What would you think can the early Sierra adventure games (Kings Quest 1, Space Quest 1 etc.) be classified as sub-genre? It has text input, but is not an interactive fiction game because you are directly controlling the character on screen. Its also not a clickadventure because you control everything with keyboard. The term "graphic adventure" came to my mind but I see this being used very differently. Often they call interactive fiction games that have graphics being graphic adventures. Its also a bit too broad for my taste.
Certain Adventure game sub-genre
A second adventure game genre that I do not know what the correct sub-genre would be named (except again "graphic adventure"). Games like https://www.uvlist.net/game-206061-Borrowed+Time or typical Japanese menu driven adventure games like https://www.uvlist.net/game-157968-Portopia+Renzoku+Satsujin+Jiken. They sort of look like interactivefiction games but you more or less don't type in the words but choose verb-noun combinations from menus. Do these still qualify under interactivefiction?
I'm still mulling over the first one - my initial thought is that it's such a unique control system and look that it almost justifies a 'sierralike' tag or 'hybridadventure' but I do feel like there might be a better descriptor, I just can't place it so I'll keep thinking.
The second one, Borrowed Time etc. I would say is an Interactive Fiction with menus as a control type (rather than word input)
The second one, Borrowed Time etc. I would say is an Interactive Fiction with menus as a control type (rather than word input)
I agree that maybe sierra-like is the best option... any other name seems too generic.
For the second genre I usually do as suggested: interactive fiction an menu controls.
For the second genre I usually do as suggested: interactive fiction an menu controls.
OK, interactivefiction it is for the second genre. Its a bit broader than others categorize it (some only claim interactive fiction to be "pure text", everything else being graphic adventures). Its fine with me.
Sierra-like? I don't know. Normally if create "nameless genres" we name the genre after the first or most defining game of the subgenre. That would make it "kingsquestlike". But here the problem is that with the 5th Kings Quest game its no longer Kingsquest-like (and also no longer sierralike because its becoming pure clickadventure). Some would consider later Sierra clickadventures as Sierra-like.
I now found this definition:
https://www.abandonwaredos.com/abandonware-list.php?tp=1&kword=423&theme=graphic+adventure+with+text+parser
"Graphic Adventure with text parser:" This sounds more like it but makes for a maybe too long tag name (graphicadventurewithtextparser)
(And I would say that a game like Jewels of Darkness which is listed by abandonwaredos under that category fits more as interactivefiction and is very different from sierra-like so I would not include these).
Sierra-like? I don't know. Normally if create "nameless genres" we name the genre after the first or most defining game of the subgenre. That would make it "kingsquestlike". But here the problem is that with the 5th Kings Quest game its no longer Kingsquest-like (and also no longer sierralike because its becoming pure clickadventure). Some would consider later Sierra clickadventures as Sierra-like.
I now found this definition:
https://www.abandonwaredos.com/abandonware-list.php?tp=1&kword=423&theme=graphic+adventure+with+text+parser
"Graphic Adventure with text parser:" This sounds more like it but makes for a maybe too long tag name (graphicadventurewithtextparser)
(And I would say that a game like Jewels of Darkness which is listed by abandonwaredos under that category fits more as interactivefiction and is very different from sierra-like so I would not include these).
"Graphic Adventure with text" parser doesn't fill all the requirements:
- an adventure
- text type-in
- ability to move the character on the screen
Maybe because "Graphic adventure" is indeed too broad.
What about one of these:
originalkingsquestlike
initialkingsquestlike
earliestkingsquestlike
firstkingsquestlike
With original, initial, earliest or first to refer to the original games ?
(I know, I said previously that tag should have few words as possible...)
- an adventure
- text type-in
- ability to move the character on the screen
Maybe because "Graphic adventure" is indeed too broad.
What about one of these:
originalkingsquestlike
initialkingsquestlike
earliestkingsquestlike
firstkingsquestlike
With original, initial, earliest or first to refer to the original games ?
(I know, I said previously that tag should have few words as possible...)
Some other variations others call exactly this kind of adventure:
"Text Parser Adventure"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxJvEHWEQ_E
"Parser Graphic Adventures"
https://virtualmoose.org/2023/08/06/modern-parser-graphic-adventures/
https://itch.io/c/2774575/parser-graphic-adventures
I think it might be Ok to use the term graphic adventure when we make clear that interactivefiction that have illustrations are not graphic adventures in UVL terms. Some people call Kings Quest the start of graphic adventures. At the moment I prefer "Parser Graphic Adventure" with proper tag description what is meant by it. I think most people will understand this. If someone says "parser graphic adventure" to me then I definitely see early Sierra "Quest" titles before my eyes.
"Text Parser Adventure"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxJvEHWEQ_E
"Parser Graphic Adventures"
https://virtualmoose.org/2023/08/06/modern-parser-graphic-adventures/
https://itch.io/c/2774575/parser-graphic-adventures
I think it might be Ok to use the term graphic adventure when we make clear that interactivefiction that have illustrations are not graphic adventures in UVL terms. Some people call Kings Quest the start of graphic adventures. At the moment I prefer "Parser Graphic Adventure" with proper tag description what is meant by it. I think most people will understand this. If someone says "parser graphic adventure" to me then I definitely see early Sierra "Quest" titles before my eyes.
The "graphic" part meaning not just illustrations but interactive graphics makes all more clear.
I'm ok with "Parser Graphic Adventures".
I'm ok with "Parser Graphic Adventures".