A new documentary is in the works that aims to tell the story of SCUMM, the legendary game engine that powered some of the greatest point-and-click classics of all time.
Passport To Adventure: The SCUMM Story is the latest project from the team behind Terrorbytes: The Evolution of Video Game Horror (such as writer/director Richard Moss and producer Daniel Richardson), and is set to be a three-hour journey through Lucasfilm Games' library of classic titles that used the Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion. This includes unforgettable adventure games like Maniac Mansion, The Secret of Monkey Island, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, Day of the Tentacle, and Sam & Max: Hit the Road.
As was the case with their previous documentary, Terrorbytes, the filmmakers have announced plans to secure interviews with a bunch of important ex-Lucasfilm Games employees.
So far, the Monkey Island & SCUMM creator Ron Gilbert has already been announced, alongside Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders creator David Fox. This is in addition to the SCUMM University graduate and Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge programmer Tami Borowick, the Monkey Island EGA background artist Mark Ferrari, and the SCUMM programmer Aric Wilmunder (affectionately known as the SCUMM Lord). Even more names are also expected to be announced as production continues.
Of course, one of the biggest issues the filmmakers will likely face with this project is that several of these games have already been talked about to death. Monkey Island, for example, has had many Making Of features over the years, as well as a few different YouTube documentaries from the likes of onaretrotip and NoClip. Therefore, we expect it will be hard to dig up a lot of new info we haven't previously heard elsewhere.
Nevertheless, Moss seems up for the challenge, mentioning in a recent interview with BBC journalist and adventure game fan Laura Cressup that one potential avenue of exploration could be to check out some of the lesser-known ports of these games, to see how SCUMM was configured, and how content was changed to work on other platforms. This is something we know from personal experience is a fascinating rabbit hole to go down, and would definitely set it apart from what's come before.
The filmmakers are currently encouraging anyone interested in the doc to sign up for its waiting list, over on its website, which is also where you'll find fresh updates and information as new collaborators are announced. We'll also endeavour to keep you updated once there is more news to share.