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The State of Adventure Gaming
The Adventure Coalition We have been threatening it for months, and finally the day that will go down in infamy has arrived. If you check the bottom of our main page, you will see a running banner advertising other Internet adventure sites. Adventure sites from Europe, Canada, Greece, Australia and the United States have joined together to have our voice heard as one (if you have an adventure site and would like to be part of the Coalition, drop me a line)! Adventure gamers and webzines must unite if we are to preserve our favorite genre. We have taken the first step and now we ask for your help. We are all running a sales banner for Cracking the Conspiracy, an adventure game created by two brothers. But let's not only support this "garage" effort by purchasing CTC, let's also support the "big" companies and order a copy of Discworld Noir from Software First. Just because major companies like Hasbro and GT refuse to support the adventure genre in North America, this does not mean we have to give up the fight. Let's turn the tables on the corporate suits who cannot see beyond a dollar sign and give them what they want. If we can show viable sells figures for games as diverse as Discworld Noir and Cracking the Conspiracy, then maybe we can convince the nay-sayers that the adventure genre is still alive and kicking in the United States! Our pocketbooks do have the final say!
Imagine my dismay when I learned that the prestigious Wall Street Journal had retracted its claim that Pamela Anderson Lee was the Internet Poster Girl and now claims that Cindy Margolis is Queen of the Internet. Now I have to be honest--I had never even heard of Cindy Margolis until I read this article, but we at Just Adventure want to assure you, our dear reader, that we would never stoop so low as to gratuitously include Cindy Margolis's name on our site solely for the reason of acquiring more hits. Rest assured that our high moral standards and commitment to adventure gamers worldwide would prohibit us from ever abusing the name of Cindy Margolis in such a despicable fashion. Our heartfelt apologies go out to Cindy Margolis for the misuse that her name, Cindy Margolis, seems to encourage among those with little or no principles. Good Gosh, I Hate UGTZ! Honest! I really do! Ever since I discovered the Used Games Trading Zone, my life at work and at home have been in disarray. I have become a UGTZ junkie! I have to constantly check to see what new games are being offered for trade, has anyone posted a "wanted" listing for something on my available list, is Myst still the most offered game and Metal Gear Solid the most wanted? If you don't have a clue as to what I am rambling on about, then take a look at UGTZ. On second thought, don't, or you may never return to Just Adventure (hmm ... I wonder if Cindy Margolis has become a member of UGTZ yet?). Mac Attack All of you Mac gamers out there who have emailed and asked when we will be reviewing some Mac adventure games: well, now is your opportunity. I have in my possession two new Mac-only adventure releases and I need a talented adventure gamer with a flair for writing--who only incidentally happens to own a Mac--to review them! This is your chance to be a celebrity, a legend in your own time! You could be the next Cindy Margolis of Just Adventure! If you are interested, drop me a line. Adventure Game Nirvana July and August promise to be interesting months here at JA. We will have reviews of adventure games that you have never seen reviews of anywhere before. Like what? How about exclusives of Johnny Quest, Evidence, Safecracker, Nancy Drew and Dead of Night. Plus, we will have reviews of games that you have to search high and low to find mentioned anywhere else. Pilgrim, 3 Skulls of the Toltecs, Dinotopia and Noir are but a few of the hard-to-find treasures we have lined up for our devoted readers. Previews and interviews galore, the introduction of the Just Adventure Game Museum (wait until you see this!) and all of our usual tomfoolery makes me wonder where else would anyone go for their daily dose of adventure gaming news and Cindy Margolis updates but Just Adventure! Discworld Not and Simon No-D! As you are aware by now, Discworld Noir and Simon 3D will not be distributed in the United States. No big deal, right? After all, they are only games. Yet it is not that they will not be distributed that bothers me, but more the reasoning behind this decision. Mr. Bill was told by one executive that "this country only has 17- to 28-year-old action/arcade gamers that spend money on games." Another public relations manager wrote to me and said that adventure gamers need to "get a life" and that if I "... want to take a stand, do so for a good cause that could sincerely use your time and energy i.e like feeding the poor or curing cancer." Well, I already do charity work, but my leisure time is important to me also and I do not want to spend it fragging monsters. It is about time that adventure gamers got off their asses. Let's take Josh Mandel's advice and send personal letters to Hasbro and GT. It's not like we are too busy playing all of the new adventure releases. Get a stamp and an envelope; the addresses are below. Send your letters requesting North American distribution of Simon 3D to:
Send your letters requesting North American distribution of Discworld Noir to:
If we don't make ourselves heard now, then we may not have to worry about choosing what adventure game to play at this time next year, for there won't be any to choose from. National "Tell a Friend About JA" Day--August 13 That's right--August 13 has been declared "Tell a Friend About JA" Day. (In an eerie coincidence, it is also my birthday.) Do us and yourself a favor and tell a friend, lover or spouse (or both your lover and spouse) about Just Adventure and help keep the genre alive. (You may also want to tell them that I want a laptop for my birthday!) |
