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Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (in Several Wrong Places)

Last updated: January 21, 2026

Overview

Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (in Several Wrong Places) is the second game in Al Lowe’s landmark comedy adventure series, released by Sierra On-Line in October 1988.1 The sequel marked a significant technical leap forward, being one of the first games to utilize Sierra’s new Creative Interpreter (SCI) engine, which introduced full-screen graphics, mouse control for movement, and support for sound cards—features that would define Sierra’s adventure games throughout the early 1990s.2 “For better or worse, Larry Laffer is among the most recognized cult heroes in adventure games,” noted Adventure Classic Gaming’s retrospective review.3

Unlike its predecessor, which faced retailer resistance due to its perceived adult content, the sequel deliberately toned down the sexual humor in favor of a more elaborate plot involving espionage, tropical islands, and globe-trotting adventure.4 This shift was a direct response to commercial pressures—“A Leisure Suit Larry sequel was not always a sure thing… Setting aside the fact that a number of retailers refused to sell the game based on its perceived content, initial sales were some of the lowest in Sierra’s history.”5 The gamble paid off: the game eventually sold over 250,000 copies and helped establish the series as a commercial powerhouse.6

The game is three times longer than the original, featuring approximately 75 unique locations compared to the first game’s more modest scope.37 However, this expansion came with a controversial design decision: the game actively punishes Larry for flirting with any woman he meets, invariably leading to his violent death—a marked departure from the series’ central premise.8 “This lack of Leisure Suit Larry’s trademark humor was an oft-cited criticism of the game and the series returned to its original formula in all later games.”9

Story Summary

The game opens with Larry Laffer discovering that his romantic triumph from the first game was nothing more than a fleeting encounter. “We find our hero, Larry Laffer, mowing Eve’s lawn (not like that!) as Eve pulls up and screams at Larry to leave (and that, what he thought was true love, turns out to only be a one night stand – one, that Eve barely even remembers!)”10 Cast out into the streets of Los Angeles, penniless and womanless, Larry’s luck suddenly takes an unexpected turn.11

After being dumped by Eve, Larry finds his fortune steadily improving as he wins the lottery, a blind date contest, and a vacation on a cruise ship.12 However, Larry unwittingly becomes entangled in international intrigue when he accidentally comes into possession of a Peruvian “onklunk”—a mysterious instrument containing microfilm sought by KGB agents.13 The language barrier between Larry and the woman at the music store means he has no idea of the significance of what he’s carrying or that he’s being pursued by dangerous operatives.14

The adventure takes Larry from Los Angeles to a luxury cruise liner, through a tropical resort, and ultimately to the volcanic island lair of the villainous Dr. Nonookee—whose name is itself a pun on “no nookie,” reflecting Larry’s perpetual romantic misfortune.15 Along the way, Larry encounters numerous femme fatales, all of whom are either undercover agents wanting his microfiche, secretly want him dead for wacky reasons, or will inevitably lead him to some sort of fatal hijinx.7 Unlike the first game where the objective was straightforward—get Larry laid—here “Larry has absolutely no idea what is happening” as the plot unfolds around him.14

The story culminates with Larry rescuing a young woman named Kalalau (later known as “Polyester Patti,” who would become “Passionate Patti” in subsequent games) from Dr. Nonookee’s clutches.9 Interestingly, Patti appears as a blonde in this game but would become dark-haired in future installments.9 The evil doctor and his volcanic lair are direct parodies of James Bond films, particularly Dr. No and You Only Live Twice.15

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

The game utilizes Sierra’s newly developed SCI0 engine, representing a significant advancement over the AGI engine used in the original game.2 “LSL2 is more advanced than the original, due to the use of Sierra’s new SCI engine which boasts a higher resolution, fancier graphics, mouse support, and support for common sound cards of the time.”14 Players control Larry using a mouse-based interface for movement while retaining the text parser for interactions and commands.16

The technical presentation runs at 320x200 resolution in 16-color EGA graphics, a notable improvement over the original’s more limited visuals.2 “Larry now consists of at least eight pixels,” joked one reviewer about the graphical upgrade.17 The game was among the first to support FM synthesis and Roland MT-32 sound cards, with Al Lowe composing the soundtrack himself.18

Structure and Progression

Unlike the original’s more open-ended design, the sequel follows a linear story progression similar to Sierra’s other adventure games, particularly later entries in the King’s Quest series.8 The game takes Larry through several distinct areas:

  • Los Angeles: Larry’s starting point, featuring familiar locations like the Quikie Mart and music store where the fateful onklunk is obtained
  • Cruise Ship: A luxury liner where Larry must navigate social situations and avoid deadly women
  • Tropical Resort: Features a vegetation maze containing a peacock from King’s Quest IV’s Genesta’s island15
  • Airport: Where Princess Rosella from King’s Quest IV appears as a barbershop attendant in a cross-promotional cameo15
  • Airplane: Larry encounters Ken from Lefty’s Bar and a chatterer barber who parodies Sierra CEO Ken Williams19
  • Nontoonyt Island: Dr. Nonookee’s secret volcanic base and the game’s climax13

Puzzles and Mechanics

There are fewer puzzles in this installment than in the previous game; however, the number of ways to die has increased dramatically, with danger awaiting Larry in most places he visits.16 A YouTube compilation of death scenes reportedly runs approximately 40 minutes.7 The game’s inventory system is accessed via Ctrl+I, and points are awarded for completing puzzles and discovering secrets, with rank changes occurring at score milestones.20

The game features numerous dead-end situations where players can become stuck without notification if they forget to perform certain actions before proceeding to the next location.21 “Having unintuitive puzzles, dead ends and repeated game overs are just staples of these early Sierra Online games,” observed one modern reviewer.2 Al Lowe’s own advice, printed in the official book, was simply: “Save early and often!”22

One notable gameplay quirk involves the text parser—“The clever and often funny parser responses are also probably the only parts of the game that have aged gracefully.”5 Typing certain commands yields humorous responses, such as the game’s reaction to inappropriate suggestions: “The whole idea was to stop doing that, Larry!”23

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

The game received strong reviews upon release, with critics praising its expanded scope and improved technology. Bob Guerra of Compute! called it a “terrific sequel to one of the best adventure games ever written” and found it “thoroughly entertaining from beginning to end. The story is as interesting as anything you’re likely to find on network television, and less predictable to boot.”6

Commodore User awarded the game 9 out of 10, describing it as “Not only an adventure, but a complete entertainment package.”24 Computer and Video Games gave it 90%, calling it “A superb piece of all-round entertainment, particularly, but not exclusively, suited to adventure players.”24 PC Format noted that “The three Larry games so far plumb new depths in computer entertainment — they’re crude, suggestive, full of innuendo and double entendres and designed to appeal to the worst aspects of human nature — you’ll love ‘em.”6

Amiga Action awarded 74% in March 1990, while CU Amiga Magazine gave it 84% in a retrospective review in April 1994.6

Modern Assessment

Modern critics have been more mixed in their assessment, particularly regarding the toned-down humor. Adventure Classic Gaming’s Zack Howe concluded that while it “may not be the best game in the Leisure Suit Larry series, it is still a humorous and an entertaining title to play,” awarding it 3 out of 5 overall with 4 out of 5 for gameplay.3 GameFAQs user Syrain gave it 7/10, calling it “Better, Longer and Funnier than the first.”17

A 2023 retrospective awarded the game 64%, praising its technical improvements but criticizing its “frustratingly vague puzzles” and design requiring exact character positioning for interactions.2 “The biggest problem with this game is WHY is Larry doing any of the things he is doing? In the first game, the objective was simple: get Larry laid. All the actions & jokes stemmed from that. In this game, Larry has no idea what is happening.”14

Aggregate Scores:

  • MobyGames Critics: 77%1
  • IMDB: 7.2/10 (147 ratings)25
  • MyAbandonware Users: 4.71/5 (52 votes)26
  • Steam User Reviews: 65% positive (126 reviews)27
  • Power Play (1990): #3 Best Adventure of 19891

Development

Origins

The existence of a sequel was far from guaranteed. The original Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards faced significant challenges at retail—“a number of retailers refused to sell the game based on its perceived content” and “initial sales were some of the lowest in Sierra’s history.”5 The game sold only 4,000 copies in its first month, growing significantly only after word of mouth spread.23 Remarkably, Sierra sold more hint books than actual games due to rampant piracy.23

Al Lowe faced pressure to clean up Larry’s act for the sequel. “After the original was claimed to be too dirty by some, Al Lowe decided to make Larry go looking for true love, as opposed to cheap sex (as stated in the manual of the collection).”28 Ironically, the same retailers who complained the first game was “Too dirty” later complained that this one was “Too clean.”26

Production

Development utilized Sierra’s groundbreaking new SCI engine, making this one of the earliest titles to showcase its capabilities.7 The game spanned six floppy disks—a significant expansion from its predecessor.29 Al Lowe served as designer, programmer, and composer, handling the music using Roland MT-32 support with Sound Canvas enhancements.18

The game’s copy protection system was innovative for its time. “In Larry 2 we tried something a little different from our original protection of requiring a distribution disk,” Al Lowe explained. “We included the pictures of girls from Larry’s ‘little black book.’ The game shows you one when it starts up, and you enable play by completing her phone number. The pictures, by the way, are intentionally bad in the book so that they can’t be Xeroxed easily.”3

One unexpected result of the development cycle was Josh Mandel’s hiring by Sierra—he won Sierra’s CompuServe “Trite Phrase” competition with the entry “Do you want fries with that?” and was subsequently brought on staff.1

Development Credits:124

  • Designer/Director/Writer: Al Lowe
  • Composer: Al Lowe
  • Additional Music: Mark Seibert
  • Artists: Bonnie Borucki, Douglas Herring
  • Programmers: Robert W. Lindsley, Dan Foy, Jim Heintz, Bill Skirvin
  • Additional Design: Pablo Ghenis, Stuart Goldstein30

Technical Achievements

The game represented a significant technical leap for Sierra. It was the first Larry game to support sound cards including AdLib, Roland MT-32, and the Game Blaster.1 The SCI engine enabled 320x200 resolution graphics and full mouse support for navigation, though the text parser remained for commands.2

The game’s 75 unique locations nearly doubled the content of its predecessor.7 However, Al Lowe admitted that deadline pressures forced compromises—“Originally intended more player control at climax but deadline forced ‘auto pilot’ ending.”1 He later acknowledged he “ran out of time and floppy space, making final area a non-interactive cut scene.”29

Technical Specifications

MS-DOS Version:27

  • Resolution: 320x200, 16 colors (EGA)
  • Audio: PC Speaker, AdLib, Roland MT-32, Game Blaster
  • Media: Six 3.5” or 5.25” floppy disks
  • Video Modes Supported: Hercules, Tandy/PCjr, CGA, EGA (MCGA/VGA in 16-color compatibility mode)31

2017 Steam Re-release:27

  • Minimum OS: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8 / 10
  • Processor: 1.8 GHz
  • Memory: 512 MB RAM (1 GB recommended)
  • Graphics: DirectX 7 compatible (DirectX 9 recommended)
  • Storage: 50 MB

Cut Content

The game’s ending was originally planned to give players more control during the climactic sequences, but shipping deadlines forced Al Lowe to implement an “auto pilot” ending with minimal interactivity.1 The time and floppy disk space constraints meant the final area became largely a non-interactive cutscene.29

Version History

VersionDatePlatformNotes
1.000.011October 27, 1988DOSInitial disk release; birthday cheat does not work32
1.002.0001988DOSLater floppy release; birthday cheat functional32
1.21989Amiga/Atari STPlatform ports1
Collection1994DOS/WindowsIncluded in Greatest Hits and Misses33
Collection1997DOS/WindowsLeisure Suit Larry Collection Series34
SteamDecember 18, 2017WindowsDigital re-release via Assemble Entertainment27

SCI Interpreter Versions:31

Game VersionInterpreterNotes
1.000.011SCI0Initial release
1.002.000SCI0Updated release with cheat fix

Technical Issues

The game shipped with a notorious parser bug that still generates support emails decades later. “The day before the game shipped, the system programmer in charge of ‘the parser’ fixed a bug that I’d been complaining about for days. He assured me he changed nothing else. I foolishly added the new code to the game,” Al Lowe explained. The bug causes commands like “PUT BAG BOTTLE” to fail because the parser incorrectly treats “bag” as a verb rather than a noun—players must type “PUT THE BAG IN BOTTLE” instead.32 “16 years later, I’m still answering emails about a bug I swear I didn’t create!”32

Other documented issues include:

  • 48/get error: Game locks up after using menu more than 20 times35
  • Fart lockup: “This problem arises from not eating enough bean dip. Restore a previous saved game before the bean dip, and click on the bean dip three separate times, then Larry’s fart won’t lock up the system.”35
  • Balcony lockup: Sound card conflict causing freeze35
  • Dead-end situations: Player can become permanently stuck if they forget certain items before proceeding21

Al Lowe ruefully notes that modern technical support offers no help: “Once upon a time you could have phoned Sierra’s technical support staff if you had trouble with a game. Now, Vivendi Games’ tech desk will just laugh at you if you need help with anything before Magna Cum Laude.”35

Easter Eggs and Trivia

The game is packed with references to other Sierra games and inside jokes:

  • Copy Protection Bypass: Entering 0724 (Al Lowe’s birthday, July 24th) skips the copy protection and activates a cheat mode in later versions1731
  • Boss Key: Pressing Ctrl-B makes Larry disappear—a “panic button” for players caught gaming at work3
  • Police Quest Reference: Looking through a fence hole at the Quikie Mart shows people playing Police Quest15
  • Space Quest IV Reference: One background is described as looking like it belongs in Space Quest IV12
  • King’s Quest IV Cameos: Princess Rosella appears as a barbershop attendant at the airport; a peacock from Genesta’s island appears in the resort maze15
  • Ken Williams Parodies: The chatterer barber on the airplane and Chief Keneewauwau of Nontoonyt Island are both parodies of Sierra’s CEO19
  • Programmer Joke: If Larry makes it with Maria the maid, her brother Carlos arrives and shoots him—an inside joke about programmer Carlos Escobar15
  • “Hairy Reams” Salon: A reference to adult film star Harry Reems15
  • Recurring Barbershop: The same barbershop appears in every area as a running gag29
  • Goldfinger Homage: If Larry follows Dr. Nonookee’s henchwomen, he ends up tied to a table and cut in half by a laser beam15
  • Original Larry Alley: One location “looks exactly like the alley from the original Leisure Suit Larry game”12
  • Tribal Programming Test: Larry’s initiation test uses partially disassembled 8088 code from MS-DOS 3.3 COMMAND.COM1

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

Despite initial struggles at retail due to its predecessor’s controversial reputation, the game eventually sold over 250,000 copies.6 The entire Larry series surpassed 1.4 million units by March 1996, and the first five Larry games exceeded 2 million copies by the launch of Love for Sail!6 The game “became a commercial success several months later and was widely pirated.”7

Collections

The game has been included in numerous compilation releases:

  • Leisure Suit Larry’s Greatest Hits and Misses (1994): Included alongside Larry 1-3, 5-6, plus bonus content including The Laffer Utilities, Larry’s Casino, and video interviews with Al Lowe33
  • Leisure Suit Larry Collection Series (1997): Five-game compilation with Larry 1 VGA remake34
  • Leisure Suit Larry Collection (2006): Windows compilation released by Sierra Entertainment36
  • Steam Release (December 2017): Digital distribution by Assemble Entertainment27

Fan Projects

The game maintains an active speedrunning community, with the current Any% record standing at 22 minutes 22 seconds held by swimfan.37 The leaderboard shows 15 total runs by 7 players across MS-DOS and Amiga platforms, with ScummVM being the most popular emulation method.38

  • Larry’s Little Black Book: Included with the game as copy protection; featured intentionally low-quality photos of women with phone numbers to be referenced during startup3
  • The Official Book of Leisure Suit Larry: Contains Al Lowe’s advice including the famous “Save early and often!” guidance22
  • Game Manual: Eight-page instruction booklet covering interface, commands, and gameplay basics39

Critical Perspective

Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love represents a fascinating inflection point in Sierra’s history and the adventure game genre. It showcased the company’s technical ambitions with the new SCI engine while attempting to navigate the commercial realities of retail distribution in the late 1980s. The deliberate toning down of sexual content—which ironically left some retailers still dissatisfied—demonstrates the difficult balance developers faced when creating mature-themed content for a market still finding its identity.

The game’s emphasis on linear storytelling and elaborate plot over the original’s more open-ended structure anticipated trends that would come to define narrative adventure games. However, the departure from the series’ core appeal—Larry’s hapless romantic pursuits—created a tonal mismatch that subsequent games would correct. “While the first game in the series was full of adult humour and jokes, Leisure Suit Larry 2 features less of an adult theme and more of an excellent plot,” observed one walkthrough author, capturing both the game’s strength and the source of fan criticism.12

“This commitment to the ‘you can never have enough jokes’ school of comedy is one of the hallmarks of the Leisure Suit Larry series,” noted IGN’s retrospective, and while this entry may have fewer of Larry’s trademark risqué gags, the game’s parser responses and environmental humor maintain the series’ comedic sensibility.5 For historians of adventure gaming, the game serves as a crucial document of Sierra’s technical evolution and the industry’s ongoing negotiation between creative ambition and commercial viability.

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

  • Steam – No longer available in Steam store27

Download / Preservation

Manuals & Extras

Series Continuity

Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love directly continues from the ending of the original game, with Larry’s romantic conquest Eve unceremoniously dumping him in the opening scene. The game introduces several elements that would carry forward in the series, most notably the character of Kalalau/Polyester Patti, who would later become the beloved Passionate Patti in subsequent installments.9 The bronze plaque mentioned in Leisure Suit Larry 3 commemorates Larry’s heroic defeat of Dr. Nonookee.15

The game also established the series’ tradition of inter-game references, with Police Quest 2 featuring a return cameo where Larry mentions he’s “starring in a new movie called ‘Looking for Love In Several Wrong Places.‘”15 Items from this game are referenced in later Sierra titles, including Quest for Glory I (the Peruvian onklunk) and Quest for Glory III (a bowl of spinach dip).15

References

Footnotes

  1. MobyGames – Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love – ratings, credits, releases, trivia, awards ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14

  2. Alex Bevilacqua Blog – Retrospective Review – engine details, platforms, modern critique ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  3. Adventure Classic Gaming – Review – copy protection details, ratings, Al Lowe quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  4. MyAbandonware – User Reviews – retailer complaints, development context ↩

  5. IGN – Revisiting Leisure Suit Larry – sales history, development origins, parser analysis ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  6. Wikipedia – Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love – contemporary reviews, sales data, ratings ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  7. Last Day Deaf – Retrospective – location count, death compilation, commercial success ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  8. ClassicReload – Game Page – linear progression, death penalty mechanics ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. Sierra Chest – General Information – criticism of toned-down humor, Patti character details ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  10. LarryLaffer.net – LSL2 General – opening plot summary ↩

  11. Internet Archive – MS-DOS Version – release date, platforms, basic description ↩ ↩2

  12. IGN – Walkthrough – plot summary, Easter egg descriptions ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  13. SierraGamers – LSL2 Page – KGB plot, Dr. Nonookee storyline ↩ ↩2

  14. MobyGames – User Reviews – plot criticism, engine comparison quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  15. IMDB – Movie Connections – Easter eggs, cameos, parody references ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  16. PlayClassic Games – Game Description – puzzle count, death frequency ↩ ↩2

  17. GameFAQs – Syrain Walkthrough – user review, cheat codes, graphics humor ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  18. Quest Studios – Soundtrack – Roland MT-32 music details ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  19. IMDB – Trivia – Ken Williams parodies, character details ↩ ↩2

  20. SuperCheats – Walkthrough – control scheme, scoring system ↩

  21. MobyGames – Bugs – dead-end situations ↩ ↩2

  22. GameFAQs – FastaKilla Walkthrough – Al Lowe save advice quote ↩ ↩2

  23. MobyGames – Land of the Lounge Lizards – first game sales, piracy, parser responses ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  24. Every Game Going – Amiga Version – UK release, credits, review excerpts ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  25. IMDB – Main Page – user rating, vote count ↩

  26. MyAbandonware – Game Page – user ratings, version history, trivia ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  27. Steam Store – Dutch Page – 2017 re-release, system requirements, user reviews ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  28. SuperCheats – FAQ – Al Lowe design decision quote ↩

  29. Just Games Retro – Review – floppy count, cut content, Easter eggs ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  30. RetroGames.cz – Game Page – additional designer credits ↩

  31. PCGamingWiki – LSL2 – video modes, copy protection bypass, technical details ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  32. Al Lowe Official Site – Clues and Cheats – parser bug explanation, version differences ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  33. Internet Archive – Greatest Hits and Misses – compilation contents, bonus materials ↩ ↩2

  34. MobyGames – Collection Series – 1997 compilation details ↩ ↩2

  35. Al Lowe Official Site – Troubleshooting – technical bugs, support quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  36. MobyGames – 2006 Collection – later compilation release ↩

  37. Speedrun.com – Leaderboard – current records, runner statistics ↩

  38. Speedrun.com – BillBull Run – speedrun community details ↩

  39. Internet Archive – Manual – manual metadata ↩ ↩2

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