A few years after elTee sat down with him to discuss the Monkey Island Anthology, Josh Fairhurst of Limited Run Games gamely subjects himself once again to a Mixnmojo interrogation. With many LucasArts re-releases since 2020, there’s plenty to talk about, though with Jason asking the questions we’re obviously looking at an outsized Maniac Mansion emphasis.
From the first moment Limited Run Games was brought to my awareness, a reprint of Maniac Mansion for the NES occurred to me as an ideal product for the concept, so I was obviously pleased by a certain announcement earlier this week. How’d it come about?
In the end, LucasArts didn’t leave a large NES footprint. Maniac Mansion was the studio’s first 8-bit cartridge (and in my opinion, best), followed by a Star Wars NES game that Limited Run put out several years back. Any prospects for Defenders of Dynatron City?
I was very happy that Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Ghoul Patrol got their due from Limited Run a few years ago. Are further releases from LucasArts’ 16-bit catalog possible?
Do you know which version of Maniac Mansion NES will be printed? There’s the North American printing which allows the nuking of the hamster, while the subsequent international copies removed this (albeit with comical new refusal lines from the characters). There was also a release candidate that was infamously rejected by Nintendo for reasons of censorship, the ROM for which is nevertheless “out there.”
The bulletin board hint poster was different in size, color, and layout between the PC and the NES versions, and one touch I appreciate from the mockups is that you seem to be reproducing both for the respective platforms. Does Jan Hofmeister (@Laserschwert_) continue to work with Limited Run on such efforts where attending to the minutia is critical, or does Lucasfilm actually still have the source assets for that old paraphernalia handy?
When we interviewed you back in 2020 for the Monkey Island Anthology, you noted that there was difficulty obtaining print-resolution quality sources for packaging artwork, which the pandemic exacerbated. Is that situation any better today? Is it your impression that the Skywalker Ranch archives contain the original marketing assets?
A 30th anniversary behind-the-scenes book was produced for the Monkey Island Anthology. Can those who missed out nurse any hope for this book to be made available on its own?
My wallet already regrets asking this question, but are individual Monkey Island releases still a possibility down the line?
Was reproducing the Hint Book for Loom and Maniac Mansion considered?
Back in the glory days of the Lucasfilm Games Company Store, you could mail order for a Maniac Mansion T-shirt. Those things are perishingly rare these days – you won’t even see one turn up on eBay. What kind of economics do you face when determining the extras for a release? Do things like pins, keychains and patches prove to be more practical from a manufacturing perspective than reproductions of vintage swag?
Between Return to Monkey Island and Maniac Mansion, I’m pleased to see that the door has apparently been opened to soundtrack albums for Lucasfilm properties. We published an article about the Maniac Mansion NES soundtrack not too long ago where we got to interview some of the composers, so it’s particularly cool to see that getting any kind of official release. Any details you can share yet about those items?
By now over half of the LucasArts adventure game library has received the Limited Run treatment. Do you hope to complete the catalog while the licensing arrangement is in force? We’ve got a new Indiana Jones movie coming out this year, so I’m sensing opportunity there…
Of all the LucasArts packages that have been announced, I think I’m impressed the most with the Sam & Max Hit the Road spread. It just seems like that one got a special layer of love. Can you speak a bit about what went into designing that package?
Limited Run confirmed that Loom will include the EGA version on the USB stick. This is particularly welcome because the CD Talkie version has become defacto, and for all its qualities is quite different from the game that originally shipped. How much pull do you have as far as including all extant builds of a game?
Can you confirm which version(s) of Maniac Mansion PC will be found on the USB stick? Will they include the original executables (those are sadly often missing in digital releases since they come bundled with ScummVM) to allow for emulation options?
Have you heard any feedback from the original creators about these packages? For example, has Ron Gilbert or Gary Winnick weighed in on Maniac Mansion? Brian Moriarty on Loom?
What’s your favorite Maniac Mansion character combination?
We’re enjoying something of a resurgence of these games, and Limited Run has essentially become the physical distributor for both legacy and new releases (I’m thinking of things like Thimbleweed Park, Return to Monkey Island and the remasters of the Telltale Sam & Max games). Speaking just as a fan, do you have any personal dream scenarios for the future of those Lucasfilm properties? A Maniac Mansion remake? Brian Moriarty making another Loom?
Though generally remembered strictly as a PC game, the Tomb Raider-esque Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine (1999) received a unique N64 version that was exclusive to Blockbuster Video and the LucasArts Company Store. I always thought a revival of that cartridge would be an especially cool choice for Limited Run. Just throwing it out there.
Thanks for your time, and we look forward to all announced and to-be-announced LucasArts releases from Limited Run.
A somewhat plaintive reminder for checking accounts everywhere that at the time of this writing pre-orders remain open for Limited Run’s offerings for Sam & Max Hit the Road, Loom, Return to Monkey Island, and Maniac Mansion.