The Two Guys From Andromeda(Mark Crowe and Scott Murphy), along with the SpacePope(Chris Pope) are all heading out to San Diego Comicon 2013! Come meet up with them and get a chance to play a demo of the upcoming SpaceVenture(funded by you amazing fans). All press is welcome to come by and check out the demo as well, and write about it! 😉
Where will they be?
Guys From Andromeda LLC will be sharing a booth with Soul Geek. You’ll find them at table #5619
Hello everybody!
Well, it’s day two of our campaign and the support has been amazing! We’ve had so much great feedback and are super excited to be working with everybody.
We have a couple of new announcements to share:
New reward
We’ve heard a lot of feedback about the $30 reward tier, and it’s clear that the fans are looking for more. So we’re excited to introduce a new $29 reward tier with additional rewards that will automatically become available to all of our $30 backers.
As a $29 backer you will receive a digital copy of Precinct with exclusive “VIP Backer Status”. As a VIP Backer, you will be sent a unique passkey which grants you access to all “VIP Backer Only” areas of www.precinctgame.com (the website will launch after the Kickstarter). VIP Backers will also receive exclusive content in the final release of Precinct.
“VIP Backer Only” Website Areas Include:
– Sneak peeks of the game (screenshots and video clips)
– Private VIP Backer Message Board
– Exclusive webcasts and chats with Jim and his team during development
– Help develop Precinct by voting on critical design and production decisions
Exclusive Bonus Content Includes:
– Vintage Police Cruiser
– Additional Weapons
– Police Computer Upgrade
– Special Undercover Mission
This tier is meant to replace the $30 tier, and all $30 tier backers (and above) will receive everything in this $29 tier.
We are listening to backers and will continue to evaluate the tiers/rewards. Thanks again for all the feedback!
Daily Videos
Another exciting thing that’s happening is starting today, you can check out our daily videos. These are short videos of Jim (and sometimes me) talking about all things Precinct and Sierra-related.
The first video (released today) is: “Why Kickstarter?”
Here’s the URL for the video:
We hope you enjoy these daily videos, and share them with all your friends!
That’s it for now. Thanks for everything.
Robert.
Wait no longer, we are releasing the demo to the public! You can download the demo by logging on to http://svrewards.com and clicking the rewards tab. Currently we are in the process of uploading the demo for download so please keep refreshing the page and eventually it will be there 😉
But consider the following before playing:
Go here to back this project up – NOW!!! Tweet the following URL: http://tinyurl.com/fundprecinct
Precinct is a new police adventure video game from Jim Walls, creator of the classic Sierra series “Police Quest”.
ABOUT THE GAME Precinct takes players on a police adventure as officer Maxwell Jones in the corrupt town of Fraser Canyon, CA. Starting out as a rookie and then moving up the ranks, players face adrenaline charged scenarios and conduct real police procedures while solving crimes and arresting perpetrators.
Written by Jim Walls and some of today’s brightest Hollywood talent, Precinct features a gripping crime story based on true accounts of real police cases. As players clean up the crime ridden streets, the plot thickens with corrupt cops, greedy public officials, and a deadly struggle for control of Fraser Canyon’s criminal underground.
Playing in the first person perspective, Precinct’s real-time 3D environments and gameplay deliver significant realism to the classic police adventure style Jim is famous for creating. Along with staple elements such as adventure and puzzles, players also encounter intense fast action gameplay sequences that include shootouts, high speed car chases, investigations, foot pursuits, hand-to-hand combat, and more.
Jim is leading an effort to successfully combine original Sierra-style adventure with modern video game technology. The Precinct team is poised to redefine the cop-game genre by making a game that both classic and modern gamers can enjoy.
Precinct is planned to be an episodic series released as digital download for PC and Mac with distribution across platforms such as Steam and our own website. If our stretch goals are met, we will be able to release Precinct on additional platforms (more about stretch goals below).
OUR CAMPAIGN Every Kickstarter dollar you give goes directly towards developing Precinct. We want to skip the traditional publishing model to make the best game possible for the fans of the original adventure Police Quest series.
We put considerable effort into creating an exclusive suite of rewards for our backers (see the right of this page) including a high quality Precinct badge, a visit with Jim, police whistle, Special Operating Procedures Manual, a visit to the game studio, and more. These rewards are completely unique to Precinct and can’t be found anywhere else. We hope you like them!
We can’t make this game without you. Please pledge whatever you can to make this game a reality. We GREATLY appreciate all that have backed us so far. Thank you so very much!
Throughout this Kickstarter campaign we will be posting lots of new content; we will publish new videos that detail the Sierra days as well as show you some behind-the-scenes footage of the making of Precinct. We will also give you an in-depth look at Jim Walls, Police Quest and Sierra.
STRETCH GOALS If we are successful with our Kickstarter we are going to be able to make a great game. However, the more money we get, the better the game will be. Every dime we receive goes directly towards building Precinct!
$600,000 (Awesomer) – At this level, we will be able to provide a more immersive gameplay experience. We will be able to produce hours of additional content and achieve a higher level of detail and beauty throughout the game.
$700,000 (Mega Awesome) – If we get to this level, we will be able to include more locations, more characters, a deeper story, and deliver a very high level of polish. We expect to release a Linux version at this level as well.
$800,000 (Badonk) – This level allows us to pretty much do everything we want to do for Precinct. In addition to more gameplay, more characters, more story, more polish, we expect to bring Precinct to iOS, Android, XBLA and PSN as well. You can also expect subtitled versions for the French, Italian, German and Spanish markets at this level too.
ABOUT SIERRA Located in the small mountain town of Oakhurst, CA, Sierra On-line was founded in 1979 by husband and wife team Ken and Roberta Williams. Through Ken and Roberta’s hard work, vision, and talent, Sierra became a pioneering force that was instrumental in shaping the video game industry and bringing home computer games to mainstream culture. Since the 1990’s, several mergers, acquisitions, layoffs, liquidations, and the departure of Ken and Roberta effectively rendered Sierra defunct. The company’s brand and remaining assets were last owned by Activision.
CREATING POLICE QUEST Jim is a retired California Highway Patrol officer who left the force in 1984 after being traumatized in a violent shootout. During his recovery from the incident, Jim serendipitously met video game pioneer Ken Williams who was in the early days of growing Sierra On-line with his wife and company co-founder Roberta Williams. Ken asked Jim to design gameplay and write a story for a realistic police adventure series Ken wanted to make. Police Quest was born.
Upon its release, Police Quest was an instant hit, wowing early gamers with a unique point-and-click adventure style and unprecedented realism for the time. Police Quest went on to have five sequels, selling millions of copies.
Most games fade to black in the game industry but the interest in Police Quest still burns brightly almost thirty years later. Possibly because of its deep storyline and the dedication it takes to play Police Quest successfully, the series has amassed a legion of fans from all over the world.
JIM WALLS Jim has been in the video game business for almost 20 years and is considered one of the original pioneers of the adventure game genre. His game titles include Police Quest 1, 2 and 3, Codename Iceman, Blue Force, Blade Runner, Pirates – Legend of Black Kat, and Earth and Beyond.
ROBERT LINDSLEY Robert began working at Sierra On-line at just fifteen years old. Although already precociously well versed in programming, Ken and Roberta Williams brought Robert into the company to help box games and copy floppy discs. Robert was eventually given a shot at programming and it wasn’t wasted on him. Robert soon began coding professionally and eventually began producing. At Sierra, Robert worked on several classic Sierra titles including King’s Quest V & VI, Laura Bow 2, Mixed Up Mother Goose, and Phantasmagoria 2. After Sierra, Robert worked for Microsoft Games where he wound up on Microsoft’s Xbox launch team. Robert has also led development at Atari and Harmonix, shipping over 80 games in his career. Most recently, Robert’s credits include Rock Band, Ghostbusters, and Dance Central. Robert is currently Jim’s partner for this project.
SCOTT BUTLER An early employee of the pioneering game studio Argonaut Software, Scott has worked in the video games business for over 24 years. 11 of those years were spent at Sony Computer Entertainment as a senior artist and art director. Scott has shipped over 50 games in his career, including Kingsley’s Adventure (PS1), Croc: Legend of the Gobbos (PS1 & Sega Saturn), Neopets: The Wand of Wishing (PSP), Eyetoy: Play (PS2), and Ren & Stimpy (SNES). At just 17 years old in 1989, Scott began his career making games for the Amiga and Timex Sinclair computers. Over the years, as game technology, tools, and business models have evolved, so has Scott. He has worked on virtually every game platform possible, Scott holds a US patent for a game engine technology he invented in 2009.
JASON CRAWFORD Jason has spent nearly two decades as an entrepreneur and creative professional in technology. The last 12 years of his career have been in the video game industry. Jason has launched multiple companies, including a game development studio in 2001 with Precinct’s Executive Producer, Robert Lindsley. Jason has played influential roles in shaping the vision and logistics for several games and interactive initiatives with clients such as Acclaim, Hasbro, IAC, Atari, Sony, Samsung, Sesame Workshop, and Walt Disney Imagineering. Jason is currently the founder and studio director of Tiny Castle Studios, a new Unity3D focused game development studio located in Glendale, CA. Jason and his team were instrumental in creating this Kickstarter campaign.
We are looking for YOUR help with the T-Shirt design. We will choose one backer’s design for our Kickstarter T-Shirt. If you would like to participate, send your design (in vector format) to tshirt@precinctgame.com. Your design will be considered and if it’s chosen it will be used for the Kickstarter reward T-Shirt!
Each day of the Kickstarter campaign will feature a brand new exclusive video in this section! Check back daily for a new bit of history you’ve never heard before, including; visits to the old Sierra buildings in Oakhurst, a visit Ken and Roberta’s old house, and several fascinating stories from Robert and Jim as they reminisce about the old days at Sierra.
GAME DEVELOPMENT
The biggest issue in development is keeping the game within scope and making sure the project never goes over-budget. Our entire team is intensely aware of this issue and know we must be vigilant in managing it responsibly. Leading this effort is Precinct’s Executive Producer, Robert Lindsley, who has over 20 years experience producing video games. Working on small games up to hundred-million dollar AAA titles, Robert has a proven and unbeatable track record for shipping products on-time and on-budget. As with any game development project, Precinct will undoubtedly throw out its own unique challenges but those challenges will be met by a team of seasoned video game industry veterans that know how to solve problems effectively and responsibly.
TECH & PRODUCTION DESIGN
It’s going to be an enormous undertaking building a lot of our own tech and tools above the already robust Unity3D platform. We created a game prototype of the world that not only shows off the art style, it was as an exercise to vet if Unity3D and our proprietary game editor will be possible given our minimum budget range.
GAMEPLAY
Although upgraded to modern gameplay standards, we believe audiences will enjoy the fun of a realistic police adventure because of Jim’s past success with Police Quest. “If you’ve played Police Quest, you know exactly what Jim Walls is like, because that game is Jim Walls.” – Al Lowe, creator of Leisure Suit Larry and programmer on Police Quest.
In case you didn’t read the earlier emails we’ve sent you, you should know: WE SHIPPED!!
Maybe not every platform (although we sure tried) but people have been playing the PC, Mac and Linux games for a week. You should be too!
That said, Apple has been sitting on our game for two weeks now and without telling us anything. We have no idea when it will appear in the Apple Store. But when it does, we promise to let you know immediately!
The Android version is suffering from the typical “way too many different versions of Android” syndrome, but is making progress. Here, too, we’ll tell you right away.
Update? Already?
Yes, we plan to release an updated version of the game very soon with several improvements:
Tech Support Forum
We have created a Tech Support forum at https://forums.replaygamesinc.
If you have any problems, please check here first. Probably someone else has already figured out a fix for it.
Linux Support
If you are a Linux or Mac guru, we need your help! Could you please jump on the new forum (above) and help your Linux and Mac friends? We’re a bunch of Windows people here at Replay Games and neither Linux nor Mac is our strong suit.
Tell Us How We Did
We’ve created a Customer Service form at http://bit.ly/LSL_Survey so you can tell us how much fun you’re having, and/or if you’re having troubles with the game. As you can imagine, we’re swamped, but we’re trying our best to help everyone. We’d appreciate it if you’d help us by pointing others to the form, too. It’s all about helping Larry have a great release!
Reddit AMA
Al Lowe will do another Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Saturday, July 6th, at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Join us as we discuss making Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded and the whole Kickstarter experience. Our AMA is at http://www.reddit.com/r/iama
Thanks everyone! It’s been a crazy week around here
Al and Britton
Trust me when I say, nothing more would make me happier than to be giving you link info to download the SpaceVenture playable demo today, but unfortunately we’ll need a little more time. How much time you ask?
Good news on that, the next update should have it! We are projecting to have it done for you by the July 16th update! 🙂
THE HEAT IS ON TO GET THIS THING OUT!
VOTING ON CONCEPT ART AND DEATH SEQUENCES
Emails have already been sent out. IF YOU HAVE ALREADY EMAILED US ABOUT THIS, WE ARE WORKING ON IT! NO NEED TO EMAIL AGAIN, THANKS!
Which conventions will you guys be at?
Answer: The Two guys Mark Crowe, Scott Murphy, and the SpacePope Chris Pope will all three be at SDCC 2013(San Diego) and possibly GMX 2013(Nashville). We were all hoping to be at PAX Seattle as well, but that may not happen.
You guys sure have been going to a lot of conventions. Shouldn’t you be making a game?
Answer: Actually Chris Pope is the one that has been going to conventions, and that has been on his own dime, not the company’s. Mark and Scott have only been to one convention so far and that was GMX 2012. GMX paid for the entire thing.
Do you love us backers?
Answer: We love you more than Orats love chasing Sarien Spider Droids! We love you more than Labion Terror Beasts love Cubix Rubes! We love you more than Fester Blatz loves ear wax! We love you more than Sequel Police love dressing in black! We love you more than… oh you get the picture!
SAN DIEGO COMICON 2013
Anyone and everyone that will be at San Diego Comicon, please come by and meet up with us to get a live demonstration of the SpaceVenture playable demo. Mark Crowe, Scott Murphy, and Chris Pope will all be there showing off a taste of what to expect in SpaceVenture. We’ll let everyone know what table number we’ll be at as soon as we have that from Comicon.
LEISURE SUIT LARRY: RELOADED
In case you’ve been living under a rock and didn’t realize it, Al Lowe / Replay Games just released their Kickstarter funded remake of Leisure Suit Larry. You gotta check it out! 🙂
https://www.replaygamesinc.com/
Thanks everyone!
Chris Pope a.k.a your humble local intergalactic SpacePope
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD ONLY
It’s not just the funniest game you’ve ever played…
…it’s also the most infamous video game of all time!
Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards was first released by Sierra On-Line in 1987 and became an international phenomenon. The lovable loser Larry Laffer — a 40-year-old virgin in pursuit of losing his vir….um, finding true love — and risqué humor were unlike anything anyone had ever seen or played.
Now Larry’s original creator, the world-famous game designer Al Lowe, has teamed up with Replay Games to bring this amazing, perverted game back to life – updated and expanded in every way imaginable! All we kept from the original game is the plot. EVERYTHING else is fresh and new including:
What’s more, Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded is the first major game to be released with funding by Kickstarter! Over 14,000 fans chipped in to bring Larry back to life!
Will Larry find true love? Will Lost Wages ever be the same? And will YOU want to play any other comedy adventure once you’ve played Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded?
There’s only one way to find out!
We are closing the KS store on June 30. This will be the last chance for you and your friends to contribute the project until we open a regular store shortly before we release Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption. The “KS Store” is at http://www.hero-u.net/KS-
You may also upgrade your Kickstarter pledge in the KS Store. Choose the “Donate” button, and donate the difference between the reward tier you want and the amount you have already contributed. Make sure you use the “Comments” field to give us your Kickstarter name and any other information we need to upgrade you to the new tier.
Staying around after the store closes will be the Hero-U web site – http://www.hero-u.net/ – recently redesigned by Lori. You can find new artwork and more information about the game there. Be sure to visit and participate in the discussion forums – http://www.hero-u.net/forum/ – while you’re there.
Then there’s Lori’s news column – http://www.hero-u.net/leaders/ – in which she posts project news in between these updates. The latest column mentions our composer Ryan Grogan’s latest award for his exceptional children’s TV work Down Under.
The team is well along on our first playable demo, the “Break-In House”. This is a simplified version of an actual game scene, so creating it tests most of the code we’ve developed so far. Shawn can walk around in it and interact with everything. Don’t worry – It’s one of the first scenes of the game, so there aren’t any spoilers.
We are trying to complete the demo in the next week or two with Shawn’s real animation, sound effects, and most of the interactions and dialogue that will be in the game. We’ll post a link to it when it’s “ready for prime time.”
We are delighted to welcome Mark Povey to our team as a senior animator. Mark’s impressive background includes working on Don Bluth films including “All Dogs Go To Heaven” and “An American Tail”. He has also animated games such as “Broken Sword”, Disney’s “Tarzan”, and “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”. Mark is currently focusing on animating our characters smoothly.
We have also added Luke Utterback as a part-time AI (Artificial Intelligence) specialist. Luke has six years of experience as a game programmer including work on “Bourne Conspiracy” and “LEGO Universe”. He also did the AI programming for the lamentably cancelled “Warrior’s Lair” project (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Then there’s Richard Aronson, famous for the Dread Gazebo story (http://www.netfunny.com/rhf/
There are just over two days to go on Armikrog, which has so far raised $700K of its $900K ask. This is a stop-motion-animated adventure game from the creators of Earthworm Jim. The lead artist (Doug Ten Napel) has raised some controversy unrelated to the project with comments against gay marriage. If this is an important concern to you, you will have to decide whether you want to back Armikrog. Personally, I am backing at a minimum level just to keep up with the game’s progress. The art style and proposed game play look amazing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Also ending soon is Double Fine’s Massive Chalice Campaign (http://www.kickstarter.com/
There are still two weeks to go on The St. Christopher’s School Lockdown (http://www.kickstarter.com/
Just started is LFG: The Fork of Truth (http://www.kickstarter.com/
Hero-U development is starting to accelerate, and many exciting developments are happening behind the scenes. We look forward to sharing more art, music, news, and demos with you here and on the hero-u.net web site. Stay tuned!
Hi ya, Kickstarters! Al Lowe here. It looks like we are EXTREMELY close to the finish line!
And it appears that Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded will be the first Kickstarted game to ship!
N-Fusion hasn’t wasted the last few weeks; they’ve made improvements to the game everywhere. I can’t wait for you to see it. While I’m proud we did the right thing and waited to ship until all the bugs were exterminated, we did much, much more: hundreds of new sound effects, redesigned menus with new artwork, user interface improvements, and even additional voiceovers. This truly is the best Larry game we can bring you.
And our mutual wait is almost over!
E3 Action
Paul Trowe and I spent last week at E3 in Los Angeles and had a blast. We had loads of interviews with the foreign press. (U.S. press coverage was handled earlier, at GDC.) Even though Replay didn’t have a booth (a nice one would only cost all the money we raised on Kickstarter!), Leisure Suit Larry: Reloaded was on display in several other booths. Reports were universally positive, as was the response from the press who’ve seen it. So far, so good.
E3 week began with a bang: on Monday night, Paul and I joined Austin Wintory and Melora Hardin at Typhoon (a Santa Monica restaurant and jazz spot) for gig by the Late Night Jazz Orchestra. Wow, what a band! I knew they were good players after watching them record our soundtrack and this night cemented that reputation.
But the highlight for us Larryites came in their second set when they played several of the cuts from the Larry OST. Melora sang her song from the game while Austin accompanied. She looked as good as she sounds!
I just happened to have a saxophone mouthpiece in my pocket (heh, heh) so I borrowed a sax and played the Leisure Suit Larry Theme Song with them. They even gave me an opening cadenza. It was a musical highlight that I won’t soon forget!
If your Kickstarter reward level includes a download of the original soundtrack and you haven’t grabbed it yet, what are you waiting for?
Press Previews
We’ve received scores of previews from gaming sites since the beta was released and they’ve been nearly unanimous in their praise. We’re (almost) blushing! Here’s one from yesterday on Destructoid.
I’m hoping the actual reviews will be as sweet.
Another Game to Kickstart
Josh sends along news of another adventure game with a Kickstarter campaign: The St. Christopher’s School Lockdown. It’s an homage to the Sierra and Lucasarts games we love and they need your help. Josh says,
“I’m incredibly impressed by their art style, by the fascinating political theme of the story, by their extremely well thought-out plan for the series, and by the team of individuals who are working on the game. PLEASE go over to their Kickstarter site and show your support for the game and, if you can’t see your way through to supporting it monetarily, just helping spread the word would, I’m sure, be of inestimable benefit to their project.”
Well said, Josh!
Wrap-Up
Once the game goes live, you’ll want to download it but remember: you have to register first. Watch for another update from Britton with instructions on what to do, how, and when.
Of course, game discs take time to be pressed and assembled, and some of the physical rewards need to be autographed, so those won’t ship for a few more weeks. (What? Game discs don’t burn themselves?) So please have patience. We promise: we’re working as fast as we can to speed your items to you!
It’s been a fun year for me and I mean this sincerely: we literally could not have done it without you! Thank you so much for your faith in us (and Larry).
As Larry would say, “It won’t be long now!”