For gamers of a certain age, such as myself, the point-and-click adventure titles of the late eighties and early nineties will always hold a special place in the heart. Now, fans of verb tables and the SCUMM engine have something to celebrate: Thimbleweed Park, the spiritual successor to Maniac Mansion and Monkey Island, has launched, and the reviews are good.
The game managed to raise $626,250 through a Kickstarter back in 2014, a testament to the love people still have for 2D LucasArts titles of yesteryear. Ron Gilbert and Gary Winnick, who created the first LucasArts graphic adventure in 1987 - Maniac Mansion - and David Fox, the primary script programmer, all worked on Thimbleweed Park.
"We want Thimbleweed Park to be like an undiscovered classic LucasArts' adventure game you'd never played before. A game discovered in a dusty old desk that puts a smile on your face and sends a wave of nostalgia through you in the same way it does for us," states the Kickstarter campaign.
The game involves two washed up detectives who are investigating a dead body found in the Twin Peaks-like town of Thimbleweed Park. Players can switch between five different characters at any time, and the game features multiple endings.
Thimbleweed Park has received some glowing reviews, averaging a Metacritic score of 85 and a user score of 8.3. It's also got a 'Very Positive' rating on Steam, with the writing being praised as one the game's many high points.
Thimbleweed Park costs $20 and is out now on Xbox One, PC, Mac, and Linux.