I too caught the subtle, not so subtle queer coding in “Inside Out 2.” When they referenced Riley’s “darkest secret,” I thought to myself, “Aha, a coming out plot line in the third installment.”
I forgot to mention the darkest secret. I too figured it was that Riley is gay, but that wasn’t overt or even covert in that scene. The deep dark secret could be anything, and I thought it was a clever gag given the movie’s conceit of making the abstract concrete. But given the weirdos in charge at Disney, one can’t help but wonder.
Why oh why is sexual stuff even hinted at in kids’ movies? It adds nothing except a thrill for weird adults. Well, “adults.”
I have one example for you that failed. One of the best Gamecube games was Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles. I played that game solo (!) until the end. I needed the help of a friend to get the final boss. At any rate, the sequel on the Wii was too different. Gone was the village, rural aspect of the game. Gone were all the different races you could pick. Gone was the emphasis on dungeon crawling and adventure. It was also set in the 'future,' unlike the original which had a vague, "middle ages" feel to it. Needless to say, it didn't go well.
I’ve never played that, but yes—some sequels get too far removed from the original to become unrecognizable and disappointing. I contend that the second Zelda, Mario, and Castlevania games worked because they didn’t totally abandon their respective originals’ core gameplay. But some go too far into different territory. A lot depends on audience expectation as well. The second Crystal Chronicles sounds like it cut against them a bit too much.
"The obvious sequel people point to as being better than the original is The Empire Strikes Back."
"Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" is another prominent example. It's not only better than "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", but features a drastic change in style, tone, and pacing from it. Some of the other Star Trek sequels are better than "The Motion Picture" was well ("The Search for Spock", The Voyage Home", and especially "The Undiscovered Country"). A few other sequels that are better than the first movie that I can think of include "Spider-Man 2", "Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior", "Terminator 2: Judgment Day", and "Top Gun: Maverick".
Then there are sequels that aren't necessarily better than the first movie, but are different and more or less as good. I'm not sure whether either "Alien" or "Aliens" can be said to be better than the other, but they're both very good in different ways.
"For starters, you want to see the familiar characters change, develop, and face new challenges."
Every now and then, a sequel without the original characters can also work, such as "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" (2017), which was surprisingly good for a sequel made decades later with no returning cast or crew members, in large part due to adopting a very different premise from the first movie and completely avoiding any retreading. Its own 2019 sequel retreaded it pretty heavily, though. It's hard to keep originality up for very long.
When it comes to sequels that more or less retread the first movie, probably the best one that I can think of off the top of my head is "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York". It's essentially the first movie again in a different setting, but it still works very well and has about the same level of entertainment value as the first movie.
I couldn’t get past how Quest For Glory 2 requires you to type in your actions. Somehow I’m terrible at guessing at the phrasing the devs want. I enjoyed the others in the series though.
The parser is truly a “love it or hate it” interface. I grew up with it, so I love it. I actually find adventure games most something with the advent of the point-and-click interface, but everyone’s mileage may vary.
You would probably like the FREE remake of Quest for Glory II I mentioned in the post. Search for AGD Interactive Quest for Glory II remake, download, and enjoy. They did a great job with it. It even got the Cole’s seal of approval.
Good write-up, I second these recommendations. I played through the Quest for Glory games (aside from 5) maybe 10 years ago and was really impressed. I actually had a childhood friend who loved Sierra and I played a lot of their games at his house. But he HATED Quest for Glory, so I never got to play it until stumbling back upon it years later. IIRC my friend's argument was that you had to keep your game genres pure and shouldn't mix RPG and adventure game elements. He was a pretty weird kid.
I'd also agree that Gabriel Knight 1 is Sierra's best game. Have you played the remake? I have not. When talking about sequels, there's a whole conversation to be had about the way all 3 Gabriel Knight games are radically different, as the adventure game industry was trying to find its footing in the late 90s and mostly failed, financially. I actually really liked GK 2 as well, the best FMV game I've ever played (which I know is very low praise).
The only part I might not agree with is Space Quest 3 being the best of that series. But I'll admit that I love the early 90s DOS VGA aesthetic, while the EGA doesn't do as much for me. So I've spent a lot more time on VGA Sierra.
I haven’t played the GK remake, or any other games in the series. I know Alexandru Constantin has, and he’s a massive GK fan, so hopefully he’ll chime in. But that first game is a nearly perfect adventure game. Conquests of the Longbow comes close too—if you’ve never played that, I highly recommend you check it out.
I picked Space Quest III as the best in that series and as a top 5 game because it’s very well-designed (I and V come close) and “tight.” There’s not a wasted screen. The Space Quest series is fun and is a blast, but some of the games can be annoying. IV obviously comes to mind—I want to like it more than I do but some of the puzzles and sequences are so annoying and not fun. Ditto II. And VI vacillates between “This is one of the best adventure games ever made” and “This is one of the worst adventure games ever made.”
I also love that early 90s DOS VGA aesthetic. Truly magical.
Yeah man! Sierra made such good games.
I too caught the subtle, not so subtle queer coding in “Inside Out 2.” When they referenced Riley’s “darkest secret,” I thought to myself, “Aha, a coming out plot line in the third installment.”
I forgot to mention the darkest secret. I too figured it was that Riley is gay, but that wasn’t overt or even covert in that scene. The deep dark secret could be anything, and I thought it was a clever gag given the movie’s conceit of making the abstract concrete. But given the weirdos in charge at Disney, one can’t help but wonder.
Why oh why is sexual stuff even hinted at in kids’ movies? It adds nothing except a thrill for weird adults. Well, “adults.”
I have one example for you that failed. One of the best Gamecube games was Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles. I played that game solo (!) until the end. I needed the help of a friend to get the final boss. At any rate, the sequel on the Wii was too different. Gone was the village, rural aspect of the game. Gone were all the different races you could pick. Gone was the emphasis on dungeon crawling and adventure. It was also set in the 'future,' unlike the original which had a vague, "middle ages" feel to it. Needless to say, it didn't go well.
Sometimes it's best to stick to what works.
I’ve never played that, but yes—some sequels get too far removed from the original to become unrecognizable and disappointing. I contend that the second Zelda, Mario, and Castlevania games worked because they didn’t totally abandon their respective originals’ core gameplay. But some go too far into different territory. A lot depends on audience expectation as well. The second Crystal Chronicles sounds like it cut against them a bit too much.
"The obvious sequel people point to as being better than the original is The Empire Strikes Back."
"Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" is another prominent example. It's not only better than "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", but features a drastic change in style, tone, and pacing from it. Some of the other Star Trek sequels are better than "The Motion Picture" was well ("The Search for Spock", The Voyage Home", and especially "The Undiscovered Country"). A few other sequels that are better than the first movie that I can think of include "Spider-Man 2", "Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior", "Terminator 2: Judgment Day", and "Top Gun: Maverick".
Then there are sequels that aren't necessarily better than the first movie, but are different and more or less as good. I'm not sure whether either "Alien" or "Aliens" can be said to be better than the other, but they're both very good in different ways.
"For starters, you want to see the familiar characters change, develop, and face new challenges."
Every now and then, a sequel without the original characters can also work, such as "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" (2017), which was surprisingly good for a sequel made decades later with no returning cast or crew members, in large part due to adopting a very different premise from the first movie and completely avoiding any retreading. Its own 2019 sequel retreaded it pretty heavily, though. It's hard to keep originality up for very long.
When it comes to sequels that more or less retread the first movie, probably the best one that I can think of off the top of my head is "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York". It's essentially the first movie again in a different setting, but it still works very well and has about the same level of entertainment value as the first movie.
Great examples all around!
I might have to watch the Jumanji movies. I’ve only seen bit of the first.
I think Home Alone 2 works despite being a rehash because nobody expected anything else.
And yes, a big oversight on my part for not referencing Wrath of Khan. What a great movie!
I couldn’t get past how Quest For Glory 2 requires you to type in your actions. Somehow I’m terrible at guessing at the phrasing the devs want. I enjoyed the others in the series though.
The parser is truly a “love it or hate it” interface. I grew up with it, so I love it. I actually find adventure games most something with the advent of the point-and-click interface, but everyone’s mileage may vary.
You would probably like the FREE remake of Quest for Glory II I mentioned in the post. Search for AGD Interactive Quest for Glory II remake, download, and enjoy. They did a great job with it. It even got the Cole’s seal of approval.
Sierra all the way!
They were so good in their heyday.
Good write-up, I second these recommendations. I played through the Quest for Glory games (aside from 5) maybe 10 years ago and was really impressed. I actually had a childhood friend who loved Sierra and I played a lot of their games at his house. But he HATED Quest for Glory, so I never got to play it until stumbling back upon it years later. IIRC my friend's argument was that you had to keep your game genres pure and shouldn't mix RPG and adventure game elements. He was a pretty weird kid.
I'd also agree that Gabriel Knight 1 is Sierra's best game. Have you played the remake? I have not. When talking about sequels, there's a whole conversation to be had about the way all 3 Gabriel Knight games are radically different, as the adventure game industry was trying to find its footing in the late 90s and mostly failed, financially. I actually really liked GK 2 as well, the best FMV game I've ever played (which I know is very low praise).
The only part I might not agree with is Space Quest 3 being the best of that series. But I'll admit that I love the early 90s DOS VGA aesthetic, while the EGA doesn't do as much for me. So I've spent a lot more time on VGA Sierra.
I haven’t played the GK remake, or any other games in the series. I know Alexandru Constantin has, and he’s a massive GK fan, so hopefully he’ll chime in. But that first game is a nearly perfect adventure game. Conquests of the Longbow comes close too—if you’ve never played that, I highly recommend you check it out.
I picked Space Quest III as the best in that series and as a top 5 game because it’s very well-designed (I and V come close) and “tight.” There’s not a wasted screen. The Space Quest series is fun and is a blast, but some of the games can be annoying. IV obviously comes to mind—I want to like it more than I do but some of the puzzles and sequences are so annoying and not fun. Ditto II. And VI vacillates between “This is one of the best adventure games ever made” and “This is one of the worst adventure games ever made.”
I also love that early 90s DOS VGA aesthetic. Truly magical.
Dang, turns out you're a very talented multimedia critic, too.
Thank you sir. Glad you enjoyed the post.