Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude

"Could someone please shut that Swingles guy up?"

It seems that reactions to Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude can be divided into two schools: the old Leisure Suit Larry generation who think this game is a butchery of the franchise; and gamers new to the franchise who think the game is dismally poor anyway. I seem to have missed the LSL generation, so I guess I fall into the latter. It doesn't seem too fair to pass judgement on a game this early in the review, but I am obligated to say that Magna Cum Laude is not of the same vein as the old-school LSL games, for better and worse.

The game begins with our new protagonist, Larry Lovage, nephew of series favourite Larry Laffer. After a frustrating dream about getting it on with the babes at college, Larry encounters a dating show ad on TV – Swingles – that aims to set up college girls with a lucky guy. Of course, Larry Lovage is that guy…or so he reckons. I'd be happy to leave the plot there, only that the Swingles guy has the most annoying voice I've ever heard.

The Swingles guy on TV does serve a purpose: the Swingles ads serve as a transition between sections of the game. Magna Cum Laude is not an entirely free-roam game. Initially, you are only allowed to explore a restricted area of the college grounds – which include Larry's room, the “Libary" and the Quadrangle – and Larry is tasked with getting lucky with several girls and obtaining “tokens of affection” to submit to the Swingles crew to participate in the show. It isn't immediately clear why he has to do this, but the game is content with leaving it there and focusing on character development.

There are around fifteen girls to interact with, though as stated above they are not all available at the beginning. They are modeled off obvious stereotypes: blonde busty cheerleader, bookworm, slut, hot nerd chick, daughter of a mafia boss, and so on. You probably won't care about their personalities so much after you first meet them. In fact, you probably won't think of the game much once you get through the first half hour of tedious mini-games. Magna Cum Laude progresses through relationship development through endless sequences of mini-games. It's understandable, but with only a small selection of mini-games – many of which are reused for different scenarios – coupled with loading screens between each scene and mini-game, you'd wish there was a more streamlined way of getting to know a girl.

I can rattle a few games off for you right now: there's a whack-a-mole type game used for mixing drinks, spanking girls, doing makeovers and everything in between; a pong-style game; playing quarters (that is, flipping coins into a glass); a “streaking” mini-game involving dashing past onlookers and guys who want you beat you up; and several others that are barely worth mentioning. The most frequent mini-game – and arguably the most enjoyable – is the conversation mini-game. Each time Larry engages in conversation with a prospective babe, the player controls a sperm-icon in a side-scrolling mini-game, in which the player must select appropriate topics of conversation while dodging “bad” markers. It's a very simple concept, but the things Larry says – both appropriate and inappropriate – are hilariously scripted and highlight how much of a lovable loser he is. The heart of Magna Cum Laude is in the comedic script, and playing it out through this mini-game provides most of the replay value. The other mini-games get repetitive, and players will probably want to speed through them just to find out what perils will befall our lovable Larry.

I should be clear: if you're looking for a porn game, this is not what you're looking for. In fact, getting laid will be the last thing Larry will ever do, considering how much of a loser he is. Some of the mini-games involve stripping and full-frontal nudity (depending on which version of the game you have), but the cartoonish models aren't really appealing to look at naked. The game is designed with a “cute” appearance, with bright colours and disproportionate character models. I reiterate: don't expect this game to be a hardcore adult game. If you expect it to be one, you'll be sorely disappointed.

Eventually, you'll find that it gets quite boring unlocking each stage of the game, and running around the brightly coloured college grounds (and the nearby streets later on) can get rather dull with little to do. The entire game is based on repeating mini-games to progress through the dating game. In many instances, progress requires you to have money to pay for items, and money is obtained by playing the same repetitive mini-games. You could do it the cheap way and use the camera and photography mini-game to rack up easy money. Either way, the concept of obtaining money is poorly implemented and is more of a hindrance to the game's flow. Performing well in the mini-games also offers you secret tokens, which can be found in various places and traded in for unlockable goods, such as new (and naughtier) loading screens and character model viewers.

I suppose the loading screens deserve a small mention, since you have to see the every ten seconds. Yeah, the real-life versions of the Magna Cum Laude girls look damn sexy, even if the in-game models don't resemble them in any way. It's a bittersweet feature: I would much prefer less loading time and more continuous gameplay. The PC version loads faster than the console versions, especially with decent specifications, but flicking between loading screens and the same cartoony quadrangle can get dull after an hour.

Perhaps the main strength of Magna Cum Laude is simply how outrageous it is. For what initially appears to be the failure story of a loser, there are a huge number of gags and twists, both in events and in characters. Larry will often break the fourth wall and talk to the “director” when complaining about his lines; some conversations branch off into using hand-puppets to sweet-talk a girl; there's an unforgettable encounter with an obese male “Porn Fairy” clad in a pink ballerina outfit; and many other memorable – and usually drop-dead hilarious – changes in the plot. As repetitive as the game is, you have to credit the developers for putting together a witty, comedic script.

Magna Cum Laude can be best described as an interactive adventure. Most of the enjoyment comes from watching how Larry copes with the unsuspecting difficulties of getting it on with a college girl, and many laughs are had when witnessing his numerous shortcomings. The scenarios Larry gets himself into are unbelievable, which makes the game that much more thrilling. It's a real shame that the mini-games slow the game down instead of getting the player more engaged with the story, and it probably won't appeal to fans of the old series. Honestly, Magna Cum Laude does not have enough “game” in it to be considered a serious purchase (assuming it isn't banned in your country); at best it plays out like an interactive story, especially with most of the development taking place in the conversation mini-game. If the game was any quicker to go through, or the mini-games more enjoyable, it would easily ramp up the replay value. Alas, Magna Cum Laude is a short-lived adventure, as short as Larry's…well, you know.

Graphics: 6/10
Sound: 4/10
Gameplay: 5/10
Replay: 5/10
Overall: 5/10

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 12/14/07

Game Release: Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude - Uncut and Uncensored (US, 10/26/04)