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Games Entertainment

LucasArts announces Sam & Max sequel 276

Altima(BoB) writes "LucasArts announced today a sequel to their 1993 cult classic adventure game Sam & Max Hit the Road. This follows a recent announcement of Full Throttle II. The press release explains: It's due first quarter 2004 for Windows PCs, no other operating systems or platforms mentioned, but it looks promising. Personally, I think that LucasArts' adventure games have been long overdue a comeback, anyone who's played them can attest to their top-notch writing and humor."
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LucasArts announces Sam & Max sequel

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  • I'm still laughing after I cut off that pirate's peg leg in Monkey's Island ][.

    They're not as funny anymore... Forget this "I need more action" society who demand more FPS games. Bring back the adventure games I say.
  • by Anonymous Coward
    will it work with ScummVM [sourceforge.net]?
    • I strongly doubt it. The program is probably in 3d. I don't think that they would risk making a 2d program in a program to be released in 2004. If it is cartoony at all, it could be cel shaded, which would be really cool.
  • If only I could get the original to work on a modern version of Windows. Something's got to tide me over until the new one comes out!
    • Maybe this [cjb.net] would help?
    • "If only I could get the original to work on a modern version of Windows. Something's got to tide me over until the new one comes out!"

      That's what ScummVM [sourceforge.net] is for. Using this VM, you can even run it on Linux and Macintosh.

    • by freeweed ( 309734 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:11PM (#4160278)
      Check this out. [sourceforge.net]

      Basically, it's something along the lines of an emulator that allows the original LucasArts point and click games to run under modern Windows. I've played Sam n Max and Day of the Tentacle for hours, and compared to the 486 sitting next to me, it's identical. Support for other games is in the works.

      The absolute coolest part is, it uses your (presumedly) modern sound card's MIDI - the intro to Sam n Max is AMAZING on my SBLive compared to the old SB16 - and it also offers anti-aliased graphics if you so choose. Sure, the jaggies are nice for a nostalgic feel, but these games look simply amazing with the AA effects turned on.

      I really can't recommend this enough for anyone who wants to play the old LucasArts games on anything approaching a modern system.
      • It's not an "emulator". Sam and Max, and many other LucasArts adventure titles, were written in a scripting language custom-made for developing adventure game titles. It was (is) called SCUMM, the Storyline Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion. The ScummVM team has managed to reverse-engineer enough info out of the original game engines to run many of these older titles. (I just played all the way through the CD version of Sam and Max Hit the Road last night.) It's more like running a shell script or Perl script than "emulating" anything.
        • It takes code written for one set of software and produces a result on an entirely different one. It's all semantics, and to most people (remember, not everyone in the world is a computer expert), this is about as good an explanation as they'll understand. WINE is a perfect example - try to explain to a non-geek just what the acronym stands for, and why. Most people respond to me with 'what's the diff?' :)

      • ScummVM also lets linux people run their old Lucasarts games on their boxes as well.

        For me, though, the killer app is using ScummVM to run them on my Sharp Zaurus (the resolution is perfect for the old DOS games, too: 320x240 pixels when held sideways.) There are also ports for PocketPC and iPaq's Linux.

        There's also a Dreamcast port, but I haven't tried that (yet!)
      • for the Mac OS X users out there..

        http://www.lucasarts.com/companystore/archives1/

        I see no reason why these games wouldn't play in Classic mode on Mac OS X - however, i'll have to update you later..

        actually.. what's really funny is that these are the perfect games for a Blue Box window, instead of a full screen implimentation Classic.. that way, i could play the games in the corner of the screen and still see if i got email.

        or.. maybe i'll just buy the PC versions and play them in a VirtPC window.. hmm... now i have no idea what to do. crap.
  • I hope they do great, the wit and intelligence in Lucas Arts adventure games are unmatched. I know I'll buy a copy.
    • by Anonvmous Coward ( 589068 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:15PM (#4160305)
      I remember telling my aunt about "Day of the Tentacle". (get yer finger off the 'off-topic' button, it's a LucasArts adventure game like Sam & Max and Monkey Island.) Unfortunately, I mispronounced 'tentacle' and caused everybody at the dinner table to pause their meal and stare at me with buldging eyes.

      I really wish my family'd loosen up and watch FOX more often. I really shouldn't be that shocking to anybody.
  • by unicron ( 20286 ) <{ten.tencht} {ta} {norcinu}> on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:02PM (#4160216) Homepage
    Well, I didn't know about Full Throttle 2, so reading that post made me slip into what I like to call "A massive coronary".

    Full throttle was the best damn Lucararts game ever made, bar none. Maybe even the best adventure game period, and that's if I include Grim Fandago.

    That better not be a polecat on the wall.
    • I actually went and bought the Gone Jackals CD Bone to Pick merely based on how cool the opening sequence for Full Throttle was.


      "Heh. Bunnies"

    • Full Throttle was cool, but certainly not a difficult game to solve. Hell, even I figured it out [wwbbs.net] in no time.
    • It might have been a great game, if it had ever run properly on my computer.

      As it was, the action scenes flat out didn't work, and eventually I got to a spot where I couldn't go any further.

      LucasArts' games were not exactly the most reliable, or maybe it was just the state of the OS they were running on.

      Jon Acheson
  • should be next! please please please...!
    imagine it in 3d cell shading...
    • "no other operating systems or platforms mentioned"

    That seems fair enough. Who would want it running on Linux anyway?
  • "Why you dirty lint-sniffing mama's twins! I oughta stretch your legs around your head and make you do the lambada!"
  • Where's the Maniac Mansion sequel or Zak Mckraken and the Alien Mindbenders part deux? Now, those are classics ..
    • I would rather see Loom 2. Damn that game was cool, for its time. I remember how blown away I was by the music and graphics.
      • Loom was definately a great game. An interesting experiment with the single-click interface too.

        I still chuckle about the multimedia intro - that come on an audio cassette tape. How far we come... but I guess that makes it more of an effective demonstration that the technology of the game isn't the most important thing.

        (BTW... I remember that supposedly if you beat the game on the hardest mode (without notes on the distaff and without the distaff lighting up) you got a special ending or something... tried it but it didn't seem to work for me, was that just a rumor>)
  • by ZahrGnosis ( 66741 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:07PM (#4160252) Homepage
    Sam and Max still has my vote for the best game of that genre ever... Any game where the solution to one of the "problems" is to pick up your partner, dunk him in water and use him to short out an electrical panel works for me. It took me an hour to get through trying all the little gadgets in the inventory before coming up with that one.

    Can't wait for the sequel.
  • by graffitiboy ( 601145 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:09PM (#4160259)
    Finally Lucasarts is doing something other than milking the rapidly drying "cash-cow" that is Star Wars.

    I can't even bring myself to count the number of awful Star Wars Games I had to disdain and refute in order to hook my wife (successfully) on Lucasarts' fine adventure games -- thanks to the great character design on Grim Fandango.

    Lucasarts has really good innovators and well done art (Steve Purcell rocks), and it's more than high-time that a decent adventure game came to for.

    I for one am sick of the endless parade of "free form" games (i.e. the Sims), the neverending re-release of the "yet-anotherFPS" engine games, and the D&D based games that have more bugs than characters (NWN). <\RANT>

    So, back to slashdot thinking... this gonna run on Linux? :)
    • I'd still like to see a good quality Star Wars RTS. There've been good SW games - TIE Fighter and the three Dark Forces (aka JK I/II) for example... but the bad ones (like Force Commander) have soured me on 'em.

      Playing Homeworld with the SW mod, though, gives me shivers. :-D
    • I can't agree more strongly with the LucasArts good games & Star Wars games split. :)

      I was just wondering, though -- a Star Wars game in the style of the Indy 3 & 4 adventure games could be quite fun... however it would need to be skewed slightly for comedic value, as the Indy games were compared to the films, and this is probably anathema to LucasArts. Oh well.

      Great news about the Sam & Max sequel, though -- I even have a comic book Sam & Max that I found somewhere, and have held on to for all these years. Hearing this really made my day. :)
    • I have to agree with you on the Lucasarts thing. Maniac Mansion was one of my first computer games and one of the games that got me hooked on computers in the first place. And I loved the early Star Wars games like XWing and Tie Fighter.

      My opinion is they dumbed down their games too much. Instead of simulators like XWing they came out with a bunch of dumb arcade crap. I feel like puking every time I see those Star Wars Mortal Kombat ripoffs.

      However one exception is the reciently released Jedi Outcast. It is incredible! The lightsaber control and force powers all make you feel like you are a Jedi in the movies. Nothing like running into a room filled with Stormtroopers, defecting their shots, and cutting them all down. :) The story is pretty good as well.

      The problem for Lucasarts is that adventures don't sell nowadays. Even the best ones. Grim Fandango was a financial failure. But I guess with all the money Lucas is making from Episode 3 he can afford a loss here or there.

      Brian Ellenberger
  • Now there is a game that could use a remake, But this time you can get off your ship. Man-o-man, remember the first time that alien popped up in the window?!
  • Personally, I think that LucasArts' adventure games have been long overdue a comeback, anyone who's played them can attest to their top-notch writing and humor.

    If only the same could be said for their movies...

    GMD

  • Well then I'm glad I finally got a scoop on Slashdot. Not bad for a relative /. n00b This story makes me wonder if we're heading back to those wonderous days of gaming, before frames per second was even a common worry, before parents' groups hated our hobby. Back when game companies put thought into what they produced and wrote. These days, with all the shooter games out there, each new game feels like a disposable summer blockbuster movie. I'm excited.
  • 3D or 2D? (Score:4, Insightful)

    by galaga79 ( 307346 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:12PM (#4160286) Homepage
    Does anyone know if this going to be 3D or 2D? I am guessing the former because the Full Throttle sequel is 3D from what I have seen thus far. If my guess is correct it will be interesting to see how Sam & Max translates to the 3D world because it was very 2D animated game with some weird geometry and architecture in some areas. I remember Max had a secret 3D cameo in Jedi Knight and that looked kind of weird. Fingers crossed they get the same voice actors and composer too, which if you have never heard you can hear in this remix [overclocked.org]
    • Sam and Max 1 was very cartoonish looking(not that that was a bad thing, on any level).

      I think if they use the same cell-shading a few new games are using(Robotech, and the new Zelda) then it could come out very different, and very beautiful.
      • Given that they were cartoon characters in a comic book to begin with, that's hardly a surprise. The original game was incredibly true to the artwork (given that the same guy did 'em hardly a surprise). And I think Max would gnaw your hands off if you called him very beautiful.
    • I'd imagine 3D in Grim Fandango style... even though I'd prefer the 2D (mock 3D) of the original game. If it was good enough for Monkey Island 2, they didn't need to change anything after that. :)

    • Maybe if we have to suffer through 3D, they'll at least have the courtesy of making it look like a comic book by using cel-shading techniques (like those found in Jet Set Radio Future [sega.com] or it's predecesor)
  • Personally, I'd pay premium for a new MM/Day of The Tentacle or a new Zak McKracken (yes I know about the inofficial one).

    Sam'n'Max II and Full Throttle II? Not so much.

  • I was wondering if it is still possible to play this clasic games on a modern setup. EG WinXP
  • Just the other day I was cleaning out a box of old college-era stuff and came across my boxed copy of Sam and Max, floppies and all. We always used to get a kick out of the sceen where people are bungie jumping off the noses of the presidents at Mt. Rushmore, since they looked like big boogers. The 'Second Largest Ball of Twine' or whatever it was was hilarious too.
    /nostalgia
  • where's my monkey island 5??!!!

    full throttle 2 looks great...

  • So a sequel to Sam and Max is good news, but I'll be much happier if they can do a sequel to Day Of The Tentacle...

    Berrrnaaard... float over here soo I can puunch yoouuu.

    Just be careful what wine you buy, 'cos you'll never know how long it'll take to turn to vinegar.

    • Sequel to DotT? Don't you mean 'Maniac Mansion III'? :)

  • VOGONS [zetafleet.com] (pun intended), Very Old Games On New Systems, is a forum designed to help you get old games (DOS/3.1/some 95/98) running on new systems (usually NT/2K/XP, but occasionally users running WINE*, 95, and 98 have problems as well). Shameless plug, but hey, I'm still waiting for The Dig 2.

    * WINE users are known to have .005% more problems than those using a real copy of any of the 9x series.
  • Lost In Translation makes it fun! [cwru.edu]

    "LucasArts written of Altima(BoB) that has announced today, of him & follows 1993, that is traditional of the SAM of the game of the adventure of the Anbetung; The maximum repaired the way. This follows a new warning of the publicity of complete control II of the energy. The Pressekommuniqué is aqui ': the trimester 2004 of http://www.lucasarts.com/press/releases/61.html first one is he was adaptou for GCV von Windows, aucuns indicate others to him the softwares or the platforms of the operation, but it looks like promising. Personally that was the games of the adventure of LucasArts delay to much period to him a return, he thinks for the confirmation indifferently, of that, that is played they, with the relative letter of the lateral jump and latta advanced one of humor."
  • At least so it can run, with sound, on a modern PC.

    It's like if Lucas were to release his next installment of Star Wars in the year 2050, when nobody has the equipment to view the originals anymore.
  • Not to rant but.. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by interstellar_donkey ( 200782 ) <pathighgate AT hotmail DOT com> on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @08:50PM (#4160479) Homepage Journal
    Ok, just to rant just a little...

    Sam and Max was a great game. I'm looking foward to the sequel. Sam and Max, in fact, was a great game, orgininal, funny, and just overall fun to play.

    And it wasn't a sequel to anything.

    Which makes me wonder; Are there any new games that are orgininal, funny, unique, that are worth playing? To read sites like Slashdot (or others), one would assume not, that the only games of note being realased are either

    a: A sequel to a popular game
    b: A new game based on a popular graphics engine
    c: A new game being released on linux.

    Don't get me wrong, it's always nice to hear about a release based on the above three things. But what about a new game that nobody's heard of before that's really, really good?

    Do they not exist, or are most popular websites either uninformed of them or decide not to publish them. As it stands, the only ways you can find out of there is a good new game that you've never heard of is to:

    a: Be impressed at the software store by the shiney box, plunk down $50 for something that may end up sucking
    b: Read the game review websites and magizines, which seem to be staffed by, and cater too 12 year old boys
    c: Hopefully hear from a freind through word of mouth about a game.

    Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking slashdot. It's not really in their scope (or in my expectation) that they tell me about the next new, hot thing in gaming. But does anyone out there know of a place to find this out? I mean, a place smart enough to distinguish the next Sam and Max from the crap?

    • "Don't get me wrong, it's always nice to hear about a release based on the above three things. But what about a new game that nobody's heard of before that's really, really good?"

      I suggest you go look a game called "Arx Fatailis" and download the demo. It has an Ultima Underworld kind of feel and it is a breath of fresh air.

      As to the lack of 'new stuff' I blame that on the demise of Looking Glass Studios [3dactionplanet.com]. The people from LGS were always injecting something unexpected and original into the gaming market. All the way back to the Ultima Underworlds and System shock to Thief: The Dark Project and the very original System Shock 2, LGS always danced to their own beat. Too bad they had a bunch of financial problems appear at the same time. They were truly a giant among giants.

      • a lot of that group works for Ion Storm now. Warren Spector (Ultima Underworlds, System Shock, Deus Ex) is working on a Theif III, and a Deus Ex 2. They pretty much still play their own tune. Ion Storm was essenially 2 groups, one headed by Romaro and the other by Spector. Romaro's group was killed off (thank god for that, we didn't need another Diakatana out there) and Spector's still remains. Though I think they are trying to get a new name (or tried at one point). LGS may be gone, but a lot of that team is still making games, which is a good thing.
        What I think is one of the biggest problems facing our computer games originality is the fact that the companies don't want to get an original game, they just want one that will sell a ton of copies. They play it safe in the market instead of taking risks and we wind up with the same crap over and over again. This is the way the system always winds up working. Heads of companies want to be greedy and instead of taking a risk that could net them a crap load of cash, they take the safe road that keeps their head in but nets them a smaller amount of cash. If the companies who pay the studios would take more risks we would have a better market for computer games, but they don't so we get stuck with repeats of the same games. This has been going on in most of the other industries for years, and the computer world is catching up with them. Same trend goes on with movies, music, tv shows, and even in camera lenses.
        What we need are companies who are willing to take risks and try to create new and creative products instead of the drek that we are force fed regularly. If we could get that to happen then we might get out of this billion and one Quake clones, or the extremely repetative Dune clones. We need companies who aren't afraid of change and who are willing to take the bull by the horns and get something new and different out there. Companies shouldn't be afraid to make mistakes and screw up a few times, that is what the market is really there for. Unfortunately all these companies care about is money, and that is a shame. If they cared about the customer (not consumer) they could have a much more respected business image.
        • Warren Spector (Ultima Underworlds, System Shock, Deus Ex) is working on a Theif III, and a Deus Ex 2

          Given his complaint of sequilitis, I don't think that's going to make him feel any better at all. :-)
    • To the first list, add category

      d. a game made by one of the "Game Gods" of old: Black and White by Molyneux, Sim games by Wright, new Id games, etc.

    • Ambrosia (www.ambrosiasw.com) does a nice job at realeasing new and fresh titles. Yes they also have sequals (The EV series is one of the best game series out there) but they have some originals too. Unfortunately for all my PC lovin buddies, they're a mac only company.
      • There are some products that are available for Windows such as Pillars of Garendall [ambrosiasw.com], and others like Escape Velocity Nova [ambrosiasw.com] are being ported by 3rd party companies (in this case Contraband Entertainment [contrabandent.com]).

        The unique thing about Ambrosia is that they've managed to survive for so long despite being a Mac-only shareware company. The quality of their games is better the a lot of standard offerings out there, and the openness of their architeture encourages fan-created mods and add-on scenarios. I just wish there were more companies like them out there.
    • "[Sam and Max] wasn't a sequel to anything."

      As a game, true enough. But technically, Sam and Max were a comic book first (and a very funny one).

      My fave quote from the Comic Book: "I'm Buck Nekkid, Texas Ranger!"

    • by hrm ( 26016 )
      Penny Arcade [penny-arcade.com] is a good place to keep up with all things gaming. The site's updated three times a week, which each update being a news story (very well written) and a comic strip (very well drawn, and often as not damn funny).

      It's not a traditional gaming magazine that covers everything new, rather they talk about which games interest them at the moment. I've a feeling that very few games of interest slip by them. The game "rez" that is mentioned in this thread as an example of a great original game is also a favorite of the PA guys.

      As an example of their kind of humor, everyone on slashdot who spells Microsoft as Micro$oft should take a look at this penny-arcade comic [penny-arcade.com] and briefly consider if whether Gabe has a point!

    • Try The Longest Journey [longestjourney.com]. Beautiful graphics, interesting story, 2D adventure game. Unfortunately, it didn't sell well, so don't expect any sequels. It's more of an experience than a game, up there with Grim Fandango.
      Really, really worth a shot.
  • Download.com still has a PC demo of the original available here:

    http://download.com.com/3000-2099-857427.html?tag= lst-0-1 [com.com]

    **** Dr. Bellows ****
    Funk/Soul/Jazz
    drbellows.net [slashdot.org]
    for gigs, music & more

  • ... by Infinite Machine [infinite-machine.com], and is apparently coming out on PC AND X-box [ign.com]? Is Lucasarts Publishing this for Infinite, or is this a completely different project...?
  • Max (Score:4, Funny)

    by finny ( 107762 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @09:08PM (#4160571)
    Is it just me or do talking rabbits creep anybody else out after seeing Donnie Darko? [imdb.com]

    I can only hope I still feel the same way Harvey and Bugs!
  • Nice. Just remember, "You don't want to do that to Mo's mailbox."
  • damn (Score:3, Funny)

    by (startx) ( 37027 ) <slashdot AT unspunproductions DOT com> on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @09:09PM (#4160579) Journal
    thanks slashdot, I've been trying to get the original on ebay for the last couple months now. This asures me of not finding a copy for under the original face value for a few more months to come now!
    • "thanks slashdot, I've been trying to get the original on ebay for the last couple months now. This asures me of not finding a copy for under the original face value for a few more months to come now!"

      You should look for "The Lucasarts Archives Volume III" which sometimes still appears in retail stores. It comes with a bunch of LEC games including MI1 and MI2. But there's no way in heck I'm gonna sell you my original boxed Monkey Island 2 with original code wheel on 5.25" floppies ;-)

  • For those of you (and unfortunately, there were many) who overlooked Grim Fandango, I strongly suggest fishing it out of the bargain bin and giving it a chance.

    It's one of the most well-designed games of all time. The puzzles are very inventive and the characters are actually engaging.

    It's the only video game that I've played that has an any emotional depth in the traditional sense. Granted "wow, I just carjacked a cop, that's so cool" is an emotional response, but Grim Fandango is different.

    • "It's one of the most well-designed games of all time. The puzzles are very inventive and the characters are actually engaging."

      Well I have played the GrimFD demo ... do you know if there's any way to turn off that silly console-style joystick type navigation? That is also the reason I did not get Monkey Island 4.

    • I agree - I found Grim Fandango far more enjoyable than Monkey Island 4 for example. It's an original game with a lot of personality and extremely well done overall. I don't think a game I've ever played have had such a pleasant finale even if you knew all along how the game would end.

      The noticeable film noir style makes this game a truly unique masterpiece that no fan of any of LucasArts adventure games should miss.

      Too bad the genre LucasArts are putting the least effort at is adventure games - the genre I think they do the best job at. There's litterally no competition in the area and I'd like to see this genre reinvented like what happened to CRPG's.
  • Gosh I love those guys.
  • When?? (Score:4, Funny)

    by 3ryon ( 415000 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @10:19PM (#4160868)
    It's due first quarter 2004

    This is the Video Game Industry's way of saying, "We haven't actually started yet."
  • by Codeala ( 235477 ) on Wednesday August 28, 2002 @11:10PM (#4161039)
    Other great LucasArts games from around that time:

    Day of the Tentacle
    Sam & Max Hit the Road
    The Dig
    Full Throttle

    Both "Day of the Tentacle" and "Sam & Max Hit the Road" first came out in floppies (yes floppies kids!) with CD-ROM versions with full voices a few years later.

    DoT features characters from the original Maniac Mansion game from the 80s (which also spawned a short-lived TV show in the 90s, one of the joke in the game is about the characters not getting royalties from the show ;-). A not so secret bonus in the game is that you can play the original MM by using one of the computer in the mansion!

    S&M probably got the strangest story line in any game, EVER. It got a talking dog and rabbit, bigfoots and giraffe-neck girl, circuit freaks and country-singer. And it all make senses in the end!

    S&M also features some cool mini-games like the "whack-a-mole" (or rabbit :-) and "dress up paper dolls", the latter one is also used for copy protection in the original floppy version! The game contains at least one song that is even funnier when actually sang by the voice actors.

    Both "Full Throttle" and "The Dig" came out in CD only version.

    The Dig is probably one of the most overlooked game from the company. While not as good as the others (slower pacing, may hard logical-type puzzles that are not very well integrated into the story), it is unique in that it has a serious storyline with a lot less jokes and gigs than the others. The art direction is a lot more realistic than even darker game like Full Throttle.

    The game is about a big asteroid that is going to hit Earth and a team of astronauts is going to set off a bomb to "deflect" it. And that was back in 1995 before films like "Armageddon"! It got some amazing (for the time) pre-rendered 3d cut scenes and probably the first LucasArts game to have a "celebrity" voice actor - Robert Patrick from T2 and later X-Files. He did a good job.

    Full Throttle features the now familiar "full screen" game mode. No more list of verbs or icons on screen. When you right click on the objects/persons a context sensitive menu (in the form of a coin) popup. This provides a very cinematic feel of a good action movie.

    The game also features a rock theme song (music & lyrics), a mix of 3d objects (vehicles, rotating signs, etc) and 2d backgrounds. FT is also the first LucasArts game to have action sequence (that highway game in S&M doesn't count ;-). There was quite a debug about that at the time.

    =-=-=

    Oh yeah, as joked about in Curse of the Monkey Island, you can't die in a LucasArts Adventure game!

    =-=-=

    Ahh the memories. Until I start typing this, I didn't even know that I still remember so much about all these games. It is a sure sign that these are classics, are will remain so in my mind forever. Thanks LucasArts, and here is to more good adventures games in the future.
    • >S&M also features some cool mini-games like >the "whack-a-mole"

      I can't figure out whether you are talking about a game or an "alternative lifestyle".
    • I'll just add to all the other people saying how you can die in LucasArts games... Maniac Mansion (from before the No-Death policy) - drown in the pool - radiation poisoning if you microwave water from the pool - murdered by Weird Ed if you give him the Exploded Bits of Hamster - murdered by Weird Ed if you give him the publishing offer for Purple Tentacle's manuscript - murdered by Green Tentacle if you give him a publishing offer for anything other than the Sushi Platter demo tape - cause a nuclear meltdown (in several ways) - waste the essential Paint Remover (no-win situation) - launch the Weird Edsel without the Evil Purple Meteor (no-win) - waste the coins when steering the Really Powerful Telescope (again, no-win) Monkey Island 1: let Guybrush stay underwater for over ten minutes. Fate of Atlantis: there are various ways of getting killed by Nazis. Whew...
  • by iankerickson ( 116267 ) on Thursday August 29, 2002 @02:48AM (#4161767) Homepage
    The Sam & Max adventure game was based on a comic book entitled "Sam & Max: Freelance Police". They basically roamed the world, pretending to be police officers/P.I.s and solving whatever crimes they stumbled on. Usually with violence.

    I was (un)lucky enough to find a color issue of Sam & Max in the bargain bin of a comic book store while looking for back issues of Grendel, The Elementals, and Groo the Wanderer. I think I paid $4. It's the most dangerously funny posession I own. I keep it safely packed away out of sight, because I can't read the damn thing without laughing so hard it brings tears to my eyes.

    The comic was drawn pictures first, and then the dialog was made up after the fact. Kind of like Mad-Libs, or the heckling on MST3K. If you like the Simpsons, you might like Sam and Max. Groo the Wanderer is good too, but it's funny the way Mad magazine or Cracked is funny (or isn't) -- mostly corny jokes.

    Compare for yourselves:
    ---
    Groo: "I'm hungy. Aha! Groo smells smoke! Where there's smoke, there's fire. Or a village! Or a village on fire!!"

    ---
    Grateful Stewardess: "Thank you for saving our plane! How can we ever repay you?"

    Max: "JUST GIMME ALL THE NAKED WOMEN MY POOR EYES CAN STAND!!"

    Sam: "Easy, Max. You don't even like girls."
    ---

    Luckless Villager: "Who be you?"

    Groo: "I be Groo."

    LV: (aside) "We are doomed..."

    ---
    Max: (a naked, yet fuzzy Max produces a 9mm pistol from thin air)

    Sam: "Where'd you get that gun, little buddy?"

    Max: (grinning) "None of your god-damned business, Sam. Tee-hee."

    ---

    So if you liked the game, you might be able to scare up a copy of the comic book and see where it all came from. I don't there were ever many issues released, maybe less than ten. I get the impression they're fairly rare, unless they've gone into reprints since then.

  • ... but does it use the Doom 3 Engine? :)
  • Who isn't?
  • by smblion ( 89885 ) on Thursday August 29, 2002 @07:59AM (#4162389)
    I think it's great that LucasArts is creating sequals to these games, but new gamers will have absolutely no idea what they're playing a sequal to. You cannot go back and play these games without building a computer specifically for the task, or using the SCUMM engine, which LucasArts is trying to sue out of existence.

    While I look forward to these releases, the sad fact is this is a long time comming. It's just further evidence to me that someone making decisions at LucasArts just 'doesn't get it'. This seems like a move by a company struggling to release a good product. I'm sure they have no shortage of money with all their star wars releases, but they've been really letting their fans down in the last 5 or 6 years with BOATLOADS of crappy games all based on Star Wars, and nothing original at all.

    I hope this move begins a new day at LucasArts, where they diversify their game line a bit, perhaps stop being so sue-happy, and maybe even write their own emulator to run their games in windows operating systems, so new gamers can learn why we all liked LucasArts so much in the past. I feel bad for anyone who hasn't had the chance to play The Dig, DOTT, Sam & Max, or Full Throttle, or any of the Monkey Island games.
  • (first, this is old news people. I saw concept drawings of this @ E3)

    Tim Schafer was the gamedesigner who was behind most of Lucasarts adventure games, sadly he left Lucasarts after making "Grim Fandango"(best game ever btw, no contest) to create his own company(Which havent created anything yet).

    Anyone ever seen Tim and or read/hear him interviewed, know without a doubt that "Tim" is a nutty charecter.

    The latest monkey island certainly was good, but it lacked the distinct nuttyness of Tim. Most of the funny-stuff in the last monkey, was actually "recycled" from the older games.

    Tim came up with stuff like insult swordfighting, for the first title. In the second title, it was spitting contests and more. Plus he created a shiteload of memorable charecters.

    In the newest one(who lacked tim), we have insult armwrestling. And most of the charecters are just taken from the first three titles.

    With that said, Monkey 4 was great. "Moooonkey cooooombat" still cracks me up (the look like complete idiots when fighting/dancing with eachother), and certainly they still have alot of creative people @ lucasarts.

    But, i played ALL lucasarts Adventures. From Tentacle and up, and Monkey4 defently lacked alot in the wackyness department.

    I fear that Sam and Max without Tim is like Monty Phyton with out John Cleese. Which just wouldnt be right.
  • I bought this game way back when. Just dusted off my copy from the attic and wondered how to go about installing in on WinXP or Linux. I'm guessing the files are compressed and the installer would usually go about unpacking them, so how do I do it without DOS (no, I'm not about to blow away my HD to install DOS6 ;-)

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