Few studios have made a lasting and important impression in the gaming industry. Some of the biggest franchises of the last two generations are new IP’s from upstart studios, and while they produce brilliant work, I really don’t feel anything when names like Naughty Dog, Bungie or Treyarch are thrown around.
But if you say Bethesda, Bioware, or Lucasarts, my eyes light up. I’m ten years old again, earnestly clicking through dialogue in my parents’ computer room. My big eyes are awash in the warm glow of a gigantic monitor with a two-liter of soda tucked between my knees, a soft blanket wrapped around my shoulders, and not a care in the world.
Today another part of that childhood is forever cemented as past. Disney has announced that they’re shutting down Lucasarts, and I have to say my feelings are more than a little hurt.
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Just some of the brilliant memories we have Lucasarts to thank for:
Day of the Tentacle Sam & Max Full Throttle X-Wing
TIE Fighter X-Wing Vs. TIE Fighter X-Wing Alliance Rebel Assault I & II
Star Wars: Battlefront I & II Outlaws The Dig Afterlife
Indiana Jones Grim Fandango Escape from Monkey Island Star Wars: Empire At War
Star Wars: Dark Forces Star Wars: Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Outcast
Star Wars: Jedi Academy Star Wars: The Force Unleashed I & II
And finally, one of the greatest achievements in interactive entertainment, Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire.
I call for a moment of silence, for Sam & Max, Guybrush Threepwood, Kyle Katarn, Galen Starkiller, and Dash Rendar.
Lucusarts, you will be missed.