Found a nice article with Casey Pugh, creator of Star Wars: Uncut, the project originally responsible for The Han Solo Adventures.  Casey talks about his inspiration for the project, his dealings with Lucasfilm on the matter, and his future plans.

Check it out on NewTeeVee!

For a while now, I’ve been working with a team of artists and writer/artist Mike Oliver to visualize what will be my first commercial graphic adventure game.  We’re getting heavy into the design, so I wanted to take the opportunity to give you guys a peek at it on my new website WarbirdGames.com!

The genre doesn’t stray far from Han Solo Adventures.  The setting is a universe of space fantasy, in a very retro “Buck Rogers” style.  The player character is Jack Houston, a salty test pilot curmudgeon who would be right at home in a heated game of Sabacc with Han himself.  The artwork will be cell animation style with painted backgrounds, and it will feature a full cast of voice actors.

Now for a little rumor control:

Q: How much effect does this have on your commitment to the Han Solo Adventures project?

A: Zero.  I started the Han Solo game on paper when I was a kid, and I will finish the game no matter what.  If LucasArts came down on me like a ton of bricks tomorrow, I would still finish the game for my own satisfaction, even if I were legally restricted from releasing it to the public.  It’s a passion project.

Q: Will this game have the same SCUMM interface as Han?

A: No, the interface will be original, but familiar to Sierra and LucasArts gamers.

Q: Are you sticking with classic, low res graphics and midi music?

A: Not on your life.  While I love the look and feel of classic DOS games for Han Solo, Jack Houston is a 100% modern game with modern graphics and sound.

Q: When will we have a demo?  When can we see the gameplay?

A: Hard to say.  We’re still in the design phase, so don’t expect to be playing it soon.

I’ve released a few concept art images on the Warbird Games site, and later this week I will be releasing a short teaser video to give you an idea for the feel of the game.  Of course, the game is still somewhat on the horizon, but I like to remain transparent and include you guys in everything I’m doing when possible.

So check out the full story on the Warbird site, enjoy, and stay tuned both here and there for more updates on the adventures of Han Solo and Jack Houston!

Viva Adventure Games!

-s

Yes, it’s true. There are a few other cats out there doing some truly amazing stuff with the old school adventure game genre, and even shaking it up a bit! My January 1st announcement will in fact be along those lines, but…

While we all wait, I wanted to show you guys a couple of videos I made on the side for some very cool adventure game developers out there who recently had their work featured in the IGF (Independent Games Festival… basically Sundance for gamedev!)

The first was Vince Twelve, creator of two of the most bizarre and innovative adventure games I’ve ever seen, Anna and What Linus Bruckman Sees When His Eyes Are Closed. Vince has a new game in the works called Resonance. I’ve played the beta, and it is simply one of the most amazing adventure games ever. Period. Here’s part of the video I cut for his IGF entry:

And be sure to visit the official site: http://xiigames.com/resonance/.

The second game I wanted to bring to you guys’ attention is Puzzle Bots! It’s another totally innovative adventure game created by Erin Robinson and produced by Dave Gilbert of WadjetEye Games (The Shivah, the Blackwell series, more awesome new adventure games). I cut Erin’s IGF video as well:

Official site here: http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/puzzlebots.htm

I’m really jazzed by all this action on the adventure game genre front. Be sure to check out these developers and support them if you want to see more games like these surface! Thanks guys, and hang loose for the January 1st announcement along with more screenshots from Han Solo!

-s

Keep your eyes peeled right here: www.WarbirdGames.com

Big announcement January 1st.

Pass it on…

Wow, there was a little write up about the game in the October issue of Play Magazine! It sure warms my heart to see that SCUMM screen in a game mag once again.

They got a few things wrong, so here’s a quick errata: 1) I am using the AGS engine, not the actual SCUMM engine. Also, I’m a dude.

But other than that… thanks Play Magazine! You guys rock!

Lots of boring coding going on in the background. Had to turn to some more cool creature artwork to uncross my eyes! (click to see it a little bigger!)

-s

Are there jawas about?

My apologies folks, it seems Kanye West managed to take over the site last night.  But never fear, I’ve driven him off with my can of extra strength Jackass Repellant!

Getting back to business, here’s another screenshot from a certain, rural trading post at the edge of the dune sea. (click to enlarge)

Just completed the primary Mos Eisley exterior screen, and let me tell ya, it is HUGE. HU-GE. Wow. I can’t wait to find ways to fill all these nooks and crannies with exciting stuff to do.

I’ve also hit on a really neat way to do another Tattooine city in a unique fashion, so it feels stylistically removed from Mos Eisley and you don’t get the feeling all these towns are running together. Not changing the city so much as the viewpoint. Should be a lot of fun to design.

-s