Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry (2018)

Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry (2018), based on the characters created by Al Lowe, developed by Crazybunch, published by Assemble Entertainment

We live in strange times. Out of all the properties created under the now long since defunct Sierra, I would have assumed Leisure Suit Larry to be the one that would be the least likely candidate to get a reboot. Sure, the creator of Larry, Al Lowe did have his hands on the okay remake of Leisure Suit Larry Reloaded in 2013, but even that relatively mild game as far as sex goes was lambasted by the modern critics, who most of the time were too hung on the reputation of the series rather than what it actually was: a story about a dork, who is trying hard on getting laid but rarely succeeds doing so. Or even if he does, it doesn't go his way.  Really, the worst stuff in Larry games came only after Al Lowe was left out of the cycle with Magna Cum Laude, which manages to be pretty pornographic, something Lowe's games never were.

So, again, imagine my surprise, when there was a surprise release of a brand new Larry game, made by people with no connection to Al Lowe or Sierra or any of the other Larry games. With the reputation of the series being what it is, I was certain no developer would approach the character ever again after Reloaded. Now, double my surprise, the game is actually good. Like REALLY good. I don't think I can emphasize enough the word good, as Wet Dreams Don't Dry is what all Larry games should be: funny, witty, stupid and filled with innuendo while Larry stumbles around in his eternal quest for love. Or at least sex. Or something.

Not knowing where he is, Larry crawls out from a dark hole in a dark room. The first thing he has to do is figure out how to get out of whatever hole he is in. To his surprise, the elevator he finally manages to turn on takes him outside Lefty's bar in Lost Wages. A familiar location insight, Larry Disco's in, only to find out that things have changed. The first clue is Lefty, who has aged considerably. The other is the young woman constantly staring at her glowing rectangle. It clearly ain't the 90s anymore.

A sensation not wholly unfamiliar to you

An unlucky tasting of Lefty's microbrewery beer takes Larry to the toilette, from where he finds a smartphone from a pool of crud, equipped with an experimental AI that begs him to take the device back to the Prune headquarters. There Larry receives a phone for himself as well as his ultimate goal, a potential date with a stern and sexy aide of the Prune founder BJ, Faith. She doesn't want to have anything to do with Larry, however, and dismissingly tasks him for scoring 90 points from a dating app Timber. Or that is, at least, how Larry understands things.

With target acquired, Larry sets to a night out in New Lost Wages. The city is filled with women, and men, who are willing to increase their dating app score. It only takes Larry finding out what those people actually look for and, if he's lucky, there might be even sex. Not necessarily the way he'd like it, but sex nonetheless.

Unlike the two previous Larry games, Al Lowe had nothing to do with, Magna Cum Laude and Box Office Bust, Wet Dreams Don't Dry is through and through point and click adventure game. It's a lengthy tale, full of a varying range of puzzles from easy to challenging. But even its more obscure puzzles are still fair and logical in terms of logic that can be applied to how Larry solves things.

Times may change, but Lefty's is still a dive. And Larry still ain't a studmuffin

Strictly speaking, there is no nudity in this Larry. Sure, you do get to see a couple of penises, breasts and even a vagina or two, but all of them are either lewd scenery, logos or artificial marital aids. Larry does get close to having sex and even has sex, but the scenes either end with coitus interruptus or only imply more graphical content, leaving the rest to the dirty imaginations of the players themselves.

Graphically, this new iteration of Larry is pretty decent. The locations are cartoony but filled with details. Every location has a fair deal of hidden jokes and lewd innuendo. The characters are well-designed and the animation is excellent. If there's anything that requires some getting used to, it's the character design of Larry, as he has never looked like this; instead of being a short hobgoblin with a big head, he is now a taller dweeb with a poor posture.     

The script is solid as well. Larry is, as usual, almost wholly oblivious to the story that happens around him, the tale of Prune and their problems with their new AI. A lot of the jokes are drawn from how poorly he fits in modern society. As the beginning of the game indicates, Larry has been out of the picture at least since Larry 7, so from 1996. Magna Cum Laude, or better yet Larry Lovage, is mentioned only once as a joke, so in this continuum, Lovage duology doesn't exist. 

Lemma, one of the potential Timber dates for Larry. Hipster dives are dives only ironically

In almost every way, this is a fish-out-of-the-water story for Larry. He is, almost completely, a man stuck in the past. He was already in his original 1987 entry when he searched for love clad in a 1970s disco suit. Now, in the 21st century, he is even further removed from the time. Here he is, trying to comprehend how the times have changed, not only in terms of equality, sexuality and feminism but in technology as well. All of these changes are touched on in the story where Larry learns that the world has changed far more than he has ever been able to imagine.

Another aspect of enhancing Wet Dreams is the voice acting. The acting is all-around well done, with Jan Rabson, the original voice of Larry from all the voiced Al Lowe titles, making a comeback as the voice of Larry. He still delivers a perfect performance for the oblivious, sex-hungry dork, who thinks he is the god's gift for women, but who still is at times aware of his genuine lack of success with the opposite sex. Still, no matter what, he keeps on trying.

Leisure Suir Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry was and is a very positive surprise. Old Sierra IPs have had a hard time being rekindled, but Crazybunch has shown there still is power left in the old franchises. You can take something that was originally created in the 1980s and continue it by taking it to the modern era, but still keep it recognisable to the old fans of the IP. It might not be a plan for a get-rich-quick scheme, but if done like this, you could easily resurrect other brands as well, be it King's Quest or Police Quest.

Leisure Suit Larry looking for love from Timber

If there is one blemish in this new iteration, it is, that Al Lowe is not credited anywhere in the game. By looking at the credits, you'd think that Leisure Suit Larry was the brainchild of the creators of this game, but that isn't the case. Lowe didn't have a hand in making this game, but he is the original creator of the character, so the way I see it, would just be polite to credit him. Or at least thank him.

Well, okay, there are some other blemishes as well. Like the need to run back and forth between a handful of locations. But all in all, the game is fun enough for me to turn the other cheek on them. And besides, you can always think of it as a homage to Larry 1. Down to using a taxi, or Unter in this case, for moving between the places.   

Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry is available for Windows, macOS, Nintendo Switch (oh how the times have changed indeed), and PS4. If you are a fan of Larry and adventure games in general and don't mind raunchy humour, then picking this one should be a no-brainer.  

And for a final note, I wouldn't mind it at all, if Crazybunch would contact Al Lowe at some point and pick his brains in making an actual Larry 8 he had in mind before the character was taken away from his hands. Who knows, maybe he would be willing for a final hurrah.