The legendary series returns from Davy Jones' locker and onto your screen with lush 3D environments, rip-roaring humour, and Guybrush Threepwood himself!
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I'm gonna have a 3 way with Elaine and Morgan.
Better than Escape (not a hard thing to do, to be honest), not as good as Curse, leagues below 1, 2, and Return...
It was better than I expected it to be, and it had some great character moments (this is easily the most Elaine has been in one of these games, which for me is a plus), but, man, you know what? I don't know that I ever need to play it again, at least not for a while
It was better than I expected it to be, and it had some great character moments (this is easily the most Elaine has been in one of these games, which for me is a plus), but, man, you know what? I don't know that I ever need to play it again, at least not for a while
It can't match the classic titles for lovability, but it does lovingly reference its source materials with great writing and it actually has an exciting finish come the final episode.
A short and charming story adventure game. I haven’t played the first games, so I don’t know much about the characters, game world, or overall story. However I still enjoyed my time with the game. The game is a bit dated, but since it’s a story adventure game it’s not a big deal. What matters here is the story was a fun rump. Nothing ground breaking or Pulitzer Prize worthy, but worth your time if you like these kind of games.
Although I expected “Tales of Monkey Island” to be following the same structure as other Telltale games, I was pleasantly surprised to find out it felt just like any other classic chapter in the Monkey Island franchise. The plot might not be the most interesting ever, but it’s hands down the most fleshed-out in the series so far. I particularly liked the way they played around with LeChuck’s character to use him in unexpected ways. On the other hand, Elaine felt a little off both before and after the pox. She’s definitely been the hardest character to adapt from “Curse” onwards. A lot of new characters and locations have also been introduced, and, although not memorable, they managed to expand the MI world in new ways.
The puzzles are a mixed bag, but they are generally more accessible than they have been in the past. The most frustrating thing gameplay-wise has been the new inventory together with the item combination system. Even when knowing the solution to a puzzle, you would get stuck for skipping a dialogue or just because you didn’t use the items or commands the exact same way the developers had it in mind.
Despite the humor being able to capture the original spirit of the series, the visuals are probably the biggest flaw of the game. Although not as awful as “Escape from Monkey Island”, the 3D graphics are still quite ugly, and the atmospheric touch of the first two games remains unmatched.
The puzzles are a mixed bag, but they are generally more accessible than they have been in the past. The most frustrating thing gameplay-wise has been the new inventory together with the item combination system. Even when knowing the solution to a puzzle, you would get stuck for skipping a dialogue or just because you didn’t use the items or commands the exact same way the developers had it in mind.
Despite the humor being able to capture the original spirit of the series, the visuals are probably the biggest flaw of the game. Although not as awful as “Escape from Monkey Island”, the 3D graphics are still quite ugly, and the atmospheric touch of the first two games remains unmatched.
For Telltale's attempt on a Monkey Island game, it wasn't a bad time. It had decent comedic events and the adventure itself was fun, it even had a few interesting puzzles, but there was a few... hiccups, especially with the bugs in the later chapters that slow you down (thank goodness for kind users on forums for solving these issues).
Pros:
You have to go in knowing this is a Telltale game, if you're used to their humor, it's a good time, they tried their best mix their kind of humor and what you'd normally expect from the LucasArts titles.
There's a ton of homages to the previous titles and cameos from the usual suspects, my personal favorite being Murray.
They did make some pretty clever puzzles that match Monkey Island really well for original puzzles, while borrowing some previous ones for past fans who would get the references.
Cons:
The dialogue tree was weak for jokes compared to previous titles and you couldn't speed through them if you accidentally clicked the wrong thing (or when you have leave and return to the court house over and over, normally that would all just skip forward once you had done the motions once or twice).
Elaine didn't feel as clever as usual, the ending kind of forced her to seem like she just knew everything she shouldn't, simply because she needs to think 20 steps ahead because she's married to Guybrush. She forces Guybrush to carry her wedding ring for the majority of the game for no real reason other than he lost his, he doesn't even wear it. You know it's for a puzzle, but it just felt forced. I feel like if her dialogue was adjusted a bit when giving him her ring and at the ending of the game, it would have been more fitting.
Unfortunately, Elaine was also overshadowed by Morgan LeFlay, Guybrush's fan/Elaine's love rival, who is another very capable, clever female in the pirating world, but has a bit more "strike first and ask questions later" personality which forces Guybrush to be the "wise elder", which is normally Elaine's role.
Telltale worked a little too hard on the Guybrush/Morgan chemistry, even with Guybrush always staying true to Elaine, to the point that you honestly feel bad for Morgan once she gets to know Guybrush better.
Then the ending itself just sharply cuts to the credits with a post-credit event teasing a likely sequel at the time (but of course, that didn't come into fruition).
Pros:
You have to go in knowing this is a Telltale game, if you're used to their humor, it's a good time, they tried their best mix their kind of humor and what you'd normally expect from the LucasArts titles.
There's a ton of homages to the previous titles and cameos from the usual suspects, my personal favorite being Murray.
They did make some pretty clever puzzles that match Monkey Island really well for original puzzles, while borrowing some previous ones for past fans who would get the references.
Cons:
The dialogue tree was weak for jokes compared to previous titles and you couldn't speed through them if you accidentally clicked the wrong thing (or when you have leave and return to the court house over and over, normally that would all just skip forward once you had done the motions once or twice).
Elaine didn't feel as clever as usual, the ending kind of forced her to seem like she just knew everything she shouldn't, simply because she needs to think 20 steps ahead because she's married to Guybrush. She forces Guybrush to carry her wedding ring for the majority of the game for no real reason other than he lost his, he doesn't even wear it. You know it's for a puzzle, but it just felt forced. I feel like if her dialogue was adjusted a bit when giving him her ring and at the ending of the game, it would have been more fitting.
Unfortunately, Elaine was also overshadowed by Morgan LeFlay, Guybrush's fan/Elaine's love rival, who is another very capable, clever female in the pirating world, but has a bit more "strike first and ask questions later" personality which forces Guybrush to be the "wise elder", which is normally Elaine's role.
Telltale worked a little too hard on the Guybrush/Morgan chemistry, even with Guybrush always staying true to Elaine, to the point that you honestly feel bad for Morgan once she gets to know Guybrush better.
Then the ending itself just sharply cuts to the credits with a post-credit event teasing a likely sequel at the time (but of course, that didn't come into fruition).