Sam & Max: Plunge through Space Facebook group

[Cyrus7]

News from the Lucas forums: the first ever Plunge Through Space resurrection Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/261028880683684/

[Vainamoinen]

Must log in to see page.
Stupid facebook.

[Darth Marsden]

The blurb:

So we have lots of groups, websites and other stuff about the resurrection of Sam & Max: Freelance Police... and none at all about Plunge Through Space. That's why I decided to open this group.

Sam & Max: Plunge Through Space was to be an Xbox action/adventure created by Infinite Machine, a company of former LucasArts employees. However, it was cancelled due to the poor sales on their other game, "New Legends". Steve Purcell has said the following about the game:

"It was actually based on a story I had written years before called Sam & Max Plunge Through Space. Sam & Max have to recover the stolen Statue of Liberty which they find parked in another galaxy and being used as a casino called Green Mama's. Then they are pulled into interplanetary intrigue with an evil despot and a mysterious hidden world where everyone resembles Max. We were breaking it down into an action/exploration/adventure game and I was pleased with where it was going."

According to Chuck Jordan:

"It was a lot heavier on "adventure" than "action." It was intended to be more of a hybrid, giving you the story and characters of a point-and-click adventure, but with the pacing of a 3D platformer. You'd have controlled Sam directly, moving around environments about the size of a FPS level, solving item-based puzzles and getting into dialogue exchanges. Enemies would wander the level, so you could always go back and shoot and/or beat them up. (I remember that we spent a good bit of time trying to figure out how to do shooting without over-complicating the targeting interface, before we remembered that it's Sam & Max, and accuracy is kind of irrelevant.) We were hoping to have a platformer without shallow characters or annoying jumping puzzles, and an adventure game without the feeling that nothing happens when you get stuck. The best part of having a pitch go unpublished is that I can say that we solved every problem, and it would've worked perfectly, if only it had gotten made."

I'm kinda glad it never got made. I don't think of an action game when I think of Sam & Max. I think adventure game, and the two aspects really don't sound like they'd have meshed together all that well.

And what the hell is 'New Legends'?

[Vainamoinen]

Originally Posted by Darth Marsden

I'm kinda glad it never got made. I don't think of an action game when I think of Sam & Max. I think adventure game, and the two aspects really don't sound like they'd have meshed together all that well.

Rely on your instincts, I think they're good.

If we're strict, we would have to call the first two Sam & Max Seasons "action adventures" because of the shooting/ car chase/ minigame sequences. They blend in OK with the rest of the game. They fit. The infamous duo is a pretty active, trigger happy, dangerous driving combination. They don't strain their brains much in the comics, that is the adventure game material.

Nonetheless, "rely on your instincts" means that there are so many adventures where the incorporation of action elements resulted in epic failure. It's a dire risk and needs the hand of a master designer. I'm not sure such people are still found at LucasArts.

The Xbox direction also feels pretty unholy to me. I wanted Plunge through Space as Telltale's Season 4... have even been sketching a bit for the idea recently. Here's the scribble, but don't tell anyone (Warning! Work in possibly not even progress).

[Darth Marsden]

I can totally imagine Plunge being a Telltale made adventure. The way Chuck Jordan and Steve Purcell described it, their game sounded like two different ones being smooshed together into one, and the seams really showed.

[Leplaya]

This would have been interesting though. Although, I think it would have been better off as a comic story arc than a game. Unless if I can be proven wrong though....Is there any other concept artwork for this purposed game other than what has been posted here?

[Darth Marsden]

Other than the stuff posted on the Facebook page, you mean? I don't think so.

EDIT: Apparently there's some concept art in The Age of S&M, but I'd imagine it's the same as what's floating around on the net.

[ryannumber1gamer]

It looks like it would have been a good game and the story sounds interesting but i would much rather have Freelance Police be finished.

[RobD]

Originally Posted by Darth Marsden

Other than the stuff posted on the Facebook page, you mean? I don't think so.

EDIT: Apparently there's some concept art in The Age of S&M, but I'd imagine it's the same as what's floating around on the net.

Yeah, there's bits where there's giant robot thumb costumes for boss fights. Basically just thumb wars but seriously badass