Leisure Suit Larry - Wet Dreams Don't Dry (PC) Review

Magna Cum Laude and Box Office Bust tried to bring Leisure Suit Larry to the new millennium, first by introducing a younger protagonist, and, secondly by pushing the '80s aside, giving the new 'Lovelage' line of games a strong, American college comedy sort of vibe - and both failed miserably. It seems that an unknown developer by the name of CrazyBunch has tried to do the same, and, fortunately, has done things properly, by going back to the more traditional, hand-painted, 2D look and point-and-click gameplay of the original series, and by re-introducing good 'ol Larry Laffer, who somehow entered a time machine (don't ask), ending up in the 21st Century.

Despite the time leap, it actually feels good to be back, with the shift in art style in particular making the recent 3D instalments look even worse. Once again, backgrounds are pleasantly colourful and detailed, and while the flat character design and stiff animation is noticeably similar to those dress-up Flash games, this is certainly a step in the right direction. Additionally, while some (reviewer included) will probably hate Larry's more "realistic" design (which is based in the original Leisure Suit Larry), once used to it, it turns out that it's not that big of a flaw.

Yes, while not perfect, this looks, and even sounds, good as the music takes its cue from the old-school Larry games, and the protagonist is voiced by Jan Rabson himself. Audio-visuals aside, however, this is mainly about Larry trying to cope with a new kind of world. Sadly, this also the part where Al Lowe's absence can be felt the strongest. It's not that this is a bad idea, though. Indeed, bringing such a pure '80s creature to current times is quite the interesting experiment, especially as this is a satire of the world of social media, and how it has affected… "romance."

A worthy attempt, but, unfortunately, it sort of misses the mark, as the criticism of things like Tinder and Instagram, or, "lol" Timber, and "hurr-hurr" Instacrap, hasn't really been pulled off that well. It's not like the humour is that dry or anything, and, thankfully, this touches more subjects than just those, but, in the end, this is kind of a missed opportunity. Think about it: a sleazy guy from an era of political-incorrectness gets to interact with social media addicts, pop culture nerds, vegan hipsters, webcam models, and then some - this is practically a recipe for success that kind of failed.

It should also be noted that, although Leisure Suit Larry: Wet Dreams Don't Dry is, once again, a "safe" adult game, this isn't as subtle as it used to, as it relies less in double entendres and witty (or purposely silly) puns and wordplays. In other words, this can be a bit too direct at times; not so much in terms of on-screen naughtiness, but due to how, rather than insinuating things, it straight up describes them. As a whole, CrazyBunch's return to the series' roots is funny, but not as funny as it could, or, more importantly, as it should be.

The biggest example of how the developer doesn't understand that the core of the franchise has always been its naughty, comedic aspect, is how Larry doesn't really bother making any comments about his surroundings like before, with the absence of a Love for Sail-esque narrator being another strange omission, and with the Cortana/Siri-like assistant being a weak substitute. Long story short, above all else, this is mainly a point-and-click adventure, with a little bit of comedy thrown in for good measure, instead of the other way around. At least, is it a good point-and-click adventure?

The correct phrase is probably: a traditional point-and-click adventure. This doesn't reinvent (or upgrade) the wheel, thus veterans will feel right at home, and haters will keep on hating, as this also retains some of the typical flaws of the genre, like the occasional weird puzzle solution. Luckily, this is mainly an entertaining ride that never gets annoyingly challenging. The only problem? It focuses way too much in inventory fiddling, with even the simplest puzzle having you use A to find B, and then combine it with C to get D, open E with it, receive F, and yada yada yada…