Great Adventure Bundle 19.95 including PAA Ep 1&2, Sam & Max season 2, Puzzle Agent

[quote name='GreatDoink']Can anyone confirm if its just Episode 1 or both? Believe it or not, that is a deal breaker for me. Thanks!![/QUOTE]


According to a post from Psy on the Telltale forum, only the first episode is included. Seems like that has gone back and forth.

"Only Penny Arcade Episode 1 is included. The second episode is not a part of the bundle,
it's too complicated to get into here and was a last minute change. Either way, the first one is a great game
biggrin.gif


Also you're both correct about the versions of King's Quest included"
 
[quote name='mokmoof']They've only sold 371 of these things so far... What gives, Internet?[/QUOTE]

It's an AFK holiday weekend, on a sale lasting a full week, with terms that make it better to adopt a wait-and-see attitude towards jumping in immediately.

It's also a niche genre, with a pretty high price and a slightly stingy charity donation when compared to the humble bundle it's modeled after. Plus the humble bundle had a novel sales idea, multiple platform support, no DRM, and (later) a promise of open source, all of which made people feel warm and fuzzy for buying it and promoting it, and all of which are absent here.

So it will pick up sales, but it's unreasonable to expect it to be going too fast in the first day or so of being (quietly) started, and I wouldn't expect it to explode like the Humble Indie Bundle did, with all the goodwill third-party promotion.
 
[quote name='bitter1961']It's an AFK holiday weekend, on a sale lasting a full week, with terms that make it better to adopt a wait-and-see attitude towards jumping in immediately.

It's also a niche genre, with a pretty high price and a slightly stingy charity donation when compared to the humble bundle it's modeled after. Plus the humble bundle had a novel sales idea, multiple platform support, no DRM, and (later) a promise of open source, all of which made people feel warm and fuzzy for buying it and promoting it, and all of which are absent here.

So it will pick up sales, but it's unreasonable to expect it to be going too fast in the first day or so of being (quietly) started, and I wouldn't expect it to explode like the Humble Indie Bundle did, with all the goodwill third-party promotion.[/QUOTE]
All excellent points, and all important differences between Telltale's approach and that of the Humble Indie Bundle. It will be very interesting to see how much sales pick up after the holiday weekend.
 
[quote name='bitter1961']It's an AFK holiday weekend, on a sale lasting a full week, with terms that make it better to adopt a wait-and-see attitude towards jumping in immediately.

It's also a niche genre, with a pretty high price and a slightly stingy charity donation when compared to the humble bundle it's modeled after. Plus the humble bundle had a novel sales idea, multiple platform support, no DRM, and (later) a promise of open source, all of which made people feel warm and fuzzy for buying it and promoting it, and all of which are absent here.

So it will pick up sales, but it's unreasonable to expect it to be going too fast in the first day or so of being (quietly) started, and I wouldn't expect it to explode like the Humble Indie Bundle did, with all the goodwill third-party promotion.[/QUOTE]
I like the cut of your jib

So far it's been doing lukewarm at best sales but this is a busy weekend for a lot of people and we have till the tenth to see this get up there in sales so hopefully things go our way and we see the numbers multiply as the week goes forward
 
What I find weird about the sale, which apparently is being run by Telltale, is that none of their games are included unless some unknown sales figure is reached. You would think they would be leading the way with at least something well-known of their own.
 
[quote name='reininop']What I find weird about the sale, which apparently is being run by Telltale, is that none of their games are included unless some unknown sales figure is reached. You would think they would be leading the way with at least something well-known of their own.[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure to get Puzzle Agent the sales need to reach 5000 and then 10,000 for Sam and Max. I bought it before I found out both episodes of PA were not included but it's all good since it's still a pretty good deal.
 
So, say this was bizarro world and this doesn't reach the expected figures, anyone think Telltale with still unlock the games, or no?
 
[quote name='ryushe']So, say this was bizarro world and this doesn't reach the expected figures, anyone think Telltale with still unlock the games, or no?[/QUOTE]

Gosh, I hope so. I think some good points were made by other posters about how the terms of this bundle create incentives to "wait and see" vs the Humble Indie Bundle & etc. But Telltale obviously didn't see the difference when they planned for this event. They probably thought that the unlocking would create a sense of excitement, like "yeah! let's all get it to 5000!" Instead, I'm seeing a lot of fence-sitters waiting to see sale #4,999. Telltale should drop the unlock gimmick and just make it the whole bundle at this point. After all, they advertise it as "6 great games." I'm sure their expectation and intention was really to have everyone get all 6 products. If they don't even get to 5,000 under these terms, a sour taste will be left in the mouths of the customers who did buy, they'll place a nail in the coffin for similar deals in the future, and the charities will not make as much money as they could. All in all, a lose/lose/lose situation.
 
[quote name='icupnimpn2']Gosh, I hope so. I think some good points were made by other posters about how the terms of this bundle create incentives to "wait and see" vs the Humble Indie Bundle & etc. But Telltale obviously didn't see the difference when they planned for this event. They probably thought that the unlocking would create a sense of excitement, like "yeah! let's all get it to 5000!" Instead, I'm seeing a lot of fence-sitters waiting to see sale #4,999. Telltale should drop the unlock gimmick and just make it the whole bundle at this point. After all, they advertise it as "6 great games." I'm sure their expectation and intention was really to have everyone get all 6 products. If they don't even get to 5,000 under these terms, a sour taste will be left in the mouths of the customers who did buy, they'll place a nail in the coffin for similar deals in the future, and the charities will not make as much money as they could. All in all, a lose/lose/lose situation.[/QUOTE]

I agree. If they just told me I'd get Sam & Max and Puzzle Agent for sure I probably would buy it now. Those are the two I really want from this sale.

I could get it as cheap elsewhere, but I'd rather do it here since at least some of it is going to a good cause.
 
[quote name='reininop']If they just told me I'd get Sam & Max and Puzzle Agent for sure I probably would buy it now. Those are the two I really want from this sale.

I could get it as cheap elsewhere, but I'd rather do it here since at least some of it is going to a good cause.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, those are the two I was really interested in too. I have Seasons 1 and 3 of Sam & Max, and it would be really nice to have the season that takes place in between them. My wife would likely enjoy Puzzle Agent as she's a fan of Professor Layton.

It does seem odd that the two Telltale games in the bundle are not available right away even though it's being sold on THEIR site. I really do think the unlockable gimmick is hurting this sale, especially since the two games that are unlockable are probably the ones that the visitors of Telltale's website would be most interested in!

EDIT: Also, I was camping this weekend and I actually used my crappy cell phone internet to purchase this while I was away. I figured other people would be more enthusiastic about this deal and all the games would be unlocked in no time! Come on people!
 
[quote name='MrMan2k3']
It does seem odd that the two Telltale games in the bundle are not available right away even though it's being sold on THEIR site. I really do think the unlockable gimmick is hurting this sale, especially since the two games that are unlockable are probably the ones that the visitors of Telltale's website would be most interested in!

EDIT: Also, I was camping this weekend and I actually used my crappy cell phone internet to purchase this while I was away. I figured other people would be more enthusiastic about this deal and all the games would be unlocked in no time! Come on people![/QUOTE]

I think you and I made the same mistake Telltale did: to assume that this sale would be just as much of a success as previous bundle sales. Really, really, Telltale's marketing for this bundle is so self-assured that the thought that this wouldn't work did not seem to have crossed their minds. Shame on you and me? No. We didn't have nearly as much time to consider the factors as did Telltale. I'm sure it took a lot of time, energy, and legal work to forge the relationship between five developers and five charities. Telltale's front page video says "6 games ... one click away." It says, "unlock when unit goals are met" not "might unlock if unit goals are met." That's confidence. They're either blindsided right now, or sales are magically going to pick up over the next few days.

Anyway, I feel $20 is a good deal for the guaranteed games, but wish 9200 people would dive in right about now.
 
[quote name='neonglow']How is the DRM on these games? Can I install it on several of my computers like Steam?[/QUOTE]

A post by Telltale's Psy in the official forums says something to the effect that there is DRM but that it is "hopefully transparent." I take that to mean, "hopefully causes no problems." I think it's simple stuff. Nothing that runs in the background ala steam. When I bought mine, I downloaded the file, which was a small installer/launcher program that let me click to download and install the individual games. Once installed, I could just launch from the games' executables. So the extent of the DRM is pretty much that you have to download this wrapper and use it to get the other files.
 
[quote name='icupnimpn2']A post by Telltale's Psy in the official forums says something to the effect that there is DRM but that it is "hopefully transparent." I take that to mean, "hopefully causes no problems." I think it's simple stuff. Nothing that runs in the background ala steam. When I bought mine, I downloaded the file, which was a small installer/launcher program that let me click to download and install the individual games. Once installed, I could just launch from the games' executables. So the extent of the DRM is pretty much that you have to download this wrapper and use it to get the other files.[/QUOTE]That actually sounds pretty convenient to me. I bought this yesterday, but haven't downloaded anything yet, and I was wondering how it worked. As slow as my internet connection is, and as old and decrepit as my PC is, I was worried about the possibility of having to download all the games at once in one huge file.
 
[quote name='icupnimpn2']A post by Telltale's Psy in the official forums says something to the effect that there is DRM but that it is "hopefully transparent." I take that to mean, "hopefully causes no problems." I think it's simple stuff. Nothing that runs in the background ala steam. When I bought mine, I downloaded the file, which was a small installer/launcher program that let me click to download and install the individual games. Once installed, I could just launch from the games' executables. So the extent of the DRM is pretty much that you have to download this wrapper and use it to get the other files.[/QUOTE]


Every publisher believes their DRM is "hopefully transparent." I suspect Ubisoft believes their DRM on Splinter Cell: Conviction and Assassin's Creed 2 for PC were transparent. I suspect there were publishers that would argue TAGES is transparent. Hopefully. Probably. Maybe. Kinda. Probably not. Okay, no. I don't expect a publisher to ever acknowledge how bad their DRM is until they are either buried under the criticisms of said scheme (and more importantly losing sales over it), or the game is out of publication.

I'll keep an eye on this one to see if the two games are unlocked, but without those two games I'm not very tempted by what's on offer here, even if that last K's Q is there. The worst part of this, for me, is the lack of Steam. If it was on Steam, at least I'd have a convenient way of keeping track of these games until I found the time to get around to them. As it is, I think the price is too high for what's on sale *today*. I suspect I'd be better served waiting for the inevitable falltime, Black Friday, and Christmas/New Years Steam sales. Not to mention the potential for a weekend sale. All of which could very likely destroy the value of this package for the dollars spent.

So I'll watch it and wait for these potential unlocks and reassess the value once/if they do unlock.
 
PUZZLE AGENT has now shown up in my installer.

Unfortunately, like every other game in the bundle, I have yet
to find a workaround to install any of the titles.
Tried all of the fixes mentioned in their forums,
though any installation attempts are riddled with errors.

Nonetheless, it appears to be unlocked.

SUCCESS! I finally was able to install the the entire bundle.
Puzzle Agent has been unlocked/installed and is playable.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Wow - it looks like they got spooked that they wouldn't reach their milestones and gifted everyone Puzzle Agent.
 
The unlocking games was probably meant as a way to get bundle purchasers to spread the word, so that they could earn a "bonus" game if they managed to sell enough copies. This seems to have really backfired on them, causing people to wait to see if the other games would be unlocked. It probably would have worked out better if they didn't claim you were buying 6 games, then locking two of those games. I myself waited until Puzzle Agent was unlocked to buy it.

The DRM seems to work pretty well on Telltale's games. When you download it and play for the first time, you will need to log into your account to unlock the game. The game only checks once to verify that you have in fact bought the game with that account. There are no background processes that slow down your PC. I believe you get can download the game as many times as you want, but I haven't tested that.

The bundle installer itself seems a bit lacking. It only downloads one game at a time, and it seems you can't pick the order in which you want to install them. You just have to install every game then play the ones you want.

Overall, I'd say that this is a good deal. It's not a well-executed as the humble indie bundle, but it has some good game and isn't too inconvenient.

I'm really disappointing that this hasn't gotten more attention. None of the gaming blogs seem to have mentioned it yet. I guess giving to charity isn't enough to get attention, you have to give the games away dirt cheap too.
 
I'm just bummed that this doesn't seem to include the second part of Penny Arcade. Really, those were the only games I really wanted - the others were just a great throw in.
 
[quote name='Nimajneb7']I believe you get can download the game as many times as you want, but I haven't tested that.

The bundle installer itself seems a bit lacking. It only downloads one game at a time, and it seems you can't pick the order in which you want to install them. You just have to install every game then play the ones you want.[/QUOTE]


You can download as often as you like.

You should also be able to dictate the download order.
I believe it may default to the top title, though
if you hit download on another, if will override the default.
May take a couple of seconds, though will switch titles.
I had plenty of practice while troubleshooting, which
was more the result of me mistakenly checking run in compatibility
mode, as opposed to running as admin.
 
[quote name='vikingvessel']You can download as often as you like.

You should also be able to dictate the download order.
I believe it may default to the top title, though
if you hit download on another, if will override the default.
May take a couple of seconds, though will switch titles.
I had plenty of practice while troubleshooting, which
was more the result of me mistakenly checking run in compatibility
mode, as opposed to running as admin.[/QUOTE]

It started downloading the first game automatically. The other games have a download button next to them, but they a grayed out. Maybe after it's done downloading it will allow me to pick the next game.

The Whispered World has been downloading for about an hour, and is at 50%. I wanted to play Puzzle Agent, but I guess I will just have to wait. Hopefully the download speeds up a bit.

Wow, the second half went a lot fast. I was able to choose what game to download this time, sweet.
 
Puzzle Agent has been added to the deal now, and Sam & Max Season 2 will unlock at 5000 copies. With 1100 sold now, Puzzle Agent being included, and four days to go, I can see them hitting 5000.
 
[quote name='Zbornak']Puzzle Agent has been added to the deal now, and Sam & Max Season 2 will unlock at 5000 copies. With 1100 sold now, Puzzle Agent being included, and four days to go, I can see them hitting 5000.[/QUOTE]

It all seems more feasible now, doesn't it? I was hoping they'd do at least this much, but I wasn't sure when. I'm quite happy with the purchase at this point.
 
[quote name='nietzsche74']Is this the same as the Six Flags bundle?[/QUOTE]
Not sure what you're referring to but I like your username.
 
Loving Puzzle Agent and can't wait to unlock S&M season 2...even though I still have season 1 installed on my PC unfinished...

Kinda' wish each games downloaded into seperate files instead of the telltale loader that you have to download. It's not a prob for me really, but I'd prefer to have each game as a seperate file so I can place each game into Steam without it having to load the loader.
 
[quote name='ryushe']Loving Puzzle Agent and can't wait to unlock S&M season 2...even though I still have season 1 installed on my PC unfinished...

Kinda' wish each games downloaded into seperate files instead of the telltale loader that you have to download. It's not a prob for me really, but I'd prefer to have each game as a seperate file so I can place each game into Steam without it having to load the loader.[/QUOTE]

Just find the separate exes on your default adventure bundle installation, you can run the games without the launcher, I have all the games except King's Quest Collection on my steam list.
 
I just purchased this after seeing a tweet about it. I'm not sure how I missed it up to this point, but I wasn't on my computer much this weekend. I'm hopeful that it will sell 5000 copies, but I wish it would happen sooner.

I'll be downloading the games to my laptop tonight. Based on the conversations here, it seems both Penny Arcade games aren't included, which is a big bummer for me. Still, it's a good deal and great to do a little to support charity.
 
They're only up to 1500 sold, so unless they extend the offer, it doesn't look like there's any way they'll hit 5000.
 
[quote name='Zbornak']They're only up to 1500 sold, so unless they extend the offer, it doesn't look like there's any way they'll hit 5000.[/QUOTE]


Yeah, no way they'll make it to 5000 but overall I'm pretty pleased with the purchase. If Episode 2 of PAA was included I'd be even more pleased.
 
I'd like to buy it. especially since they included puzzle agent early. But I don't have $20 I can spend at the moment. rats!
 
Seeing these sales figures is really depressing. I mean, I know that point and click adventure isn't the popular genre, but come on people. I wouldn't blame Telltale for going "screw it, let's just make shooters" after this.

I don't directly have a vested interest since I already own all the sam and max games, but this bundle deserved to succeed. CAGs ought to have been all over this, especially considering the charitable aspect.

Sigh.
 
[quote name='Justme8800']
Sigh.[/QUOTE]

Did you see what happened with the Humble Indie Bundle from a few months ago? Just as pathetic, really.
 
I don't know - it's a good deal, but between the $20 price tag, relatively small charitable donation, and the fact that we almost definitely won't be getting Sam and Max...I'm just not feeling it at this point.

Sam and Max will both go on sale again in the future. King's Quest probably will too, on GOG. The Penny Arcade games are a whopping $5 on Steam. It might be better to just hold off at this point.

I wish I wasn't so low on cash right now. :whistle2:(
 
[quote name='Strell']Did you see what happened with the Humble Indie Bundle from a few months ago? Just as pathetic, really.[/QUOTE]

Well, the Humble Bundle had a lot of things going for it that this one doesn't (DRM free, cross platform, more popular games, elastic price). I'm not saying Telltale deserves to raise a million dollars like Wolfire did, but you'd think a level like 5,000 isn't too much to ask. The 25% charity donation means the price is really $15, which should be worth it to anyone mildly interested in adventure games.

I have a feeling that Telltale wanted to make a point with this bundle, that point being that adventure isn't a dead genre and people will buy if the price is right. Well, the price is right, and people still aren't buying. I hope everyone enjoys all the FPSes we're going to be bombarded with next year, after all the developers who were thinking about making intellectual adventure games see this and freak out.

Oh, who am I kidding... chances are if you're reading this thread, I'm preaching to the choir. The people I'm irritated at are all the bozos who run out and plop down $60 for Modern Same Old Shooter Warfare 12 Now With More Polygons Too Small To See Edition, but scoff at games with actual plots and good writing even when they're $15 a dozen. Fine, I see how it is. The other adventure game fans and I are quite comfy here under the bus we've been thrown under. Enjoy the future you've made for yourself, Gaming Industry, and have fun with the PTA types. We'll be here waiting for you to grow up, but we're not holding out breath.

/rant
 
[quote name='Justme8800']Well, the Humble Bundle had a lot of things going for it that this one doesn't (DRM free, cross platform, more popular games, elastic price). I'm not saying Telltale deserves to raise a million dollars like Wolfire did, but you'd think a level like 5,000 isn't too much to ask. The 25% charity donation means the price is really $15, which should be worth it to anyone mildly interested in adventure games.

I have a feeling that Telltale wanted to make a point with this bundle, that point being that adventure isn't a dead genre and people will buy if the price is right. Well, the price is right, and people still aren't buying. I hope everyone enjoys all the FPSes we're going to be bombarded with next year, after all the developers who were thinking about making intellectual adventure games see this and freak out.

Oh, who am I kidding... chances are if you're reading this thread, I'm preaching to the choir. The people I'm irritated at are all the bozos who run out and plop down $60 for Modern Same Old Shooter Warfare 12 Now With More Polygons Too Small To See Edition, but scoff at games with actual plots and good writing even when they're $15 a dozen. Fine, I see how it is. The other adventure game fans and I are quite comfy here under the bus we've been thrown under. Enjoy the future you've made for yourself, Gaming Industry, and have fun with the PTA types. We'll be here waiting for you to grow up, but we're not holding out breath.

/rant[/QUOTE]
It's more then that
This wasn't a Telltale sale it was a second stringer sale with the chance you could unlock the starters at the end.

Considering the way that these games drop on Steam it's unrealistic to think that people are going to plunk down money on "maybe" when they can wait a few months and pick up for the games for sure.

The Telltale pack on Steam this summer was 49.99 for all the top titles like all 3 complete seasons of Sam and Max and all the Monkey Island games and all the Wallace and Gromit games and all the Strong Bad games and even their card game.

Lots of people grabbed that package because it was an amazing package and showed that these games nor this genre is dead.

This sale is really weak compared to that one
 
[quote name='Jaysonguy']It's more then that
This wasn't a Telltale sale it was a second stringer sale with the chance you could unlock the starters at the end.

Considering the way that these games drop on Steam it's unrealistic to think that people are going to plunk down money on "maybe" when they can wait a few months and pick up for the games for sure.

The Telltale pack on Steam this summer was 49.99 for all the top titles like all 3 complete seasons of Sam and Max and all the Monkey Island games and all the Wallace and Gromit games and all the Strong Bad games and even their card game.

Lots of people grabbed that package because it was an amazing package and showed that these games nor this genre is dead.

This sale is really weak compared to that one[/QUOTE]
Indeed. If Telltale thinks that they're launching a viable third-party distribution platform with this sale, then they're got another thing coming.

At this point, I really hope that they unlock Sam & Max Season 2 regardless of sales--because to punish the few people who did bite would sting an awful lot. I'll get my $20 worth regardless; it's a good collection of flawed-but-interesting adventure games, with compatible(ish) versions of the King's Quest series thrown in for good measure. But without all six games, a lot of people will be left with a bad taste in their respective mouths. And if there's one thing gamers can do, it's hold a grudge.
 
[quote name='didamangi']Just find the separate exes on your default adventure bundle installation, you can run the games without the launcher, I have all the games except King's Quest Collection on my steam list.[/QUOTE]
Ahhh, thanks for that.
 
I'm an adventure game fan but very few games in this package intrigue me. Besides a few games they are all older releases which no matter my good intentions I know I will not play. On top of that I own the telltale everything back on steam and the penny arcade games on XBLA so the price tag is a bit high for the remaining titles. I feel like I could pick up any of them for around the same price normally.
 
[quote name='Zbornak']In the red news banner at the sale page, it says that they've extended the sale by a week.[/QUOTE]

probably still wont reach 5,000
 
If Sam and Max unlocks, I'll probably go for it.

As much as I love the genre, I'm too broke to justify it otherwise, especially when I've already got some of the titles in the bundle and the never-ending CAG backlog.
 
[quote name='Drkirby']I bought it, I just can't see Tale Tell holding S&M2 if the pack sells badly.[/QUOTE]

This is how I feel. The people that purchase this pack obviously enjoy adventure games and if you don't already have Season 2 after all of the sales they've had on it then you probably have never played a S&M game.

This is the situation I'm in as I haven't played an adventure game in at least 10 years. The S&M games interest me but not quite enough to jump in on a full season; however, I know if I got S2 as part of this deal I'd probably love it and end up buying season 3.
 
If more went to charity I might buy it, but I already have some of the games in the bundle. 25% to me seems low to me for some reason.
 
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