Edward La Barbera has created a free Game Boy JRPG based on Frasier, which you can play in your browser or download to the Analogue Pocket.
A few years ago, the artist Stephen Maurice Graham made a mock-up of a Game Boy box for a title called Frasier Fantasy. (You might recognise Graham’s work from the excellent cover art for Lost in Cult’s A Handheld History.)
The Game Boy mock-up was a brilliant thing, with a cover that mashed up Final Fantasy with the Seattle skyline from the title sequence of 1990s sitcom Frasier. The box blurb promised an adventure in a world on the brink of societal collapse following the departure of Chef Marcel from Le Cigare Volant, asking: ‘Can you find the last latte in post-apocalyptic Seattle?’
The trouble was that Game Boy box mock-up didn’t have an actual game to go with it (although you can buy a print of the artwork from Graham’s website). So coder Edward La Barbera decided to create Frasier Fantasy himself – and you can play it for free using your browser right now. There’s also the option to download the ROM code and create a cartridge that’s playable on the Game Boy Color or Analogue Pocket, for the full handheld Frasier experience.
The plot for La Barbera’s Frasier Fantasy differs from Graham’s original box blurb. The game begins with Frasier finally completing a mother-of-pearl cutlery set, and he determines to hold a dinner party to celebrate. But first, he has to persuade his father and Eddie the dog to leave the flat, as well as do his radio show. Plus, he needs to get his all-important grape scissors back from Niles.
There are some lovely nods to moments from the series, including a staring contest with Eddie the dog, and the turn-based battles feature moves like the ‘Freudian slap’. Plus the eight-bit rendition of the Frasier theme tune is absolutely superb. If you have fond memories of watching Frasier, this is a delight.
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