Created in 1980 by Sierra, at this point going by the name On-Line Systems, Mystery House is widely considered to be the first graphic adventure game ever created. I can’t say for sure whether that is true or not, but it’s fair to say it sits at an important juncture at birthplace of the graphic adventure genre. It might be the game, but it is the game.
Mystery House takes the parser-based conventions of text adventures, but uses the majority of the screen real-estate to present pictures of the particular screen you’re in. The intention, I think, was to increase immersion and accessibility in a more narrative focused genre, rather than the more abstract notions of other video game genres.
It was the first game in the Hi-Res adventure game series ( branding that has not aged particularly well), and so feels like a suitable point to start this adventure game journey.
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