Thinky Games

The best adventure games for MacOS

Adventure games are a genre of video games that take place from the perspective of a character and feature narrative elements prominently. Under the control of the player, a main character explores a cohesive world and interacts with various non-player characters. Advancing the plot requires solving puzzles which are often seamlessly integrated into the game’s environments.

Since this narrative framing establishes no particular constraint on the nature of the puzzles being solved, adventure games may often be described in relation to additional video game genres. While the adventure genre has been associated historically with point-and-click games and “puzzle-adventure” games, adventure elements have also been included in detective games (e.g. Tangle Tower, Duck Detective), platformer games (Portal 2, Fez), and even sokoban games (Isles of Sea and Sky, Void Stranger).

Incidentally, first-person non-systemic puzzle games like Myst have become known as “puzzle-adventure” games. It should be noted, as evidenced by the games previously mentioned, that video games may feature both puzzle and adventure elements yet still be very different from so-called “puzzle-adventure” games.

The games listed below are the most favorited adventure games for MacOS in the Thinky Games database.

  • We Were Here
    Windows
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 4
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Solve co-op puzzles in an abandoned castle with only walkie-talkies to communicate.
  • The Pedestrian
    Windows
    Linux
    MacOS
    PlayStation 4
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    A puzzle-platformer set within a world of interconnected street signs.
  • Quern - Undying Thoughts
    Windows
    Linux
    MacOS
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Uncover the secrets of Quern, solving contraption puzzles in this first-person puzzle adventure.
  • Obduction
    Windows
    MacOS
    PlayStation 4
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Explore a broken alien landscape in this first-person adventure from the creators of Myst.
  • Riven (2024)
    Windows
    MacOS
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox Series X|S
    Solve the puzzling contraptions of Riven, a mysterious world on the verge of ruin.
  • There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension
    Windows
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    iPad
    iPhone
    Android
    You were told not to play this game — why don't you ever listen?
  • Carto
    Windows
    Linux
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 4
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Rearrange the pieces of the world and connect with cheerful characters.
  • Paper Trail
    Windows
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    iPad
    iPhone
    Android
    Fold your way through an origami world in this puzzle adventure.
  • Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping
    Windows
    Linux
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Eugene McQuacklin returns in a new comedic-noir investigation.
  • We Were Here Together
    Windows
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 4
    PlayStation 5
    Xbox One
    Xbox Series X|S
    Continuing co-op series We Were Here, venture into the freezing antarctic to rescue your fellow explorers.
  • Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure
    Windows
    MacOS
    Nintendo Switch
    Nintendo Switch 2
    PlayStation 5
    iPad
    iPhone
    Android
    Join Jemma on a journey of self-discovery, sliding the world beneath her feet and causing all kinds of chaos.
  • Detective Grimoire
    Windows
    Linux
    MacOS
    iPad
    iPhone
    Gather clues to uncover the secret of a swamp and its alleged mythical creature.
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