This weekend we had our first-ever interview about the new game. The gentleman in the center of the picture above used to work at Roberta’s and my company Sierra On-Line.
Since that time, he has gone on to great success creating “Meta Jesus Rocks,” his own highly successful YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/MetalJesusRocks
Our big product announcement is only a week away! Metal Jesus (not his real name) asked to interview us about the game, and after swearing him to secrecy, we showed him what we’re working on.
We spent a whole day filming with Metal Jesus and his sidekick (who also worked at Sierra long ago) who said his name was “Drunken Master Paul” (I can’t make this stuff up).
They did two interviews; one about the early days of Sierra and a second one featuring the new game. I don’t want to give away any of his secrets but I think his viewers are going to be super happy with the interviews he did. I’m not sure when they will be on his site. I’m guessing he is scrambling now to have the video about our new game ready to go when the game is released.
Anyway, this is the first of many interviews. There are days I think that the coding and building of a game is much simpler than all of the “stuff” required to get it onto the market. That said, as you can tell, we weren’t suffering too bad!
-Ken Williams
March 15, 2022
PS — Here’s some proof positive that Roberta and I are willing to occasionally “take one for the team.”
12 Responses
I encountered Metal Jesus Rocks not so few years ago while I was hopelessly scouring the net for any kind of Sierra mentions. His vids regarding the company were insightful and fun.
I can’t wait for the announcement and for your joint vids.
Thanks for taking the time to update, Ken!
I saw the interview on his channel, he is a nice guy and loved your work, looking forward to the second interview!
My wife and I just watched the MJR interview last night. That was a blast. Eager to see how Roberta is going to push storytelling with a new direction. Can’t wait for the big reveal.
Wow, your company really got me into pc gaming. When a new Sierra game was released it was a must buy, had most of the titles. Sure wish I still had all the original boxes and such. Loved all the pack in documents at the time, even the nostalgic anti copy protection. So glad to see you guys give it another go in the pc game market.
Wish you all the luck, maybe with MS buying all the old Sierra catalog, they would allow you to make a true sequel to kings quest.
Just wanted to make you aware that there is a typo on the about page: “Sierra’s history has bee chronicled in”. Good luck with the release.
Finally! I have dreaming, wishing, hoping and praying that you and Roberta would one day return in some form to the realm of interactive storytelling. The industry has never been the same since your departure. A certain magic, a certain wonder and charm has been absent.
King’s Quest was legendary in our house growing up. Me and my younger brothers would huddle close to our Dad, around the glowing PC monitor, late into the evenings exploring gnome caverns, traversing snow laden peaks, scaling the cliffs of logic, dueling minotaurs at the bottom of ancient catacombs, singing with weeping willows and rescuing the girl in the tower. We had so many wonderful memories of being together on adventures through the land of Daventry and beyond. Each new release was a momentous occasion that saw us upgrading our PC to get the most from the experience. It ignited a passion for adventure games that spilled over into all things Sierra, and has never dimmed in my heart, though some of the memories begin to.
Thanks for all of the magic you’ve given us. I am eagerly awaiting your new project. You don’t have to worry about us being let down because of high expectations. You could release a text adventure and I’d still be thrilled! Just happy for a chance to experience something new from you again. Thank you!
Ken, just a quick heads up. On your page that describes Sierra and some history you have a typo. There is a “bee” where you intended a “been” Love to you and Roberta for the countless hours of joy you brought me as a kid. Can’t wait for the new game
I’m in crunch mode getting out of here (home) to fly to San Francisco for the big announcement. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll fix it as soon as I can… – Ken W
I was looking for a way to reach out to both you and Roberta but had a hard time finding a contact; I’ve been a fan of your work for a long time; my first computer game ever was King’s Quest. I’ve created a small conference in Marquette, MI (Upper Peninsula) called Revolve Creative Collaboration Conference, all about creating diverse and collaborative creative work, particularly in unexpected locations like rural America. We’re in our third year, and I’d love to talk about one or both of y’all to come out and talk about your experiences, the old days, what it’s like to start back in an industry 20 years later, and more. It’s November 4-5 of this year. We’re still small (this will be the third year), but growing and it’ll be a great mix of creative people. You can see last year’s lineup on site (www.revolvecc.net) and we’ve already got a start on this year. I’d love to know what we could work out to make it happen. Anyway, sorry for the unorthodox communication, but it’s the best I could find, and best of luck at your talk at GDC soon!
I can’t express how excited I am to see you guys return with a new game. Sierra was a massively influential part of my childhood and a huge inspiration to me. I recently finished reading your book and really enjoyed it, especially the insights it gave into your business philosophy. I wish you all the best with this new game and can’t wait to get my hands on it!
I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see Ken and Roberta making games again. One of my earliest memories is sitting with my dad playing through the original King’s Quest together. From that day I was hooked and spent many a year experiencing so many of those classic Sierra adventure games. Now in my 40s with a 3 year old little girl, I can’t wait to play through your new game with her! If you haven’t done so, please consider releasing this game for the PlayStation VR (PSVR). It has the largest VR headset install base and would be a great way to expand the potential reach of your new game 🙂
In the interview you mentioned that it is a little difficult finding good programmers. Scott Host, designer for the memorable 1994 DOS shooter Raptor Call of the Shadows, has been streaming almost daily on his YouTube channel as he programs in Unity to make a modern version of his classic game. He seems to be doing this as a labor of love and he may be worth reaching out to if you want to bounce ideas off of regarding programming in Unity.