Pendulo are from Spain. I would like to play the Spanish version to see how the writing differs.

You should stay away from the sequel, then. I don't know if Pendulo set out to make Brian Basco the biggest cock in the history of gaming, but they succeeded admirably.
Small spoiler:
The worst is perhaps how he, while searching for his lost girlfriend who may be in great danger, finds time to have sex with some cheap tart. I mean, WTF. I hope they kill the guy in Runaway 3.

I have the first one in Spanish, and I don't remember the writing bothering, so maybe it is better. I'm vague talking about it because I have not played it since it came out, it was a lot of fun though.

Well I have to agree that the writting is pretty meh, and the voice acting just horrible lol, but the game itself is pretty solid :)
Pretty design, cool puzzles, and some of the ideas are just crazy lol...
It's not Full Throttle or Monkey Island, but it's still good :)

I played it back in the days, and remember spending a great time with this game...
I remember that the french version was simply hilarious.. I usually play my games in English, but thit time, to be honnest, it was the best translation/adaptation I've ever heard !
The game was classic point and click adventure, and I really love it... well.. to a point.. it's not Day of the Tentacle (which is for me, by far, THE best), but it was really funny
I would have bought it again on GOG without any hesitation if that awesome french version were available.... but here, I think i'll pass :(

I've seen this game a lot recently (whether that's because I've been looking for it, I don't know...) and have thought about buying it. I read some rather scathing reviews of the second one, but the first one did get good reviews?
I've read the comments above, but I would love to hear more opinions on the game and its translation quality (English is my first and last language).

NB: I can only remark on the CD version I bought a few years ago
If you are looking for a game that looks back to the old Sierra On-line and Lucasarts games you probably can't go wrong with Runaway. But, If you are looking for Syberia or The Longest Journey this might not be your game. Now that I got that out of the way. The truth is some people will enjoy this game and some won't -- no matter which side you are from. The only way you will be sure is if you try it. I would suggest looking around for the game demos.
I probably should warn the old school adventure gamers that the game's quality has a lot in common with LucasArts' The Dig. The story line could have used some work because it starts to get awkward after they leave the cities. The audio and video quality aren't always the best. And I remember at least one cut scene that didn't match the game in artwork style and quality.
The game had a lot of good attributes.
The puzzles are usually pretty intuitive (there are a few strange ones). The graphics and music are good (the screen shots are a good measure of the graphics). The dialogue, one-liners, and humor are what I would expect from an new adventure game posing as an old one (nothing new here but still entertaining).
Now on to Dream of the Turtle. The second game is a lot like the first game except the location and the plot. The game does get a little weird and Brian does do a few weird things but it is a good sequel. The only complaint is that the To Be Continued ending is kind of a let down. Hopefully, Runaway: A Twist of Fate will be a good game that fills in these two games' stories a little more.