Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don’t Dry – 
A Return to Old School Larry?


OK, bear with me while I sent the scene here. The early 90’s, I was pre-teen boy deeply engrossed in my NES console games. I had all the classics, Mario Bros, Gradius, Wizards & Warriors and Castlevania. I had my subscription to Nintendo Magazine System and watched Captain N: The Game Master religiously. I considered myself a gamer, already at such a young age I knew this medium had a hold on me, and I loved and embraced it. I remember the Saturday that changed gaming for me very well. I went to a friend’s house, not a close friend, but what I would call a fringe friend. All my inner circle friends played Nintendo, we swapped games and shared stories, if I was at one of one these friends house’s, what was about to happened would never had happened. You see, this friend did not play Nintendo. He was, what is called these days, a PC gamer. Back then we just called it “Playing games on the computer”, but he and what he was about to show me changed my life. He fired up his 386 computer (could have even been a 286) and started playing Leisure Suit Larry in The Land of The Lounge Lizards. “What was this” I remember thinking. Nonlinear gameplay, you can type anything, look and interact with everything (so it seemed anyway) and the feeling of complete freedom. I was captivated by the feeling of pure adventure and mystery, it had me. So, began what I refer to as my PC era where I almost exclusively played PC adventure games, Leisure Suit Larry games were a big part of that.


So, scene set, thanks for hanging in there but I wanted to go part of the way in expressing how big a deal this series is to me. The sheer fact that it keeps rolling out new editions is testament to the longevity, amazing in this day and age really considering the content. Leisure Suit Larry is one, in a collection of games, from Sierra that epitomises PC adventure gaming during the 80’s and 90’s. Other titles such as Police Quest, Space Quest, Quest for Glory and the grand-daddy of them all King’s Quest are front of mind, each with similar gameplay mechanics but completely different stories and atmosphere. In Larry you played a sleazy man named Larry Laffer, your main goal was to help worm his way into the affections of women so they would have sex with him. Along the way solving puzzles, mysteries and generally getting into and out of strange and awkward situations. It sounds like a bizarre and not-so-great story premise, but the humour written into the game makes it great fun, it just works. My greatest memory of the first Larry game was, after having unprotected sex with a prostitute in game, Larry up and unexpectedly, without warning just died later in the game. A pop-up text box informs the player that Larry died as a result of his choice to not use protection, he died of a disease.  The Larry games went on to produced 6 PC games between 1987 and 1996, a brief hiatus before an appearance during the PS3/XBOX era (also on PC), then again in 2009 on PC/PS3/360. Wet Dreams Don’t Dry is the first Larry game in 10 years, and after the last 2 attempts have had less than warm receptions due to what could be called a deviation from the winning formula, this latest rendition get’s back to what Larry does best. Adventure gaming with crude humour and shocking over the top vulgarity.


The story of this game sees Larry Laffer waking up after a long hibernation, as the protagonist in the last 2 games in the series was actually Larry Lovage (Laffer’s Nephew), the narrative of the game is written as this being the first time Larry Laffer has been loose in the public since 80’s (even though the last game to actually feature Laffer was 1996). Needless to say, the world has changed a lot in this time and Larry has a bit of catching up to do, especially in the areas of sex and dating culture. The first, of many, learning curves for Larry comes as he is introduced to the digital age of mobile phones and the internet and, as the player, this is also where we start to notice the blatant parody of well know brands. Piphone (iPhone), Timber (Tinder) and Prune (apple) to name just a few of the most obvious, but the game is loaded with clever play-on-words such as these. To add to this, scattered throughout the landscape of New Lost Wages (the city the story is set in and another example of witty wording) we will find an incredible amount of hidden surprises and easter eggs, some of which you can interact with, some you cannot and some you can actually play. This is a nice touch, it possible that a lot of them will be missed or not noticed by a lot of people, but when you see something you know is planted there for you to see or find, it makes you feel valued as a viewer. As the story unfolds we watch as Larry struggles to come to terms with the 21^st century, raising questions and pointing out the flaws with what we take as everyday life This is a big part of the charm early on in the game and it works in pulling you in and getting invested in Larry and the story early on. As Larry finds his feet and comes to terms with the new world around him the basic shell of the story, the purpose, forms around you. Larry has his eye on a woman and is given a, although we don’t know it yet, near impossible set of tasks before she will even consider interest in him. And so, we are off, unleashing Larry armed with his Timber app on the unsuspecting ladies of New Lost Wages.


Although the overall story isn’t exactly a deep one, it isn’t going to be talked about throughout the ages, the nostalgia value for veterans of the series throughout the journey more than makes up for this. On the flip side, if you are new to the series, if this is the first time you encounter a Larry story, the same values that make it such a nostalgic for experienced Larry fans will come as a fresh change; making the game stand out as a unique one-of-a-kind. The crude humour, the subject matter, the images, the situations; you’re not going to find this anywhere else but a Larry game. The interaction between your in game mobile phone, your apps and game map are seamless and add almost a sense of immersion, that “oh wow, that’s cool” feeling. One thing I would have to say however, once the initial honeymoon period is over and the humour style and story have sunk in, somewhere in the middle of the story I did start to get a little bored, only a little though. The nature of the game style, a point and click adventure, has you revisiting the same locations to use or pick up something that wasn’t there or wasn’t available earlier on in the story. It is this repeated revisiting that can get a bit tedious, but in its defence, this story managed to pace itself quite well, so the monotony was kept to a minimum. As far as the climax to the story, I found it a little flat, in fact the last few sequences to the story were a bit disappointing to be honest. Late in the game the setting shifts, and from then on, it’s almost feels like it’s a different story, something changes, it loses a bit of the magic that kept me ploughing through in one sitting up to that point. There was a twist and an opening ending, leaving us with the possibility of another Larry game in the future.


Overall, I am happy with this instalment, actually, I am very happy. It’s always a worry, a cause for anxiety, when a favourite franchise (especially a childhood one) is given a new coat of paint, a “modernisation”. But I think it is safe to say that this, for new and old players alike, is a joy to experience. Whether it be a trip down memory lane or a new experience it will be an eye opener. While the story alone might not shake the foundations, it is enough to keep you ticking over until Larry shocks you with his next one liner, or you come across that dildo or condom you needed to solve the next puzzle.  

Detroit: Become Human - Review of the story

This game was on my ‘to play’ list from the time it was released. I didn’t really know much about it, I knew it wasn’t an action packed game and it didn’t exactly seem to have a suspenseful or dark horror vibe, something I might normally look for in a game, but it did come across as a sci-fi mystery of some sort, and that appealed to me. The fact the game seemed to hold its price for nearly 12 months after release, meant I was late to the party in playing it. I just don’t like paying full price unless I know what I am getting or it is one of my favourite franchises, then I might pay full price no matter what. I can now safely say that I am kicking myself that I waited so long to play this, it is one of the best story driven games I have ever played.

The story is set in Detroit, the year is 2038 and humanoid android robots are as common as mobile phones, used for conducting all manner of tasks from cleaning and security to sports and military defence. Androids have also found their way into people’s homes, filling more intimate rolls of maids, nannies and personal assistants, and this is where our journey begins. Two of our main characters, the story path of which we will be following throughout the game, are working in such roles. Kara, a housekeeper android owned by an abusive man who also has a young daughter, and Markus who is a personal assistant for an elderly, wealthy, wheelchair bound artist. As these character’s stories begin, they quickly take, what may seem at first, a turn for the worst as their existence is thrown into turmoil; However, is it what they are going to become, not what they were built for that makes this tale. You see, there is a potential fault with androids, an error in their programming where they decide to think for themselves, disobeying their programmed orders and seeing themselves as their own person, making their own decisions and even believing they are alive. This error is referred to as Divergent, the term given to androids that have broken free of their programming and are running rouge. We are told that divergency can be triggered in androids by a traumatic event and this is exactly what happens to Kara and Marcus. Kara witnesses the young girl being abused and becomes divergent to take the girl and escape the house to safety and Marcus is put in a difficult situation as he gets involved in a family argument between his owner and his son, ultimately becoming divergent to defend himself. Now enters our third character, Connor, a police detective android specially programmed to hunt divergents, returning them to the manufacturer to be dismantled and studied to learn the cause of the divergency. The scene is set as a three-way plot begins on an ultimate collision course, with a lot of twists and dead ends along the way.

From left to right: Connor, Marcus and Kara

The morals and meanings wrapped in the narrative of this game are widespread and diverse, touching on many aspects of modern human life. It felt like there wasn’t a scene, a scenario or at some point even a conversation that wasn’t laced with moral questions that challenged who you were as a person. I found that I quickly became attached to Kara, I felt sympathetic to situation, she just wanted to get herself and the girl, Alice, to safety. She has a vision of escaping to Canada, where android laws would allow her to live free. Along the way she encounters threats, warm hearted people willing to help her as well as some cold realities that will give you that “no way!” reaction. The whole time she want’s nothing to do with the inevitable revolution that is unfolding around her, a revolution that is fuelled by one of our other characters, Marcus. While the touching mother daughter struggle for freedom story is unfolding with Kara, Marcus is fighting for the freedom of all androids, on the way raising questions and touching on subjects such as human rights, oppression and false media reporting (or ‘fake news’) all while being challenged with his own moral dilemmas, the biggest being whether to be aggressive or peaceful when pushing for android freedom. The story played out with both of these characters can easily be brushed over, played out without really thinking too deep into it, but if you really contemplate some of the situations you find yourself in you will quickly see that the game deals with some pretty heavy stuff. Now while all this is playing out our third character, Connor, is investigating the divergents, hot on their tail trying close the case on them as he is programmed to do. This is not a simple open and shut case however, as his investigations go on you are confronted with questions that tear at the fabric of who he is as a android….or a person? You will have many opportunities while following his story to make decisions, decisions that could turn Connor into a cold, programmed robot or a divergent sympathiser, in fact, even an outright divergent. The story of Connor is made all the better by Lieutenant Hank Anderson, the police detective Connor is attached to as his partner on the investigation for the divergents in Detroit. Hank adds a very real human element to the game, while you never actually get the chance to take control and play as him, he plays as much an important part in the story as the 3 playable characters. Is own personal journey throughout the game is heavily affected by your choices as the androids, and it’s interesting to see how his interactions can change.

Lieutenant Hank Anderson

I just want to touch on some of the gamification of the story, and how it adds to the overall effect. While I’m not overly interested in controls, checkpoint placement or loading screens it must be said that the graphics in this game are fantastic, some of the best I have seen on consoles. This adds to the story by making it oh-so-easy to relate and connect emotionally to the characters as it can sometimes feel you are watching a real person. The fact that you are watching a video game that looks very realistic is just compounded when you think, you are watching a very realistic video game human, that is actually an android that thinks it’s alive… it just works. Hand-in-hand with the graphics is the voice acting, it is outstanding and at no time does it feel like the lines are just being read, the characters emotions can be felt in the voices and this makes it feel all the more real. Quick time events (QTE) are sometimes seen as the bane of a gamers existence and they can draw a lot of hate as they are seen as lazy game development, however I am happy to say that the QTE’s found in Detroit are pleasurable and actually add to the story. While deeply engrossed in watching a fight take place the player’s QTE actually makes flows smoothly with what’s going on and as your thumb flashes to press the right button it connects to the impact of the next in-game movement, so much that at some points it feels like you are controlling John Wick during one of his intense combat scenes. Now it must be said, this game is a ‘choose you own adventure’ type, meaning the story can change and be vastly different depending on the decisions you make in certain situations. So, it is quite possible that 2 people are going to have very different story experiences, at least on their first time through. I played through the game twice, the second time making polar opposite decisions compared to my first run just to see what would happen. Needless to say, I had a very different game with a completely different ending. Lastly the game’s main menu, not very often would you come across a situation where the simple menu could add to the story, But I feel Detroit finds a way. Chloe is an android; she is also the main menu hostess who will comment on you progress and “talk” to you whenever you find yourself on the menu screen. As your game progresses her comments and facial features change as she starts to question who she is and why she is there, in line with the timeline of the game’s story. It get’s to the point where she asks you if you will let her leave, and you get to choose if she can go or not. I found that an amazing touch, but I was further blown away by the moral intense questionnaire she invites you too, later showing the global results so you can compare your answers to everybody else worldwide. Some classy touches that just add to the ambience of the game.

Hostess Chloe

To conclude, Detroit is a must if you are looking for a good, narrative driven game. It is one of those stories you don’t want to end, you will want to see what happens after the credits roll and will be praying for a sequel, one that continues right where the first left off without changing a thing. Detroit will make you really think, it will give you characters you invest emotionally in, then force you to make decisions for them and show you the consequences. No matter what you decide or how you shape your story, there is enough here to keep both hardcore gamer and pure narrative lover occupied. A must have for any collection.