Sam & Max Q&A Feature

With hopes for Sam & Max long awaited return in Sam & Max: Freelance Police cut tragically short, those left waiting for the last decade had something to shout about with the announcement that the crime-solving duo's creator, Steve Purcell, had teamed up with the team formerly responsible for Grim Fandango, Monkey Island and the duo's debut and subsequently abandoned sequel.

TVG's Derek dela Fuente had an opportunity to chat once again to Dan Connors, Head of TellTale Games, for a brief insight into what lies in store...

Sam & Max must be close to the team's heart with many having worked on the duo's aborted adventure; has it always been a vision to bring the brand back and do you have ideas from the cancelled project that will used?

Most of the company worked on the Sam and Max Freelance Police and it certainly inspired us. Two great things about the brand are first, the legendary status it has among gamers, and the amount of creative freedom there is in working with Sam and Max. The game designs from Freelance aren't our property so we really can't use them.

"I used to say Freelance Police was the Daisy that got hit by the weed whacker."

Sam & Max are fondly remembered so why do you think LucasArts dropped the brand when it still has potential and appeal?

That is a question for LucasArts, but I think it is pretty clear to see that LucasArts has made a shift in direction. Unfortunately Sam and Max was a victim of that switch. I used to say Freelance Police was the Daisy that got hit by the weed whacker.

What do you see as some of the major changes in game and character design from past titles and what involvement has Steve had?

It's still working itself out. Obviously the more of Steve the better, but he is a very busy man at Pixar.

Will there be any sort of cross over from the comic-strip that is being created?

We will see, I really don't know what Steve has in mind so I am very interested in seeing it.

Were the team happy with the way Sam & Max: Freelance Police was heading despite the game's tempestuous production?

I know Steve and Mike Stemmle were very happy about the way Sam and Max Freelance Police was going. The Production was actually very smooth and the resulting quality was very high obviously Steve wouldn't have signed with Telltale if that wasn't the case.

"I think it would be impossible to make an unfunny Sam and Max game."

What improvements do you believe Sam & Max's next adventure will benefit from in terms of presentation; what is your technology focus behind such a game?

Our tech is very focused on cinematic storytelling and character acting. This allows for the comedic timing necessary to execute a game based on two characters like Sam and Max.

Sam & Max brought humour and innovation to the scene when many failed dismally. Will humour continue to play a big part in the new title and why do you consider humour to be hard for videogames?

I think it would be impossible to make an unfunny Sam and Max game. To ensure it we are very focused on bringing on the writers that can write in a way that enhances Steve's vision.

Humour exists but in a very cynical way, I know many people who think GTA is hilarious. Ultimately it's about where companies focus their time and effort and most companies aren't focusing that effort executing sophisticated verbal jokes.

Can you elaborate on the story that Sam & Max will find themselves within and the impact that episodic content will have on this; does the method of distribution have any significance on the design of the game or will this be the point-and-click we all know fondly?

A very cool thing about Sam and Max and Comics in general is that each story can be stand alone, but be part of a larger world. That is our how we will be approaching it at Telltale.

Were you happy with the success of Bone and do you believe Sam & Max can take Telltale's innovative style and design to a bigger audience?

Having Bone as the number one download at Yahoo!Games certainly makes us feel like we are reaching a bigger audience. I think Sam and Max will appeal to an older gamer audience.

Finally, the first batch of information makes suggestions that we'll see Sam & Max in "other places", would you care to divulge any further information on this?

Not at the moment :)

TVG would like to thank Steve for sharing the briefest, but nonetheless extremely appreciated, information on the hugely anticipated return of Sam & Max. We hope it won't be too long before we find out a little more on their comeback, keep an eye on Kilpeck church in the meantime...