John Doe (dude, is that your real name?) sent me this e-mail:

Some food for thought -- related to games in general and E3, but makes a special note of adventure genre, including TLJ2. I won't explain it here, since the article is self-explanatory:

http://www.avault.com/editorials/index.asp?editorial=edit116

Read, learn, think, etc.

Read it, thought about it, etc. Did I learn anything? I'm getting old. Try teaching an old dog new tricks, and then let's talk.

Okay, so that's arrogant and flippant. I definitely see Mr. Laprad's - and John Doe's - point. However, I do have a few issues with the article, especially the claim that, with the next The Longest Journey, we're "taking a shortcut to success in an industry stricken by a lack of originality." Where did that come from? The fact that we're going from a point-and-click interface to something new, original, and (hopefully) better doesn't mean we're taking a shortcut anywhere. There are no shortcuts in this industry. And we like challenges. We want to evolve and grow - we don't want to do the exact same thing twice. And we want to make TLJ.s (notice the new abbreviation - cool, eh?) an original, challenging, mature, deep, and emotionally complex adventure game that pushes the boundaries of the genre, introduces new kinds of puzzles and interactions - and an interface that reflects the technological evolution of the target platforms - and that has the same type of mainstream appeal that the first one did. Because we were aiming for a broad "mainstream" market with that one, too. Believe it or not. We're not making any compromises to the story, the setting, the characters or the concept in order to appeal to an entirely new audience. We're continuing down the same path we started on, almost seven years ago, and the fact that the next game is not a 2D point-and-clicker has very little to do with anything. I still maintain that p&c adventures are a dying breed. I'm certain that the Syberia sequel will do well, and that there will be exceptions to the rule, but in general we'll have to get used to the fact that the interface, the visuals, even the gameplay - in adventure games - will change with the times. If they don't, the genre is dead. And there's no way that will happen, because people love adventure games...as long as they're not stuck in the past.

See? I've thought about it. It's an interesting article, but I feel their criticism of TLJ.s is unwarranted and uninformed. They don't know anything about the game, our intentions, our vision - nothing. So maybe it's a bit early to be "disappointed".

Oh, and TLJ.s is not going to be a "3D action-adventure sequel". It's not an 'action-adventure', and it's not a 'sequel'. It's the next chapter in the TLJ saga, and a game that - if you're gonna label it, and I hate labels - might be better categorised as an 'adventure-action' game. But that ain't right either. Let's just call it an adventure, for the time being. A revolutionary new 3D adventure, and the next chapter in an epic and unforgettable saga. There. I was never good with the modesty.  ¶ 19:18