Al Lowe and Jane Jensen jump on the Kickstarter bandwagon.

[Eggie]

I only have a crush on Jane herself, and her husband when he wears that pigtail wig.

[m0ds]

It's not Al and his team. It's Replay Games and Al. It's Replay Games that asked Codemasters if they could revive Leisure Suit Larry ages ago, Codemasters agreed for a remake, and later on Replay Games asked Al and (even later) Josh if they were interested in working with them.

It would have been better if they got Al involved right off the bat but I suppose Al was not interested in interrupting his retirement to experience yet more refusals from publishers and investors. It's a bit like Catch-22. You need Al to get a sequel and you need approval to get Al.

See it from the bright side, it won't just be an HD treatment, we'll get more jokes, puzzles, locations and girls, and if it's successful, they won't have to remake another game ever again.

Thanks for explaining blueskirt. Copyrights, rights & acquisition stages...always interesting! I'll have to read into it more before casting judgements... but this is definitely why indie gaming has a lot of strengths (and always will), lots of beuracracy higher up. Creative aspects also suffer because of those higher up problems. Hopefully it won't for these folks, but is that be a reason behind Jensen's kickstarter studio? More creative control over games?

[Jared]

Vivendi's dead. It's Activision that owns it all now, except Larry.

Sorry, I probably screwed up with the tense I used in that sentence - I know Vivendi's not around now but at the time Josh Mandel and SQ7 were dealing with Vivendi. Around the time of the acquisition they were selling off the Sierra IPs - I don't know if they actually offloaded any other than Larry (since I think Telltale bought King's Quest more recently..)

And the Shadowrun guys are in a much different situation, they're dealing with a pen and paper RPG company, not Activision, and they offer an up to date, multi-platform RPG, not an old school PC adventure game, like most people proposed when they tried to deal with Activision.

So I guess Microsoft did give up the rights then? It's great news for gamers, anyway. I always like to see a creator get the rights to his own property back, and I get the feeling something awesome is going to come out of it.

I think it's a measure of how big I nerd I am that I'm instantly twice as interested in a project when the developers promise a level editor...


UPDATE: Wow, Shadowrun Returns is already funded. 28 hours.

Also I see what people were saying about Jane Jensen's daughter. If Jane's smart she'll ad a 20,000 reward for a date with Raleigh

[Secret Fawful]

I think Jane Jensen's pitch video is my favorite so far.

[blueskirt]

Vivendi's dead. It's Activision that owns it all now, except Larry.

Sorry, I probably screwed up with the tense I used in that sentence - I know Vivendi's not around now but at the time Josh Mandel and SQ7 were dealing with Vivendi. Around the time of the acquisition they were selling off the Sierra IPs - I don't know if they actually offloaded any other than Larry (since I think Telltale bought King's Quest more recently..)

I think Telltale bought a license, not the IP, like they did for Tales Of Monkey Island. As for the other IPs, other than Leisure Suit Larry, the only other Sierra IP that isn't owned by Activision is Gold Rush.

It's funny but now that I think about it, I have the strange feeling that before long we'll see some fan teams using Kickstarter to acquire license and fund remakes and fangames.

Also, hurray for Shadowrun Returns, now that was a game I was waiting for a long time.

[Sslaxx]

Big difference between owning and licensing something. Naughty of Replay Games to insinuate that they owned the rights to Larry when they'd only licensed them.

As for Kickstarter, well... it seems to be appealing (and very successful) for veteran game designers who are overlooked by modern publishers, doesn't it. True, that could end up damaging its original purpose, but there you have it. Hopefully though it'll still be a good avenue for new game makers to use as well, although they're likely to need to have more to show upfront first.

And Blueskirt? Vivendi Games isn't dead. It's Activision Blizzard, yes, but it's still a subsidiary of Vivendi SA.

[Jared]

New update from Al Lowe here. He addresses a brief FAQ I gather from feedback so far, clarifies that Replay Games has the license, clarifies that the ultimate goal is to get the ball rolling for a whole new game, and re-iterates that he had absolutely nothing to do with the last two 'Larry' Games. Oh, and he gives Jane Jensen a shout out.

The biggest problem for Al, and one I hadn't thought of until right now, is probably Magnum Cum Laude and Box Office Bust. The gap between those and Love For Sail (way back in 1996!) is so big and they were such high-profile failures and gaming media punching bags, that a lot of younger people would think of those games when they hear 'Leisure Suit Larry'.

And it must be terrible to keep getting associated with games you didn't even get consulted on..

[m0ds]

Cool cheers Jared! Good to see point & click's can still be big business. Cheaper to make an original title though surely! It seems the 90's designers are all bouncing back. Each with a second mortgage to pay off it seems

[Stupot]

You seen the size of Jensen's crib?  The barn alone could probably fit my house inside it severalfold.

BTW, has anyone ever read any of her novels?  I knew she'd done novels of Gabriel Knight, but didn't realise she had a few other books too.  Might check them out.

[Cyrus]

Update on Larry: new rewards (T-shirts included) and the official forums: http://forums.replaygamesinc.com/

[Jared]

Ooh, another update and this one is kind of a big deal. An interview with Rock Paper Shotgun with Al Lowe and Paul Trowe who's heading the project and a former Sierra employee...

(All emphasis has been added)

RPS: You worked on a bunch of other Sierra games, I know you worked on the Police Quest games, did lots of programming and dialogue for those. Do you have any ambition to bring… In your Kickstarter you’ve talked about wanting to bring back all those classic series, but is there any in particular that you have a real passion for, that you’d really like to give another chance to?

Al: In my book, the number one would be Space Quest because I just love Scott Murphy and Mark Crowe, I thought that humour was just… I thought it was better than mine, y’know (laughs). I really liked it a lot, I thought it was just that wonderful sardonic and creative and wry humour, I just loved it. I just love stuff like ‘Thanks for playing, you’ve been a real pantload’. That was one of my favourite lines in all games.

RPS: [...] Do you think that would be a game you could bring back and get them on board with?

Paul: I already spoke to Scott. Scott’s down for Space Quest. Mark works for Pipeworks, which is a Foundation 9 company. Foundation 9 is a very large independent studio and Mark said that that would be a direct conflict of interest for him, but if you recall in the last Space Quest, which was Space Quest 6, it was all Scott and Josh.

Al: Josh Mandel. And Josh is in on board here.

Paul: Josh was already on board, so in my opinion Space Quest 6 was one of the funniest ones out of all of them, so I think to make either Space Quest 7 or to reboot Space Quest 1-6, it’s more of a legal right than anything else. I’ve been friends with Scott ever since they closed Sierra, and once we announced that we were doing Leisure Suit Larry, I called Scott immediately and I said ‘If we get the rights to Space Quest, will you hop on board and do this with us?’ and he said ‘Absolutely, yes.’

Al: That’s good news.

RPS: [...] So Paul, something like the licence for Space Quest, which I believe is currently in the hands of Activision, who obviously don’t have any intention of doing anything with it, how difficult is that process to start?

Paul: What you’re saying is actually not true. It’s been licensed out already, and we’re in negotiations with the company that has it licensed out. And I want to say it’s looking good, but right now I’d give us 50/50.

Replay Games are pretty serious about bringing back Sierra games. He goes on to mention talking to Ken and Roberta about King's Quest which... well, I'd imagine would provoke mixed responses here. Most surprisingly, for me, Paul Trowe's response when King's Quest: The Silver Lining comes up..

RPS: So also with King’s Quest, they’ve been uncharacteristically generous in allowing fan projects. Have you seen the project the Silver Lining?

Paul: The Silver Lining wasn’t available for sale…

RPS: That’s right, yes.

Paul:And in addition it wasn’t really a King’s Quest. In my opinion they did an injustice to the King’s Quest franchise.

RPS: That’s interesting, why do you think that?

Paul: I just don’t think it held true to Roberta’s vision, just like I don’t think the Leisure Suit Larrys that have come out after Al wasn’t involved held true to Al’s vision. And that’s why I refuse to work on a Leisure Suit Larry game if Al wasn’t involved. I refuse to work on a King’s Quest game if Roberta’s not involved.

Which I thought was a surprisingly purist mindset, given that Ken Williams was happy to move series from designer to designer when it suited him. But, hey, everyone's entitled to their opinion. I think somebody needs to ask Paul Trowe about Vohaul Strikes Back and Incinerations now!


EDIT: How come people always talk about doing more King's Quest but never more Quest For Glory when it's such a better series???

[Sslaxx]

That does lend credence that all the Sierra properties Activision still own were licensed out to Telltale. Whether or not they planned on doing anything with Space Quest themselves, who knows?

[blueskirt]

The biggest problem for Al, and one I hadn't thought of until right now, is probably Magnum Cum Laude and Box Office Bust.

I don't know. I think the biggest problem is how crazy fractioned the Sierra communities are compared to LucasArts communities. LucasArts, if you like one game, you will most likely like them all as the gameplay, mood and humor are relatively similar from one game to the next. Sierra, if you like one series you will not automatically like the others. There also hasn't been any Sierra version of Mixnmojo and Lucasforums to cultivate this sense of unity among Sierra fans, gather them and keep them talking about Sierra stuff.

While Double Fine had the support from the fans of LucasArts, Ron, Tim, Monkey Island, Sam and Max, Maniac Mansion, Full Throttle, Grim Fandango and Psychonauts and other Double Fine titles, Al and Jane will mostly rely on their respective fanbase. I have no doubt both projects, and Tex Murphy will meet their goals, but I doubt we'll witness the same overfunding craze of the Double Fine kickstarter. It's also clear that you could not pull off the same stunt for a lesser known title like Freddy Pharkas, Manhunter, Conquest or Laura Bow, with the current situation Sierra communities are in, at least not without revising your goal.

[Radiant]

Hm, if they don't like The Silver Lining I wonder what they think of all the fan-made Space Quest sequels out there?

I don't think there's ever been a Larry fangame that wasn't a straight remake, was there?

[Cyrus]

Update #10: some awesome new goodies!    

They added a new $150 tier for that much you get

1) physical game and game box
2) CD of the soundtrack
3) Lefty's breath spray,
4) Lefty's sexy lady "reveal" pen.
5) Lefty's shot glass
6) 4 Lefty's coasters,
7) softcover version of the Art of Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded
8) Leisure Suit Larry Brand Condom
9) Lefty’s Bar t-shirt

and they revealed what the t-shirt will look like... I think its a lot cooler then the Doublefine shirt...
http://i.imgur.com/cYvXg.png

[Jared]

Well, barring some unforeseen incidents in the future Larry is coming back! Fully funded 6 days out from the finish line.

Now they're talking about things to do if they get to a million.... I doubt that's happening. But still! Sierra is making a comeback.

(Although Scott Murphy and Mark Crowe, for mine, having taken a bit of the thunder away..)

[Construed]

AL LOWE ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have all the best wishes for him and jane and hope someday I can be like them. 

[Stupot]

Haha, no way they're getting a million, but they've got more than enough to [re]make Larry.

Jensen's campaign seems to be petering out a bit, but they should be able to hit the target in 22 days.  I don't really like this system she's planning. I'd rather just buy each game as and when they come out.

[Eggie]

I'm hoping Jane's one is going to pick up now they've pinned down an actual GAME to say they're making. This business of pitching it as a company start-up is messy and overly complicated and it's hurt them a lot.
I really want to play the new game though :'( Please pledge, folks...

[Cyrus]

They've successfully reached the 500000 level some days ago. And a new update:

"So, here's the easier one: at the $550,000 level, we will be maxing out the game responses along the lines I suggested in my video update. Tons more jokes, tons more responses for clicking on screen features, dialogue trees, inventory-on-inventory messages, and more story! We’ll load every existing nook and cranny with extra content because, as Al pointed out to us, the original was “kinda thin” on that.

Now, here's the big one: at the $650,000 level, we're doing something that will change the face of Larry forever (if only!): we're adding a new location, new puzzles, and a new girl with her own storyline! Is this the infamous female character that Al was forced to cut from the original 1987 version of Leisure Suit Larry 1? Or am I just making that up entirely to add a sense of mystery? Your guess is as good as mine!"

Now how's that?