Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (in Several Wrong Places) is the second game in the Leisure Suit Larry series of video games with pictures. It was created by Al Lowe and released by Sierra On-Line in 1988. Similar to the first game in the series, Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards, it was made for several computer systems, including MS-DOS, Atari ST, and Amiga. The game uses Sierra's Creative Interpreter (SCI0) engine, which includes 16-color EGA graphics and a mouse-based interface for movement. The story follows Larry Laffer, who becomes stranded on a tropical island during an ill-fated vacation.

Gameplay

This game has a story that follows a set path, unlike the first Leisure Suit Larry game, which had a more open structure. It is similar to other Sierra adventure games, especially later versions of the King's Quest series. Players can move the character using arrow keys, a mouse, or a joystick. However, all other actions are controlled through text-based commands. Instead of exploring one city, players solve puzzles and navigate mazes. Care must be taken to collect specific items, as failing to do so may lead to situations that cannot be avoided. While there is no visible time limit, certain events require quick action to progress.

As in other Leisure Suit Larry games, the main character, Larry Laffer, interacts with female characters through on-screen portraits, though these images are smaller than in earlier games. The game penalizes Larry for flirting with any female character, which results in his death and the end of the game, a change from previous games. A feature called the "Trite Phrase" option lets players choose a phrase to repeat during the game. The default phrase is "Have a nice day."

Plot

The beginning of the game shows Larry mowing the lawn of Eve, a character from the ending of the previous game, suggesting they are still together. However, this is shown to be incorrect, as Eve arrives and barely remembers who Larry is. Larry realizes his relationship with Eve was only a short, one-time event, and he becomes upset. He later wins a lottery and a free vacation by accidentally joining a dating game show.

While preparing for his cruise, Larry accidentally finds a microfilm, which draws the attention of the KGB and a scientist named Dr. Nonookee (a play on words). Both groups want to retrieve the film. On the cruise, Larry learns the woman who chose him for the dating show brought her mother along. To avoid her, Larry stops the ship and escapes on a lifeboat. Later, he is washed ashore on a Spanish-speaking island in the Pacific. When KGB agents block his path to the airport, Larry disguises himself as a woman to pass through.

As the plane lands, Larry opens the door and escapes using a parachute, landing in the jungle of a tropical island called Nontoonyt ("None tonight"), where Dr. Nonookee has a base. After facing dangers in the jungle, Larry meets Kalalau, the daughter of Chief Keneewauwau, who explains that Dr. Nonookee is stopping a company from building a resort on the island. To marry Kalalau, Larry enters a volcano and accidentally causes Dr. Nonookee's death, freeing enslaved women, including "Polyester Patti." In the final scene, Larry marries Kalalau, is rejuvenated by a witch doctor, and shares a romantic moment with her as the volcano erupts.

Throughout the story, repeated jokes and situations, such as visiting identical barber shops in many locations, add humor. One barber shop is run by Princess Rosella from another game, King's Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella.

Development

The first sequel in the series used Sierra On-Line's new adventure game engine called Sierra's Creative Interpreter (SCI). This engine supported full 320×200 resolution, mouse control, and sound card features. The game shared the SCI0 engine with the King's Quest series and had a realistic art style, especially in the character portrait of Larry. It also included grand-adventure elements, such as settings like a cruise ship and tropical islands.

Sierra On-Line made the main character's romantic adventures less intense in the sequel. According to the series creator, Al Lowe, this change is often mentioned as a criticism of the game. It is also unique because Larry cannot interact with women until the end of the game. Because of this, the game did not include an age-verification test, though some scenes briefly show pixelated images of people without clothes. The engine also supported FM and MT-32 music.

During the game, Larry meets Rosella of Daventry, the main character from King's Quest IV. This is an example of Sierra's cross-promotion efforts, where characters from different games are connected. One of the game's final scenes features a character named Polyester Patty, who later appears in other Leisure Suit Larry games as "Passionate Patti." In this version, Patti has blonde hair, while later games show her with dark hair.

Sierra On-Line removed disk-based copy protection schemes with the SCI engine. The game includes a copy protection screen where players must enter a phone number from the manual, as shown in a picture of a woman. However, some versions of the game allow players to skip this screen by entering the number 0724. This number represents Al Lowe's birthday (July 24), which he added during testing to avoid re-entering the code each time he restarted the game.

Reception

Al Lowe stated that each game in the Leisure Suit Larry series, including Looking for Love, sold more than 250,000 copies. Sierra On-Line reported that total sales of the Larry series reached over 1.4 million units by March 1996, before the release of Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail!. By the time Love for Sail! was launched, sales of the first five Leisure Suit Larry games had exceeded 2 million copies.

The game Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (in Several Wrong Places) received mostly positive reviews when it was released. It earned scores of 9/10 from Commodore User and 90% from Computer & Video Games. A 1994 re-release by Kixx gave the Amiga version a score of 84%.

Bob Guerra of Compute! wrote in a review that the game was a "terrific sequel to one of the best adventure games ever written" and that it was "thoroughly entertaining from beginning to end." He noted that the story was "as interesting as anything you're likely to find on network television" and "less predictable." The magazine praised the game's graphics and story details, saying they "create the illusion that you're peeking into a" living world. In 2000, Zack Howe of Adventure Classic Gaming said the game "may not be the best in the Leisure Suit Larry series, but it is still a humorous and entertaining title to play."

In 1991, PC Format listed the first three Leisure Suit Larry games among the 50 best computer games of all time. The editors wrote, "The three Larry games so far reach new levels in computer entertainment—they're blunt, suggestive, full of hints and double meanings, and designed to appeal to the more mischievous sides of human nature—you'll love 'em."