3 replies to this topic

[Richard Powell]

Anyone here remember the Tex Murphy computer games?

A hard boiled gumshoe working sci-fi cases in a future San Francisco, Tex was easily one of my all time favourite game protagonists.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tex_Murphy



The games utilised A LOT of full motion video, an element of adventure games that seems to have faded away over the years in favour of rendered cut scenes.

Well anyway, if you, like me, remember Tex with affection, there's an opportunity to help him stage a comeback via kickstarter:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/texmurphy/tex-murphy-project-fedora


Please consider donating. (If only to make me happy, the last one ended on a cliffhanger back in 1998!)

[Chic McGregor]

Hey the wife and I were big adventure fans back in the day when brains were the thing and reflexes were irrelevant. Tex Murphy adventures were in the fun but fulfilling category.

FMV was definitely the way to go and I am sure a developing genre with a very promising future was lost under the techno wave of 3D sims.

The best of the genre like Gabriel Knight 2, The Black Dahlia and others were like a brand new art form that exercised creative areas of our imaginations like no others.

Thanks for pointing out the site.

Was a bit worried that it might be a scam.

However, I typed in the search window, rather hopefully, "Gabriel Knight"
And lo and behold up popped Jane Jensen, the author of the GK games/novels.
Her project was completed. Unfortunately it is not a GK adventure and it is not FMV, seems to be "Graphic Novelesque". However she did say it was parlly GK influenced. Will look into it further.
She needed $300,000 to do the project and she got nearly $500,000 so she is making another game with the extra,
Definitely seems like a site for enthusiast entrepreneurs rather than scam merchants.

The Kickstart site, although I have only spent an hour on it, seems to be connected to the 'Big Finish' outfit.

I have some familiarity with Big Finish products. I don't know who came up with the ethos behind the company, but it seems to go like this:

Identify something which has finished, but which had a cult following which would support resurrection.

So I have bought stuff like new 'Saphire and Steel' episodes. (A short lived 70s British SF/supranatural series) and more recently, extra episodes for 'Blake's 7' another British 70's SF series. Both these series had cult followings with people hankering after a resurrection. Unfortunately, although those Big Finish products are professionally made, and in the case of B7 uses the actors who played the main parts, they are sound only, like radio drama.

I don't know the history of Kickstart, how old it is, how involved Big Finish are but I am excited to think that that site may be imbued with the same ethos and that we might see an FMV Tex Murphy and hopefully a new FMV GK as well, It might just resurrect the genre and have it reach the level and the number of people it should.

I wonder if it has any past cult comic resurrection projects ubder way, e.g. Corto Maltese, Silent Planet etc. most go and have a look.

The idea of putting the choice and enabling power to do such projects is an exciting new development in itself.

[Richard Powell]

Hi Chic!

A few points I think I should clarify:

As far as I am aware neither the american games developer "Big Finish" or Kickstarter itself is linked at all to the British "Big Finish" who do the radio Dramas.

Kick Starter isn't itself a company that produces games, it's a site for people who need to fund their projects (games, movies, comics, or anything really) and are trying to get some community backing before they begin work. As the Tex Murphy team, and Jane Jensen's Pinkerton road, both want to make their games, but don't have big companies backing them up. kickstarter is perfect as they already have fans!

I too LOVED the Gabriel Knight Games and have hopes that, if Jane's next game is successful, she will be able to buy back the rights to the Gabriel Knight character an produce a sequel.


I hope you will consider pledging a few dollars to help get this new Tex game goingt

FMV was definitely the way to go and I am sure a developing genre with a very promising future was lost under the techno wave of 3D sims.

I always thought this too. I guess it was just too expensive compared to generating entirely animated images.

[Chic McGregor]

Hi Chic!

A few points I think I should clarify:

As far as I am aware neither the american games developer "Big Finish" or Kickstarter itself is linked at all to the British "Big Finish" who do the radio Dramas.

Kick Starter isn't itself a company that produces games, it's a site for people who need to fund their projects (games, movies, comics, or anything really) and are trying to get some community backing before they begin work. As the Tex Murphy team, and Jane Jensen's Pinkerton road, both want to make their games, but don't have big companies backing them up. kickstarter is perfect as they already have fans!

I too LOVED the Gabriel Knight Games and have hopes that, if Jane's next game is successful, she will be able to buy back the rights to the Gabriel Knight character an produce a sequel.


I hope you will consider pledging a few dollars to help get this new Tex game goingt



I always thought this too. I guess it was just too expensive compared to generating entirely animated images.

Hi Chic!

A few points I think I should clarify:

As far as I am aware neither the american games developer "Big Finish" or Kickstarter itself is linked at all to the British "Big Finish" who do the radio Dramas.

Kick Starter isn't itself a company that produces games, it's a site for people who need to fund their projects (games, movies, comics, or anything really) and are trying to get some community backing before they begin work. As the Tex Murphy team, and Jane Jensen's Pinkerton road, both want to make their games, but don't have big companies backing them up. kickstarter is perfect as they already have fans!

I too LOVED the Gabriel Knight Games and have hopes that, if Jane's next game is successful, she will be able to buy back the rights to the Gabriel Knight character an produce a sequel.


I hope you will consider pledging a few dollars to help get this new Tex game goingt



I always thought this too. I guess it was just too expensive compared to generating entirely animated images.

You are absolutely correct. I only now got back here to say the same thing.

Isn't it amazing that two companies with a silar 'resurrection' goal can have virtually the same name?

If it had been "Cult Resurrections 'R Us" that would have been amazing enough but I don't even really know what 'Big Finish' means.