The Excavation of Hob's Barrow (2022)
Released in late September, The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow returned me to the comfort of old-school point-and-click adventures. It is the seventh adventure by the small studio Cloak and Dagger Games, and it is published by a true genre icon, Wadjet Eye Games. That partnership ensures excellent voice acting, and the characters left a favourable impression more broadly. Built on ancient belief and folklore, the story is a horror piece set in 19th-century northern England. A young archaeologist arrives in a small remote village to investigate an ancient barrow and is met with conflicting attitudes. Who is who, and who can be trusted? The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow does not settle for a happy ending; instead, it leaves the player wounded, alone with their troubled thoughts.
Shardlight (2016)
Released last Tuesday, Shardlight is another dependable new release from Wadjet Eye Games — a game that is both classic and modern at the same time. Classic because it is built on the AGS engine, modern because of its protagonist and certain narrative turns. What initially felt like a sluggish story tightens into a thriller towards the end, ultimately grappling with fundamental questions of life and death.
Technobabylon (2015)
Technobabylon, a recent collaboration between Wadjet Eye Games and Technocrat Games, is a modern cyberpunk thriller built in the spirit of classic point-and-click adventures. It offers a winding plot and a sequence of clever puzzles. Characters and their relationships drive the experience, yet the world of the game — more an alternative than a plausible future — constantly tests their credibility and relatability.
The Shivah: Kosher Edition (2013)
Founded by Dave Gilbert, Wadjet Eye Games has been producing entertaining and distinctive indie games since 2006, applying a classic adventure-game formula in personal ways. Released in November 2013, The Shivah: Kosher Edition is a remake of Gilbert’s first commercial project and certainly one of the most unusual adventure games ever made.