Despite several national governments' best efforts, there is a reasonable chance we will be able to leave our homes at some point in 2021. But until that point, there are plenty of adventure games we can play from the comfort of our PCs and consoles, and in no particular order, here are the most anticipated adventure games of 2021.
Also on Wccftech's Most Anticipated Games of 2021: Action, Strategy & Simulation, Sports & Racing, Horror, Indie, Virtual Reality
Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One
Frogwares championed the investigative adventure game with their former Sherlock Holmes titles. Now, following their first foray into open world design with the Lovecraftian The Sinking City, they're returning to Sherlock Holmes with a brand new origin story for the world's foremost investigator, taking with them everything that they learned while developing The Sinking City. To learn more, read our interview with Frogwares Communication Manager Sergey Oganesyan.
Weird West
This immersive sim (from ex creative directors of Dishonored and Prey, no less) might be the most action packed on the list, but it's the world itself that makes it such an interesting adventure experience. Players will be exploring the Weird West, a world where the paranormal and cowboys co-exist, mostly unhappily. The subgenre of Weird West is remarkable unutilised, but where someone has panned for gold here, they often find it. We have high hopes that Weird West will be a fantastic game to explore in 2021.
The Forgotten City
First created from a Skyrim mod that, like so many mods in the past, became so popular that it demanded its own release, The Forgotten City you will explore the ruins of an ancient Roman city in the past and present, witnessing its downfall and surviving the aftermath. With highly polished graphics and an interesting time-traveling story, you’ll have plenty to explore in The forgotten city.
The Medium
Bloober Team have been really craving a name out for themselves in the last few years with titles like Blair Witch and Observer. The Medium continues their journey between horror and adventure games as you take the role of the titular medium and walk the line between the land of the living and the dead. Not much has been revealed of the plot yet, but the announcement trailer is already enough to make us want to see more.
Paradise Lost
Retrofuturism meets Slavic mythology is this abandoned Nazi bunker at the heart of Paradise Lost. The games describe on the Steam page also drops in the ‘post-apocalyptic’ just to round off some of the most interesting terms you can come across. Who doesn’t want to explore this bunker, uncover whatever secrets it might hide, and piece together the story of this strange, inviting world?
Martha is Dead
The trailers for Martha is Dead make you feel uncomfortable, but almost instantly slip a mystery at the back of my mind that yearns to be solved. Set in 1944, this game doesn’t specifically revolve around World War II, instead, it surrounds the mysterious death of Martha in Tuscany. The threat of war draws ever closer but the murder itself is surrounded by strange folklore and horror as you try to piece it together. The trailers each take a bizarre look at the game, with everything from dank woods to elaborate puppet shows are as unnerving as they are intriguing.
Syberia: The World Before
Syberia is one of the longest-running adventure game series, though the third installment launched in 2017 turned out to be very disappointing. Microids didn't give up, however, and partnered with Koalabs to make the new game Syberia: The World Before. A Prologue launched this past October for free and it has been fairly well-received so far, which gives us hope for the full game.
Fans will play in two different timelines with two protagonists, the usual main character Kate Walker in 2004 and Dana Roze in 1937.
Honourable Mentions
There's bound to be more adventure games worth playing in 2021. Beyond the aforementioned shortlist, you'd do well to keep monitoring the following titles.
- Backbone
- Farewell North
- Maquette
- A Space for the Unbound
- Saturnalia
