Escape from Monkey Island™

NOTE: I haven't played the GOG release, so I am talking about the original CD version here. Pros: 1. Amazing Set Pieces. This game was an early 3D title whose clean art direction managed to avoid the texture-vomit style of many of its contemporaries. (It style has eye-gouging pointy polygons everywhere.) 2. Characters. It has Guybrush and Murray, two all-time classics. 3. Clever dialogue. It isn't quite as fun as the third game, but it is still funny. 4. Voice acting. All the characters have real interesting voices which add a lot to their characterization. Cons 1. Tank controls. They aren't easy to get used to. By this, I mean you move the character using arrow keys. You have to slowly spin them around to turn. It isn't fun. 2. Two tedious levels--a short maze and a series of grindy battles where you have to experiment to learn what moves beat what. You will need paper and patience, and this part sends some into a frothing rage (it didn't bother me). 3. At launch, the cutscene videos were unstable and tended to crash. That may have also just been Windows 95/98/2000, which also was unstable and tended to crash. Either way, hopefully this is fixed. At launch, this game was slightly disappointing when compared to the third game, and...fans?...are still complaining about that to this day. With hindsight, however, it is much better than average and worth playing, especially if you are a new player. Me, it is one of my all-time favorites. I don't believe the cons are worth knocking off a star, as they are mostly a product of the technological limitations of the time. Personally, I prefer it to Telltale's take on the series for its sense of fun and broader scope.

When this came out it turned me off by switching from the classic point and click system to the "new" 3D graphics. I tried to play it and I just gave up immediately from frustration. As an adult playing this game again I have become used to older graphics and different types of controls in general from playing other GOG titles. I found that this game is actually a wonderful addition to the Monkey Island series. All the things about MI that made the series great can be found in escape. If you give it a chance the controls grow on you and it becomes much easier and rewarding to play. Do not pass this up if the controls and art style have you on the fence.

For some reason this game has bad reputation. Well, it was different from the previous entries in the series, graphics were...debatable, controls were not the best, but humor, story and puzzles are more than making up for those disadvantages. Storywise this game has some of the most clever and memorable moments in the series. So if you can look past the visuals and control scheme, you definitely should check this masterpiece out.

Escape from Monkey Island is the 4th game in the critically acclaimed Monkey Island franchise. The game is arguably the worst in the franchise but it's an underrated gem which does some stuff right. Monkey Kombat is slow, tedious and dull yes and the plot twist which shall not be mentioned is absurd and out there but the game still offers the same charming characters and puzzles as the other games in the series. It's well worth checking out.

I love the Secret of Monkey Island games. They are my absolute favourite game series of all time. However I just can’t get over the controls in this game. You’ll spend most of your time running into things and get stuck in random places. The game is full of bugs and you can easily be forced to reload to an earlier save because Guybrush decides to get stuck and you’ll be unable to move. It’s frustrating. However, using a controller makes the game a bit more playable. I miss the point and click way of playing. With that said, the game is atmospheric, full of funny dialogue and lovable characters. It’s a solid Secret of Monkey Island, I just wish the controls were better.