Last September brought the surprise news that developer Adeline Software’s much-loved action-adventure series Little Big Adventure was being revived – some 27 years after its debut – and now original co-creator Didier Chanfray has shared a little more of his plans.
The original Little Big Adventure – an evocative blend of platforming, puzzling, and exploration that charted the story of young hero Twinsen, on the run from evil dictator Dr. FunFrock – released back in 1994 and was followed by a sequel three years later. A third instalment, set to conclude the saga, has long been discussed by the series’ creators but has so-far never arrived.
And it now appears the original story may never reach its long-awaited conclusion, with Chanfray confirming in a new blog post that his next Little Big Adventure game will be a full reboot to Twinsen’s story.
“When we started the discussion…about the new game,” Chanfray explained, “we quickly realised that the third game we initially wanted to make – the Genesis of the Stellar Entity – would be strange to make. The script was a first draft written to end the series. With the new studio, we do not want to end the series. We want to attract a wider audience and share the wonderful world, iconic characters and story with as many players as possible, so that more Twinsunian adventures can be created.”
Little Big Adventure – Official Android Trailer.
Chanfray added that while he understood some fans would be “very sad” to hear the news, “We strongly believe in a bright future for LBA and think this is the best choice to ensure this future. Our goal is that our children and grandchildren will be able to continue playing new LBA adventures in the years to come.”
Chanfray also confirmed another notable deviation from past games in the series, revealing a slight name change for the reboot, which will now be called Twinsen’s Little Big Adventure. This, he revealed, is in large part to avoid confusion with Sony’s Little Big Planet series.
“Over the years, Little Big Adventure slowly began to fade to the background,” Chanray explained. “When Playstation exclusive Little Big Planet arrived – a much bigger IP with a larger audience and fame – ‘Little Big’ became more and more associated with this IP instead of LBA. The latest release in this universe dates from November 2020 and is called Sackboy: A Big Adventure, which is one ‘Little’ away from Little Big Adventure. This makes marketing and publicity around LBA all the more challenging.”
The newly announced name chance will also be reflected in the original games, which have now been retitled Twinsen’s Little Big Adventure Classic 1 & 2 on Steam and GOG.
With a new name and a new direction now solidified, Chanfray says the steadily growing team at developer 2.21 – which lists Frédérick Ryanal (director of horror classic Alone in the Dark and co-creator of Little Big Adventure) as a member of its creative board – is aiming to complete Twinsen’s Little Big Adventure in 2024, just in time for the series’ 30th anniversary.
“We hope that you understand our decisions and will support us in our development,” he concludes. “Together we will make Twinsen big again and create wonderful adventures. Thanks for all your passion and support, it means the world to us.”
Keyword: Little Big Adventure reboot is tweaking its name in light of Little Big Planet's success