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Old 10-25-2004, 12:00 AM   #41
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I haven't noticed that anyone has posted the thread from Something Awful so I thought I would copy and paste it here...

This is by justin_on_fire (thanks!), the last bit at the end kills me.




Hey kids. I posted a thread about going to the first recording session for this game, but no one really seemed to respond, but I had a great time, and met some great people, so I want to write about it goddamnit.

I just moved out to Cali from Wisconsin, I was staying in the bay area for around two months now, and I wanted to see LA, and since my cousin lives down here I got the chance to check it out and stay somewhere for free.

He does freelance audio engineering at a studio called "Margarita Mix" in Hollywood. He's worked with Dennis Miller ("Asshole" he says), James Earl Jones, Andre Agaasi, Queen Latifa (for the current pizza hut campaign), Kiefer Sutherland, ect ect ect. He told me he was going to be working on something for LucasArts, and asked if I wanted to tag along. Of course I said yes.

Initially I thought it could be for that new Star Wars cartoon show, but my childhood memories reared their wistful head when I learned that morning that it was going to be for some "Sam and Max" game.

Ah! Ah!!! Sam and Max!!!! Love the original!!!! Freaking out about meeting the voice talent for both of the characters.

It's around 8 in the morning, way too early for me (****ing tired right now) but I am excited so it's all good. We head over to the studio which has sort of a southwestern theme going on (I'd post pictures but I am on dial up here until Sunday, and I HATE dial up).

In the room already are a squirrely chap with a shaven head (introduced as Will), a girl who works for the studio, and an empty seat where the director / writer of this schpeil is supposed to be (Mike). Everyone is very nice, and then, in walks Sam.

I say Sam (though he called himself Bill), because he really had a lot of the same mannerisms and characteristics. A laid back kind of guy, simple black coffee mug in one hand, and a reassuring grin. Even his regalar voice was a lot like Sams. I introduce myself and he kind of wanders around the studio, bringing it all in. Then, he turns to me, and asks where I am from, I tell him Wisconsin and we talk for a while about the midwest and it being flat. While I know this guy is already my hero being the voice of Sam, I then learn he's been doing Goofy's voice for disney (and other assorted characters) for the last 20 years.

Ok, so basically this guy is a legend.

So we talk and talk, and it's great, he shifts between voices like a crazy shifts personalities. About 20 minutes go by and a hulking, hairy bald man that doesn't look too far from a biker shows up. This is Mike, director of the first game, Monkey Island, Escape from Monkey Island, lots of other stuff, and this new Sam and Max game.

He seemed a little huffy and puffy, but it was probably just from being pissed that he waiting in the lobby for a half hour. The recording starts, and as soon as Bill's voices blares on the speakers, I turn to mush. Pro. ****ing pro.

(ah, I shall post and continue typing if people care)


Let me say at this point I have lots of pictures of the script and stuff, and some audio recording from the session, but we're not going to ask for that because I'd rather my cousin doesn't get fired.

...

So, Bill comes in, starts doing Sam, and we pick up where they left off the day previous (around page 200, of 400 total pages. This folks, is ONE THIRD of the full game),

I am informed that this is isn't for a demo, but just an internal demo for the lucasarts higher-ups. They've pushed to have this get done so the session was pulled together with a still not final script. Mike seems a little miffed about this, but turns out to be a genuinely great guy, total dork, and brilliant writer.

While it was just line for line, some notes on the content of the first part.

-There's a couple mini games - one called "Wasp Darts" another has something to do with bumper cars.

-TONS of hilarious jokes in here, lots of monty python referances, some movie spoofs ("Our couch is like a box of chocolates," Max sputters)

-A "west side story"ish sequence, Max and Sam start their own gang.

-A hostage situation with a series of demands that must be met!

Lots more I forgot probably.

Also, there will be NO "this is a completely unusable thingamabob" line in the game. BLASPHEMY! I request that it's included at least once as a sweet sweet homage, but shut down.

We take a break and I ask Mike about the game graphics. He says they're shying away from the cellshaded graphics and going with a more realistic tone to the game. Still cartoony like the original, but not over the top cell shading.

At which point, he asks me if I saw the first trailer, which of course I have. He pulls up a quicktime on his laptop and tell me "Well, you haven't seen THIS!" and shows me what they're planning to release soon.

It'll be at all the gaming sites soon enough. You'll get a quick taste of the graphics (models used are same as in-game) and Mike himself acts in it.


Some IMDB links
Bill: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0267724/
Nick (max): http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0417068/

...

We keep plodding through the giiiiiant script book (link below) which as I said, is like, a small part of the game. Bill takes two to three attempts at any line, a couple slip him it (It's so brilliant and SO wordy. Fans of the classic are going to dig the hell out of this) Still, there's always one that they like. They run through a page and choose what they like, what they need to be done again. Bill keeps on reading the other parts to himself in a myriad of voices, and laughing his ass off. I could just listen to this guy for hours.

Finally we get to about where they want to be ("Once you've seen one snow level, you've seen 'em all!), and we break for lunch. I remind Bill how great of a human being he is, shake his hand, and quickly ask him if he'll do a voicemail message for me (I'll toss this on MP3, once again, if there's interest because this dial up connection is killing me.)

Lunch is good. I eat. Food.

They all come back and regroup, and wait for Nick (Sam's voice) who shows up prompty. This guy, also total pro. Looks a little like Alan Alda, and is just as friendly as can be. He's done loads of work for LucasArts, and lots of other projects. Most noteably "THE CRITIC," which he bemoans as a great show that met with an early death. I can't disagree.

Mike loads up the original Sam and Max, dinks around for a while, and refreshes Nick's memory on the sound they're looking for. He gets it down pat in a try or two, ("Remind me to give you a copy of the Windows version" Mike says. Nick thanks him and mentions he'll finally have a use for the PC he bought to complement his Mac).

Unlike Bill's cool attitude in the face of adversarial lines ("I can do this better, guys!") Nick's a little more pissed at himself when something slips ("Shit! ****! Ok, sorry guys, let's try this again") and a little more fiesty like Max himself.

A running gag throughout is how Max is lighting everything on fire ("It's a chemically treated fake firelog, just like the pilgims used to use!"). He's a little less snippy this time around, but still some CLASSIC very quotable Max lines in this.



The script for the day.


Margarita Mix's INCREDIBLE sound studio (one of 5)


So, Nick does a great job, because he's ****ing pro. Like I said.

They get through about 170 pages, more than they thought they'd get out of the already late day (going from around 9 am until 6 pm). It's 5:30 and every couple minutes I have to poke myself and realize the flesh and blood Max is only a couple feet from me. The sound quality in there was just awesome. It was such a treat to hear these fellows really use their voices. So rich, faceted, and they could pull of any variation of accent like nothing.

I say goodbye to Nick (who had a suitcase that looked a little like if a 60's James Bond had kept his 60's suitcare until 2003), stand up and shake his hand, say goodbye to Mike and Will (but not before telling Mike to check out 'Fist Fight' on my site). I get Mike's card and everyone heads off. WHAT A DAY! I am way psyched about this game, which I would probably download otherwise since I am cheap and lazy, but will be buying the **** outta when this comes out! There's just so much content and lines I want to hear again I can't wait. They told me it was TENATIVEly set to drop in Summer 2004 and I, for one, cannot WAIT.

Jesus, I still can't believe SAM asked my what my favorite part of the first game was .......... I love California.



... so if you felt informed by all this, please post, because I had to write a lot on this crappy laptop keyboard.


...


quote:
-------------------------------------------------
h_double came out of the closet to say:
Thanks for sharing this. The voice acting in the original Sam & Max is a big part of what made it such a great game, and it's nice to find out a little behind-the-scenes about the sequel.
-------------------------------------------------

I asked Bill if it was a lot different doing the VO this time, and he laughed and told me how the first game was done in some little ghetto room, with him sitting on a cheap wooden stool, and how nice it is to record at an actual studio.

He also talked about how it was weird that Sam and Max both sound a little younger this time around.

Seems like his project is pretty much for-sure going to happen. I wouldn't worry about it going dead, I mean, I can't imagine them wasting a script THAT good.
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Old 10-25-2004, 01:46 AM   #42
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Ummmmm, yeah, ok...

Nice post.
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Old 10-25-2004, 09:25 AM   #43
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Too much text. It would have to be something interesting for me to read that much.

I looked at the pictures though.
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Old 10-25-2004, 09:56 AM   #44
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Thanks for posting, Flupp. I thought that it was an interesting read; great seeing what the people behind the voices of Sam and Max are like.

Oh, and didn't there used to be some sound clips too?
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Old 10-25-2004, 04:18 PM   #45
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I've been wanting to read this again. Great stuff. And the answering machine MP3 clip from Bill Farmer is still on Mixnmojo; search the news post. I know this is a familiar rant that we've all heard a million times, but it's a real shame that we lost this game. Just knowing that all this dialogue was recorded and will never be heard (What if Bill or Nick die or something? Huh? ) or that a new trailer was very close to being released just pisses me off all ****ing over again. Oh yeah, and someone should contact that guy and ask that those pictures taken of the script be put online now. I guess those "higher-ups" weren't impressed by the special assembled demo (though I still blame everything on that goddamned Sam & Max survey that LucasArts hosted, thinking that the opinion of LucasArts.com members, mostly Star Wars fanatics, will paint an accurate picture of the adventure gaming public is stupid - and of course I'm going to assume that the survey was the single thing that the game's marketing prospects were judged by).

Hey, the Sam & Max 2 museum is still going to happen, right? I mean, I know the possibility of a new Sam & Max is now more existant thanks to Telltale and the hopeful cooperation of Steve Purcell this May, but we still don't have any more hope of resurrecting Freelance Police than we ever did. Just tell me you guys haven't abandoned the project, it remains as important now as it was when you thought it up.
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Old 10-25-2004, 04:27 PM   #46
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my god that script sounded funny
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