Mobygames (197)

Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of Lounge Lizards

 

Larry Laffer is a short, tacky, balding, forty-year-old man who has been living with his mother until recently. He used to be in the software business, but decided to leave everything behind as he moved to the city of Lost Wages in pursuit of sexual fulfillment. Clad in a white polyester leisure suit, Larry finds himself outside of Lefty's Bar, determined to finally lose his virginity - or commit suicide if he is unable to achieve that goal before dawn.

Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards is the first game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series, largely inspired by the text adventure Softporn Adventure, though with a greatly enhanced script containing more humorous descriptions and dialogue. The gameplay is similar to other third-person Sierra adventures: a text parser is used to input commands for interaction with a graphical environment. Progress is achieved by collecting various items and figuring out which of those may be essential for conquering the hearts of the several female characters appearing in the game.

The game allows the player to access most of its locations (a bar, a casino, a convenience store, etc.) from the very beginning, with only a few key ones being barred due to the lack of a crucial item. Moving between some of the locations can only be done by cab. Paying for those trips, as well as procuring some of the items, requires the player to manage Larry's finance by gambling at the casino. Typical of Sierra games, progress is tracked through a set amount of points, awarded for advancement or minor actions. There are several ways to die in the game, most presented in a humorous fashion. The game contains adult situations and semi-implicit depictions of sex.

 Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love

 

Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (In Several Wrong Places) is the second game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series. Continuing the plot of the previous game, the swinging single Larry Laffer has finally found his true love and is happily living with her. Right? Wrong!.. Because Larry is mercilessly thrown out by his great love and is left all alone, penniless, and womanless, in Los Angeles. Accidentally, Larry comes into contact with KGB agents who will pursue him all over the globe from now on. And there is also the evil doctor Noontonyt plotting evil schemes on a remote tropical island... Looks like Larry will have to forget about his women-related problems for now... or is it so?

The second game in the series introduces an improved engine (allowing for full-screen graphics and mouse control for movement). As opposed to the first game, which relied on exploration of one large area, the sequel has a more linear progression, the player being continuously taken to new locations as dictated by the plot. There are less puzzles in this installment than in the previous game; however, the number of ways to die has increased, danger awaiting Larry in most places he visits.

 Leisure Suit Larry III Passionate Patti in Pursuit of Pulsating Pectorals

 

Passionate Patti in Pursuit of the Pulsating Pectorals! is the third game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series. Larry Laffer has finally found the woman of his dreams, and can happily live with her together on the beautiful tropical island... until he gets thrown out of the house by his wife. His boss, who happens to be his (now ex-) father-in-law, fires him. Larry is all alone, without a woman, without a job, on an island that has long ceased to be a "tropical paradise" and is exploited by entertainers, lawyers, and alike. But never despair! Dressed in his irresistible leisure suit, Larry is about to conquer the world (or at least its female population) anew. Watch out, fairer sex, because Larry is back to his swinging self!

The game uses the same text-based interface and the same graphical engine as the previous entry in the series. The structure of the game, however, is more similar to that of the first installment: most of the time, the player is confined to one large area which can be freely explored. Unlike the two previous Larry games, the player does not just control Larry, but also - in the second half of the game - the enigmatic and beautiful pianist Patti, helping them to reach an ending that will finally bring happiness into Larry's life.

 Leisure Suit Larry Passionate Patti Does a Little Undercover Work

 

Passionate Patti Does a Little Undercover Work! is (despite the number) the fourth game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series. The middle-aged would-be-womanizer Larry Laffer fell off a boat during a cruise and sustained amnesia, forgetting how he and his sweetheart Patti got separated, how Larry got a job in LA, how Patti got a job with the FBI, and what happened in (the never released) Larry 4. Now Larry and Patti are working independently on two cases that are connected to each other, even though the heroes aren't aware of that. Larry's new bosses are involved in shady business, while Patti agrees to take a break from her career as a performing pianist and become an undercover agent. Will the two be together ever again?

Unlike the previous games with their text input, Larry 5 utilizes a graphical, icon-based interface. The player uses verb commands ("Look", "Talk", "Use" etc.) to interact with the environment. In a way not quite typical for Sierra's adventure games, it is impossible to "die" in Larry 5, and the amount of "dead ends" (unwinnable situations) is greatly reduced. The game is also less puzzle-oriented, allowing the player to proceed even if he/she fails to solve the required puzzle in some cases. However, the player is awarded more points for finding the "right" solution. As in the third game, both Larry and Patti are available as playable characters during different chapters of the story.

 

Leisure Suit Larry Shape Up or Slip Out

 

Shape Up or Slip Out! is the fifth game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series. All the events from the previous games are forgotten. Larry is once again single, and again his goal is to capture the interest of various ladies. By sheer coincidence, Larry finds himself on a TV Game Show called "Stallions". He wins a weekend at the Spa Resort, La Costa Lotta. Naturally, there are some beautiful women in the spa who are just dreaming about such a wonderful, handsome man as Larry! Uh... or is it really so? It is the player's goal to find out!

This installment focuses more on conversations with women and puzzles than on the storyline. The entire game is spent at La Costa Lotta. There are plenty of traditional inventory-based puzzles to solve in the game. Larry can die, but the player is allowed to try again every time that happens, without the need to restore a saved game. This is also the first Larry game with SVGA graphics, and voice-overs in the CD version.

Leisure Suit Larry Love for Sail

 

 Love for Sail! is the sixth game in Al Lowe's Leisure Suit Larry series. Larry unexpectedly receives a ticket to a cruise ship. Upon the arrival of the passengers, a mega-contest is announced. This contest includes various kinds of sports and activities, from bowling to love-making. The winner will get to "score" with the sexy Captain Thigh. Naturally, there is no way Larry can win this contest fairly, so he must use his brains to solve the tricky puzzles of the game, and cheat his way into the Captain's bed.

The game's structure is similar to that of its predecessor: the entire game takes place in a large enclosed area (in this case, the cruise ship), with the gameplay focusing on inventory-based puzzles and conversations. The game features a context-sensitive interface: clicking on an object brings forth a series of verbs which the player can choose in order to interact with the given object. In addition to that, it is possible to try and type any other verb (provided the game understands it), just like in old adventure games with text interface. Sometimes it is necessary to think outside of the box and come up with unusual actions in order to solve a puzzle.

Several new features have been added to the game, attempting to make players into more "active" participants of the playing process. Using a microphone, players can add their own voices, while using a scanner lets players insert their own photos into the game. Another feature that grabs attention is the automatic wallpaper. When Larry "scores" with a woman, that woman's image can be displayed as wallpaper on the Windows desktop.