Welcome to Space Quest 7 Central, the web's top source for information about the now-canceled seventh installment of Sierra's classic Space Quest series. Please note that this page is devoted to the version of SQ7 that was to be headed up by designers Scott Murphy and Leslie Balfour that Sierra canceled in 1998. For more information on the recent rumors of Sierra's possible revival of the Space Quest series, check out the Broomcloset's new Space Quest 7 News and Rumors section. Despite Sierra's decision to place this version SQ7 "on hold indefinitely" a few years back, this page remains online to give fans of Roger Wilco's misadventures a little insight into the game that might have been.
News
February 22, 1999 -- It's official--Guy from Andromeda
Scott Murphy (co-designer of SQ1-4 and SQ6) is no longer under contract
with Sierra. What does this indicate for the future of the Space Quest
series and the campaign to save SQ7? Scott recently spoke with the
Broomcloset on this very topic. Here's what he had to say:
| Does this mark the
end of Roger Wilco (at least at Sierra)?
Scott Murphy: As
for the end of Roger Wilco and Space Quest, I can't give a definitive
answer since the game is Sierra property. With that being said, however,
their actions seem to indicate that it is over and Roger Wilco is dead, at
least as far as they're concerned. But then, Sierra could conceivably get
a wild hair up their butts sometime in the future and do something with
it. (You know how they love those ever-so-humorous theme pinball games, so
who can say what might show up with the Space Quest name on it?) I can
only speculate that there is no plan to do anything Space Quest related at
this time.
Did Sierra ever have any serious intentions to consider taking SQ7
off hold or was it all a matter of spin-doctoring what they knew would be
an unpopular decision?
Scott: Between a
lack of contact from Sierra and the fact that they let my contract lapse,
I am gathering that they just wanted it to go away. My old contract
contents lend credence to the spin-doctoring theory. The only thing that I
could say about Space Quest was that it was on hold, and I wasn't allowed
to say anything that would cast an unfavorable light on Sierra, so instead
of lying or being misleading, I decided to not say anything at all while
the contract remained in effect. I was hoping that something would
happen, but that turned out to be nothing but naive, wishful thinking.
What really put the spin doctoring
into action was when fans started flooding Sierra management's e-mail
boxes with their feelings about the cancellation of the game. Sierra kind
of went into a panic. They realized that they had a public relations
nightmare on their hands and did some real fast back-pedaling. That's what
caused Craig to later generate the press release stating that the game was
just "being put on hold." On Christmas Eve of 1997, I was told by the
project manager, Lori Lucia, that Space Quest 7 was "cancelled." That was
the word used. And wasn't that a nice Christmas present?
Lastly, is there any chance that you would be willing to disclose the
plot-that-would-have-been-SQ7 at any point in the future?
Scott: Maybe someday in the
future, but I'm not really inclined to. We were being pressured to make
Space Quest 7 a multiplayer game, which, by its nature, it just never
should have been. Therefore, the design had to be something that I didn't
want it to be and I thought it sucked for the most part, to be quite
honest. Please know that I am not saying anything bad about the work
Leslie did on it. (However, I will confess that mine could have been
better!) I like working with Leslie and would do it again in a heartbeat
if we were given the chance to do it under the right conditions. She's
incredibly intelligent, creative and witty. She truly managed to get into
the proper mindset necessary to make a Space Quest (which in many places
in the country and the world would most likely get her institutionalized).
Unfortunately, we just plain didn't have the freedom needed to make the
game true to Space Quest form because of the requirement by management
that it be 3-D multiplayer action adventure. They couldn't see that they
were forcing it to be something it couldn't be. Quest for Glory was also
supposed to be multiplayer also, but they canned that idea, probably so
that it wouldn't ship another year late because they were unable to
implement it.
|
Scott also expressed his gratitude to the fans for
their devotion to the Space Quest series. Be sure to drop by Scott's recently-launched website for
more inside info on the Space Quest series. In summary, Space Quest
designer Scott Murphy is no longer under contract with Sierra and it
appears that the fight to save SQ7 has taken a decided turn for the worse.
December 23, 1998 -- Just in time for the holidays, I
have cobbled together the a little information on Space Quest 7. I
recently e-mailed Craig Alexander to ask if there had been any changes in
the status of SQ7 in recent weeks. His response: "I have nothing new to
report. The project is still on hold." Oh, well...looks like we'll have
to keep waiting for any additional updates.
In other news, I received a report from Brian Kazian
regarding the recent appearance of Roberta Williams and Mark Seibert on Talkspot to hype Mask of Eternity.
Brian reports that he called in to ask about Mark about the future of
Space Quest 7. Mark said that the various letters and petitions were
having an effect and that people should keep 'em coming. Roberta then
added that she was a big fan of the series and the Two Guys and would love
to see a seventh episode made, predicting that it would be a big hit.
Thanks for the info, Brian!
December 13, 1998 -- Special thanks go out to Chris
Geroux, who mailed me the ransom note from Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Kassab of
Williamsville, NY. Awesome work, guys--and thanks for the scan, Chris!
I'm currently working on getting some inside info on the status of Space
Quest 7. With the recent purchase of Cendant Software (Sierra's parent
company), we might see some changes in the near future. Stay tuned and
I'll see what I can cobble together.
October 20, 1998 -- This news is a little old, but I
thought I'd run it anyway. The most recent issue of InterAction (Sierra's
in-house magazine) features some new information about SQ7. Underneath an
awesome "Bring Back Space Quest 7" ransom note, Craig Alexander had the
following to say:
|
"Periodically, Senior Management meets to discuss
upcoming development projects. I can guarantee that Space
Quest 7 will be one of the titles on our agenda, given the
deluge of email that we have been receiving over the last six
months.
Thanks for your continued interest. Your
opinions
do matter
and have a significant impact on our development
decisions. Unfortunately, there are many other business
issues that must be addressed before Space Quest 7 can
become a reality."
|
It looks like Sierra is still keeping their options
open, folks! Let's keep the campaign to
save Space
Quest 7 rolling! By the way, if anyone has a good scan of the ransom
note from InterAction, please
e-mail it to
me.
August 7, 1998 -- For those of you that haven't
heard, it's official; Leslie Balfour, co-designer
on SQ7 and official Gal from Andromeda, is no longer with Sierra. Space
Quest fans will certainly miss you, Leslie! Best of luck with your future
endeavors!
In a related story, Craig Alexander confirms
that Scott Murphy remains under contract if and when the project is
revived.
July 26, 1998 -- Since Neil Schuh's Wilco Burger has been shut down for the time being, I've provided his RealVideo version
of the SQ7 promo movie for download here at the Broomcloset.
Download it now! By the way, you'll need to
download RealPlayer if you
don't already have it! Thanks, Neil!
June 22, 1998 -- Big news! This past Monday,
Sierra held a management meeting in Las Vegas to discuss, among other
things, its plans for the future. While Space Quest 7 was not a major
topic of discussion, Craig Alexander (SQ7 GM) had this to report via
e-mail:
It went
okay, although we only spent a few minutes discussing [SQ7]. In early
July, I plan to have another meeting and formerly pitch restarting the
project in early 1999. The tides are definitely turning, in part because
of [the fans'] support. However, there is a long road ahead of us.
|
So, things are definitely looking up! While this doesn't mean Space Quest
7 is definitely back on track, it's certainly a more positive indication
than we were getting a few short months ago. Still, keep those
letters rolling in to Sierra! Let's make sure
this game becomes a reality!
February 15, 1998 --
It has recently been leaked from inside sources at
Sierra that Scott Murphy--Guy from Andromeda, co-designer on Space Quests
1-4 and 6, and would-be designer of Space Quest 7--has been laid off from
his position with Sierra. Now, this might not be quite as bad
as it sounds. Supposedly, Scott will be re-hired if the SQ7 project
is
ever restarted. All the same, it doesn't seem like the best of
signs. What can we do? Keep writing
Sierra and let them know
what you think of the whole deal!
December 31, 1997 --
Many of the SQ webmasters received
this e-mail from the Space Quest 7 design team yesterday:
|
To the Friends and Fans of Space Quest:
As you all know, the path to Space Quest 7 has been long and bumpy, and
we were never sure what we would find at the end of the road. The
decision has been made, after much soul-searching and agonizing, to put
Space Quest 7 on hold indefinitely.
The joy for the team has been in the journey. We've made many friends
out there, and it has been quite heartening to know that Roger Wilco has
so many fans. I look forward to continuing the friendships I've
developed over the last year. But Sierra is in the process of many
changes, and we had to take a hard look at whether a Space Quest 7
project made sense. Unfortunately for those of us who love Roger and his
stupid antics, other projects just have more to offer both to the
company and to our customers in general at this time.
Please don't worry about the team. We will all move to other projects at
Sierra On-Line. Many of us will go over to the Babylon 5 space combat
game, which will be coming out in Holiday 1998. Others will go over to
the B5 adventure game, which will also come out in 1999. Both of these
products will reflect Sierra's commitment to excellence in space games,
and I hope you'll consider playing them if you have the opportunity.
I am sending this email to those of you who have sent me mail lately.
Please pass the information on to any Space Quest fans I inadvertently
omitted.
Finally, don't be sad for Roger. Just think of him as weary from making
us laugh for all these years, ready for a break from his adventures. He
and la Wankmeister want to settle down, raise a family. And perhaps as
we look up in the sky, a distant star will remind us that somewhere, in
a distant galaxy, Roger Wilco is probably getting pantsed.
Thanks again for all your support,
The Space Quest Team
-Leslie Balfour
-Scott Murphy
|
That's all we know for the time being: SQ7 is on hold indefinitely. As
more information becomes available, I'll be sure to post it. In the
meantime, a campaign to save Space Quest 7 has been launched. Go to
the Broomcloset's
Save Space Quest 7 page for more details.
In General
The Space Quest series is a long-running sci-fi comedy
adventure series from Sierra On-Line.
Space Quest 7 (which has been going under such working titles as "Space
Quest 7: This Time It's Personal" and "Space Quest 7: Show Me the Buckazoids!") is the latest installment in the adventures of space
janitor Roger Wilco.
Space Quest 7 is being designed by Scott Murphy,
co-designer on Space Quests 1-4 and Space Quest 6. The game will feature
3D graphics (though it will not be a first-person shooter and purportedly
will not require a 3D accelerator card) and also include multiplayer
support--both firsts
for the series. For a non-interactive preview of the game from the Space Quest Collection, you can download this promotional video in
RealVideo format. For more information
about SQ7, check out these interviews with designer Scott
Murphy and former designer Leslie Balfour.
In January, 1998, Sierra announced that it was putting
Space Quest 7 "on hold indefinitely" (for full details, see the above
letter from the design team). In response, a number
of Space Quest sites on the Internet have launched a massive campaign to
save Space Quest 7. For more details on how you can make SQ7 a reality,
check out the Broomcloset's Save Space Quest 7
page.
Design Team
While SQ7 was still in its early stages when the project
was placed on hold, a number of familiar faces had already been named to its
design team. This is the SQ7 design team as it currently stands:
-
Scott Murphy -- Co-designer/Writer
-
Jay Lee -- Programming
-
Bill Shockley -- Programming
-
Mark Aro -- Graphics
-
Richard Powell -- Character Design
-
Lori Lucia -- Project Manager
-
Craig Alexander -- Project GM
Story
The team has gone to great lengths to keep the storyline
for Space Quest 7 under wraps. However, we've managed to get a few tibits
of information here and there.
- According to the SQ7 AVI preview, Roger will be
setting out to rescue his girlfriend, Ambassador Beatrice Wankmeister,
from the clutches of his arch-nemesis, Sludge Vohaul. Scott Murphy is quick to remind us that Vohaul's mind is still sitting at the bottom of the
Super Computer from SQ4, stored on a floppy disk.
- Rumor has it that Roger will jettison either Bea or Stellar Santiago
in SQ7. According to Scott, "Uh, well, there are definitely some personal
issues in this game for Roger to deal with." Beatrice Wankmeister is
Roger's supposed future wife, introduced in Space Quest 4
and who played a major part in SQ5. Stellar is a Starcon Corpsman who
Roger got to know up close and personal in SQ6. Scott has hinted toward
seeking closure in this area of Roger's life, though. In an interview with
Popular Janitronics, when asked if Roger would leave Stellar for Bea, he
cryptically stated, "Obviously you've never seen Beatrice in the morning."
Leslie adds, "I think Roger will continue to toy with Stellar, and continue
to be toyed with by Bea."
- Scott has insinuated that more about Roger's rather vague past will be revealed. As for what is chronicled in the series, little is known before
Roger stumbled out of the broomcloset in Space Quest 1. For previously
written background, try this interview,
reprinted from Space Piston Magazine. Could there be a mysterious link
between Roger and Sludge?
Characters
Currently, very few characters have been confirmed
for Space Quest 7. Naturally, we can expect Roger to appear. Also,
the SQ7 preview seems to confirm that both
Beatrice Wankmeister and Sludge Vohaul will appear. Furthermore, both
Scott and Leslie have suggested that Stellar Santiago might be making
a return appearance also.
- The SQ7 preview offers some footage
of Roger as he's trying to rescue Beatrice. Here are a couple of screen
captures from the promo. The first shows Roger with an Acme-esque rocket attached to his
back. The second features our hero in an EVA suit, floating in the void
of space.
- Below is a sketch by SQ7 character designer, Richard Powell. This
creature is known as Dougie, who Leslie describes as a slime monster.
Leslie also states that Dougie, "likes to hang around with his friends on
street corners in Polysorbate and hassle passers-by.
Roger may have to deal with Dougie one day, but for now Dougie and his
friends are enjoying their slime monster existence without fear of Roger
or anyone else." Does this mean that Roger will be heading back to
Polysorbate LX in SQ7? Who knows? Click on the image below for a large
version.
- The SQ7 preview also suggests that we'll
be seeing old friends Fester Blatz and Astro Chicken again in SQ7.
Multiplayer
Yes, Space Quest 7 will have a multiplayer mode. This
raises the question of how multiplayer features can be successfully worked
into the traditional adventure genre. At this point, the details of how
the multiplayer game will be handled are still a bit cloudy. However, we
can provide the following information:
- SQ7 will not be a role-playing game. While Sierra is trying to
break away from the traditions and clichés of the adventure game
genre with their new products, SQ7 will still be an adventure game.
- There's no word on what characters other than Roger Wilco be playable.
Here's what Leslie Balfour had to say on the subject: "Definitely Roger,
and we're thinking that everyone will play Roger, even in the multiplayer
version! And I'm going to let you mull that cryptic statement over for a
while before I explain." Could cloning be a part of SQ7's storyline?
Comments,
questions, suggestions... jess@wiw.org
Roger Wilco
and related materials are © Sierra
On-Line.
Space Quest is a registered trademark of the Children's Museum
of Indianapolis.
This page is © Decaffeinated Jedi, 2002. Design & layout ©
Frost Byte Interactive, 2002.
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