While quite dated by the standards of even just a few years later, The 7th Guest was still considered by many to be one of the benchmarks to hit when developing an FMV-based point-and-click adventure game, if not for its gameplay and puzzle design then at least for its visual flair, presentation, and storytelling.

Fast forward a couple of decades, and in 2023, we get a VR-based remake of The 7th Guest, complete with brand new puzzles that make a lot more sense than the original, a fully-realized 3D recreation of the original’s mansion, and even brand new actors taking on the roles of the various other guests throughout the story. Considering the niche nature of VR, however, it was only a matter of time before the game made its way to a more traditional gaming platform, and now, it has been fully translated for “flat screen” gameplay on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.

In the modern gaming industry, where point-and-click adventure games have largely disappeared, and horror has split off from the genre entirely, becoming its own thing thanks to a variety of releases ranging from Resident Evil to Silent Hill. Keeping this in mind, The 7th Guest feels quite anachronistic; it still has the original’s spooky atmosphere and dark storyline. However, if you’re expecting to be scared, this isn’t quite the game for you. Rather, The 7th Guest Remake is more focused on making you flex your mental prowess over its several puzzles, which can be tackled at your preferred pace, since there aren’t really any time constraints or grotesque creatures chasing you down.

"The puzzles in The 7th Guest Remake are some of the best things about the game, especially when compared to the original"

The story of The 7th Guest Remake revolves around the mansion of Henry Stauf. While not too many details are revealed in the beginning, the basic plot outline is that, at one point in the past, Stauf invited six guests to spend a night at his mansion at Harley-on-Hudson in New York, and to solve a variety of puzzles that would lead them to discovering his deepest, darkest secrets. However, none of the guests were able to make it too far, with many of them experiencing strange, supernatural events during their stay. You, as the unnamed protagonist, have taken it upon yourself to make your way through the mansion’s various rooms in your efforts to discover just what happened to the original guests, and what Stauf’s secrets might be.

Thankfully, The 7th Guest Remake also retains much of the charm of the original by featuring FMV cutscenes that feature live-action performances by real actors. Just about every character, from deep-in-debt married couple Edward and Elinor Knox, to actress Martine Burden, has been wonderfully portrayed by their respective actors, with equal amounts of nuanced emotion and hammy overacting that keeps just about every encounter you might have with their memories thoroughly entertaining.

The general structure of The 7th Guest Remake is quite linear—at any given time, only a few rooms of the mansion will be available, each room housing its own set of puzzles that you will need to solve in order to make progress, unlocking more rooms in the process. The puzzles themselves are also quite self-contained. Even if some of these puzzles might connect to others, these connections never extend to anything outside of the room you’re in, so you never really have to worry about having forgotten a key item or important detail as you make your way through the game.

When it comes to the actual puzzle-solving gameplay, things are once again quite simple, and there isn’t even an inventory screen like you would find in the Monkey Island series, for example. You only have a lantern that lets you look at things in the past, and a second hand that can hold things while you figure out what to do next. The puzzles themselves are also largely focused on logical thinking, sometimes asking you to handle simple mathematics like addition, and other times making you come up with clever solutions to a mini game, for example. The puzzles in The 7th Guest Remake are some of the best things about the game, especially when compared to the original, since the 1993 classic was well-known for its “logic”-based puzzles being absolutely illogical.

"Thankfully, The 7th Guest Remake also retains much of the charm of the original by featuring FMV cutscenes that feature live-action performances by real actors."

However, the puzzles also betray the fact that The 7th Guest Remake was originally envisioned as a VR game. A surprising number of puzzles revolve around moving things around on a surface, for example, which indicates that fine motor skills were required of a player’s hands. Moving these same objects using analogue sticks doesn’t quite hit in the same way, unfortunately. The VR-styled puzzles felt especially egregious in Hamilton Temple’s room, where there was a heavy emphasis on using a pair of magical top hats to teleport between two places. While the original VR version would have you literally reach into a top hat to grab a key item, for example, the regular version of the game has you simply hitting the “pick up item” button, robbing the puzzles of much of their identity and uniqueness.

Other places where the VR roots of The 7th Guest Remake show themselves are in the movement itself. While walking or running around feels fine most of the time, hitting the crouch button doesn’t even seem to feature any gameplay animations. Rather, the title cuts to you simply being at a lower point of view than you would be if you were standing. This, however, is a minor quibble in the grand scheme of things, especially since the only thing it really affects is the game’s overall presentation.

Generally speaking, The 7th Guest Remake is an incredibly engaging experience. Sure, it might suffer from a slow start, since it’s taking its time in setting up the various characters that you will discover secrets about, while also making sure that you fully understand the simple gameplay mechanics that will be used for its logic-based puzzles. Once it gets going, however, it becomes easy to get trapped in the general loop of clearing a room of all puzzles and then convincing yourself that you’ll just take a look at the next room, and maybe solve one or two of the simpler puzzles there. Before you know it, you’ve accidentally spent a couple of hours combing every square inch of the room to find the final puzzle piece. Sure, it won’t be offering you any frights, but The 7th Guest Remake still feels like a fantastic way to spend a relaxing evening with a cup of tea.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

BrokenLore: FOLLOW

After UNFOLLOW, Serafini Productions now wants you to FOLLOW with its addition to the BrokenLore franchise. What exactly is happening? Well, we don’t know, aside from the fact that Anne is back and still dealing with extensive trauma, including but not limited to issues with her mother, bullying, feelings of worthlessness, and so on. And if that wasn’t bad enough, she contended with all kinds of horrors, like a giant gagged head shuffling through the halls and Mini Anne, a sentient doll. If this is truly the end of her journey before we move on to scary climbing in Ascend, then here’s hoping Anne finds some peace when BrokenLore: FOLLOW launches on June 1st for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth (Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2)

The second chapter in the remake trilogy features a much bigger world to explore, far deeper combat, enough mini-games to trip over, and of course, more Sephiroth. With Midgar left behind, Cloud and company venture across new locations, which are more expansive open-world-esque fields with enough enemies to test out the new Synergy attacks and Summons. And if you’re just here for the story, the Streamlined Progression features allow limitless HP and MP, easier ways to earn weapons, XP boosters, and much more, keeping the focus entirely on exploration and getting to know old and new friends, including Red XIII and Cait Sith. Currently available on PS5 and PC, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2 players will finally get their chance to join the adventure on June 3rd.

Gothic 1 Remake

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but regardless of the many clones over the years, nothing quite captured the feeling of the original Gothic. On June 5th, Alkimia Interactive is bringing the legend back to life, complete with contemporary visuals, expanded questlines, new abilities, and combat that promises to be more “fluid and dynamic.” However, the core experience of wandering around the Colony, which is a venerable ecosystem in its own right, and choosing which camps to ally with while uncovering this massive world and its stories, remains intact. If an open-world RPG that doesn’t hold your hand sounds good, then Gothic 1 Remake may be worth your while when it launches on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions

If you’re looking for a break from No Man’s Sky, perhaps a more structured co-op experience, then Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions may be your jam. It enters early access on PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S on June 11th, and diverges from the original’s terraforming gameplay loop in favor of more adventure. Through the ESS Starseekeer, you’ll meet other players, pair up for expeditions, and venture to various planets to complete objectives (along with materials and loot to earn). The twist is that you have a limited amount of oxygen and avenues for violence, so you’ll need to repel creatures, explore the environment – including diving into unknown depths – and work alongside your crew to survive. With a much more polished base and monthly updates planned, it could serve as a worthwhile co-op distraction…in space.

EA Sports UFC 6

Much like EA Sports FC, Madden, and College Football, you know what you’re getting into with a new UFC title. UFC 6 sports a few new modes at the very least, including Hall of Legends, which feels like it’s taking a page out of the WWE 2K Showcase mode with its mix of gameplay and live-action footage from famous fights across UFC history. Meanwhile, The Legacy has you playing as a prospect who fights all the way to the top to become champion, offering a more narrative bent. But you still have Career Mode, where you can create a fighter and plot their career with a much larger number of choices and the option to hold and defend two belts. With its June 19th launch on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, maybe it could break the mold and bring some excitement to an otherwise familiar formula. Just like EA Sports is renowned for!

The 7th Guest Remake

As obtuse and impossible as the old-school adventure games were, it’s nice to see the more contemporary remakes capturing their essence with updated visuals. The 7th Guest Remake, based on Trilobyte’s critically acclaimed 1993 adventure, offers the same mystery as before. You’re the titular seventh guest, investigating a mystery surrounding the previous six and the villainous Henry Strauf in a dark mansion. Numerous puzzles await, unraveling more of its secrets while bringing you ever closer to the truth. Perhaps more intriguing, however, is that the remake retains the original’s use of live-action actors in 3D environments, except with newly recorded footage that looks far crisper. The 7th Guest Remake launches on June 4th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, so if you covet adventure mystery titles with a dash of horror, this might just be another worthy addition to the collection.

#DRIVE Rally (Consoles)

Sega will continue dragging its feet and never give us a brand new Sega Rally title, so in the meantime, efforts like #DRIVE Rally will have to suffice. Currently available on PC, it’s coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2 on June 18th, packing six massive locations and 25 customizable vehicles in three classes. If you’re serious about competition, there are multiple Championships to earn and leaderboards to compete in (complete with ghosts), or you can kick back in Free Roam and add some sweet interior decorations to your collection. #DRIVE Rally definitely leans more towards the arcade side of racing, especially with its aesthetic, but it still offers some fun off-roading action.

NBA The Run

Remember the good old days of NBA Street? Play by Play Studios is seemingly trying to capture some of that magic with NBA The Run, a $30 street basketball title coming to Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. The main goal is to win the Run the World Tournament. Four rounds, knockout rules, winner is crowned the champion. Pair up with two other players, taking control of a single player in Knockout Squads or control the entire team in Knockout Solos. Private Tournaments are also possible in Knockout Friends, and you can either take on the AI alone, with other players, or organize a massive competition with a staggering 48-player limit. And even with the indie studio budget, there are still over 30 NBA superstars to control, as you make a run for the top.

Star Fox

The audible groan of certain communities when this was revealed to be a remake of Star Fox 64 was palpable. But the latter arguably remains the series’ peak, and Star Fox for the Switch 2, launching on June 25th, retains everything that made it so great, save for completely overhauled visuals. You can experience the story on three different difficulties, either solo or in co-op, or partake in Challenge Mode with different objectives. Even multiplayer has been revamped to support multiple objective-based modes pitting Star Fox and Star Wolf against each other. It may not be the next big Switch 2 exclusive, but personally, it’s great to see the franchise return and looking so good.

Hell Let Loose: Vietnam

After bringing the brutal conflicts of World War 2 into the multiplayer space with unrelenting realism and a massive scale, Expression Games has its eyes set on Vietnam. Hell Let Loose: Vietnam, out on June 18th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, leverages Unreal Engine 5 to deliver six massive maps where one side attempts to annihilate the other. With 17 different combat roles, new aerial units like helicopters, patrol boats, to battle across extensive rivers, dragging allies away to help them recover, revamped movement and the ability to tunnel for ambushes, this could be the definitive war sim shooter experience of the year.