Leisure Suit Larry eyeing Box Office Bust
Worms developer takes on the lecherous one's latest adventure; bitter comics and comely bombshells sign on for voice work.
You can't keep a bad man down. Larry Loveage, the heir to the eternally soiled Leisure Suit Larry name and star of 2004's Magna Cum Laude, is on the comeback trail. Sierra Entertainment today announced that Loveage would return this fall in Leisure Suit Larry: Box Office Bust for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, and mobile phones.
Developed by Team 17 (the studio behind the Worms franchise of action strategy games), Box Office Bust follows the woeful would-be ladies' man as he works a summer job at a movie studio run by his uncle, the original Leisure Suit Larry. While there, the younger Larry attempts to uncover the identity of an employee who's threatening to spill the studio's dirt to the tabloids. Described by Sierra as featuring "open world sand box gameplay," Box Office Bust will incorporate platforming, racing, and puzzle-solving elements, along with a mode that allows Larry to step behind the camera to direct his own feature.
Appropriate to the subject matter, Box Office Bust will feature an ensemble cast of famous voice actors culled from the ranks of comedians and calendar girls. Already announced for the project are Interactive Achievement Awards host Jay Mohr (Action, Jerry Maguire), Patrick Warburton (Seinfeld, The Venture Bros.), Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie, Jack Frost), Carmen Electra (Meet the Spartans, Cheaper by the Dozen 2), Dave Attell (Insomniac, Pootie Tang), Artie Lange (Dirty Work, Beer League), Jeffrey Tambor (Arrested Development, Max Headroom), Nikki Cox (Las Vegas, The Norm Show), Peter Graves (Mission: Impossible, Airplane!), and Jane Lynch (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby). Providing the voice of Larry Loveage will be Josh Keaton, who is the English voice of Ocelot in the Metal Gear Solid series and who is providing the voice of the titular webslinger in the upcoming Spectacular Spider-Man animated series.
Although a PC version of Magna Cum Laude was released with an AO for Adults Only rating, Sierra Entertainment is aiming for an M for Mature with Box Office Bust.
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Developer: Team 17
Genre: Adventure
Platform: PC
Release Date: Sep 16, 2008
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60 Comments
I really wish people would read the information a lot of websites have put up about Box Office Bust - that Sierra / Vivendi / Activision-Blizzard, whoever you want to call them hired Allen Covert to write the game rather than use Al Lowe. This decision had absolutely nothing to do with Team 17! And yes, maybe Al Lowe's vision for a new Larry would do well in today's market, but you've got to realise that the last Larry game he wrote was released over 10 years ago so there's absolutely no guarantee that what he wrote nowadays would actually appeal to vintage Larry fans, let alone the general public!
Anyway, rant over... I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what Team 17 can do with this franchise... Here's hoping it doesn't suck!
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I don't think they even READ what fans are writing them. Sierra's forums are full of "USE AL LOWE YOU IDIOTS!!!" messeges, and they just ignore them all. I wrote them and Team17 this mail, hope it will do something:
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In this preview in Gamespot:
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6184801.html
I saw that Team17 will create the new Larry BOB game.
As I grew up, I was playing the originals Leisure Suit Larry games, created by Al Lowe.
I usually read his website up until today, and just now I saw this page:
http://allowe.com/Larry/BOB.htm
Well, I know how Al feels... he CREATED Larry!
How can Sierra drop him like this?
Well, you are the guys that creates Larry now. Can't you do something for the sake of nostalgia?!
I personally would like some answers: How can someone create a game about Larry without even TALKING with the man who created this character?
Now, you (Sierra, VUgames, Team17, anyone who's involved in this project) can say, "Look at this, the new Larry is better!"
Well, he isn't. Compare his sales to LSL7's sales. It's not an adventure game, it's a mini-games-pack. Who buys a mini-game-pack!? XD
Team17 should know; Worms had a mini-game-pack once, and it wasn't successful like the other Worms.
Now I have another example: Sam & Max. If you follow around, Lucas Arts dropped Sam&Max a few years ago, but fans never gave up. TellTaleGames bought Sam&Max, and they made AMAZING games with them, only because keeping two factors:
1.It's the same TYPE of game. You pick up objects and use them on other people/objects, and hear jokes around. No mini games for progress.
2. They kept Steve Purcell, the original creator of Sam&Max, and he's creating the new games with them. He's WRITING the new games, like he wrote the original!
Of course Sam&Max's new games (2 seasons, 11 chapters so far) Sales are greater than "Larry: Magna Cum Laude". I don't see a better reason to ask Al Lowe for some help.
Anyway, if you have ANY way to use Al Lowe, PLEASE, consider it. This is the ONLY way the new Larry game will be anything close to a 'good' game. If you want it to be a perfect game, ask Al to work with you. He seems very depressed about the whole thing, and anyone can understand that.
Yours Truly,
Michael,
A gamer.
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If anyone wanna help Al Lowe and Larry, please write to Team17 and Sierra as well.
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allright leisure suit continues!!!
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They better release an AO version as well, like they did with Magna Cum Laude! Great fun.
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Bring it on. I Love Larry. Where else do I get to do my second favorite pastime, next to killing zombies.
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Looks like Thrillville: Off the Rails
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why is this an open world sandbox game?
old school sierra rules. vivendi blows.
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could be good
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I remember playing the original in high school and it was a cool unique experience. I haven't played the other game, but I think that other than the graphics, they should make it along the same lines as the first. There is no way they should try to clean it up enough for an M rating though. I realize the whole idea is to make money, but they shouldn't make a game like this if they don't plan to stay true to form.
Max Headroom? LOL God, there is a name I haven't heard in FOREVER!
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@Generic_Dude: http:/www.tsl-game.com
I'm not interested in any Larry-game unless Al is involved.
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I'm glad to see another Larry game, although I wish it was just a good old fashioned point-n-click adventure.
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Are sirrea bring back the pev sim becuase of the success of sam and max. why lucas arts perfected the adventure game sierra just have a lot of pevs working there.
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Not a bad voice cast, but I guarantee this will be such a stinker. Ugh....now I'm having memories of that horrible, horrible MTV video game/music video show with Leisure Suit Larry....
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Magna Cum Laude was a real disappointment, as this will be.
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Sounds like way too many features to ever be done well. Do not expect much.
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Please please make the crew play all the old games, then compare it to the MAGNA CUM game, feel bad, and TRY TO MAKE IT UP TO US. And to poor Larry Laffer. All that was kept from the original games was a name and a guy trying to get girls. That's not enough. Too much focus on silly mini games last time. Platforming? Larry doesn't platform! Worry about age? Larry Laffer would quiz us before the game to make SURE we were 18. Please pay attention to what you're doing and if it's not a Larry game, don't call it a Larry game. *sigh*
I know they won't listen.
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pc version came out in AO and an M edition then as there are like 3 copies of the game at my store all m.... magna cum laude
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i doubt it will be like they used to be... the series that is
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I really hope that we'll be pleasantly suprised by this game's quality.
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Hmmmmm..., could be interesting.
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Revolver939 - Larry Laffer was the original Larry, Loveage is his nephew.
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Yet another case of DRTFA-itis. That being said, I enjoyed the hell out of Magna Cum Laude, as repetitive and inconsistently difficult as it was. The AO-rated version was interesting, too, though I don't remember how well it controlled on the PC. It's been a while.
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It better not suck as much as MCL
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Seriously it's sad how many of you think this is going to be a movie. If you actually spent time READING this article you would know it's a game.
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WTF.......Larry LOVAGE?.......i thought his name was Larry Laffer.....that Blows
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Another LSL but no SWAT 5? lame.
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@thesaxmaniac: I can't think of a single LSL game that didn't have nudity. Nonetheless, if you're into childish humor -- which I am -- this is a hard one to top. Huh huh. Hard one. But yeah, I'm with the people that would rather see a new Space Quest or King's Quest.
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Raykuza, hey man. The originals were good. Just the last one was terrible. Back in the day, LSL didn't even have nudity in it, and it was awesome.
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Good point Ikazi. I wouldn't mind seeing a space quest.
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I don't even know why they still make porn games. They are always crap to reviewers.
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Just get al lowe back.
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First of all I'd like to point out that this is NOT a movie! Try reading the article instead of just the title.
Also, what is the point of these LSL games? Seems like some softcore porn for your Xbox to me. Looks really dumb.
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I don't understand WHY Sierra hasn't given up on the LSL games. They've given up on all the others.
How I would kill for Space Quest VII.
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Wow, so I guess this will be in the vein of National Lampoon movies? But what blows my mind is that minor games like this can get green lighted for a movie and Uwe Boll continues to turn mediocre games into crappy movies, but games like Gears or Halo can't get off the ground. A Halo movie or a Gears movie would be sure fire, money making, summer blockbusters! I suppose it all has to do with money. A game like Leisure Suit Larry wouldn't need much of a budget, but a Halo movie would cost a small fortune. I love movies, but damn I hate Hollywood.
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Oh good lord.
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Great news! I'll buy it no matter what rating it gets! Sticking it to the man!
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this is the perfect example of why people shouldn't shroom when they brainstorm for movie ideas
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#7 was the only good one because of the erotic humor. The previous ones are way too old to revisit and 8 lost the charm. These games can't complete with porn or the real deal for that matter so if its not humorous then there is very little to look forward to unless you are 13 and seeing things for the first time ; )
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The most perverted game I ever seen....some people are sick.
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Looks like an overrated ***** movie if you ask me.
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no AO version this time!..now where am I going to see video game bush! for shame Sierra! for shame! ..but seriously the last game was a bit of a letdown (the flirting game with the sperm was entertaining..the other minigames were not) so here's hoping they can make a new LSL like 6 or 7.
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These games were fun in the days before porn was easily available. Today, they're mostly just a waste of time. If they can go for good comedy like the Monkey Island games, I might be interested, but if its as dull as the last game, I'll pass.
Now that I brought it up, why are they bothering with a sequel to Larry, when we can't get another Monkey Island game?
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Wow, that's a long list of voice actors. Kind of a surprise to see that many.
Hopefully this one will be funny, and the gameplay might actually be fun as well. We shall see.
I wonder how many people will be too scared to make forum threads titled "PC > Consoles" for this game just because of the AO rating?
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"Sierra Entertainment is aiming for an M for Mature with Box Office Bust."
How about making an AO version as well?
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Could be alright. The voice casting sounds great, and the gameplay sounds WAY better than what it was the last game. I hope it at least gets some adventure game elements that made the old games classics.
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No Al Lowe no sale....besides in the age of South Park and Family Guy...Leiasure Suit Larry is just old news...what made the origional Sierra games so good was the fact that at the time (late 80s early 90s) the game WAS cutting edge in terms of adult video game humor..I think i will put this in the same category as Duke Nukem Forever...old men past their prime
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Rmadilo is right. A Leisuresuit Larry game without Al Lowe is pretty much worthless.
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Magna Cum Laude was actually pretty decent imo
Put it this way, when youve been around as long as I have and seen the previous 7 LSL games, it was decent compared to the rest
Anything open-world is good imo 
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