Action-adventure game
An action-adventure game is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. These titles require many of the same physical skills as action games, yet they also offer a storyline, numerous characters, an inventory system, dialogue, and other features of adventure games. They are typically faster-paced than pure adventure games because they include both physical and conceptual challenges. Action-adventures normally include a combination of complex story elements which are often displayed for players using audio and video. The story is heavily reliant upon the player character's movement, which triggers story events and thus affects the flow of the game. Popular examples of action-adventure games include The Legend of Zelda, God of War, Grand Theft Auto, and the Tomb Raider series.
A Grand Theft Auto clone belongs to a subgenre of open world action-adventure video games in the third-person perspective. Players may find and use a variety of vehicles and weapons while roaming freely in an open world setting. Metroidvania is a portmanteau of Metroid and Castlevania; such games are sometimes referred to as search action, and are generally based on two-dimensional platformers. Survival horror games emphasize inventory management and making sure the player has enough ammunition and recovery items to survive the horror setting. The Resident Evil franchise popularized this subgenre. These distinct categories show how diverse the genre can be despite its broad label.
Superman released by Atari in 1979 is cited by Brett Weiss as an early action-adventure game with Retro Gamer crediting it as the first to utilize multiple screens as playing area. Mark J.P. Wolf credits Adventure from 1980 for the Atari VCS as the earliest-known action-adventure game involving exploring a 2D environment, finding and using items which each have prescribed abilities, and fighting dragons in real-time like in an action game. Muse Software's Castle Wolfenstein from 1981 further expanded the formula by combining maze-like exploration, stealth, combat, and item collection. Drawing inspiration from arcade shoot 'em ups, war films such as The Guns of Navarone, and maze games such as maze-shooter Berzerk, it laid groundwork for both stealth and action-adventure games. According to Wizardry developer Roe R. Adams, early action-adventure games were basically arcade games done in a fantasy setting. Tutankham debuted by Konami in January 1982 was an action-adventure released for arcades that combined maze, shoot 'em up, puzzle-solving and adventure elements. A 1983 review by Computer and Video Games magazine called it the first game that effectively combined the elements of an adventure game with frenetic shoot 'em up gameplay.
Action-adventure games emerged in the mid-1980s as developers sought to combine arcade-style gameplay with exploration and puzzle-solving elements drawn from text adventures and RPGs. IGN argues that The Legend of Zelda from 1986 by Nintendo helped to establish a new subgenre of action-adventure. The series featured real-time combat using a swingable sword rather than collision-based attacks, open-ended exploration, item-gated progression, and a persistent world via battery-backed saves. The Legend of Zelda series was the most prolific action-adventure game franchise through to the 2000s. Roe R. Adams also cited the arcade-style side-scrolling fantasy games Castlevania from 1986, Trojan from 1986 and Wizards & Warriors from 1987 as early examples of action-adventure games. Games like Brain Breaker from 1985, Xanadu from 1985, Metroid from 1986 and Vampire Killer from 1986 further established the side-scrolling platform-adventure format. These games allowed players to explore large interconnected spaces collecting upgrades to access previously unreachable areas. Over time this would evolve into the Metroidvania subgenre. Other mid-eighties games such as Wizards & Warriors from 1987, Castlevania from 1986, and Trojan from 1986 added fantasy themes and action-platformer mechanics to the formula. Meanwhile games like 005 from 1981 and Metal Gear from 1987 combined action-adventure exploration with stealth mechanics laying the foundations for the stealth game subgenre which would later be popularized in 1998 with the releases of Metal Gear Solid, Tenchu Stealth Assassins, and Thief The Dark Project.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 released in 1992 was the first action adventure superhero game developed by Bits Studios and published by Acclaim Entertainment. Super Metroid from 1994 refined the Metroidvania formula emphasizing ability-based gating readable environments and seamless world design. On PC Little Big Adventure from 1994 and Fade to Black from 1995 experimented with 3D movement and camera systems albeit with mixed critical results. Resident Evil created the survival horror subgenre inspiring titles such as Silent Hill from 1999 and Fatal Frame from 2001. The late nineties brought 3D camera lock-on and context-sensitive actions into focus. The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time from 1998 set a new standard for 3D action-adventure games. Its Z-targeting system solved the issue of 3D combat clarity while context-sensitive interactions and an expansive world made it a template for third-person adventure games. 1998 also saw the release of Metal Gear Solid and Thief The Dark Project. Metal Gear Solid popularized cinematic stealth systems while Thief The Dark Project defined the first-person immersive-stealth approach that inspired many later games.
The decade began with Grand Theft Auto III released in 2001 which combined the action-adventure template into a modern open-world sandbox allowing non-linear mission structures and systemic interaction in an urban environment. Prince of Persia The Sands of Time from 2003 reintroduced the series with parkour traversal and the rewind mechanic shaping later movement-centric action-adventures. Red Dead is a series of Western-themed action-adventure games published by Rockstar Games beginning with Red Dead Revolver from 2004. Assassin's Creed from 2007 blended social stealth open-world exploration and freerunning born from a Prince of Persia offshoot seeding a long-running stealth-action formula. Uncharted created by Naughty Dog pushed the cinematic action-adventure featuring snappy traversal set-pieces and character-driven storytelling. Batman Arkham Asylum from 2009 took a 3D gadget-gated Metroidvania-like structure returning to a hub island with new abilities opening shortcuts an approach many third-person action-adventures later adopted. In the same year Shadow Complex from 2009 ignited a modern indie Metroidvania revival on digital storefronts.
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Common questions
What is an action-adventure game?
An action-adventure game is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. These titles require many of the same physical skills as action games, yet they also offer a storyline, numerous characters, an inventory system, dialogue, and other features of adventure games.
When was the first action-adventure game released?
Mark J.P. Wolf credits Adventure from 1980 for the Atari VCS as the earliest-known action-adventure game involving exploring a 2D environment, finding and using items which each have prescribed abilities, and fighting dragons in real-time like in an action game. Superman released by Atari in 1979 is cited by Brett Weiss as an early action-adventure game with Retro Gamer crediting it as the first to utilize multiple screens as playing area.
Which game established the Metroidvania subgenre?
Games like Brain Breaker from 1985, Xanadu from 1985, Metroid from 1986 and Vampire Killer from 1986 further established the side-scrolling platform-adventure format. Over time this would evolve into the Metroidvania subgenre, which is a portmanteau of Metroid and Castlevania.
What did The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time achieve in 1998?
The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time from 1998 set a new standard for 3D action-adventure games. Its Z-targeting system solved the issue of 3D combat clarity while context-sensitive interactions and an expansive world made it a template for third-person adventure games.
When was Grand Theft Auto III released and what did it introduce?
Grand Theft Auto III released in 2001 combined the action-adventure template into a modern open-world sandbox allowing non-linear mission structures and systemic interaction in an urban environment. This title belongs to a subgenre of open world action-adventure video games in the third-person perspective where players may find and use a variety of vehicles and weapons while roaming freely in an open world setting.