The point and click genre was once a dominant force in gaming, particularly on PC. LucasArts and Sierra led the way with games like The Secret of Monkey Island, Grim Fandango, and Leisure Suit Larry, which take players on memorable and often hilarious adventures.
Unfortunately, the genre suffered a sharp decline in the late 90s. This was largely down to the genre's lack of innovation at a time where gaming was taking some of its biggest strides, along with an infamous reputation for Moon Logic i.e. puzzles with bizarre solutions that provided an all-too-familiar "how was I ever supposed to work that out?" feeling.
Although the genre has failed to recapture the mainstream attention that it once had, it's far from dead. 2021 has once again proved this, with some excellent point-and-click adventure games that fans of the genre should definitely be checking out.
5 Twelve Minutes
Twelve Minutes instantly captured the attention of point and click fans with its interesting time loop mechanic, reminiscent of the classic Legend of Zelda game Majora's Mask. As the title suggests, however, players have far less than three days to unravel Twelve Minutes' mysteries.
Although the time limit, which is actually ten minutes rather than twelve, is incredibly short, it ensures that players aren't waiting around too long for key events to happen, helping the game's tempo. Moreover, the game almost entirely takes place in a small apartment, ensuring that players can't wander off and get lost, while also reassuring the player that puzzle solutions are always within touching distance of them.
Twelve Minutes does have its share of issues and the ending divided opinion, but it's still one of the year's best point-and-click adventure games that fans of the genre will likely enjoy.
4 The Darkside Detective: Fumble In The Dark
The Darkside Detective: Fumble in the Dark is the sequel to The Darkside Detective, which was released in July 2017. Fumble in the Dark takes players back to the cursed fictional city of Twin Lakes and once again follows protagonists McQueen and Dooley as they try to solve 6 different cases.
Like its predecessor, the game stands out with its wonderful pixelized art style and brilliant humor that make the cases a blast to play through. The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark was well-received by fans and critics, exemplified by its 84 Metascore and 7.9 user score on Metacritic.
3 If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers
If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers is a game that every point-and-click fan should consider checking out as, believe it or not, the September 2021 release is currently free on Steam. As one would expect with a free game, If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers isn't too extensive, and experienced point and click players will likely reach the end of the adventure in under a couple of hours.
This shouldn't deter anyone from giving the game a try, however, as Dead Idle Games' adventure provides a memorable four acts of psychological horror that will unsettle and disturb players to their core. The game has been receiving almost universal praise, and it currently has an Overwhelmingly Positive All Reviews score on Steam.
It's worth pointing out that If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers touches on serious themes that may upset some players, including racism, homophobia, and suicide, so those who are put off by these subjects in media may want to look elsewhere.
2 Genesis Noir
Genesis Noir was released in March 2021 for PC, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One, and immediately stands out from other point-and-click adventure games released this year with its unique and captivating art design.
The game opts for a "show don't tell" approach to its puzzle design, by not giving players any heavy-handed tutorials. This design has worked wonders for puzzle games like The Witness and Myst, though Genesis Noir does struggle with the execution of this at times, which will occasionally leave players without a clue what to do.
Despite this shortcoming, Genesis Noir is a standout point-and-click adventure game that has deservedly received plenty of attention. Those with Game Pass are in luck as Genesis Noir, along with the aforementioned Twelve Minutes for that matter, are available on the subscription service.
1 Strangeland
Like If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers, May 2021's Strangeland offers a disturbing psychological horror experience. The game was developed by Wormwood Studios, the same company that developed Primordia, which hit stores in 2012 and was one of the decade's best and most memorable point and click titles.
Stangeland doesn't quite reach the heights of Primordia, but it's still a fantastic 5-hour adventure with wonderful art design, an atmospheric soundtrack, and solid voice acting. Stangeland is packed with puzzles and riddles to solve, though the game never gets too tricky, and it also has an integrated hint system, making it a good option for those who don't like the feeling of being stuck.