Space Quest Message Board

As appears to so often be the case, the Space Quest creators’ Kickstarter for SpaceVenture has managed to reach its enormous half million target in the last moments. With three days to go they were still close to $100,000 short, but a remarkable eleventh hour surge has seen it reach $529,175, with just three hours to go. So it seems there will be more not-Roger Wilco having more not-space janitor adventures in not-Space Quest.

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If you were to ask me, “Hey, John, which Sierra Online adventure series would you like to bring back to life?” I’d drive you crazy by not saying Quest For Glory, and in fact stamping my feet and shouting, “I WANT MORE SPACE QUEST!” Well, if only people will give the two original SQ creators $500,000, I’ll have one! Indeed, it’s this week’s forty-seventy-billionth Kickstarter, but this is the one that counts, people!

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You heard it here first, and now it’s definitely happening. Space Quest developers Mark Crowe and Scott Murphy have announced they will be working on a new project, and there’s a video to go with it. It’s a peculiar one. A very peculiar one, seemingly recorded by Skype and animated from photographs. And most surprisingly, Mark Crowe is involved, having previously ruled himself out. Replay Games had talked about trying to restart the franchise, by combining Scott Murphy with Space Quest VI developer Josh Mandel, already working at the studio. However, there’s no immediate implication that this is to do with Replay, rather being announced as a project by the Two Guys From Andromeda. Oh, and most strange of all? So far there’s no mention of a KickStarter.

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For a classic series like Space Quest to get a fan-made sequel is an achievement. To get three in one month is unprecedented. First came the polished-up remake Space Quest 2 VGA, in which intrepid hero space janitor Roger Wilco finds that saving the galaxy comes with a price, followed by two full-length, brand new adventures picking up where the series left off back in 1995 – Vohaul Strikes Back and Space Quest: Incinerations. But are any of them worth digging your trusty Golden Mop out of storage for? I played them all to find out…

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Any Space Quest fans out there? A remake and a sequel would like to make your acquaintance. The remake is of Space Quest II and the sequel takes place after Space Quest VI. They were made by different teams but Indiegames.com just made me aware of them both, and the antagonist is the same chap in both. Reason enough to bundle them into one post, I reckon. There’s no voice acting in Vohaul Strikes Back, the sequel, but the team are planning to add it at a later date. Both are free, which may convince me to take a crack at Space Quest II after all these years. Trailers follow.

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Sarien.net, "the portal that once stood for reliving classic Sierra On-Line adventure games" (for free), has been shut down following a cease-and-desist order issued by IP owner Activision. The site's creator, Mr. Kool (real name!), has posted the letter from Activision's legal counsel on the Sarien homepage.

"While we appreciate your dedication to the Sierra classic library and understand that you are a fan of these games, Activision has not authorized the development or distribution of these games via your Website," the order reads. "Accordingly, we must demand that you immediately cease any further distribution or exploitation of the Sierra Games on your Website."

Kool launched Sarien way back in April 2009, but it seemingly took this month's implementation of iPhone and iPad browser support (for all of the site's AGI-powered games) for Activision to take notice. "Wait till you see my new World of Warcraft in javascript," Kool quipped in a tweet. "Oh wait, that's Activision too..."

[Thanks, Ryan; image source: MobyGames]