to its genre-bending experimentation and exploration will find it a beautiful, captivating experience.

It’s not particularly challenging, but Not Another Weekend offers solid gameplay, a zany plot loaded with humor, loads of 80s nostalgia, a few welcome surprises, and an expansive cast of memorable characters.

Although the game’s relative brevity and linearity mean Wippra is not a town to explore and become fully involved in, The Plague Doctor of Wippra is still a fun adventure with effective use of historical and medical detail in its puzzles.

The Medium creates a nightmarish limbo for untethered souls in which players must evade, outwit and even aid its horrific inhabitants, but the strong atmosphere and effective scares aren’t enough to completely atone for a poorly constructed story and one-dimensional protagonist.

An incredibly stylish, wondrously original vision wrapped in a neon-colored synthesizer from the future, FRACT OSC offers a surreal musical landscape that is only best described as interactive art.

If you aren’t afraid of emotional darkness, terrifying images, and deep moral quandaries, you’ll want to check into the revamped Downfall’s Quiet Haven Hotel to explore the bloody landscape of the human psyche.

The Samaritan Paradox is a fun retro mystery that almost reaches the heights to which it aspires, but a few minor issues prevent it from achieving true greatness.

Buoyed by the endearing performance of young Jerry Hazelnut, the beautiful, fantastical Night of the Rabbit rises above its shortcomings to celebrate camaraderie, courage and hope in the face of overwhelming odds.

Despite some maddening mini-games and a finicky autosave feature, Loretta delivers a gripping tale and chilling atmosphere with stunning graphics and music. Horror fans should check it out, but be prepared for some frustration along the way.

It won’t impress you with its story, but if you like an adventure that can send shivers down your spine as it flexes your brain, you owe it to yourself to check out Dark Fall: Lost Souls.

This episode doesn't showcase the duo at their best, but it's still worth your while to continue following where they're headed.

These few rough edges aside, overall The Next BIG Thing is a lovingly crafted production – its sights and sounds are exquisite, the oddball characters are fascinating, and the whimsical script is epic – the nutty conversations are certain to amuse even the most dour cynic.

In Sheep’s Clothing is a very disappointing episode that starts slow and never picks up much steam. It all falls on the finale now to redeem this uneven series.

Tells a story that is a masterful blend of challenge, characters and story. It is a definite game of the year candidate, and will likely earn a spot on many gamers' list of favorites.

The lovely Lost Words has some interesting ideas and presents a well-written, authentic tale of a young girl’s grief, but uninspired platforming drags the experience down.

Chains of Satinav boasts incredible artwork and atmosphere, though it's populated by weak characters that spoil some of the appeal.

Unless you're already a die-hard fan of Myst clones, RHEM 2 is probably not the game for you.

What it lacks in its limited characters and locations, Tell Me Why makes up with a personal, intimate narrative that nicely captures the essence of everyday life and offers a much-needed examination of the human condition, all wrapped in a beautiful presentation in true DONTNOD style.

Golem is fun little puzzle-platformer with a top-notch presentation both in sound and art direction. It’s not particularly challenging, but it’s an extremely well-made side-scrolling adventure about an unlikely but delightful friendship.

Although it gives the false impression of being a “choices matter” game, South of the Circle is still an excellent narrative experience for those who enjoy games without puzzles. Even if the ending might be disappointing, the stunning graphics and fantastic soundtrack make it a game worth playing.

Puzzle lovers will delight; TLJ fans will be bored silly; still, this may well be the future of adventure games.

Event[0] is an atmospheric, tense sci-fi yarn that ends too quickly and never lives up to the potential of its innovative core mechanic.

There were moments early on when I began to feel a sense of missed opportunity from VirtuaVerse, but as with any good slow burn sci-fi, the stakes ramp up with the action in a much more satisfying second half to complete a beautiful, challenging point-and-click adventure.

Though certainly not a conventional adventure game, Caravan SandWitch is fortified by interesting characters and an overarching, quest-driven tale. Puzzles involving navigation may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but there’s no combat, no death, and no timed challenges; frustrating at moments, but pretty chill. You will find it intriguing if you’re up for exploring and navigating landscapes with chunks of story on the side.

While light on the gameplay side, the first episode of Back to the Future absolutely nails the charm, humor, and sense of adventure that made the films so much fun.

Even though the gameplay remains noticeably lightweight and the setting feels largely recycled, Get Tannen! still succeeds in entertaining.

Now with crisp, modern-day graphics and sound, the Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers remake is a provocative story experience whose aim is to challenge, enlighten, horrify and enthrall. And it succeeds, apart from a few questionable gameplay decisions and a lack of final polish.

It is tough to fulfill six years of expectations and hope, but ultimately I liked and occasionally admired A Vampyre Story—and can't wait to see the improvements that can be made by this developer the second time around.

A true one-of-a-kind experience; unless you absolutely can’t handle the gritty material, you owe it to yourself to hunt down this quirky game.

Although light on actual gameplay, Alone With You is an interesting and worthwhile third-person exploration game overall. Those with an interest in science should absolutely play this; those looking for the publicized romance visual novel will be disappointed.

While the first episode is a little uneven in its story and puzzle pacing at times, Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery is a delightfully stylish debut that makes me want to come back for more.

A surreal trip through an Alice in Wonderland-like dreamscape, Superliminal delights and surprises with level after level of inventive, bizarre puzzles.

Born Punk is an outstanding game; an engrossing story brought to life by well-executed graphics, music, interface, and voice acting.

Neon Hearts City blends colorful pixel-art graphics, intriguing challenges, excellent voice-overs, and mood-enhancing music to draw adventurers into its darkly exhilarating tale.

There's no way around it: Runaway is an instant classic, and an absolute must-own for all adventure game fans.

Tangle Tower will captivate you from the start with its amusing art-themed murder and keep you hooked thanks to its likeable cast of characters, stellar production values, and clever logic puzzles.

Although insanely difficult at times, Evidence is a compelling take on the tracking of a serial killer. You'll need a lot of patience to see it through to the end, though.

With its 2D cartoon aesthetic, simple point-and-click interface, and challenging puzzles, Deponia is classic old-school adventuring in many ways, making it worth playing even when the storytelling falters.

Controlling a pair of robots step-by-step through a series of manual dexterity challenges may not qualify as an adventure, but the charming Biped is a fun diversion, especially in co-op mode.

The first episode of The Raven offers up a captivating story, intriguing characters and brilliant audio production to get the three-part series on track right away.

Ankh falls short of the comic adventure classics of old, but keep your expectations modest and you'll find an engaging little romp that makes ancient Egypt fun again.

Agatha Christie – Murder on the Orient Express is a shockingly superb reimagining of a beloved book, with a few twists that even veteran Poirot fans will want to stick to by the end of the 15 hours of play. The experience gets somewhat bogged down by challenging puzzles at the end, and the mind map and profiling would have benefited from a few additions and clarifications. Still, this is an easy recommendation if you are a mystery enthusiast or an Agatha Christie fan.

Revives a true classic, and optimizes it for performance. An absolute must-play for any adventure fan with even a passing tolerance of insects. If you can't beat 'em... join 'em!

The Turing Test gets a high passing grade for its many engaging puzzles, but marks deducted for a storyline that never fully connects.

A surprisingly moody piece about esoteric organizations and human nature that never takes itself too seriously. Brendel’s low-budget adventure game will permeate players minds and have them contemplating the existence of the Lifestream even as they shower at six a.m. in the morning.

While it doesn’t quite reach the Promised Land, Heaven’s Hope offers a fun and humorous time that forsakes overtly religious themes in favor of good old-fashioned earthbound adventuring.

All in all, indie developer Mattis Folkestad has succeeded in creating a memorable little game, perfect for adventure fans to pick up and get lost in for a few hours of risk- and commitment-free escapism that will linger long after it’s over.

It’s a bit too straightforward to offer much challenge with its puzzles, and not spooky enough to sustain a haunted house thriller, but Torn will win players over on its own terms, providing a highly-polished, scavenge-heavy VR mystery.

A Juggler’s Tale lasts only a precious few hours, but it manages to pack in an inspired, captivating puzzle-platforming experience with engaging gameplay, a smart and poignant story, and a jaw-droppingly beautiful aesthetic.

Afterlove EP is a unique, genre-bending adventure that tackles its serious themes with care, its willingness to portray real emotion resulting in a story that feels meaningful whatever paths you take. The care extends beyond writing to its superb, distinctive sound and visuals, making for a labour of love that is consistently rewarding.

Gibbous: A Cthulhu Adventure looks amazing and will make you laugh, but its inability to tell a coherent story prevents this comedy cosmic horror adventure from fulfilling its abundant potential.

On Your Tail has atmosphere, fun mini-games, and beautiful craftsmanship, but such pleasures are undermined by its uninspiring story and tedious detective mechanics. A decent starting point for a hopefully more cohesive adventure to come.

A disappointing present-day storyline infringes upon the dark historical tale of Yesterday Origins, but outstanding production quality, nonstop quests, and a few spirited acts go a long way towards saving the day.

In Other Waters guides players through the visualization of an alien oceanic ecosystem and invites them to share in the exhilaration of discovering new life, all while telling a complex, original story with memorable characters through the medium of a diving suit’s display monitor.

Anna’s Quest is an enchanting mélange of superb production quality, engaging gameplay, and a poignant saga of heart and heartbreak that will linger with you long after the adventure is over.

So far Season One is not particularly epic or memorable, but still a very good-looking and extremely fun diversion, and faithful to its franchise. But we're all hoping for a bit longer game next time.

From simple magnetism and gravity mechanics springs the fiendishly challenging Relicta, a highly polished environmental puzzler through a lunar space station with your every move being watched.

It may be a conventional, paint-by-numbers murder mystery, but the resulting portrait is a rather generous one that provides two unique perspectives, a complex story, and hours of fun.

If you’re looking for a creepy mystery adventure game with less emphasis on traditional point-and-click mechanics, Children of Silentown could be for you. However, some bland characters hinder it, and most of the storyline is confined too long in one play area.

Mørkredd’s mechanics of staying in the light while shadows abound are engaging and fun, especially with a partner, but a focus on manual dexterity and lack of story and characters won’t appeal to adventure game purists.

Arguably the great detective's finest hour, The Testament of Sherlock Holmes makes for a thoroughly enjoyable adventure through the murkier side of Sherlock's psyche.

The combination of realistic architecture, history, surrealistic gods and magic will draw you in, but the been-there-done-that take on the puzzles and the journey's short length might not be enough to hold your interest.

This is a beautifully presented adventure in the classic style that tries to set itself apart with a character-focused, twisty narrative, though it falls prey to some narrative clichés and frustrating puzzles. Overall, Monolith will likely win fans with its high overall production value but isn’t distinctive enough to leave a lasting impression.

If you like Leisure Suit Larry games, you’ll love Wet Dreams Dry Twice for hitting every mark you expect from the series, accompanied by a strong story and modern-day identity all its own.

Unusual Findings is a clever tribute to ‘80s pop culture; a fun, creative story brought to life by well-executed graphics, interface, and voice acting.

As an introduction to Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, then, the game's adventure elements are mostly a conduit for the humor, the bread to the cheese. And yeah, the bread may be a little mediocre in this case, but the cheese can be divine.

A compelling if somewhat easy puzzler with a unique aesthetic inspired by medieval engravings, Apocalipsis has that melancholic appeal of a Grimm’s fairy tale on a rainy day.

The puzzles were generally easy enough to keep me moving, but the linearity did generate some frustration along the way, and the excessive backtracking, difficult navigation in some areas, lackluster story presentation and Carol’s subdued presence all resulted in an underwhelming experience.

A huge city in a state of entropic decay to explore, a diverse and memorable cast to meet, and an engaging new spin on adventure game navigation make for a highly compelling sci-fi experience in Cloudpunk.

The Critter Chronicles adopts enough of the positive qualities of its predecessor to deliver another enjoyable adventure, but skids on some crucial issues to land somewhat short of true excellence.

For the most part, Senseless Acts of Justice is more of the same great material we saw in the first episode.

Despite a promising hook and a convincing immersion into 1940s Italy, Martha Is Dead caters to a tiny audience willing to put up with disturbing themes, game-crashing bugs, and little sense of adventure.

Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper is an unexpectedly sedentary and thoughtful game, and it’s far from bloody awful, if not quite the ripping good yarn it could have been.

Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is another spooky island adventure, and while there are aspects to be enjoyed, it ends up feeling a bit too much like its predecessor.

Perhaps the Codex will finally bring an unheralded series the attention it deserves. There's no new content, but those unfamiliar with the series should definitely give this release a closer look.

Despite a few awkward moments and the scarcity of thigh-slapping comedy, Ceville is nevertheless one of the better recent comic adventures, with excellent cartoony graphics and delightful music combining with the irreverent humor to add much to the whimsical nature of the game.

With a little more challenge and visual polish, this could have been a truly great adventure, but instead settles for being another solid supernatural mystery.

Though it takes a while to find its own identity and the puzzles are all too simple, Guard Duty is a nostalgia-laden charmer that shows nothing but love and respect for the classic point-and-click titles it most resembles.

A decent new adventure in the (hopefully ongoing) Broken Sword saga, but its erratic quality prevents it from fulfilling its own potential, making it best suited to existing fans of the series.

The emphasis on physics adds a unique dimension to Penumbra: Overture. If you're willing to sacrifice story for atmosphere, it's a decent catch for horror fans, but those looking for point-and-click fare may be turned off by unavoidable action elements.

Minute of Islands is a beautiful, unflinching game about the power to save what you hold dear and the responsibility that comes with it. Its breathtaking visual style, moving story and intensely affecting presentation add up to a one-of-a-kind puzzle-platforming experience.

On a surface level, Part 2: Unbound continues where The Fall‘s last installment left off, but several changes have been made to both story and gameplay formulas, for better and for worse, including an overreliance on combat that may not appeal as strongly to hardcore adventure gamers.

It could use a stronger pairing of story and gameplay, but Tandem: A Tale of Shadows is a cleverly conceived puzzle-platformer stuffed full of dual-character, double-dimension obstacles to overcome.

Draugen offers plenty of shocks and chills set against a unique, scenic backdrop of rural Norway, but is sadly let down by some jarring dialogue and a confusing conclusion.

Verne: The Shape of Fantasy is an incredible tribute to Jules Verne, crafting an enriching narrative with creative nods to the author’s work, set in a unique and visually appealing version of our world. While the gameplay can be somewhat elementary, and the story is occasionally too concise, it deftly entices you to keep going and discover how the plot will unfold.

The end result of The White Wolf of Icicle Creek, then, is another solid and safe, if certainly predictable, Nancy Drew adventure.

I doesn’t exist offers a fresh take on the text-based adventure game with a compelling philosophical narrative that sets out to surprise and delight.

While it doesn’t do anything new and even scales back its pure horror atmosphere, Little Hope greatly impresses in other ways with a more intriguing narrative and incredibly tense – and fun – interactive sequences. If you’re new to Supermassive’s games, this may be the best jumping-in point so far.

It's a solid puzzler that atones for a few rough edges with homegrown charm, but your mileage with MacGuffin's Curse will ultimately depend on whether you enjoy block puzzles.

With Broken Age’s release the Double Fine Adventure comes to an end, and the result is a standout game that delivers on its promises. Play it.

Although let down by poor storytelling, The Minims is easy to get into and serves as a fairly fun distraction for a few hours.

A different kind of casual game from the norm, My Brother Rabbit is a charming, beautiful fantasy adventure whose scavenger hunting gameplay successfully dangles the proverbial carrot on a stick for the short time it lasts.

While The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets doesn’t actually offer up a curious tale at all, it is worth a look for the creative model-sized VR worlds available to play around with. It won’t last long, but this one’s a family-friendly puzzler that especially the youngest among us will enjoy.

House of Ashes proves that even an annual anthology release that’s so iterative in its gameplay mechanics can still evolve in significant ways. The changes evident here, and perhaps the developer’s maturation in storytelling, result in what may be the series’ strongest entry yet.

Mundaun is a gripping and unique horror adventure with an immersive portrayal of rural Switzerland and a distinctive visual presentation that only gets more uncanny the longer you look at it.

In the end, there isn’t a whole lot wrong with The Bogey Man, but there isn’t anything particularly memorable either. That would be fine if this were the middle of the series, but as a conclusion, it’s a little disappointing.