SQ1 Reloaded

[Sledgy]

Replay Games wanna reload SQ? Is it real?
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2012/04/10/replay-trying-to-bring-back-space-quest-kings-quest/#more-103251

[pcj]

That's from 2012...no it's not real.

[SteveHNo96]

That's exactly what we need. Paul the pervert getting his hands on Space Quest too.

[Frede]

Thought I'd gone too long without a heart attack. Thank you so much for shaking up my system.

[Intendant S]

Thank god that was an old article. I nearly had a heart attack myself. Just the word "Reloaded" leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

[MusicallyInspired]

At least The Matrix doesn't get the primary blame for that anymore...

[Irishmile]

Yes its true... at least the fact that Paul Trowe looked into getting the rights to make many of the Sierra games... I know for a fact he tried hard to get the rights to make a KQ game with Telltale and then Activision.  

I would say the likelihood of ANY of that ever happening is pretty slim, even without the recent drama, Activision seems pretty intent on just sitting on most of the titles, but I imagine they are likely looking at all the projects the Sierra vets are working on closely.

 

I think the BIGGEST thing to fear is the success that Telltale has had recently, while I love the old TTG games, and I really like Walking Dead, that type of game would NOT suit the Sierra franchises well at all...  IF Activision did make a new SQ game my fear would be that they emulated the walking dead's format completely ignoring what makes SQ the game that SQ needs to be.  BUT you never know WHAT the future could bring... just look at what happened with Gabe Knight 1 and Phoenix. 

[PurpleTentacle]

I would love to see something like this, especially if the result would be a polished product like the Monkey Island special editions. But would the remakes start with the first one? I feel like Space Quest hit its stride in the third game, and that people usually think of 3 or 4 when they fondly remember the series today. Would there be enough interest for a remake of the first one?

[MusicallyInspired]

Nah, SQ1 was a great game. Its stride has been since the beginning, in my opinion. Many actually prefer SQ1 over even 3 and 4. It's one of those series that was good right from the start and never had a weak beginning, unlike King's Quest. SQ1 is in my top 3.

[PurpleTentacle]

Nah, SQ1 was a great game. Its stride has been since the beginning, in my opinion. Many actually prefer SQ1 over even 3 and 4.

Who are these alleged people? :-p

 

I guess I find myself remembering the third game much better. I remember dying a lot in SQ1 and vaguely what the different locations looked like, but from the third game I remember some truly inspired sequences. The part with the grabber at the start and Monolith Burger and Scumsoft offices and the robot fight with Elmo were all so perfect.

[MusicallyInspired]

I think Troels' favorite is SQ1. I found SQ1 to have far more substance than SQ3. It was longer, too. Had a more interesting story. It wasn't a simple game like say KQ1 with a small 3-part treasure hunt. It arguably had the best story and most substantial content of all the early AGI Quest firsts. It felt like a great adventure. A big journey.

 

I hated the Nukem Dukem robots lol. The Alluminum Mallard was awesome, though. Actually, I think the beginning of SQ3 was the better part of the game.

[Intendant S]

For me, SQ1 is certainly in the top 3. It's probably second only to SQ4 on my list. It was the first game I ever bought with my own (allowance) money and I still have the original floppies. The only part I hated was the skimmer sequence.

[PurpleTentacle]

Yeah, I'm sure there are people who like the first one best. I was just kidding.

 

SQ3 was the first one I played, followed by 4. Come to think of it, I might have gotten both around the same time.

 

To be clear, I did enjoy SQ1, though I absolutely loved 3 and 4. I have a particular fondness for SCI0 games with the parser, like Colonel's Bequest and Larry 3. They feel more polished and have the look that I most associate with Sierra games. And, though 4 didn't have the text parser, it had the best art IMO and was especially entertaining.

[Troels Pleimert]

I think Troels' favorite is SQ1.

SQ3, actually. But, admittedly, that changes with the weather. ;)

[PurpleTentacle]

I remember Josh Mandel saying somewhere that the Sierra Online remakes usually didn't sell as well as the company had hoped they would. Apparently there were plans to remake even more titles, but those plans were scrapped. I'm sure people here have read similar things. Anyway, I just wonder whether adventure game remakes in general have a tendency to not be great sellers.

 

How well did the Monkey Island Special Edition games sell? Or are those not good comparisons to other remakes? Also, I know it's not an adventure game, but didn't that Ducktales remake do very well?

 

I also don't think the Gabriel Knight remake is going to be a hit. I really think new titles in a series are the way to go. Hearing "remake" lessens the excitement for lots of people. With a new game in the series you get the familiar characters, but at least it is still a new experience with new gameplay, locations, element of surprise, etc. For example, I am a lot more interested to get my hands on the new Tex Murphy game than I am the GK remake.

[MusicallyInspired]

Those early remakes didn't sell well because the fans (first of all, there were fans) thought it was tainting the classics, akin to colourising b&w movies. It's different now because it's an entirely new generation who has no clue about the series and the best way to introduce them to it is with a remake. The Monkey Island SEs did very well from what I hear. It was too soon back then for remakes, I don't think it is now. I do somewhat agree, though, that at this point people are sick of remakes and reboots. That goes for Hollywood too.

[Datadog]

The "Ducktales" remake was successful, but nostalgia and a fresh coat of paint alone didn't sell it. The gameplay was updated, new levels were added to flesh out the story, the original cast returned to voice it, and the end result felt like a modern Ducktales with very little hints of remake (although the optional 8-bit soundtrack might give it away.)

 

Hitting the same success with adventure games is trickier because point-n-click gameplay has aged quite differently from platforming. I watched one of my co-workers checking out the "Monkey Island" remake on YouTube, and he couldn't wrap his head around how the player was accomplishing anything since Guybrush just kept standing around and describing things. Adventure game remakes largely appeal to the fans because there's very little you can do to take these games out of the 90's.

 

If I were to choose a style of remake for "Space Quest 1", I'd actually like it in the style of "Uncharted". And not as a shooter or platformer, but as the game it already is - Roger trying to solve puzzles while running for his life and hiding from enemies. Putting the player into Roger's shoes would give the game a little extra momentum that wouldn't feel out of place in today's market. 

[drdrslashvohaul]

The other reason may have been that people were "re-making" games only 5-10 years after they were originally released. For real nostalgia value, you've got to at least pretend to wait a bit. If SQ1VGA had never happened, a SQ1 remake would be great for modern machines. I think the SQ2VGA fan game is a good example of how it could have been done so much better. But this is what you get for making a decision based on potential sales rather than what has artistic merit... :P

 

On that note, 2016 is the 30th anniversary. Anything being planned (since now is the time to do it!)?

[PurpleTentacle]

I watched one of my co-workers checking out the "Monkey Island" remake on YouTube, and he couldn't wrap his head around how the player was accomplishing anything since Guybrush just kept standing around and describing things. Adventure game remakes largely appeal to the fans because there's very little you can do to take these games out of the 90's.

 

I don't agree with this. Back when these games were newer, I remember some people looking over my shoulder as I played and not "getting it." They'd say, "you're just standing around watching the guy talk. When does the game start? This is boring." (and of course you'd want to slap them but you don't.) Their "not getting it" was more a function of their individual gaming tastes and not necessarily a product of the time period.

 

So, I think different kinds of games just appeal more to certain people. Today you have A LOT more people involved in gaming, which is way more mainstream and enjoyed by a wider age range than it was in the past. You will have many people that just aren't into adventure games, and the proportion of overall gamers that likes adventure games is likely smaller than it used to be, but it's not because "you can't take the games out of" a particular era.