The Plot of Leisure Suit Larry 8

[Datadog]

Al Lowe revealed it sometime last week on his site! Check it out!

The plot sounds very familiar (as in, recent familiar,) but I can't put my finger on it. All I can think of is an early episode of Doctor Who when I read about it. Not that it's a bad thing, of course. This is why I like finding out what the original creators were thinking. The plot is so much more different that what I've heard anybody speculate about.

[Jules]

The women-run planet sounds like something from the game, Amazon – Guardians of Eden. Anyone remember that game?

[Tawmis]

The woman run planet also reminds me of Space Quest IV.

Reading it - I think Al Lowe would have pulled it off successfully somehow. But just reading that description I am not sure. Because it sounds like these women would WANT Larry. So where would be the challenge of Larry trying to seduce these women? Most women in Larry's life always wanted SOMETHING ELSE from him, than what he was already... ready to offer, so to speak.

[Collector]

Well, it was undeveloped, mostly ideas of a general plot. How better to humiliate Larry than to place him in a situation where the women need anything with three legs, so to speak, and still gets rejected.

[Akril]

Ah, nuts...here I was going to say that the "planet entirely populated by women" reminded me of Microprose's Rex Nebular and the Cosmic Gender Bender and two other people have already spotted that theme occurring in two other adventure games.

Slightly unoriginal plot elements aside, I still thought the Larry 8 plot outline was interesting. I was a bit skeptical of the idea of having Larry save the world, since his primary goal throughout all of the games was to score (pun intended), and any heroic deeds he performed along the way (like in Larry 2 and 5) were almost accidental. And of course, saving a plane full of people from crashing is one thing, saving the entire planet from aliens is another.

Though the plot does have bit of a Space Quest flavor to it, with a bit of work, it might have developed a unique feel of its own. Not only that, but maybe being so different than the previous Larry games might have helped, especially since Larry 7 was so similar to Larry 6.

(And yes, Jules, I've played Amazon: Guardians of Eden. Not a bad little game, though it did have its frustrating moments.)

[Tawmis]

Well, it was undeveloped, mostly ideas of a general plot. How better to humiliate Larry than to place him in a situation where the women need anything with three legs, so to speak, and still gets rejected.

See, that is just it. If the women needed him - why would they ask of him? The only real humiliation would be... Larry's... performance... or lack of lasting, so to speak... quick to finish the race and what not... but how many times can you do that in a single game and still have it be funny?

[Datadog]

Still, being around easy women is a good way to put Larry in a different situation with new challenges. There's been many fantasy episodes in many TV shows where a guy becomes the ultimate ladies' man by means of magic/science/dreams and then soon finds himself wanting everything to go back to normal. And with the fate of the world at stake, a lot of puzzles could revolve around Larry trying to figure out how to use some of his "intimate encounters" to save it.

Somehow, I'm now picturing a more perverted version of "Orion Burger."

[BBP]

That kinda sounds like that Futurama episode I saw once...
Personally I preferred the little-plot driven LSL 6 and 7 over the attempt-at-story of LSL5 any time, and the plot he wrote down... I don't really see what he could've let Larry do in it. Besides the "outer space" concept usually gets me running. Or Donald Duck-like waggling at the very least.
But I'm playing Freddy Pharkas now, and I very much enjoy seeing how much Al can get me to smile even if I don't like the wild west background.

[Lounge Lizard]

I think that maybe the object of the game was to avoid sexual contact with the alien women as much as possible, because sex with them will kill you. Keep in mind that the alien women only take on the guise of beautiful human women to attract Larry, but underneath, they're probably scarier than the Gelgamek females who were mentioned in the SOUTH PARK episode "Red Hot Catholic Love." ("The Gelgamek vagina is three feet wide and filled with razor sharp teeth! Do really expect us to have sex with them?!") The LS8 alien women might be a cross between the Pukoids of SPACE QUEST 5 (who are really creepy) and the Amazons of SPACE QUEST 4 (who are really hot). Personally, the situation reminds me of a BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD comic book where the protagonists are abducted by frog-like cloaked aliens, who then hand them over to green insect faced alien women with hot bodies. Sadly, when Beavis and Butthead tried to get laid with the women, the aliens kept trying to get rid of them, and they ended up in an escape pod in their underwear back to their hometown on Earth. Maybe the situation of LS8 could involve Larry trying to make it with the women, even though the women are willing, but happy accidents occur right before he's at the cusp of copulation, which of course saves his life from unbearable physical pain, agony, and gruesome death (even at the price of blue balls).

I think that if the main is for Larry to stay from the embraces of the aliens, there should be other females, who are not grotesque aliens underneath, to keep Larry interested. I suggest parodies of babes from well known (or little known) sci fi movies. The women could be based off of Persis Khambatta (who played Ilia in STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE), Sigourney Weaver (from ALIEN), Lois Chiles (Holly Goodhead from MOONRAKER), Luciana Paluzzi (who was in THE GREEN SLIME, but was also in THUNDERBALL as Fiona Volpe), Carrie Fisher, Omella Muti (who played Princesss Aura in FLASH GORDON [1980]), Mila Jovovich (FIFTH ELEMENT), Sean Young (DUNE), Vivica A. Fox (INDEPENDENCE DAY), Mila Avital (STARGATE), and perhaps Marina Sirtis and Gates McFadden (Troi and Dr. Crusher from STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION). They could be members of a special task force meant to make sure that the female aliens don't mate with Larry, since that would produce offspring that would be disasterous for the Earth: ALIEN LOUNGE LIZARDS!!!!

By the way, how was Captain Thygh supposed to figure into this game? I orginally thought that the object of the game would be for Larry to have to save her from alien forces for breeding purposes. Would it be better to just to bring back the babes from LARRY 7, with maybe cameos from LARRY 1 and 3 (such as bringing back Eve and Patti), or would it be better to have new women, and maybe keep one or two women from LARRY 7. I was thinking that Dewmi More should appear again, where it turns out that she's one of the female aliens, or the female alien has taken her as a host body. Whatever the case, I think Captain Thygh should kidnapped by the aliens, and have it be Larry's goal to save her as well as save the Earth.

If someone were able to develop LARRY 8 as an indie adventure, perhaps the engine for THE SILVER LINING could be used to make it? Or maybe a engine made from scratch based upon the crude 3D tech demo teaser for the game?

[nickherc]

In 2013, Al Lowe pointed out that this title is still being considered, with support from series co-writer Josh Mandel. Lowe stated that even though he would like to complete the Reloaded series first, Leisure Suit Larry 8 is "absolutely" still in the works.

Any news about this one? I would love to play a new Larry Laffer game :O.

[Tawmis]

In 2013, Al Lowe pointed out that this title is still being considered, with support from series co-writer Josh Mandel. Lowe stated that even though he would like to complete the Reloaded series first, Leisure Suit Larry 8 is "absolutely" still in the works.

Any news about this one? I would love to play a new Larry Laffer game :O.

Al Lowe himself, said he has officially retired (after the fiasco of LSL1 Reload and the events that followed). So, if there is an LSL8, Al Lowe sadly will not be a part.

[nickherc]

Freaking industry... What did Al Lowe say after the Reloaded fiasco? I mean it was not a bad game, sure it wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either...?

[Tawmis]

Freaking industry... What did Al Lowe say after the Reloaded fiasco? I mean it was not a bad game, sure it wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either...?

Ah. I won't go much into the details, but you can probably google "Paul Trowe" and find out everything you need to know.

[Tawmis]

Actually, we have a thread I started (just found it) about Al Lowe returning to retirement.