James Pond Prepares to Kickstart a Comeback September 20

[Michael Epstein]

James Pond Prepares to Kickstart a Comeback September 20

And the next long-forgotten game series trying to crowdsource its way back to relevance is... James Pond!

Do you remember James Pond? Do you have any love for the punny secret agent-fish and his undersea puzzle-solving? If you do, then today is your lucky day. Series creator Chris Sorell has taken to Facebook page [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aV0nPC1va8], the campaign will begin next friday, September 20.

At this point, Sorell's vision for a what a new James Pond game would look like doesn't seem particularly clear: In his video announcement, Sorell says he'd like to make "an all-new Pond game that takes the best qualities of the old games and brings everything right up to date." The last attempt to do that, the 2011 iOS game James Pond and The Deathly Hallows, didn't fare so well.

Contrary to what you might think, pitching the revival of a known, but forgotten brand does not guarantee Kickstarter success [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/123614-The-Big-Blue-Kickstarter-Creator-Readies-Plan-B]. It doesn't really matter whether or not fans remember James Pond. The question is: Do they really want him back?

Source: Eurogamer [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aV0nPC1va8]

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[Bug MuIdoon]

The guy above me has no idea what he's on about. The megadrive James Pond games are amazing! 2 and 3 especially.
Not sure if I'd back a new release, but I'd be interested in playing it.

 

[Weaver]

Oh, James Pond! I remember the original games on the Mega Drive! They were horrible!

I also recall them as being pretty bad.

I'm kind of just sick of devs smelling money then kick-starting anything someone might be nostalgic for.

 

[Boris Goodenough]

I thoroughly enjoyed 1 and 2, great platformers.

 

[Mr.Pandah]

I played the Sega Genesis one. Meh. No interest.

 

[Formica Archonis]

I'm sure Jim Sterling [http://www.destructoid.com/review-james-pond-in-the-deathly-shallows-205079.phtml]'s right on board with this one after their last resurrection attempt.

 

[catalyst8]

Robocod on the Amiga was a great game! Utterly bizarre & psychedelic. Admittedly updating it to a PC 20 years later will be... interesting to see.

 

[Callate]

What I remember about these games were a number of critics saying they were second-rate and derivative and a largely unsuccessful ad campaign that tried to imply its gimmicks made it a superior option to Sonic the Hedgehog.

If Ecco- which was roundly praised at the time of its release for its stellar graphics and intriguingly different gameplay- can't get some love right now, I'm suspecting James Pond's chances are pretty damn slim. Maybe there's a huge reservoir of untapped affection for the series somewhere overseas, but I wouldn't bank on it.

 

[BlindTom]

Robocod was some weird shit to play as a kid. That's really all I have to say. I don't think it inspired passion even if it did burn itself permanently into the memory of anyone who played it.

 

[senobit]

Don't really see the point - robocod was a solid platformer but nothing special, just seems another project trying to trade on nostalgia.

If someone was planning on making a new Walker or cannon folder I'd be interested.

 

[Quiet Stranger]

OH MY GOD! PLEASE MAKE THIS HAPPEN!


I LOVED James Pond on the SNES when I was a child! Loved it loved it LOVED IT! I want another James Pond!!

 

[Antitonic]

What I remember about these games were a number of critics saying they were second-rate and derivative and a largely unsuccessful ad campaign that tried to imply its gimmicks made it a superior option to Sonic the Hedgehog.

If Ecco- which was roundly praised at the time of its release for its stellar graphics and intriguingly different gameplay- can't get some love right now, I'm suspecting James Pond's chances are pretty damn slim. Maybe there's a huge reservoir of untapped affection for the series somewhere overseas, but I wouldn't bank on it.

It sounds like there's a difference though. The Ecco Kickstarter was a new game entirely, billed as a "spiritual successor". It looked like it was closer to Endless Ocean than Ecco. This sounds it could be an actual sequel. Although we'll just have to wait and see.

 

[Neta]

I still remember the theme music from Robocod. I used to play that game all the time on my Atari ST when I was a child. I loved James Pond and Robocod.