Gadget: Invention, Travel & Adventure

About

Gadget: Invention, Travel & Adventure is a 1993 point-and-click adventure that unfolds entirely within a labyrinth of train stations and government offices. You play a nameless agent navigating a decaying authoritarian state, hunting for a vanished scientist while piecing together cryptic dialogue and environmental clues. The game eschews traditional combat for slow, methodical exploration, with choices often feeling more like eavesdropping than active participation. Its first-person perspective and paper-thin visuals create a stark, almost dreamlike contrast to the weight of its political intrigue. Despite its age, the game’s eerie atmosphere and nonlinear storytelling have earned it a cult following. Critics at the time noted its bold experimentation, and later creators have cited its influence on narrative design. While its clunky interface and deliberate pacing might test modern players, its blend of bureaucratic absurdity and existential dread remains strikingly original. The lack of clear resolutions leaves room for interpretation, making each playthrough feel like assembling a half-remembered nightmare.

Storyline

The game's plot takes place in an unspecified (albeit vaguely Eastern European) nation headed by the dictator Orlovsky. The protagonist is a government agent tasked with discovering the whereabouts of a missing scientist named Horselover Frost. He begins his quest in a third-floor room of a luxury hotel (which is in fact the headquarters of the government's intelligence arm). After collecting his belongings in a suitcase, the protagonist takes an elevator ride to the lobby, during which a boy replaces the case with another identical one containing various spy-related paraphernalia. In the lobby, the government's intelligence chief briefs the protagonist on his mission. The protagonist then moves to the central railway station. From this point on all the events of the story take place on trains or at the various stations (which include the national science institute) along the nation's main rail line. The player must engage in scripted conversations with various individuals, each of whom reveals pieces of information that advance the protagonist in his quest.