Star Control sequel in the works?

What we heard: The Star Control trilogy has been dormant for a decade, and while it's gone, it most definitely has not been forgotten. It has appeared on the Sega Genesis, Amiga, Commodore 64, and 3DO, but the series is best remembered for its PC installments, Star Control II in particular. After all, it was that game's combination of arcade action, sci-fi strategy, open-ended role-playing, and fine-tuned gameplay balance that earned it induction into GameSpot's Greatest Games of All Time.

And now the development house responsible for the first two Star Control games wants to get another crack at the franchise. But as Toys For Bob producer Alex Ness explains on the company's site, there are hurdles to clear.

"We (I) want us to do a Star Control sequel," Ness wrote, adding, "it's very hard to convince large publishing companies that a new Star Control would sell very well in the current video game market. But maybe, just maybe, if enough of you people out there send me e-mails requesting that Toys For Bob do a legitimate sequel to Star Control 2, I'll be able to show them to [Toys For Bob parent company] Activision, along with a loaded handgun, and they will finally be convinced to roll the dice on this thing."

In soliciting support for the cause, Ness implies that Toys For Bob has recently acquired the rights to make more games with the franchise and even links to an (inactive) online petition that was signed by thousands of devoted fans between 2000 and 2004. Gamers who want to help Ness out can email him at alexness@toysforbob.com.

In the same post, Ness reveals that the company's yet-unannounced current project (which has been in development for about a year) will be unveiled at the Electronic Entertainment Expo next month, but he says he doesn't yet know what it is. "Hopefully I will know what game it is beforehand, because I am supposed to be demo-ing it down at the show," Ness wrote.

Given the discussion of Star Control in the same posting, some readers (this writer, for instance), inferred that the game in question could be a spiritual successor of sorts to Star Control. Perhaps it was a space strategy game of some sort that only needed approval to have the license and lore of the Star Control universe slapped onto its existing gameplay.

When pressed for details by GameSpot, Ness dashed those hopes. He said he does, of course, know what game he's working on, and it's not a Star Control sequel. "It's pretty cool and fun but has nothing to do with Star Control or space or role-playing," he said. "It should be out by the end of the year. My hope was that some time in the future, maybe the next project or maybe the one after, we would get a chance to make another Star Control game."

As for Activision's take on the situation, a rep would only say, "We currently do not have any information about Star Control."

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus...for now.