Return to Monkey Island

REVIEW: PART 1 - I came away from this game thinking "Be careful what you wish for". For 3 decades, Ron Gilbert had talked about how he had a vision for a third game in the series and how there was a Secret to be discovered, that nobody had ever guessed the answer to. Turns out that Gilbert had absolutely no vision, as the entire game is disjointed and slapdash. As for the "Secret"; it's literally the same secret that was revealed at the end of Monkey Island 2. As for the game itself... POSITIVES: * The voice acting is generally very good throughout (although the new voice actor for LeChuck is very poor and sounds more like Mr. Krabs from Spongebob Squarepants, than he does a fearsome pirate). * The soundtrack is... fine. It's not up to snuff with the previous games' soundtracks, but it's fine. Only 1, maybe 2, memorable tracks throughout the entire game though. ------------------------------------------------------- NEGATIVES: * A hideous, cheap looking art style which resembles a naff flash game for iOS (right down to skeletal rigged animation). * Terrible puzzle design, which is insultingly easy, even on "hard" mode. Also, the puzzles are creatively bankrupt and tediously repetitive. I mean, how many puzzles were solved by using your dagger on an object or looking up a safe's code?! * Dreadful story which goes absolutely nowhere. You'll have forgotten most of it within a day or two of finishing the game (and because the game is so easy, that'll be the day you purchased it, most likely). * Eye rolling 'member berries throughout the game. There's even an entire museum devoted to Guybrush's past adventures. If you're one of those people who thinks that Ready Player One is a great movie because you recognised things in it, then maybe you'll get a kick out of this game. I certainly didn't though.

Having seen (and being a fan of) all of the original graphical adventures especially Lucas Arts I have been a fan of the Monkey Island series. Sometimes change is good and as the technology and graphics improve, you would hope that they all enhance the overall game. However, I am not a fan of the art style that this game has moved towards. The humor is really hit and miss and mostly miss unfortunately. I have always loved these games and (Day of the Tentacle has to be one of the funniest games I have ever played) the MI series have always had quirky humor but I did not get it in this game. If you have played any of the previous MI games as I am sure most of us have, it does not fit in all. It is disjointed, the endings are unsatisfying and fail to resolve that which has happened in the previous games. It has been a wasted opportunity and is a disappointing addition to the Monkey Island franchise.

Also the story is grade-school level.

Played one and two as a teenager, those were and are still among my all time favorites ... this one i'd rather forget it was ever made.

Gibert's tirade when people pointed out the horrible art style convinced me to not buy unless I could get a deep discount. Thankfully, I got a Gamepass sub for Christmas, and was able to play this. Would sooner recommend Kane & Lynch 2. Gilbert still isn't a very good writer. (MI3 is the best of the series in my opinion, followed by the Telltale series, and then ME4.)