During the years I have read several articles in which the authors stated that point-and-click adventure games are still particularly popular in Germany: there are several software companies that develop adventure games and an interesting percentage of people buy this kind of games.
From the external perspective of someone who doesn’t know German society, I have always assumed that this was true, because those articles that I read or those interviews that I watched made statements that were in part based on the quantity of adventure games sold in the German market.
As you can understand, my respect for them is quite high: people in the gaming industry talk about Germany as a paradise for adventure games and adventure gamers.
So, I have a few questions for all the German friends who are here in the TWP forums:
Is it true? Are adventure games more popular in Germany than in other countries? (as a percentage of sold games)
If yes, why did it happen especially in Germany?
If yes, does it happen in other countries around the world?
If no, why did this rumor spread?
Can @RonGilbert disclose how well TWP sold in Germany, of course avoiding precise figures?
I don´t have any hard numbers, but I´m going with yes on this one.
I really don´t know. If I had to guess and were forced to use broad stereotypes, I´d wager it might have something to do with more patience, but actually I really don´t know.
Maybe? But it mostly seems to be an european thing.
Because we have a long history of espionage?
I´m sorry you´re asking too much of me, I can´t be german AND Ron Gilbert at the same time, I can´t even be german and funny at the same time as you might be able to tell.
Interesting, I don’t see the UK on this chart, and I thought I saw it there a couple of weeks ago, near the top… Weird? So take this with a grain of salt, of course.
You could also add Austria with a minimum value (since its biggest city is listed under top cities; all the other cities are from countries already listed on the right).
Yet, it seems that the Italian community is pretty active in the forum.
Anyway, I don’t know what makes Germans love so much adventure games, but also my game has been mostly downloaded in Germany (except for the obvious US, which dominates everywhere except ) and it seems they’re aware of that, since a couple of people wrote me saying “you know, you should translate to German since Germany is quite a big market for adventure games”.
Maybe it also has to do with the fact that Germans have a way better understanding of the English language than Italians do. A small, indie, obscure adventure game that doesn’t get translated will have no chances in Italy - Italians don’t usually like to play games or watch movies if they don’t have everything translated, even subtitles can be annoying.
Oh well, to be honest, “Il commissario Montalbano” (police chief Montalbano) is a high quality tv serie. The writing (and a help in the screenwriting, since he worked for several years for the national broadcasting service) is by Andrea Camilleri, the author of the original detective story books.
AFAIK, it is pretty much loved in the UK, and in some other european countries.
Returning to the topic, I think that germans have a strong rational and analytical approach to things, that could be very well practiced with this type of games. Also they are very well trained in english language since the early school cycle, so they can enjoy them even if they are not translated.
I don’t think the secret of economy is in an overall rational approach. It is in rational choices. We once had currencies that matched our behaviours: Italian Lira in Italy, Deutsche Mark in Germany.
Italian economy was very good in eighties and nineties, less or equal german economy. Italian exportations were superiors to germans. With a currency of our own, we could match our cost of living, and export to lower prices than competitors with strong currencies. Beside that, none of the goals of the new currency was achieved for we italians, it’s a total disaster and a rock on our economy.
Since we pay everything doubled while salaries are still the same of pre-euro times, that leaded to a great movement of money and redistribution of wealth (pauperization) from the middle class to that 1% of the population that owns the financial power. All the countries in E.U. that waited for adopting the currency, and they are many, no longer want to do it, it will be a gift to financial power.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Europe, but Euro is just a currency. The whole structure could continue to work without it. Never Europe was so troubled since the end of the second world war than after the adoption of that currency.
Germans won this awful economic battle when they decided to adopt a strong currency, which matched perfectly their previous cost of living. But who won really were 1% of population.
UK was scared also by all that, and decided to leave, even if they have a freedom in European Union that we member states couldn’t even imagin.
I couldn’t really point to where these rumours originated, nor to any numbers that would prove them right or wrong. My gut feeling is that there might indeed by more adventure game fans per capita than elsewhere, but few times two is still not much ;-). That it is to say, compared to other genres, adventure games are as niche in Germany as elsewhere. It’s just a slightly larger niche. I think it’s no coincidence that Daedalic, who traditionally were a pure P&C adventure company are expanding into other territories, as there is no more growth to be had in that niche.
Also, from a pure personal perspective, I could not say that my fondness for P&C adventures is primarily a result of being exposed to German culture. I’d rather attribute that to my age and gaming history. Nowadays I really like story-based games that I can play at my own, leisurely pace. So adventures and tactical RPGs are the two genres I find still enjoyable.
) and it seems they’re aware of that, since a couple of people wrote me saying “you know, you should translate to German since Germany is quite a big market for adventure games”.
But we like adventure games come on!
