~The Dig Preview

By Martin Keen


They've got it all wrong. For five years we have been lied to. Since
the moment work started on The Dig we were told it was going to be a
computer game. It's not. The Dig is going to be an entire industry.

At some point in the run-up to Christmas we are going to be bombarded
with products based on The Dig concept. In the pipeline is a full
length novel based on The Dig story written by a famous science
fiction author (whose name, unfortunately, I've misplaced). After that 
expect to find the CD soundtrack of The Dig in all major record 
stores. And somewhere hidden beneath all the hype LucasArts intent
to release a graphic adventure thats suppose to be a bit good.

No doubt you heard the story a million times before. Steven Spielberg
wrote a script for his Amazing Stories series which was turned down
on account of it being too expensive to make. So off he went to 
LucasArts and tried to sell the idea to them. They didn't take much
persuading. Spielberg walked in clutching the script and said "Would
you like to make a game out of this? It's kind of cool don't you
think?". And with those words a project that was to last more than
five years began.

What you might not know about Spielberg is what a big fan of LucasArts
he is. The first copies of all their games are sent directly to him. 
He gets hold of them even before George Lucas. And he's a regular
caller to LucaArts office to ask questions about upcoming games. His
input into The Dig has extended far beyond lending the initial
storyline. Spielberg has been consulted all along as the project has 
progressed and is set to take an even bigger role as the game nears
completion.

Its hard to know what The Dig is going to turn out like. Three
Project Leaders have been involved. The first was Brian Moriarty who
eventually got the sack. Then Dave Grossman stepped in who was 
responsible for Day Of The Tentacle (along with Tim Schafer who went
on to lead the Full Throttle team) but the problems became too much
for him too. Sean Clark was then given the reins after successfully
completing the best graphic adventure of all time - Sam & Max Hit The
Road. Is he capable of tying together all the loose ends to create a
finished project? Its looking as though he is.

Plot wise The Dig can be compared to Indy Jones & The Fate Of 
Atlantis. Thats not to say the astronauts involved in this game are
going to be laidened with whips and aim to beat off the Nazis. The
comparison is to highlight the importance the twisting cohesive story
the plot will contain. That's as much as this preview is saying about
the plot - I'm not going to ruin the storyline for you.

The sound and music is going to be done Full Throttle style where
everything is digitised. Its going to take on a moody feel, and it
should be good if a soundtrack CD has already been commissioned.
No news yet on whose going to do the voiceovers but chances are 
they'll be some famous names drafted into this one.

Whether the game will live up to the hype is hard to say. It something
that deeply worries the President of LucasArts Randy Komisar. How can
a game possibly live up to the expectations of a public who have heard
so much linked with The Dig? Its not impossible. With the production
values of Full Throttle, the storyline quality of Indy Jones, the
gameplay of Sam & Max, and the length of Monkey Island 2 (LucasArts are
promising this one will be very large) they'll be on to a winner. 
Sounds easy doesn't it ?!?
