Sabre Wulf Scribes Excerpts
The following excerpts detailing the development of Sabre Wulf was originally published on Rare’s Scribes letter page from 2001-2009. We’ve scoured each edition in order to provide you with every mention of the title to be found in Rare’s posted answers in chronological order below.
We’ve also included a link above each heading which will re-direct to the original letters page that the question was featured in should you wish to view it in the original context – otherwise you’ll find that the entries below only focus on answers related to Blast Corps. for a comprehensive listing for any fan wanting further information on pre-release content, hidden easter eggs, abandoned features and development secrets:
Oy, arse muttering, bam like, shouty people at Scribes,
I played Jetpac on Donkey Kong 64 expecting it to be crap just like the original Donkey Kong, sorry but everyone’s entitled to their opinion and I didn’t find slowly crawling to top of a blocky screen appealing and yes I know in 1981 graphic technology wasn’t as advanced… actually why the hell am I apologizing you had nothing to do with the game!
Anyway, new paragraph, I really enjoyed playing Jetpac, in fact it was, and still is the most addictive non-PC or N64 game I’ve ever played. I know the game was created by Ultimate who are now defunct so I was wondering if any ex-Ultimate staff work with you and could think about creating a Gamecube version keeping the same gameplay elements and making a fast-paced, action packed shoot-’em-up but with much more in-depth gameplay as a whole with strategy playing a much bigger part.
Like for some missions you would be instructed to kill all the evil aliens, protect all the weak and Elvis like (the Maian not the singer) ones, retrieve an alien weapon and collect a certain amount of money which you use to buy a ship and get your ass, sorry arse off the level!
Sounds good doesn’t it? Or not maybe. The game would have a third-person viewpoint for true JFG-style carnage and tons of armageddonistic weapons for budding psychotic and violent megalomaniacs out there. So please, please could you tell me if Jetpac 128 or whatever it’d be called could be a possibility?
Stuart Gillies, Glasgow
PS. Who created Mr Pants? I can’t find the relevant info on your website.
No current plans that I know of, but the likelihood of resurrecting past series does seem to have taken a leap up with the advent of the good old GBA. So keep your eyes peeled.
Little-known fact: JFG did actually go through an early design phase of being either a new addition to the Jetman series or a sequel to Alien 8. Note that I campaigned fiercely for the respective causes of Alien 8 Squared and Stellar Jetman. Well, maybe not that fiercely, but I definitely muttered something about them being good names once or twice.
As for ex-Ultimate staff, well, seeing as Ultimate was basically just the Stampers and they still own the company, I suppose you could say they’re still around…
PS Um, no idea.
Dear Scribes,
I like Rare. I first liked Rare when you were in nappies, when I used to make my Speccy smell of hot sour milk after a day’s rubber button pummelling. I was there crossing my arms disapprovingly while you fumbled with the Commodore 64 in your spotty-teenage years, and I now stand by proud as you attach go-faster stripes to Nintendos in countries that are younger than you.
When I discovered that you intend to ressurrect the old ZX Spectrum moustachioed swash-buckler Sabreman, I shivered with anticipation. Whilst nostalgia is not as good as it used to be, I revel in the the idea that I can push round the characters that lighted and blighted my youth.
Any plans for further old Spectrum characters to be dusted off? Was there a decision not to base the characters in the rather splendid Jet Force Gemini on Lunar Jetman? Or do the money men in your big new shiny building consider the now proportionally small UK customer base to be second fiddle and not worth pandering to compared with the rather more wallet-swelling US market? Who writes the stories behind the characters and plots of the games…? Can I do it?
Charlie Z.
Hang on – you go straight from enthusing over the new version of Sabre Wulf to moaning about our abandonment of Ultimate characters for fear of upsetting the US market. Tsk. The ratio of people familiar with Ultimate’s games to those familiar with Rare’s games is vastly unbalanced, yes, but now and again we throw in a character or reference (or even an entire game – see Jetpac in DK64) to keep the proud Ultimate flame burning. Maybe the new Sabre Wulf will be the start of a full-scale renaissance, maybe not… here’s hoping.
And each game’s designer is generally responsible for its plot and characters (along with a lot of other stuff, before you all start sending in knee-jerk applications).
Fawn Scribes. Get it? GET IT?
Ok, hi! Let me just start out right away with the questions? Sounds good? Great!
1) This goes to the designer(s) of Kameo, while you were making the character model of her, was someone screaming behind you LARGER, MAKE HER BREASTS LARGER, LARGER, LIKE HIT YOU IN THE FACE LARGE? Because, man, is she ever well developed.
2) This one goes for Kameo people again, you lucky chaps. Are you trying to scare little children into buying your game with the character design. “Buy our game or WE WILL EAT YOU” should be printed on the front next to a rather large, fearsome looking critter. What happened to the loveable little tyke of a critter, you know, the one that is made into the stuffed animal, and the pillow, and is on EVERY #@#4ING LUNCH BOX BECAUSE HE SHOOTS LIGHTNIN-err…
3) Dinosa- err… Star Fox Adventures looks cool, but are you going to get rid of that nasty N64 look before it hits the Gamecube? I hope so. Ermm… Were there any limitation to speak of whilst making the jump from N64 to Gamecube?
4) If Banjo and Kazooie ever lands on our favorite game of cubes, would it be called Banjo-Cubey? Or something just as witty?
5) Banjo looks GREAT on the GBA, but ermm… wasn’t that painfully difficult to get it to look so nice, play so smooth, and feel soo cuddly on that loveable little GBA? Actually, my question really is did you use the N64 polygon models to render the characters from? If you did, that’s smart. Sly as a fox, you are.
6) That picture of Mr. Sabre Wulf (don’t know his name), what’s going on with his mustache? Or did a paper airplane suddenly fly across whilst you were taking the picture. If it is, I bet the guy who made it is the same guy that suggest the frog be named Winky.
7) This is where I will close my letter. Thanks for reading and ermm… good luck. OY! I almost forgot my RPA, I spent a long time on this. I think it will be a fresh of breath air. Ok, I attached it. HAVE FUN!
-Benco
P.S. Thanks.
1) If I know the Kameo team, that ‘someone’ was actually seven or eight people. In fact: “Err, yes. They were considerably larger at one point, but that’s another story. Suffice to say that the final model was met with universal approval.”
2) “No. We are not trying to scare anyone. You only got to glimpse a few of the monsters that will be available in the final game. Simply put, all 60 monster designs reflect their unique abilities and personalities. If a monster looks aggressive, it may well behave in that way. If a monster looks, say, passive (or cute), it may adopt a different approach if faced with the same situation.”
3) Whoops, hang on, quick switch of designers… “Since E3 the game has been completely transformed, I don’t think you’ll see anything that comes close!”
4) Super Banjo-Kazooie Triple Strike 2004 Eternal: Pack Pack Revolution.
5) Another designer shuffle, and: “We’re using a 50/50 split of models from the N64 models and new ones we’ve made from scratch for Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge. Why? Because we love to keep you guessing.”
6) Sabreman. Yes, er, bit of a faux pas when cutting that one out, it appears – leading the artist to make the very same ‘paper plane’ comment. Moaning buggers, the lot of you.
7) Unfortunately, by addressing your mail to the non-existent ‘scribes@rareware.com’, you’ve forced it to be redirected and lose its attachment somewhere along the way. No, don’t worry – we’ll cope.
Dear Scribes,
Best news ever ever ever! Sabreman is back. AND: he’s grown a moustache. I was rather hoping it’d be a Game Cube thing, though. Testing the water, eh?
I was a little disappointed to see that it’s all bright colours and blue skies; the original always conveyed the sense of a sort of twilight jungle, but I see now that was the just the limitations of only being able to draw in four colours.
I expect he’ll be a little more PC this time round, as well. Not so much killing defenceless monkeys or stabbing innocent Africans, hmm?
One question though; I don’t really understand where this all fits into the chronology; last time we saw Sabreman he was a werewolf and a wizard and stuff. So is this like a ‘re-make’ of the first game or is it the next one in the sequence?
Cheers loves,
Raz
It’s not really anything like the first game. Besides, it’s clearly set long after all the previous instalments in the Sabreman saga, as he’s now a wobbly old fart who can’t even carry his sword any more. Runs like a bugger, mind.
Four colours? Even I know that you could easily squeeze fifteen out of the old Speccy with judicious use of the BRIGHT command…
I need guidance, oh great master of the Scribes!
What am I to do? I sit here frantically trying to do my Programming assignment for hand-in tomorrow, but I find myself strangely distracted and uninterested.
I was wondering how your collection of esteemed and highly talented programmers manage to remain sane (?) and focused enough to complete their daily routines. I don’t believe it’s possible – although they get paid for it and I don’t (I may have answered my own question there). Tell me how they do it!
On another, more Rare’s games related note, when the blinkin’ Nora is SabreWulf meant to be coming out? I want to bask in the semi-nostalgic feeling of playing a resurrected Spectrum game and yet you tease us with snippets of info, pictures and videos but you don’t tell us when it’s coming out.
You make me cry. Or perhaps it’s this programming, I don’t know.
Bye again
Dan
PS. Will SabreWulf GBA hook up to the Spectrum version? Now that would be impressive… Sorry, that was pitiful.
Expecting the worst, I put the question to a veteran Rare lead programmer and was astonished to find some valid points in his response:
“Every two hours I perform yoga stretches while drinking herbal tea and whistling the national anthem. If you find this too difficult to start with then try whistling Yellow Submarine instead.
“But it also really helps when you know that the programming you are doing is for something you really want to do and really has to get done. If we don’t do our programming then the games we want to make just won’t get made. Sure some bits of programming are tedious and boring, but others are great fun – and I bet that programming for games has more fun bits that most other sorts of programming. Getting paid might help too…”
As for Sabre Wulf, it’s basically good to go so it’s just a matter of finding a convenient gap in the manufacturing schedule. You won’t be disappointed, by the way (over the quality of the game, not the Spectrum link-up).
Hey there,
A lot of magazines have been talking about this new game called Sabre Wulf. Well, being the grandad that I am at 26, I obviously remember the original adventures of Sabre Man on the Sinclair Spectrum (back when you guys were Ultimate Play The Game)… but looking at the screenshots it looks more like Knight Lore, so my questions are this: Is it going to be true to the original, and also, will you follow this up with Sabre Man’s other adventures, such as Knight Lore and Underwurlde? Sigh, the mention of their names almost brings a tear to my eye. Don’t even mention Atic Atac…
Sincerely,
Justin
It’s nothing like the original Sabre Wulf, but then again none of Sabreman’s other Speccy outings were anything like it either, so you’ll have to decide for yourself whether or not it stays true to the spirit. It’s a cracking little game, if that helps.
Further updates? Who knows… but don’t think this is the last we’ll be seeing of Sabreman.
All Hail The Mighty Ruler of Attached Pictures That Are Rubbish!
Or Dear Scribes as I believe you say on Earth. I have just noticed a problem with one of your new games. Sabrewulf is actually the name of a Spectrum game made by Ultimate. Now I’m not surprised that you haven’t heard of them as they were crap and don’t seem to have made a game for about 15 years – a good thing there, but you should probably change the name to avoid legal problems. Let’s face it, we don’t want such a pathetic games developer as them suing Rare, the money they make could be used to make a new game.
Hugh Jarse
P.S. When you said depending on the player SFA could take over 100 hours, was the player you were referring to Sean Williamson? Just wanted to know as I really don’t want yet another Luigi’s Wendy House style 4 hour game.
P.P.S. If you print this you must be prepared for the inevitable idiots writing about 100 letters pointing out that Rare is the new name for Ultimate.
Don’t worry, they’re not around any more. I read somewhere that they were bought out by Rage.
PS I honestly don’t know, but I seriously doubt you’ll be polishing it off in four hours.
PPS Yes. Even after they’ve read this. Makes you want to cry, doesn’t it?
Good Evening, Mr. Scribes…
I have numbered questions and stupid pictures of blokes in pants. You have a big company and a short temper. This won’t end well…
1. How come we never see Tiptup’s wife in any games? Is it because she’s too knackered? I mean, c’mon – 19 kids? Tiptup’s a machine!
2. The new Sabrewulf art is brilliant. Would that be the work of a certain Wil Overton?
3. O.K., so Mr. Pants originated here in Britain, then went to America and Australia. “So where next?” I hear you ask. Behold! Japanese Pants!
4. Where in the name of sweet Jesus in a bread bin has the Banjo Kazooie/Tooie link gone? I read somewhere that Rare insisted that it was still in there, but I can’t find a thing. If it’s there, how do I do it?
5. Mr. Pants is nowhere near as disturbing as Mr. Loveday…
6. Do you watch Black Books? Bloody hilarious, that is.
7. I think I saw Sean Williamson’s name in the credits of a film once. ARSE! Er, yes, sorry.
I need sleep now, so I’ll quietly walk away…
Yours sincerely,
Mr. Frumpenmyer
PS. That isn’t my real name.
PSS. If PS stands for Post Script, what does OK stand for?
Joy! Another list. You’re right, this probably won’t end well.
1) Yeah, but turtles lay loads of eggs at a time, remember. He could be woefully inexperienced and still have 19 kids.
2) I can see where you’re coming from, but no, it’s not… whoops, almost slipped up there and told you what he is working on.
3) Since when do a woolly hat and handlebar moustache scream ‘Far East’?
4) I thought everyone knew that the FGN ‘Rare insists’ story was a classic misquote.
5) Dammit! I thought they’d shut down that webcam!
6) Dylan Moran = comedy god.
7) I’ll tell you what, the credits of AI are brimming over with excellent names. I didn’t think anybody could beat Greg Killmaster until, out of the blue… Jonathan Wank.
Dear Scribes,
Another numbered list here. You know, because it gives us the best chance of getting any information in a neat, organized way. If you actually answer them, that is. But hey, if Squaresoft can make games for Nintendo and Sega can make F-Zero games anything is possible, right?
1. Did you purposely base Sabre Wulf‘s cast off of 70’s-80’s cartoons? I mean, with names like “Dr. Dolittle-Goode” and “Wesley Snaps” (who looks like Abe Lincoln for some reason I may never know) it really seems like it. If so, you should take note that every 70’s-80’s villain had to meet up with the Harlem Globetrotters at least once in their career. It’s along the same lines as the Snow World requirement for adventurers. Besides, a minigame where the Globetrotters go up against the Sabrewulf and Dr. Dolittle-Goode in a basketball match would make it the best game EVER.
2. This question won’t be nearly as long, so don’t worry. All I want to know is whether Sabreman still makes that “Click-clook” noise when he runs. I love that noise, it’s just so pleasing to the ears. Among other things.
3. The reason the next Perfect Dark won’t come along until 2004 is because the designer spends more time answering stupid Scribe letters than he does working on the game, isn’t it? People should stop asking for button codes or the game may be cancelled before it’s even officially announced!
4. I like to believe that somewhere within the bowels of PopStar, Kirby has a collection of heads from those he decapitated (with his cutter and sword attacks, see). But if he decapitated the big stupid floating head from Zombie Nation, would the big stupid floating head actually be decapitated, or… [Stop rambling, man – Ed.] Basically what I’m asking is whether you believe Kameo will make it out by the end of the year.
5. Perfect Dark. I don’t think I mentioned it enough times to get this letter posted. Perfect Dark. Mr. Pants Perfect Dark. Perfect Dark. Button Codes. Mr. Pants. Arse Mr. Pants Perfect Dark Mrs. Pie.
-Bhlaab
1) Your dreams could come true! The Sabre Wulf team cries: “The Globetrotters are actually unlockable, to find them you must complete the game within a couple of weeks and stick it up your-“
2) “Instead of the ‘Click-clook’ sound we came up with this completely original concept of footsteps. Each time your foot hits the floor a sound effect will play, clever eh!”
3) Pay attention: the designer that I traditionally rope in to answer PD questions is now working on something else entirely, so bang goes that theory.
4) I believe in miracles, I believe I can fly and I believe in life after love, but I’ve no bloody idea whether or not Kameo will make it out by the end of the year.
5) Surely you mean Perfect Dark Zero? The original PD was a hot topic last year, man – where have you been?
Dear Scribes,
Urkel was talking about “The Power Team”, I believe. I won’t say anything further, because I’m not English, and therefore shall probably be mocked by exponential increments as my Scribes letter increases in length.
Oh, heck, I must say it: the new (relatively) art of Sabrewulf shows him to be blue, exactly like Krystal. I’ve been informed by a Rare fan that obviously knows everything (because he’s a fan) that the Sabrewulf of old was never that color. Has the new artist just been daydreaming and hybridizing the two? More importantly, wouldn’t that slow down Sabrewulf’s chase and cause the beast to leave two dragging trails wherever it goes?
Please have nightmares.
–Kulock
Jeffrey J. Wulfston, Esq.A Sabre Wulf team representative kindly supplies: “The original Sabrewulf was blue, I think your friend is colour-blind.” He’s right, too – look here. So unless your friend is Sabreman, ignore him. And even if he is Sabreman, he’s still wrong.
Greetings from the other side of the cesspool we call the Atlantic, you studly blokes you!
Here’s some questions!
- I need to know, will Sabre Wulf still be making his way to Gameboy Advance? I’ve been looking forward to the game for quite some time, and the screenshots are certainly droolworthy.
- Also what about Coconut Crackers, maybe without the DK license? I must know!!
- Dick York or Dick Sargent?
- Oh yeah, one more thing, I know you fellas have stated that you aren’t interested in making a thirdKiller Instinct game, but I was just curious, if you retained the rights to the franchise when you made the switch or if Nintendo still owns them.
Those are my questions, should you choose to accept them, look ’em over, think on it a bit, maybe answer them. Or don’t, see if I care.
Crystal Walters
100% Pure Love – I used to hate that bloody song. No, hang on, that was Crystal Waters. Sorry.
1) Yep. Just a matter of sorting out the publishing duties.
2) It hasn’t been DKCC for some time. If all goes well, see answer to 1). If not, you’ll never know what you missed…
3) Neither are funny enough, so after consulting the IMDb I choose professional stuntman Dick Dial.
4) We never said we weren’t interested, we said we weren’t working on it right now. We did retain the rights, so maybe further down the line, eh?
Dear Scribes,
Banjo Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge is but a few weeks away, so I guess it couldn’t hurt to ask for a bit of confirmation on some basic things…
Some sites, having operatives at ECTS, claim that the game takes place in an alternate reality, where Banjo-Tooie never happened. This, of course, was your contention in 2001. When the THQ thing came down last month, and you put up your BK:GR page, you stated it took place between BK and BT (at least, before she travels in time). So which is it? Does it happen with BT, or instead of it?
Since GBTG is being done by the Banjo team, I’m guessing you all have Kirkhope doing the soundtrack. Hopefully, he’ll lay a bit off the brass this time. The only future title whose musician I can’t quite peg down (and would be polite to ask of) is Sabre Wulf. Who is doing its score?
I’m rather disappointed about your decision to make a Mr. Pants game. Sure, I’ll buy and, and likely love it to death. But Mr. Pants is more of a Scribes junky in-joke than a character everyone will “get”. But then again, it’s not my investment on the line.
On a final note, I’d like to ask a yes-or-no question, which you only need to answer in the proffered format (this is to keep you from avoiding the question and launching out on a tirade about Chewits or something): Is It’s Mr. Pants a retooled Donkey Kong Coconut Crackers?
Peace out,
Saf
The BK:GR scenario change question is one that may never be properly answered, as the game’s lead designer is no longer around for us to ask. Which is a pain, as I was curious myself. But what I do know is that it was never intended to replace Banjo-Tooie in the timeline, just to be another possibility. Which is irrelevant now anyway, as they eventually settled on a “what happened between Kazooie and Tooie” setup instead.
Kirkhope lay off the brass? In a haunted house game? You’re having a laugh. And it’s Big Boy Beanland on Sabre Wulf.
I couldn’t possibly answer such an impertinent It’s Mr. Pants question, but then again I probably don’t need to, do I?
Dear Scribes,
Here are some pointless questions for you to mull over, and hopefully give some equally pointless answers. Yay!
1) Looking at your game timeline, it looks like every world in Sabre Wulf has its own game. Are these part of the series or just an in-game nod to previous classics?
2) How in god’s name do you get an R rating on Tangle Trouble Lookout in Challenge Mode? I’ve been playing for hours, used various techniques and just can’t seem to get under 20.8 seconds.
3) What’s the statue in the town hall of Sabre Wulf, and also on a poster in Ghoulies, meant to be?
4) Any chance of a Ghoulies sequel? Perhaps this time around Cooper’s girlfriend could get ‘grabbed’ by a male dwarf chicken with a pack of zombies, haunted televisions and the odd ninja imp, you could call it Little Pecker: A Cock and Some Ghoulies… (maybe not quite subtle enough…)
5) Did you happen to miss one bonus door in Sabre Wulf? After completing most of it, I still have one spare key that seemingly has no use, and I’m yet to find the ‘silver’ key on the Treasure menu.
6) Any news on what It’s Mr. Pants is actually going to be about, if it even exists?
Richard Lambeth
Let’s fob the first few off on the GBA team:
“1) We tried to put as many references to the classic Ultimate games in as we could. Most of these references are completely lost on today’s players, but older players will fondly remember them.
“2) Take less time.
“3) It’s a character from the cover of old Spectrum game Underwurlde.”
4) I don’t get it.
5) One more for the team: “When you find the missing silver key and open the office in the town hall, you’ll find the missing bonus room.”
6) It’s like a cross between Taboo and Babelfish. You feed Mr. Pants all your earthly hopes and desires through a badly-drawn on-screen keyboard, and he spews out your fortune in stupid made-up slang while doing a three-frame dance against a psychedelic background. It’s a brand new spiritual feelgood genre; we expect it to sell in the tens.
Dear Sirs (it seems courtesy hasn’t been tried yet as a ploy so here goes…)
Firstly a huge wave of thanks for reviving the Sabreman. Still playing it on train trips, the only thing being it’s a bit easy compared with the oldskool, perhaps different skill levels in future? Secondly I noticed an advert a few months ago for Nokia phone games one of which was called “Escape”. Due to the pause button on Sky+ I noticed it had the EXACT layout of Jetpac. I think your beer-fund must be doing better than you claim…
Finally don’t forget that most of us 30-somethings have more money than sense and are prepared to spend masses of it for a little UPTG nostalgia. My purchase of a Xbox is hinged on your future plans.
John Moseley (34 today)
PS. Any chance of a newsletter/email for people who register for updates?
Be fair, everything’s a bit easy compared to the original Sabre Wulf. And the team would agree: “We had to make Sabre Wulf much easier than the old version, as the kids today want to actually finish games, not just keep dying and playing the first level a thousand times.”
Are you any relation to Marillion’s drummer, even though your surname doesn’t actually have the same spelling?
PS Is there buggery.
Dear Scribes;
Now the delaying has started again, the complaints about Rare’s way of handling things keep growing. Personally, I don’t care much, but I would like to know something about it.
In response to a letter in the previous Scribes I read:
“These things happen. Sometimes it is largely perfectionism on our part, but usually (including this particular occasion) there are other important reasons beyond that.”
The part about perfectionism caught my attention. It made me wonder: When you guys play a game when it’s finally released, do you, at some points, think “This was well worth the delaying”, or is it just minor things you want to improve before releasing a game?
Another question: I really liked the music in Conker’s Bad Fur Day. I recall reading somewhere the tunes for Heist and Pooland were performed by a jazz orchestra? I don’t remember where I read that, it could be on this site. Anyway, is this true? Because it sounds very good and non-computery.
Also, I’ve never seen any other games where Robin Beanland has composed music for (maybe I haven’t paid enough attention during game credits)?
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading this,
Iain
Usually games are delayed because they’re just not ready. Yeah, it sounds obvious – but if, say, a multiplayer mode is only half-working, it’s not a question of whether or not the game can be released, it just can’t. This is usually how our perfectionism ties into it, with us wanting to include as many features as possible to make the game a complete package and eventually risking a deadline for it, rather than us simply saying “the game’s finished but we demand another two months to make the border around this menu screen look all shiny”. Changes to the franchise (SFA, Banjo Pilot) or the destination platform (er… some other games) can also be major factors in delaying a game.
Robin and his crazy-hoss surname have both been at Rare for over a decade, providing lighthearted musical accompaniment to several thousand games in that time. Probably. KI, KI2, JFG and Sabre Wulf are other names from his portfolio which may strike you as fleetingly familiar. In response to the jazz orchestra question, he says: “All MIDI files, we couldn’t afford the cartridge space to include live performances but I always try to make stuff sound as live as possible. The first trick to achieving that is not to use quantize (time correction), and to approach the parts as a live musician would – for instance, when you’re laying down a part for a wind instrument, make sure you put gaps in where the wind player would take a breath.” He’s a cunning swine, that Beanland.
Dear Scribes,
I told you I’d be back! I’ve just pre-ordered C:L&R;, and that was some pretty nifty stuff. Who knew a pitchfork could grow a moustache (that puts my own to shame at that!)? Anyhoo…
A) Hmmm… It seems that I’m getting closer and closer to getting the full mental picture of a Thermophile in combat, but the details are still a smidge foggy. For example: Remember Scribes, Oct. 2004? I asked if Thermos were part medic, and you responded “They’re not really combat medics, no.” However, on the C:L&R; Cast List (thanks for that!), “they also have the capacity to restore both their own and other soldiers’ energy… when they’re thinking straight.” I sense contradiction here! It’s obvious their first job is to char-broil Grunts, but if not health, then what is this “energy” of which you speak?
B) As much as I enjoyed Sabre Wulf, and the nifty strategy involved using the all of the different creatures, for example using a Golem to crush baddies, or a Misti when you need to save your Serpents, I can’t find ONE good use for the Suckers! They can’t defeat baddies, and they are easily KO’ed themselves… Can someone from the GBA team give me a use for these mutated rubber duckies?
C) An F-Zero GX fan, eh? Ditto. I was itching to know: Which character do you use? I prefer Octoman myself. Besides – who can turn down a Squid-Man who can dance?
Time for me to drop Suckers on bombs while waiting for Conker,
Zenek
PS. The funniest response from a store clerk about the availability of It’s Mr. Pants was: “Sir, we don’t carry Japanese imports, sorry.” I’m never gonna find that sexy bugger…
- A) As you yourself suggest, their primary task is to set fire to as many things as possible, preferably while filling the air with their profane, demented screeching. They do have a healing ability, but it’s not really enough to qualify them as full-blown combat medics. Then again, they’re probably the closest thing you’re going to get in C:L&R.
B) They certainly can, and quite frankly how dare you doubt them? “Suckers, strangely enough, can be used to suck up certain baddies like the Fleas, Bombs, Bouncers etc.”
C) Anyone with a half-decent car will do for me, i.e. not Black Shadow. I’m with you 100% on the dancing though. Hot damn, that octopus can move.
Dear Scribes,
Has Rare ever considered making an MMORPG, not a Dungeons & Dragons style game as that would be madness. But perhaps a ‘Victorian Gent’ MMO.
Another game idea I had is ‘BIPOLAR Fighter’, the idea being you take control of a man with BIPOLAR, you must club people to death while trying to contain your suicidal tendencies.
Faryadi Zardad
Rare Says:
If the Victorian Gent MMO involves standing around in a study, drinking port, planning a pheasant shoot and discussing Stephenson’s Rocket and the comparative size of women’s brains, you’ve probably got a winner on your hands. Wesley Snaps from Sabre Wulf could be in it. He looks the part, and he’s got bags of leading man charisma. Although we may never know how good he is at roundhouse kicks.
Dear super-ultimate-fantastic-champion,
Hi, I’d just like to introduce myself; my name is Darren Borg (feel free to make fun of my surname, any references to the movie The Fifth Element are more than welcome), I’m nineteen and live in Australia (feel free to call me a witchetty grub-eating buffoon while you’re at it).
I’ve been playing your games ever since Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Land on the Super Nintendo and Game Boy. You guys have created the most awesome games ever, and that goes for the music as well! So atmospheric… so adventurous… bravo. But the thing is I actually didn’t know you guys created all the games you did until I accidentally stumbled across your site looking for the Rock Solid MP3.
It’s a shame that I only just found out about your site until just last year – I’d love to read all the previous Scribes that never got uploaded when you moved to Microsoft. Couldn’t you upload all the previous Scribes in its original format? Just think of it as a nice tribute to the previous site designs you’ve had. Or maybe put up the old Uncle Tusk pages since I and many others never got to read ’em?
Also: I remember someone from the Grabbed by the Ghoulies Tepid Seat asked Wilhelm if he/she/it finished Banjo-Tooie (as in it would be quite hard to accomplish). Well, I’d just like to say that I’ve completely finished Banjo Pilot, Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge, Banjo-Kazooie (except the secret eggs and ice-key), Banjo-Tooie, the Donkey Kong Country series, Donkey Kong 64, GoldenEye 007 (haven’t got every single cheat, but most of them), Perfect Dark (again, haven’t got every cheat, but just pretend I didn’t mention that part), Conker’s Bad Fur Day and Conker: Live & Reloaded. And it wasn’t even that hard or time consuming (well, Banjo-Kazooie, Banjo-Tooie and Donkey Kong 64 took a little while, but that’s a good thing! The more gameplay the better!).
I plan on being like all the other constant flow of mentalists who pour rubbish letters into your inbox. I can so tell you’re pulsating with enthusiasm just hearing those words so I’ll send another letter soon but I thought I’ll just throw this one crazily out to you so I can introduce myself. Bless you Mr. Loveday, Bless you.
Darren Borg
Ha ha, your surname’s Borg. Oh no, we’re going to be assimilated! Ha ha ha. Oh no, watch out! Ha ha.
Can’t complain about having some new blood around here. Sometimes I think we only have about a dozen people reading the website these days, and they’ve all been reading it since 1998 and the only reason they haven’t stopped is because they’re too scared of what might happen. Consider that a cue for all you other lurkers to send in inspiring and constructive letters on all manner of pertinent latter-day issues, even if it does mean I have to get off my arse and do Scribes again before November.
Speaking of which, I appreciate that not everyone got to see the older editions of Scribes/Tusk, but I just can’t go reformatting them all every time we change the site design (especially as there were 65 editions of Scribes alone at last count). We’d never get anything new done. And we wouldn’t fool anyone with the ‘tribute to past designs’ excuse, they’d just look rubbish. I say again: Wayback Machine.
Why haven’t you finished Sabre Wulf, It’s Mr. Pants and JFG? Rescuing the Tribals in JFG is all about ‘bonus gameplay’.
Dear Scribes,
I have been looking through the archives of computer gaming only to discover that you released Sabre Wulf on the GBA. Boy that brought back memories of sneaking into my brother’s bedroom to play on his Speccie when I was supposed to be asleep. I am pleased to say I have managed to find a copy of Sabre Wulf & I can’t wait for it to arrive! anyway this got me thinking why haven’t you released the rest of the Sabreman series? I personally think it would be awesome to see the likes of Underwurlde & Knight Lore revamped & released for perhaps the DS.
Here’s living in hope,
Mandy
Sneaking into someone’s bedroom to play Sabre Wulf on the Spectrum while they slept sounds like the most impractical thing ever attempted. Speccy games took 10 minutes to load, for a start, and then you’d have been using the keyboard or a clicky Kempston joystick and shouting swear words every few seconds when you got jumped by a rhino. Was your brother on heavy-duty tranquilisers at the time?
No immediate plans for further Ultimate ‘reimaginings’, but in terms of Rare handheld classics there’s always It’s Mr. Pants. If you or any other Brits reading this have yet to obtain a copy and live in the Lichfield area, the people in the local branch of Game would appreciate you relieving them of their last second-hand copy as it’s the only thing holding them back from a total GBA stock clearout (as I discovered a couple of weeks ago to my delight).
Dear Scribes,
As a long-running game player of the older generation, I have to ask one simple question. With your connection to Microsoft and your link to Xbox and therefore Xbox Live. Why do you not take advantage of your massive back catalogue to sell through the Live Marketplace? As someone who still owns (and cherishes) his AMS 464 and Spectrum 48k I can tell you that I STILL get out the likes of Sabre Wulf, Alien 8, Nightshade, Knight Lore, etc. I wait the five minutes to load and dive into nostalgic bliss of side hacking, or isometric view fighting and solving puzzles and I think some of the newer generation would enjoy the experience. I don’t know if it would be worth the hassle of transferring if so it would run on the Xbox but I can tell you there are oldies out there like me who would jump at the chance to play these old gems without the 5 minutes of SCREEECHING!!
Please take this into consideration as my Amstrad won’t last forever.
Lenny
Ah, the Spectrum. How can we take the UK version of The Apprentice seriously after what Alan Sugar did to the Spectrum’s legacy? I ask you.
The Ultimate properties haven’t lain untouched since 1986, as we’ve released souped-up/completely overhauled versions of Sabre Wulf on the GBA and Jetpac on Xbox Live Arcade in the last few years. There are all sorts of things that could be done with the IP, but we also have a metric truckload of other IP established since then which is known to a far wider audience. For every mail asking us to “please make a new Knight Lore” there are 100 politely requesting “OMG KI3 U IDEOTS” and we still haven’t done that yet. So never say die, but on the other hand we may never say Atic Atac 2 either…
I just got a great idea, Rarely Brown!
Why don’t the masterminds at RARE put an updated collection of their past Nintendo handheld games on the Nintendo DSi? It would possibly exclude their already updated, already ported games (i.e. the Donkey Kong Country series) and/or Game Boy Color game(s) (i.e. Conker’s Pocket Tales) so as to only have games they made specifically designed for the Game Boy Advance. Then again, I would love to play Pocket Tales for the first time on my DSi and if I’m not mistaken in technically did have a few GBA-only features, and I wouldn’t have anything against them for adding in an even more updated Donkey Kong Country series, but mostly I am thinking of a Super Mario Allstars-like recreation of Beowulf, Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge and, best of all, MR. PANTS!!!
One of your many dreaming fans
Beowulf? Are we talking about the CGI Ray Winstone one where you can see Anthony Hopkins’ arse, the sci-fi version with the mighty Christopher Lambert or the original Old English epic? Or Sabre Wulf?
There were two versions of Pocket Tales on the cartridge, you’re right. However, the main hurdle in what you propose is the clear split in our GBA output between the Nintendo properties (DKC trilogy) and the THQ-published titles (Grunty’s Revenge, Sabre Wulf, Pilot, Pants). And even if you focus on just the latter four, there’s still the issue of stuffing all that code into one cartridge. We’re talking about games that are only a few years old and therefore lugging around a bit more audiovisual weight than, say, Jetpac. So probably not all that viable, but any plan encouraging wider distribution of It’s Mr. Pants should be applauded all the same.