by
Evan Norris
, posted 18 hours ago / 1,916 Views
Audi Sorlie isn’t a household name, but in the corner of the video game market dedicated to the mascot platformer Bubsy he’s kind of a big deal. Indeed, it would be hard to find a more dedicated, knowledgeable Bubsy expert working in the industry today. Last week at PAX East in Boston, I was fortunate to spend some time with Sorlie, chatting about his history with the IP, exploring his career in video games, and digging into the upcoming compilation Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection, in which he played a pivotal part.
A reserved kid growing up in Oslo, Sorlie instantly gravitated toward Bubsy, the talkative, self-confident bobcat, when he first encountered him in the early 90s. “I was a shy, very quiet Norwegian kid, and this was a very outgoing, extroverted, exciting Saturday morning cartoon character,” he explained. “So for me, he was someone that I looked a bit up to…I felt like I wanted to be more like him.”
Sorlie joined the video game industry in 2001, taking with him his affinity for Bubsy. Many years later, in 2019, during an especially difficult period in his life, he seriously considered quitting video games for good. That’s when Digital Foundry’s John Linneman approached him and suggested a collaboration to lift his spirits. That collaboration became DF’s Bubsy documentary, which introduced the bobcat braggart to a brand new audience (Sorlie went on to become an official member of Digital Foundry). “I went to GDC, I remember, a week after that video came out,” said Sorlie. “And people would come up to me and be like, ‘You know, that game meant a lot to me. And that documentary really made me think about things, and I really appreciated it.'”
“Because of that positivity and through that acknowledgement from the fans,” Sorlie continued, “I decided to stay in the video game industry. So, in a strange way, Bubsy saved my life.”
Now, six years later, Sorlie is returning the favor with Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection, a compilation that includes several Bubsy titles (and variants) from the SNES, Genesis, Game Boy, Jaguar, and PlayStation eras. Developed by Limited Run Games, in partnership with Atari, which now owns the IP, the collection promises to reflect Sorlie’s sincerity when it comes to the platforming franchise. “We do not want to meme this up,” said Sorlie. “We don’t want to mock this. This is a character that means something to video game history. What it means to different people, we can’t say. But we would like to find out.”
Not only does The Purrfect Collection pledge to be sincere; it also insists on telling a comprehensive, transparent history of the series, including all its ups and downs. “The way I look at it,” Sorlie noted, “these [collections] are basically interactive museum pieces. They’re not just software, but they’re also very much a way to preserve gaming history and give full context.” That means video interviews, design documents, and other items yet to be revealed. The idea is to place the character of Bubsy in the proper historical context, in terms of game development, marketing, and the reactions from fans.
The most important thing about a collection is the games, however. During my time at PAX East, Sorlie walked me through two titles: the original Bubsy on SNES (his personal favorite) and the now infamous Bubsy 3D, the franchise’s first foray into three dimensions. Each game in the anthology will feature the quality-of-life features common to Limited Run’s Carbon Engine, including rewind, save states, screen & filter options, and even an optional “boost mode” that overclocks the system slightly to remove slowdown.
The premier Bubsy game was certainly a highlight. I got the sense that some of the later franchise entries would be more interesting for long-time fans or from a detached, historical perspective, but that the original game would be the most likely to win over some converts. The graphics are bright and bombastic, the animations are detailed, and the level designs are refreshingly open-ended for a fourth-gen platformer. It seems to operate in a middle ground, in terms of momentum and verticality, between Super Mario World and Sonic the Hedgehog.
As for Bubsy 3D, which has become something of a punchline over the last few years, it’s a very interesting experiment, albeit one that can be clumsy, confusing, and punishing. Sorlie, a self-described defender of the game, insisted it’s not all negative: “I do think this is another game that, if you play it in this collection and get it in the proper world, you at least come away with the impression that this is not as bad as people made it out to be.”
Even Sorlie, though, would probably agree that Bubsy 3D was something of a low point for the series. The Purrfect Collection, conversely, might just be its high point, thanks to several titles and game variants, a host of bonus archival materials, and lots of quality-of-life adjustments. After changing hands multiple times over the preceding decades, the IP now rests with Atari, which has placed its trust in Limited Run’s Carbon Engine and its faith in Audi Sorlie’s genuine, unironic love for the property. “It’s been one of the greatest pleasures I’ve had in my 20-year history to work with [Atari], because they understand the sincerity,” he said. “They came back with that same sincerity while working on this. And it’s been one of the best collaborations I’ve ever had.”
He concluded, “Bubsy is still bringing people together, inside and outside of the industry.”
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