Complete playthrough.
* Episode 1 - Launch of the Screaming Narwhal
After having a good time with their take on another LucasArts property in the Sam & Max series, it seemed a good opportunity to get properly stuck into Telltale Games' refresh of The Secret of Monkey Island - a franchise for which I have a long-held affection. This introductory episode does good job of capturing LucasArts' trademark sense of humour and sets up the rest of the the series well with an interesting premise and well-written characters, if not quite to Tim Schafer's level of excellence.
These earlier games from Telltale's catalogue take the more traditional puzzle-focused approach to the point-and-click genre and the solutions here are always fun to see playing out. However, finding those solutions in some cases takes a less positive feature from some classics of the genre, where the logic involved is less than obvious, to say the least... perhaps playing with a guide will be best if you want to avoid too much frustration!
* Episode 2 - The Siege of Spinner Cay
Complete playthrough. This second episode of Tales of Monkey Island picks up nicely from the first, with a well-realised city of mer-people being the setting this time as Guybrush finds himself re-united with Elaine... and LeChuck! I have to say that I wasn't particularly keen on the characterisation of the mer-people, but aside from that the writing and humour are again on-point, and the non-linearity of the puzzle-solving makes for a satisfying non-linearity, reducing the potential for frustration when a particular puzzle solution proves elusive.
* Episode 3 - Lair of the Leviathan
Complete playthrough. I'm a little conflicted in my view of this episode, as while I'm not being particularly keen on the primary setting inside a giant manatee, I can't deny that looking more at it objectively, this third episode as a whole is strong. We see some excellent new characters introduced, clever puzzle design and some particularly great interactions with Morgan and Van Winslow.
* Episode 4 - The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Complete playthrough. Now well into its stride, episode 4 is my favourite of the entire series. While many of the environments are revisits of those seen in episode 1, the premise is great fun, as Guybrush seeks to clear his name from various spurious criminal charges - up to and including that of causing the pox. Particularly standout sequences come as Guybrush occupies multiple roles (defendant and defence lawyer) simultaneously, and then in the superb depiction of fast-talking salesman Stan, recurring character from LucasArts' classic games in the franchise.
** Episode 5 - Rise of the Pirate God
Complete playthrough. Hmm... a decent premise here (Guybrush, now a ghost, seeks restoration to life to take on LeChuck), but in execution this felt a little weak. There's an enjoyable pirate-styled twist on the typical Death figure to start off the episode, but the main body of content sees Guybrush swapping back and forth between two key areas, but with a short trek between the two, rather than instant transition - which rapidly becomes a bit tedious. Of course, the excellent dialogue seen in the preceding episodes is just as strong here, so it's still a worthwhile playthrough, just not the climactic send-off that we might have hoped for for the series.
* Episode 1 - Launch of the Screaming Narwhal
After having a good time with their take on another LucasArts property in the Sam & Max series, it seemed a good opportunity to get properly stuck into Telltale Games' refresh of The Secret of Monkey Island - a franchise for which I have a long-held affection. This introductory episode does good job of capturing LucasArts' trademark sense of humour and sets up the rest of the the series well with an interesting premise and well-written characters, if not quite to Tim Schafer's level of excellence.
These earlier games from Telltale's catalogue take the more traditional puzzle-focused approach to the point-and-click genre and the solutions here are always fun to see playing out. However, finding those solutions in some cases takes a less positive feature from some classics of the genre, where the logic involved is less than obvious, to say the least... perhaps playing with a guide will be best if you want to avoid too much frustration!
* Episode 2 - The Siege of Spinner Cay
Complete playthrough. This second episode of Tales of Monkey Island picks up nicely from the first, with a well-realised city of mer-people being the setting this time as Guybrush finds himself re-united with Elaine... and LeChuck! I have to say that I wasn't particularly keen on the characterisation of the mer-people, but aside from that the writing and humour are again on-point, and the non-linearity of the puzzle-solving makes for a satisfying non-linearity, reducing the potential for frustration when a particular puzzle solution proves elusive.
* Episode 3 - Lair of the Leviathan
Complete playthrough. I'm a little conflicted in my view of this episode, as while I'm not being particularly keen on the primary setting inside a giant manatee, I can't deny that looking more at it objectively, this third episode as a whole is strong. We see some excellent new characters introduced, clever puzzle design and some particularly great interactions with Morgan and Van Winslow.
* Episode 4 - The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Complete playthrough. Now well into its stride, episode 4 is my favourite of the entire series. While many of the environments are revisits of those seen in episode 1, the premise is great fun, as Guybrush seeks to clear his name from various spurious criminal charges - up to and including that of causing the pox. Particularly standout sequences come as Guybrush occupies multiple roles (defendant and defence lawyer) simultaneously, and then in the superb depiction of fast-talking salesman Stan, recurring character from LucasArts' classic games in the franchise.
** Episode 5 - Rise of the Pirate God
Complete playthrough. Hmm... a decent premise here (Guybrush, now a ghost, seeks restoration to life to take on LeChuck), but in execution this felt a little weak. There's an enjoyable pirate-styled twist on the typical Death figure to start off the episode, but the main body of content sees Guybrush swapping back and forth between two key areas, but with a short trek between the two, rather than instant transition - which rapidly becomes a bit tedious. Of course, the excellent dialogue seen in the preceding episodes is just as strong here, so it's still a worthwhile playthrough, just not the climactic send-off that we might have hoped for for the series.