Return to Monkey Island

It was pleasantly refreshing to see a return to 2D point-and-click and the new art style worked fine. The puzzles had a nice range, from pretty easy to tricky enough that you might get stuck on a couple for a while- though I never had to consult the built-in hint book, just slept on it and came back with a rested mind, after which the solutions presented themselves. The trivia cards are a nice little side activity to stretch out the game a bit, and there's plenty of nostalgia, nods to continuity, and revisiting old familiar locations and characters without that being the entirety of the game. There's some good funny bits on par with the classic games of the series. It's a fun ride, and feels pretty much like what you'd expect from a Monkey Island title. I'm knocking off a star for two reasons. One, the achievements are completely buggy and during my whole playthrough I only got five or six of them, seemingly at random- this is a problem I haven't had with any other GOG games that feature achievements, and there doesn't seem to be any solution or attention paid to this issue. I probably would have gotten the Steam version if I'd known this would be a thing, as I'm a completionist and it's really annoying. I'd rather have no achievements in the GOG version than broken ones. Second, the ending. I won't post any spoilers, but it's certainly controversial, sending some people into a frothing rage and getting a shrug from others. I didn't absolutely hate it but it definitely wasn't satisfying. I could sort of see what they were going for, and the entire game has some deeper messages it seems to want to convey, hinting at the experience of growing old, the questionable morals of being a quest-obsessed adventure game protagonist, and whether the Secret is really worth the effort and risk, but in the end it's all a bit muddled and seems like it could have been handled better. It doesn't feel like a proper conclusion to the series, but it's still an enjoyable game over all.

For background, I love most classic Lucasarts and Sierra adventure games (I grew up with them) so I got very excited when I heard of Return to Monkey Island. After finishing the game, I'm happy and sad and somewhat disappointed at the same time. The story kept me playing, the dialogue is funny and the puzzles are pretty decent, if a tad on the easy side. I wish the game used a more classic UI - if not the old Lucasarts 9 verb UI, then maybe the simpler Sierra UI. The art style is an acquired taste - it's good but I never got used to how Guybrush looks. I really wish the art style was closer to either LeChuck's Revenge or Curse of Monkey Island. The trivia section is cool and the scrapbook is great but I don't think the ending will make sense to anyone who didn't grow up with these games. (In my twenties I probably would've called the ending stupid and awful but now I understand why it is the way it is.) I feel like the 1-star reviews don't consider how hard it is to come up with a story for a sequel that has to live up to that magical feeling that the first 3 games in the series were. I think Ron Gilbert did well on this one - while the ending is slightly disappointing, because it's so final, it's also charming. I kept changing my mind about giving 4 or 5 stars - I decided to give 5: the game is entertaining and I recommend it but I'm not sure it's really for new players. Make sure you play at least the first 3 games in the series before you start this one.

If you know what the Secret of Melee Island is, and how you can spit further then anybody else, don't hesitate and set sail to visit some old friends!

Having played the original monkey island as a kid it's great to see a new entry in the series be so well done.

THANKS FOR BRINGING IT BACK FROM THE PAST IN SUCH A GOOD GAME!