We're awfully sorry. Somehow the news that a new James Pond game is looking for funding on Kickstarter slipped through our nets and wiggled away.
Anyway, the campaign is still on going and could use a bit of help (only £14,000 of the £100,000 target achieved in six days with 23 remaining). Original designer of James Pond 1-3 Chris Sorrell is on board to help current right holders Gameware Europe with development and concepting.
Sorrell describes the concept for the latest Kickstarter update:
"After the dramatic events of James Pond 2: Codename Robocod, Santa moved his toy production to a brand new, high security facility. His original factory stood abandoned, gradually falling into darkness and decay. Twenty years later the stories began. ...Stories of strange sounds coming from the derelict facility at night. ...Stories of missing toys. ...Stories of missing penguins. ...Stories that pretty soon reached the ever alert ears of crack underwater intelligence agency FI5H...
Special Agent James Pond is one week away from retirement. His legendary missions have taken him to the moon and back, have seen him mature from fresh faced guppy into grizzled super-agent. Now he is called upon for one last job: to return to the Arctic, back to the site of his most high profile case. His mission: learn the secrets of the shadowy factory and recover the missing penguins. This is -
James Pond: Terror Fin
Equipped with a full arsenal of tactical toys: the latest revision robo-suit, rail-boots, and bubble gun, Pond will explore the crumbling toy facility. He will find himself trapped in the domain of the Lost Toys. One by one he will face these crazed, broken play things and the bloodthirsty creatures pulling their strings. He will uncover a dastardly plot like nothing he has seen before, and at the heart of it all a familiar yet altogether changed foe from his own past."
Anyway, if you have as fond memories of Mr. Pond as we do you may want to head over to Kickstarter and consider backing it. The game is targeted for release on PC and Mac, but further funding could see it arrive on a wide range of consoles and handhelds.