Point 'n Click

[Ragsnstitches]

Most of Lucasarts Point n click games are great. Monkey Island, Full Throttle, The Dig, Grim Fandango.

But if you want to ease into the genre, I would warn you against The Longest Journey for 2 reasons. 1, it is quite dated and some of the puzzles are really unintuitive and 2, you will want to play the spin-off/sequel which is more of an action adventure game, isn't that good and ends on a cliffhanger... almost a decade later and I'm still waiting on the conclusion.

Fortunately it recently got funded through kick starter and promises to go back to the point n click style gameplay AND finish the arc it left hanging AND is considering a future "true" sequel.

But still, I would hold off on TLJ. It's good, but if you think you may have patience problems it might be a bad starting point.

Personally I highly recommend Grim Fandango, because it's great, or Full Throttle because it's relatively short and pretty intuitive, for the most part. Also great.

 

[Not Lord Atkin]

Machinarium. It's short, it's cheap and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Go get that.

There's also Telltale's Sam and Max Seasons 1 and 2 (I unofficially declared season 3 non-canon because the ending is unbelievably retarded)

Oh, and Deponia. I haven't played much of that yet but it looks really nice.

 

[Pink Gregory]

Machinarium. It's short, it's cheap and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Go get that.

Seconded.

I would highly recommend Wadjet Eye as a publisher/developer of p n' c's; Resonance, Gemini Rue, Primordia, the Blackwell series; lovely art, gripping stories.

http://www.gog.com/games##devpub=wadjet_eye_games

 

[lacktheknack]

Track down "Day of the Tentacle". It's the best, bar none.

If you want to try first-person, "Myst" is always fun. Make sure you pick up "Myst Masterpiece", not "RealMyst" (which, while it has extra content and a cool control scheme, is as glitchy as hell). The best game in the series is the second one (Riven), the best acting is in the third (Exile) (BRAD DOURIF), the most gorgeous one is the fourth (Revelation) (looked better than Crysis), the fifth one (End of Ages) has the most interesting puzzles, and MMO (Myst Online) is just a trip and a half (in all the good ways).

The original "Sam and Max Hit the Road" is awesome and funny, but really hard.

"Syberia" is wonderful and deserves a playthough.

Once you've played some point-and-click, the Atlantis series is fun to try to work your way through (the second game, "Beyond Atlantis", is simultaneously one of the absolute best and absolute worst games I've ever played).

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I'd try anything from Lucas Art's stable. Particularly Indianna Jones and the Fate of Atlantis and Day of the Tentacle.
Also I'd recommend the Quest for Glory series, but as with all Sierra adventure games, it requires patience.

 

[jamail77]

The games I would have thrown out were already suggested: The Dig, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, and Machinarium. I don't even think I've played any other point-and-click games though I do need to finish Machinarium still. Instead, I'll suggest a game I haven't played but seemed interesting, okay, and got generally good reviews. Try Back to the Future: The Game, it's an episodic, point-and-click role playing and adventure game by Telltale Games.

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

I don't always play Point and Click games, but when I do, I prefer Shadowgate.


Stay adventurous my friends.

 

[The Enquirer]

I would suggest Sam and Max because they have an amazing sense of humor but they're definitely not a game to start off with. Most people from what I've heard play it with a guide open in case they can't figure anything out.

 

[Furbyz]

This thread makes me want Broken Age to be here already. It also makes me want to try the older point and click games except I can't find anywhere to download them legally :/

As a huge Tim Schafer/Double Fine fan, I feel I'm missing out since he designed about 1/3 of the games mentioned here.

 

[Trivun]

I've never been one for point-and-click adventures, so now is as good a time as any to delve into the genre, but where to start.

Recommend away for Sckiz's first point-and-click... though at the moment, I'm looking at The Longest Journey, even if I think that might be thinking a bit on the big side...

Squabble over each other's favourite such games as well if you feel so inclined... =_=

Monkey Island is supposed to be pretty good, though I've never played it. I'm a heretic, I know, it's on my 'to play' list. The Discworld game from donkey's years ago is also pretty damn good, as is the entire Broken Sword series.

I would also recommend you definitely play The Longest Journey, it's not exactly 'heavy' and the plot and characters are some of the best written works I've seen in gaming for a long time. Certainly the main character is probably my favourite female character in games ever, she's basically like a more sarcastic, more attractive version of Alyx Vance (and that's saying something for the latter point) and she's one of the most realistic female characters modern gaming has to offer. In addition, play Dreamfall (the sequel), the gameplay changes and is no longer point-and-click but it's still well worth your time.

Finally, if you like puzzle-solving along with your general point-and-click, then play the Myst series. All of them, they are some of the most hauntingly beautiful games ever with great music, atmosphere, and some very challenging puzzles that are guaranteed to keep you engaged in the games for ages. Not to mention the graphics are literally photorealistic, so you wouldn't think these games came from the late 90s/early 00s...

 

[Lilani]

I would say the Professor Layton games are pretty close to point-and-click adventures, just with lots of puzzles at every turn.

 

[Benpasko]

I really liked Yahtzee's point and click series. Beneath a Steel Sky is also free on gog.com, but that one's a bit harder.

 

[Weaver]

I really liked Ceville; but you might want to go back to some of the Lucas Arts classics.

 

[Kinitawowi]

Now I'm just reminded of that old school ZP vid where he said the Sniper in TF2 was basically just a point and click adventure where the only puzzle was "use gun on man". Most FPS games seem to work like that these days.

Nah, seriously, grab the first two Monkey Islands, Day Of The Tentacle and Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis and you won't go wrong. Cliche as it is, LucasArts really did do it best.

 

[GiantRaven]

I'll thrown in another recommendation for Gemini Rue. It's the only Point and Click Adventure I've played where I haven't wanted to punch my screen due to stupidly obtuse puzzles. The story is pretty great as well.

Westwood made a good point and click Blade Runner game.

Also, this. I remember having a good time with the Blade Runner game. Lots of fun crime scene investigating. I don't recall that pulling any weird solutions to stuff out it's ass either.

 

[Launcelot111]

Secret of Monkey Island is my favorite point and click of all time, and Monkey Island 2 is excellent as well.

For freeware one worth looking at, I enjoyed Beneath a Steel Sky and Flight of the Amazon Queen.

Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Father is pretty great too, though admittedly more for the atmosphere and story than for the gameplay.

Deponia is a short and sweet burst of fun.

 

[Black Dream]

If you're in the mood for something rather dark and heavy then I suggest one of my all time favorites:
I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream.