A collection of classic adventure game ads

Elum · Wed 06/04/2011 10:55:36

Some time ago I've started working on an article (for Polish website - Adventurescope/Przygodoskop) about adventure game ads. Currently the second part is available on-line, so I think this is a good moment to share it with the English speaking part of the world. Yeah, I know. It's in Polish. But fortunately you don't need to understand the language to click through the ads. So, if you're interested in this kind of material, I hope you'll enjoy it anyway.

Link to part one:
http://www.przygodoskop.pl/rzutokiem/11-03-06.htm

Link to part two:
http://www.przygodoskop.pl/rzutokiem/11-04-05.htm

Part three should be available in the next couple of weeks... or months.

BTW, this is my first post here, so I should probably say "Hi" or something like that.

m0ds · Wed 06/04/2011 12:44:12

Welcome! Some nice graphics there, nice little trip down memory lane. Hopefully you'll find some old "Noctropolis" ads cos I'm intrigued to see how it was marketted. Leather Goddesses of Phobos eh? You learn something every day!

Elum · Wed 06/04/2011 13:04:49

Unfortunately the only Noctropolis ad I've found (in Computer Gaming World issues) used THIS SCENE from the game. It wasn't very original/interesting in my opinion.

m0ds · Wed 06/04/2011 13:22:05

Cheers Elum. Ahh yeah, that was one of the most boring backgrounds of the game, featuring one of the worst NPC's ever. "Whadda ya want nooowwww?" It all makes sense now as to why I feel like only one of about 5 people in the entire world that played it. Crappy advertising!

Thanks though for the info! Looking forward to part 3.

JD · Wed 06/04/2011 14:27:10

This is some good stuff, thanks

Love the Toonstruck ones.

ThreeOhFour · Wed 06/04/2011 14:34:01

Haha how adorable

Man, games used to be marketed so differently!

Igor Hardy · Wed 06/04/2011 14:52:04

Hi Elum, editor-in-chief of the great (and huge) Polish adventure gaming website I'm absolutely not related to in any way.

Great work finding these ads!

Elum · Wed 06/04/2011 18:10:07

Quote from: Mods
Cheers Elum. Ahh yeah, that was one of the most boring backgrounds of the game, featuring one of the worst NPC's ever. "Whadda ya want nooowwww?" It all makes sense now as to why I feel like only one of about 5 people in the entire world that played it. Crappy advertising!

I'm not saying that this background from Noctropolis is boring. It's just that I prefer game ads that use different material than just backgrounds/screenshots or box art from a game.

Quote from: Ascovel
Hi Elum, editor-in-chief of the great (and huge) Polish adventure gaming website I'm absolutely not related to in any way.

Hello Igor... ummm... I mean stranger, I've never heard of.

Snarky · Wed 06/04/2011 22:19:26

Quote from: Ben304 on Wed 06/04/2011 14:34:01
Haha how adorable

Man, games used to be marketed so differently!

I haven't bought a computer or gaming magazine in at least ten years, so this is pretty much exactly how I remember games being advertised in print. Or at least adventure games; the shooters and strategy games tended to have more of a guns/blood/monster theme, and the RPGs usually emphasized half-naked elves.

How do they do it these days?

ThreeOhFour · Wed 06/04/2011 22:52:10

It's pretty much all half-naked elves now (and some robo/future/space men when they can't think of a reason to put a half naked elf in there).

Anian · Wed 06/04/2011 22:59:35

Quote from: Ben304 on Wed 06/04/2011 22:52:10
It's pretty much all half-naked elves now (and some robo/future/space men when they can't think of a reason to put a half naked elf in there).

I totally agree and they also say adventure games are a generic throng.

Igor Hardy · Wed 06/04/2011 23:04:31

Quote from: Ben304 on Wed 06/04/2011 22:52:10
It's pretty much all half-naked elves now (and some robo/future/space men when they can't think of a reason to put a half naked elf in there).

The way the graphics in your games are constantly getting more and more attractive, I wouldn't mind if you too introduced a half-naked elf once in a while, Ben.

But no robo/future/space men. Those do nothing for me.

m0ds · Wed 06/04/2011 23:40:18

Quote from: Elum on Wed 06/04/2011 18:10:07
Quote from: Mods
Cheers Elum. Ahh yeah, that was one of the most boring backgrounds of the game, featuring one of the worst NPC's ever. "Whadda ya want nooowwww?" It all makes sense now as to why I feel like only one of about 5 people in the entire world that played it. Crappy advertising!

I'm not saying that this background from Noctropolis is boring. It's just that I prefer game ads that use different material than just backgrounds/screenshots or box art from a game.

No problem, I realise this isn't the time or place for a Noctrop debate - I just found it funny! I mean I love the art in that game. It literally was that one background, which is playable, at such a nasty and un-interesting angle. And the fact you say that was what the advert consisted of. I just think they made a pretty poor choice on that one considering some of the amazing stuff elsewhere in the game. But anyway, this is about the adverts you've helped exist

Igor Hardy · Thu 07/04/2011 00:24:59

Quote from: Mods on Wed 06/04/2011 23:40:18
Quote from: Elum on Wed 06/04/2011 18:10:07
Quote from: Mods
Cheers Elum. Ahh yeah, that was one of the most boring backgrounds of the game, featuring one of the worst NPC's ever. "Whadda ya want nooowwww?" It all makes sense now as to why I feel like only one of about 5 people in the entire world that played it. Crappy advertising!

I'm not saying that this background from Noctropolis is boring. It's just that I prefer game ads that use different material than just backgrounds/screenshots or box art from a game.

No problem, I realise this isn't the time or place for a Noctrop debate - I just found it funny! I mean I love the art in that game. It literally was that one background, which is playable, at such a nasty and un-interesting angle. And the fact you say that was what the advert consisted of. I just think they made a pretty poor choice on that one considering some of the amazing stuff elsewhere in the game.

I for one liked that background. It's one of the first images from the Noctropolis world you see in the game and it immediately made me think of Batman's Gotham which I imagine was its intention.

m0ds · Thu 07/04/2011 00:48:48

Sure, but I still see it as misleading for an advert because none of the rest of the game is like that. After that screen it's all normal angles and succubuses and horny blondes. To me, and really my emphasis is on that bg being used for an advert - seems as if would suffer like advertising the original GTA with a screenshot from one of the cut-scenes and not the meat of the game. Just a bit misleading. And I've seen this done many times. It just makes me chuckle cos normally you get misled by over exuberant graphics but with that image it seems they went the opposite way. But I'm not dissing the art Igor Hardy Dev!

Wyz · Thu 07/04/2011 00:56:29

Btw, for the folks with Google Chrome, the translation to English works pretty well.
Interesting article, man a lot has changed in the industry it made me realize. It all went gradually, but seeing these ads its fairly obvious. Back then the ads were taunting, nowadays they are begging and screaming

I actually liked the taunting...

Igor Hardy · Thu 07/04/2011 01:10:59

Quote from: Wyz on Thu 07/04/2011 00:56:29
I actually liked the taunting...

Then how about this TV ad for the old adventure game Obsidian (also found by Elum btw)?

http://www.anatomorphex.com/av/FX005_M.mov

ThreeOhFour · Thu 07/04/2011 05:02:00

Quote from: Ascovel on Wed 06/04/2011 23:04:31
The way the graphics in your games are constantly getting more and more attractive, I wouldn't mind if you too introduced a half-naked elf once in a while, Ben.

But no robo/future/space men. Those do nothing for me.

Thanks

I guess all of my future banners will now look like this:

Vince Twelve · Thu 07/04/2011 05:24:11

Aww man, Dark Eye! I loved that game. I would love to get my hands on a copy of that now and play it through again! The claymation style was so kickass.

For those who haven't played, you play through several Edgar Allen Poe stories from various vantage points. So you play the Cask of Amontillado from the point of view of the bricker and the brickee. Likewise the Telltale Heart.

Great game!

Ponch · Thu 07/04/2011 17:05:24

Quote from: Ben304 on Thu 07/04/2011 05:02:00
I guess all of my future banners will now look like this:

Yes, exactly. More of that please.

A collection of classic adventure game ads

m0ds

m0ds

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m0ds