Silverload

As is the case with other graphic adventure games, progress in Silverload involves finding and interacting with various "hot spots" in order to pick up objects, solve puzzles and interact with (or kill) the various characters in the town. Picking up certain objects will cause the game's (and town's) clock to move forward, and thus, the trick to success is to pick up the right items in the precise order. Otherwise, the player must restart the game from the beginning, or from the last save point.

In 1879, a half-Native American bounty hunter known as "The Gunslinger" is hired by a travelling settler to rescue his son, Ben, who was kidnapped by supernatural raiders. Following the raiders' trail, the Gunslinger arrives in Silverload, a mysterious silver mining town that the settlers had previously visited. In the town's hotel, he meets Leo Remmington, an archeologist hired by the town; Leo explains that his partner, Carl Whitehead, believed the town to be cursed and has now disappeared. Meanwhile, the Sheriff is ordered by Silverload's Preacher to find Whitehead, and eliminate the Gunslinger.

The Gunslinger goes on to explore the town the next day, gathering items, meeting the townsfolk and having more strange encounters. In the tavern, he meets Sheila, the Sheriff's mistress, who offers her assistance in saving Ben. In an abandoned blacksmith's shop, he comes across Carl Whitehead, slowly losing his mind and undergoing transformation into a vampire. The Gunslinger manages to subdue Whitehead with a bucket of pig's blood, allowing him to flee; reading his journal, he learns that the archeologists were hired to remove the Native American remains underneath the hotel, before Whitehead was infected by one of the townsfolk while exploring.

The initial European PC release was universally panned by critics. Just Adventure gave it an F grade, and listed it as one of the five worst adventure games of all time in their Dungeon of Shame feature. The review stated that the "few minor details" of "jerky animation, incoherent puzzles, bad interface and horrendous lip-synching ... separate Silverload from the gaming classics," and attested the one redeeming factor was its plot.

The PlayStation release, however, was not a direct port, but an entire reworking of the title that actually received a few positive reviews. Scary Larry gave it a heavily mixed review in GamePro. He lambasted the graphics and sounds, citing poor illustrations for the static graphics and offensive ethnic stereotypes in the voice acting, but said the gameplay is more interesting than most point-and-click adventures. He recommended that players rent the game rather than buy it.