No one would blame the video game industry from simply moving on from Leisure Suit Larry, given the battering the franchise and character have taken in the last decade. Replay Games still believes in ol' Larry Laffer, however, and has announced a deal to produce high-definition updates of the series, in addition to a brand-new Leisure Suite Larry game.
We've been down this road before, though, but take confidence in knowing Replay is headed up by Paul Rowe, formerly of Sierra On-line, and series creator Al Lowe is involved with this effort.
"I'm totally jazzed to work with long-term friend and Sierra buddy, Paul Trowe," said Lowe in the press release. "He's worked tirelessly for years to get the Larry rights and return them to the hands of the Sierra ‘family.’ Working with Paul's team ensures that the world’s favorite leisure suit-wearer remains the same guy we all learned to love a quarter-century ago. I'll oversee the entire production of these games to ensure the highest standards and some amazing new adventures for my pal, Larry."
The plan involves a reworked version of Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, the first in the series, originally released in 1987 and remade (the first time!) in 1991. Replay intends to release the remake on every platform imaginable--PC, Mac, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, iOS, Android, Steam, OnLive, Gaikai, others--and follow that with a proper sequel late next year.
If fans dig this one, the press release implies Replay would be happy to remake the whole series. Fans have been tricked by Leisure Suit Larry resurrections in the past, though.
God speed, gentleman. The world could use a few more respectable sex jokes in video games.
Here's a question from someone who's never played one of these games: will they hold up?