Sierra Founders Ken And Roberta Williams Are Remaking 1976's Colossal Cave Adventure
Sierra founders Ken and Roberta Williams announced they are developing Colossal Cave 3D Adventure, a remake of the original game released way back in 1976. Not since the release of Thimbleweed Park have I been this excited for an upcoming video game. Sure, it's not going to be the next Elden Ring or anything of the sort, but for nostalgic adventure fans like myself, this is a big deal.
Ken and Roberta Williams hardly need an introduction in the gaming space, but for those who might be unaware, they're the duo who created Sierra and went on to publish iconic series and characters like King's Quest, Space Quest, Leisure Suit Larry, Quest for Glory, Police Quest, The Incredible Machine, and many more hits.
The original Colossal Cave (and all the remakes since) was not actually a Sierra title, but it's what set the wheels in motion. Developed by Will Crowther and Don Woods, the decades old game drew Roberta into the wonderful world of adventure gaming. She then approached Ken with an idea for her own game called Mystery House. It's recognized as the first graphical adventure game, it was a hit for its time, and it was the beginning of Sierra On-Line becoming a juggernaut in the gaming space.
Sierra's downfall is a tragic tale, and it seemed Ken and Roberta were finished making video games. And that's because they were, until now.
"Roberta and Ken Williams were retired for 25 years, mostly living in Mexico, playing golf, and exploring the world on their boat. In 2020 when the Covid pandemic struck, Ken and Roberta were locked down like everyone. Ken was bored and Roberta suggested he write a book about Sierra. The process of writing the book brought back long forgotten memories resulting in Ken deciding to learn Unity and deciding to make a game," a related FAQ explains.
They didn't have any interesting in starting another company, and instead were "just looking for something fun to build." Roberta had the idea to pay homage to the game that inspired Sierra and "changed our lives."
And so here we are. Colossal Cave 3D Adventure is being built with Unity. It promises a fully immersive 3D experience with over 143 locations to explore, and will release to the Quest 2, PC, and Mac. And true to old school form, there will be a boxed version (with a USB stick in the box), though those details are still being hammered out.
The game will be out sometime this fall. As of right now, there's no specific release date or info on pricing.
