So, today is a love letter, a send-off, a remembrance for all the company did for me, all the fond memories I have of their games and recognition of the influence they had on me as a gamer. Granted I may well do full reviews of some of their games in the future but, for now, let’s focus on memories ok? So without further ado I wish to focus on one particular game that is very dear to me and one I used to play with my siblings ALL the time... Maniac Mansion on the Nintendo NES (1990).
Ah, fond memories indeed. After being treated to one of the most awesome 8-bit opening themes for a game (see below) you choose two out of six teenagers to accompany Dave who is keen to rescue his girlfriend who has been kidnapped and taken to a creepy old mansion. Each character is an 80’s archetype so you have the jock, the nerd, the surfer dude etc. Each one has skills such as being able to play the piano or fix telephones and unique personalities to go with them.
Therefore the game had plenty of replayability and you could easily have a different experience to other players which is what I understood as a child. See, I hadn’t played a game like that before. I was so used to games such as Mario and Battle Toads that I always thought games were just about beating up the bad guys and completing each mission without any real story or characterisation.
What Maniac Mansion also showed me was how each player could have a totally different experience when playing. See, my siblings would always have the nerd and the Goth chick since they knew they were useful characters in terms of abilities. Whereas I always wanted the surfer dude and the guy with sun glasses as I thought they were the cool characters to have. Granted I was still very young at the time and unable to read, possibly even speak, therefore my older siblings took the time to actually sit down and play the games with me. Something they didn’t need to do, but something I will always appreciate.
Therefore, even though later LucasArts’ titles would perhaps tell stories better or have more memorable characters, it was Maniac Mansion that introduced me to the concept of storytelling and characterisation in gaming and what perhaps led me to focus on those areas in my current games’ design course with the hope that one day I will work in these specific areas.
The gameplay for Maniac Mansion is a point and click adventure game. My brother and sister patiently helped explain the complex controls and act out what each character said to me. We spent hours trying to find the gas for the chain saw in order to cut through the jail bars, we learned the hard way not to take the cheese from the fridge otherwise the villain would know something was up. We even sadistically put the hamster in the microwave once or twice when we were losing badly. Sadly I don’t think we ever completed the game, however it wasn’t just a game for me it was a memorable experience because I shared it with members of my family. Even today when I manage to find a copy and play it I tend to mimic the characters’ voices in the same way that my siblings did for me. It’s a nostalgia trip!
Considering all this, I should get round to playing its sequel (Day of the Tentacle) which I refused to play when I was younger since it looked SO visually different to the original. Now of course I know not to judge a book by its cover and will try and play it when I get the chance.
Obviously I will have to cover the Star Wars’ games at some point and why wouldn’t I!?
Not only am I a HUGE Star Wars’ geek, but nearly all the games the company made were Star Wars ones. However, I recognise that if I tried to cover more than one game in this post then it could end up turning into an entire essay. HECK! Even a book! Therefore, now that I have shared my fond memories, how about sharing yours in the comments section below?
Fingers crossed we will also see the return of Star Wars 1313’s development which looked awesome!
May the force be with you LucasArts… always…
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