Hi, Al.
- Today is the era of Internet. You have spent more than
20 years in the game industry. Do you think that the power
of adventure games can be combined with Internet to give
birth to (massive) on-line multiplayer game adventures?
I once did, but then, after years of trying
(see next question) to come up with a solution, I decided
that the technology just wasn't advanced enough to allow
us to accomplish such a game. Now, it is (although I question
your parenthetical word). I think players can share duties
in an adventure as long as they have a way to also discuss
potential solutions. IM provides that. But the puzzles
must be created in such a way as to further these goals.
- I asked you this question because you said that Leisure
Suit Larry 4 was meant to be some kind of network adventure
game, but the project failed. Has the time come for Larry
4 to be made?
That was the original plan, but it turned
out that "Pre-Inventing the Internet" was a little more
difficult than we suspected! (English) Readers can see
the whole story at my web site, www.allowe.com/l-land.htm
No, it's not time for Larry 4, because that
implies a step backwards. I've always wanted to move forward,
not only in the technology, but in the amount of humor,
the quality of graphics, the level of the voice-over talent,
everything.
- Do you know that there are free project like Sarien
- http://sarien.sourceforge.net/,
for emulating AGI engine, and FreeSCI - http://freesci.linuxgames.com
for emulating the SCI engine to allow games to be played
on multiple OS's and platforms? Sierra, the company, isn't
supporting any of these projects. They know about their existence
but that's all. The guys from these projects are reverse-engineering
the AGI and SCI engine, which is a slow process. Why does
Sierra have such an attitude?
Yes, I know about those and other attempts
to reverse-engineer Sierra's languages. If I were in charge
of Sierra, and I had no further use for tools we had abandoned,
I would open source them, and allow anyone to use them
as long as they provided Sierra with a credit in the game.
I'd consider it "giving something back to gamers." Of
course, I'm not in charge of Sierra and never will be.
- What are your personal feelings towards such projects?
Truthfully? I would never spend my time
that way, because if Sierra wanted to "crack down" on
them, they could, and all their work could be lost. I
think it would be far better to work on an engine that
was more advanced that either AGI or SCI. I would
caution anyone working on a "fan game" that they should
not use any of Sierra's art or animation or characters.
Create your own ideas; don't copy someone else's.
- Sierra didn't release its AGI engine, or its early SCI
engine to the public. Why not? Are they trying to sell it
for money? Or, are they are waiting for better times for
the adventure game industry to come?
As far as I know, they have simply abandoned
all those tools for better ones. I know of no games currently
in development at Sierra that use SCI (and none have used
AGI for a dozen or more years!). Years ago, I suggested
that Sierra license SCI, but they didn't think the small
amount of money it would bring in would be worth the hassle
of collecting and supporting it.
- There are free projects, developed and maintained by
volunteers all over the Internet, like Linux, Apache Web
Server, that are big successes. Do you think that if SCI
or AGI became a free project, it would become the most powerful
game engine ever developed, because there are so many people
interested in taking part in such project?
No. I believe in capitalism. If you want
to create a great engine, do it. If it's really good,
you'll be able to license it to others and receive something
for your efforts.
- It's believed that the adventure game industry is dead.
But games like Monkey Island from LucasArts are selling many
copies worldwide. Sometimes there are cycles in the evolution
of game industries. Do you think that the glorious time of
adventure games will ever return?
I hope that someday soon story-based games
will become popular again. And surely, someday people
will develop a sense of humor again, and long for games
that make them laugh. Will those games be "Adventure Games"
(as in days of old)? I doubt it. I think the market has
moved on and a new genre will emerge, melding story with
other forms of game play to create something even better.
- Some of the Sierra "Quest" game series have so much
loyal fans that even now they respect and long for Roger
Wilco, Larry Laffer, and Sir Graham. The need for new series
led to fan-made sequels, like the sequel of Space Quest -
The Lost Chapter - http://frostbytei.com/space/.
What will be your reaction if you see a fan-made sequel of
Larry?
There are already Larry fan games; I won't
mention any specifically, but they exist. The ones I've
seen are okay, but suffer from primitive graphics, obtuse
puzzles and unprofessional writing. Can someone write
a great game? Sure, but it's a lot of work and it doesn't
come quick and easy.
- What's going on with Larry, Larry Laffer? Does Sierra
hold the right to use Larry for new games in the series?
Since you created Larry and he owes so such to you, do you
feel like you have been robbed?
The contract that I signed with Sierra clearly
stated that the games I created were "work for hire,"
a rather specific legal phrase in the USA that means Sierra
keeps all the rights. I was well paid for the work I did;
I knew what I was getting into. No, I don't feel robbed.
But I do wish they wouldn't just let Larry die without
a "proper burial."
- If someone invites you to take part in the development
of fan-made sequel of Larry, will you accept?
No. I've had my fun with Larry. But no one
should use Larry (or any of the other Sierra-owned characters
I created) in his game. If someone wants to create a new
game, let him create his own character, and I hope that
he would be even better than Larry.
Larry, Larry Laffer
- What do you think Larry is doing at the moment? Drinking
soda on a beach, while doing some undercover work for CIA?
:)
I picture Larry in a small prison cell in
the basement of Sierra's office, where he's fed Diet Coke
and salami, with a well-used subscription to Playboy,
and he's never let out to exercise. Larry, of course,
would never know that such a situation was supposed to
be punishment! <grin>
- You are one of the best adventure game developers ever.
You, your games and humor have been an inspiration for a
lot of people. Who inspires you? Whom do you admire?
I appreciate humor in many forms, stand-up
comedy, movies, musicals, writing. As you might suspect,
I love the Farrelly brothers, and nearly any dumb bawdy
comedy (i.e., most American "coming of age" movies). That
said, I also like great creative writers, like songwriters
Dave Frishberg and Bob Dorough. And weekly humor columnist
for the Miami Sun, Dave Barry always makes me laugh. David
Letterman. Billy Crystal. On and on and on…
- Your games have been teaching us many things for a long
time. And you are a good teacher. What would you like to
teach us today?
Don't steal software, whether it's games,
or music, or DVDs that you copy to your hard drive. People
like me (and you, if you want to get into the business)
work day and night for months, perhaps years, to create
something that they hope will please you. If you like
it, they've succeeded. That should be worth a little something
from you, i.e., a little money. Yeah, I know you're short
of money. Yeah, I know no one will ever know. But you
know. And when companies can no longer afford to make
adventure games because they don't make back enough money
to pay off their development costs, you'll stop getting
new games to play. Have I made my point?
- And finally, what is the one interview question that
you have never been asked, but wished you could answer?
Q. "Do people often confuse you with Arnold
Schwarzenegger?"
A. "Yes, they do!"
No, wait. I've got another one:
Q. "Isn't your web site http://www.allowe.com/
?"
A. "Yep. Come on by! And while you're there,
sign up for my free daily joke email, CyberJoke 3000™."
- Okay, Al. Thank you for your patience and have a nice
day with your LoveMaster 3000!
Who told you about that!?!
|
Ladies and
gentlemen,
