Yar!
Prepare to set sail down under with Aussie development company Brawsome.
Captained by Andrew Goulding, the Jolly Rover expects to walk the
plank sometime in mid 2010.

Having already sharpened
his cutlass working as a contract programmer on Emerald
City Confidential and Avenue Flo, Goulding
(Scurvy Dog Andy to his shipmates) has gone the independent route
with plans to distribute via casual web portals such as Big Fish,
Steam and Greenhouse.

Jolly
Rover is a 2D, swashbuckling point-and-click comedic adventure
game in the tradition of the LucasArts and Sierra classics of yore.
It follows the adventures of young “Gaius James Rover across
three wild tropical islands as he attempts to fulfill his dream of
starting a circus, hampered only by pirates, villains, voodoo, love
and a considerable lack of loot”. While there will invariably
be comparisons to (don’t say Monkey Island,
don’t say Monkey Island, oh the hell with it…)
Monkey Island, the Jolly Rover has a leg up on that
timeless series as the characters are all dogs. Arf! I mean Arg!

The
time projected to complete this voyage is 4-8 hours with incentives
to replay the game again in order to collect optional items and unlock
additional features such as a Captain’s Bio, concept art and
director’s commentary. Marketed as an adventure game with casual
elements; such as a one click interface and in-built hint and task-tracking
system, there is also a heavy dependence on traditional adventure
elements such as dialogue trees and inventory items. And with twenty-five
animated and voiced characters, let’s hope that there is not
a mutt in the bunch.

So
batten down the hatches, raise the mizenmast and prepare to set sail
with the canine swashbucklers of the Jolly Rover. Just take care to
steer clear of (here it comes!) the poop deck.

Visit the Jolly Rover
website
for additional information and then read an interview
at Tsumea with developer Andrew Goulding.