1996 to 1997 was kind of a sweet spot for adventure games, existing between the VGA Golden Era and 3D Armageddon where games like "Curse of Monkey Island", "Broken Sword", and "Leisure Suit Larry 7" were walking on blazed trails and weren't afraid to play with large casts of characters, open-world sandboxes, and tongue-in-cheek humor.

1996-1997 really was a great time for adventure games... Just after the FMV debacle and just before the mandatory 3D apocalypse...

Really? I thought it was rather lackluster. Early to mid-90s for me.

Hmm, yeah, 96-97 was definitely not my favourite adventure game era, but it did see a sort of counterrevolution against all the CD-driven FMV and first-person prerendered slideshow experiments of the mid-90s. In reaction, they offered really polished, high-quality hand-animated stuff in classic style like CMI, Broken Sword, LSL7, and one of my personal favourite underrated titles, Fable (...not the Molyneux game).

 

(Fable's plot was basically "Let's get naked in the most campy way possible": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAJiCERMxfI)

 

After 98, with the exception of Grim Fandango, I definitely hated all the big-name adventure games released. Instead, RPGs like the Fallouts (97-98) and Planescape: Torment (99) arguably inherited a lot of adventure games traditions. If you like adventure games and have never played Planescape: Torment, I would 100% recommend it to any adventure game fan.

Split this off into its own topic.

Hmm, yeah, 96-97 was definitely not my favourite adventure game era, but it did see a sort of counterrevolution against all the CD-driven FMV and first-person prerendered slideshow experiments of the mid-90s. In reaction, they offered really polished, high-quality hand-animated stuff in classic style like CMI, Broken Sword, LSL7, and one of my personal favourite underrated titles, Fable (...not the Molyneux game).

 

(Fable's plot was basically "Let's get naked in the most campy way possible": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAJiCERMxfI)

 

After 98, with the exception of Grim Fandango, I definitely hated all the big-name adventure games released. Instead, RPGs like the Fallouts (97-98) and Planescape: Torment (99) arguably inherited a lot of adventure games traditions. If you like adventure games and have never played Planescape: Torment, I would 100% recommend it to any adventure game fan.

Also, Baldur's Gate.

Baldur's Gate 2? Definitely.

.....and one of my personal favourite underrated titles, Fable (...not the Molyneux game).

 

(Fable's plot was basically "Let's get naked in the most campy way possible": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAJiCERMxfI)

 

 

Now this looks bizarre enough to be right up my street!  Will give it a go..

 

 

the early to the mid 90's when stuff was still on MS DOS, one of my favorite arcade shooters was Overkill from epic mega games

The late 90s really were special for adventure games. "Curse of Monkey Island" and "Broken Sword" brought some great stories and humor. Those games had a unique charm that’s hard to find now. When I want a break from modern games, I play solitaire. It's simple and relaxing, perfect for a quick escape from more intense gaming sessions.