1. The Lost Treasures of Infocom (1980-1989)
The few. The proud. The text adventure. They're still around, if you can believe it. And God bless the diehard fans and game designers who are keeping this genre alive. OK. I'm cheating a little with this one. I'm going to recommend the whole Infocom library instead of a single game - partially because you can't buy the games individually, mostly because I couldn't settle on just one game. Like System Shock 2, the Infocom library has been out of print for years. These games popped up on the Apple App Store at the beginning of the year, with most of the catalog (save for Douglas Adams' two games, sadly) intact. This is the only legal version of the Infocom library. There are a few new bells and whistles that make moving through the games' locations a bit easier (again, cheating a little with this one), but these are still the original games, untouched and in all their white text on black background glory. Like Sierra's games, there's a story here for everyone. And if you can get past the whole no graphics thing, there are some fantastic, one-of-a kind experiences to be had here. These are great games that rely on the imagination. Like a good novel, they can take you anywhere. Infocom's thirty-five original games contain some of the best stories in all of video gamedom. I can't tell you how happy I am that most of them are available again. Like any good film or novel, they're worth preserving.
Agree? Disagree? Eaten by a grue? Let us know below.