So it’s taken me a little longer to get around to this than I would have liked. I was rather excited for Thimbleweed Park. I find point and click adventures to be an underrated genre and prefer the more old school version more than what we have seen lately. I also find Ron Gilbert to be an underrated developer. Many people know Tim Schafer, but forget that Gilbert worked along side him for some of their best games. The idea that Ron Gilbert was creating a point and click adventure designed to grab at our nostalgia seemed pretty perfect.

I had high expectations going into Thimbleweed Park, and I was not let down. The game is entertaining, compelling, and down right fun to play. The story starts with two so called FBI agents trying to solve the murder of a man. During their adventure they learn of three other characters that you eventually take control of too. All of them come together to try and find out who murdered this man and the greater mysteries of the town. The story unfolds with solid pacing, allowing the player a large degree of control over when they uncover what. In various playthroughs you might see different cut scenes at different times depending on how you play the game and the order you solve the puzzles. It eventually converges in a rather unexpected but pleasing way.

Along with the main story and puzzles there are a number of other entertaining things to do in the game. Conversations are well written and the humor is spot on. This is not surprising in the least given the team that worked on the game. It is nice to see that over the years they’ve maintained great comedic timing. The game is worth playing multiple times and exploring in depth if only for the various jokes you might miss one time or another.

Aesthetically the game is appealing. The voice acting is good with each character having their own unique personalities… well almost every character. There are a few that are very much copied and pasted, but without giving too much away you eventually find out why. The look of the game manages to feel like an old school point and click without feeling like a graphic downgrade. It’s polished, updated from what it would have been decades ago, and strikes a nice balance. The soundtrack is good and fits with the game well without feeling overly repetitive.

From start to finish this game manages to be the perfect way to grab at nostalgia lust. I often find myself disappointed when other games attempt the same thing, but Thimbleweed Park does it so well. So much work went in to making this feel like something classic, yet it is never bogged down in it. Just as much effort was put into making a joke about this nostalgia grab. Honestly, it’s just done so damn well I can’t find anything to really fault.

If you love classic point and click adventure games there is so much here to be had. This will take you back, but manages to remain fresh at the same time. It’s a difficult balance to find, but they were able to do so. If you are newer to the genre this is still a gem. It’s accessible to people new to point and clicks as well as those more familiar.

If you haven’t had a chance I would highly recommend giving Thimbleweed Park a try.