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Leisure Suit Larry 1 - In the Land of the Lounge Lizards

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ST Graveyard has written 62 additional reviews

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Written by ST Graveyard

July 6, 2002

Comments

Who hasn't heard of Larry before? I remember as a little kid quietly loading this game, playing with some friends. I never understood all those intro question, but it wouldn't matter, as long as we proved we were above 18 and were able to play this game, everything was O.K. Why, you ask, did this all have to be so sneaky? Well, "Leisure Suit Larry" was that famous "erotic" adventure game, one of the first adventures directed at adult male audiences! And though some people might not like to admit it, it has become a milestone in adventure gaming history!


Originally created by Al Lowe for the PC in 1985, this game was converted to the 16 bitters in 1987. And although Larry Laffer is almost as famous as PacMan, he never had his own cartoon and was never able to achieve millions like other games. The reason for this is pretty obvious. A slew of sequels did follow, and some of them made it to the ST as well...


Graphics

Graphics are seriously dated, as are all of Sierra's first games! Simple 16 color graphics, combined with some sparse, blocky animation. Pixelated boobs fly across the screen (literally :-). Everything is clear for the eyes, but that's about all there is to say...


Sound

Well, I just love that main theme. The quality is terrible, but who cares? There aren't any real sound effects to be heard, only some different tunes now and than!


Gameplay

The plot is very simple. As Larry Laffer, a balding loser, it is your job to seek true love! On your journey you'll get into all kinds of trouble, most of the time the situations are hilarious. Just think of the classic scene where Larry has to buy protection. An Al Lowe joke not to forget! You'll travel all across town and meet lots of women, hoping to eventually find your soul mate.


Traveling to different places can be done by calling a cab, remember, the city streets can be a dangerous place, so calling a taxi is the sanest thing to do! You start the game with an amount of money. Everything has its price and you'll have to earn cash to get anywhere in the adventure. There are some bonus games implemented, like a slot machine and a blackjack game in the casino, where you can gamble for extra money!


That's all there is to it, and that is what makes the game so much fun. In the end, all you have to do is get money, drink booze and meet women. Puzzles aren't really that hard, but there are some brain teaser out there! And beware, Larry has a tendency of getting killed (as in all of these Sierra games). For example, if you go to bed with a girl without protection you'll die of decease a few minutes later! So keeping it safe is the answer!


You control the character using the keyboard. This game uses the old Sierra parser to type in the commands. But don't worry, it's pretty intelligent and has answers to most of the things you type! It even understands the 4 letter word, which is important in this type of game :-) On a negative note, Larry always needs to be positioned on the spot to complete certain actions, this can get frustrating in a while!


Although "Leisure Suit Larry" is reaching out to male audiences in the first place, female players might enjoy it as well. Having more maternal feelings towards this character, helping him on his quest in finding true love. In the end, that is all he is trying to accomplish. The core message of the game might be considered romantic, even if it is hard to see the first time you play it!


Conclusion

Leisure Suit Larry might not be the smartest adventure ever released, but it certainly is a one of a kind! Most of the jokes are just funny and entertaining, and it is hilarious to see this lovable character getting his way around! The game features some really funny sequences you can not afford to miss. In the end, this is a classic in its own right! Though I can't help but think that it never really reached its target audience...





Score
  • Graphics: 5
  • Sound: 6
  • Gameplay: 7
  • Overall: 6

Review Comments

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Zone Warrior

February 12, 2023 by AtariCrypt

Once again, pesky aliens are giving us Earthlings lots of grief. We previously fought them off but they managed to pinch a time machine so are using that to alter history and wreak havoc by taking crucial hostages from each period in an attempt to halt their influence. From the invention of the wheel in prehistoric times to England's King Arthur uniting Britain! And where would any of us be today without Japan and its technical wizardry? Yep, we cannot allow this - the fight is on!

Son Shu Shi

March 21, 2021 by ST Graveyard

What an accomplishment this game is. Created with such a small team, the result is really amazing. The game oozes creative passion. While the gameplay is really well balanced, it is a tough cookie, very hard from time to time with its moments of sheer frustration. As of level 3, timing becomes key. You will need to practice and learn the levels to complete this game, there are so many bad guys on screen it sometimes gets a bit hard to take.

Blood Money

April 4, 2020 by Morcar

Graphically, it's also nice on the eyes with well-defined graphics and animation. You really get the feeling that the developers put some thought and love into the game. Remember what I said about the large levels? Well these are wonderful and are very different to each other, they also scroll fairly smooth in all four directions.

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