Demo cracked open for Dude, Where is my Beer: A New Hop

• Announcements by Jack Allin
• Published:

Sequel to 2020 SCUMM-styled comedy adventure coming soon to PC on Steam

Treasures can come in all shapes and sizes – and degrees of fluidity. While other adventure game protagonists may set off in search of riches or ancient artifacts, soon indie Norwegian developer Arik Zurabian will give players a second chance to pursue something a whole lot tastier and closer to home: beer. 

That's right, the "grumpy" mustachioed protagonist of the 2020 point-and-click comedy Dude, Where Is My Beer? returns in an all-new quest for the perfect pilsner in a world overrun by hipsters and their disgusting, weirdly named craft beers. This time he's in Oslo, where not only are no pubs or stores offering his beverage of choice, but "an evil Master Brewer has banned pilsner and is hunting down all who dare to drink it." The only way to defeat this nefarious villain and bring delicious pilsners back into vogue is by entering the local brewing contest. Just one problem: our clueless protagonist doesn't have a recipe or any idea how to make beer. To succeed he'll have to take a course to learn the necessary skills, as well as "gather brewing ingredients, find the right equipment, and even team up with the rebels in 'The Pilsner Front.'" (And maybe just get a little inebriated along the way.)

As with its predecessor, the new game, subtled A New Hop, is a slightly modernized version of an old-school SCUMM adventure. The graphics are hi-res and hand drawn in a fun but muted cartoon style, with lots of greys and pinks and white, but the gameplay involves selecting from nine different verbs for use in the environment. (A right-click directly on hotspots executes the most appropriate default action for each.) There will be thirty different locations to visit, from bureaucratic offices to Chinese restaurants to cooking class in the Oslo academy, as well as the bustling city streets between them, each populated by unusual characters. There will of course be plenty of items to collect and puzzles to solve – and beer to drink! (No matter how gross.) 

Yes, what makes this "point & drink adventure" different from most is the "Beer-o-meter" returning from the first game, which gauges your blood alcohol content and weaves your level of drunkenness at any given time into the  gameplay itself. Whether you're sober, tipsy, or downright sauced will "open up or close off quest options and dialogue choices" accordingly. For example, how else would a socially awkward nerd screw up the courage to talk to strangers, among other challenges that require a little liquid encouragement?" The game dutifully recommends players to drink responsibly – in real life, that is. In-game, bottom's up! Doing so may lead to "unexpected consequences" but hey, it's "just like a legendary night out with friends, full of unforgettable stories, minus the hangover!"

There is no firm target release date just yet, but for those with a thirst for adventure sooner rather than later, a playable demo of Dude, Where Is My Beer: A New Hop is available now on Steam for Windows, Mac and Linux, offering about an hour of gameplay and the first five locations in the full game. A Kickstarter is planned to help finance the full production, which you can sign up for now to be notified when the campaign goes live.