Return to Monkey Island review: The best kind of nostalgia

Whatever your criticisms of the Monkey Island franchise, you have to admire its outright refusal to die.

on sale today Return to Monkey Island 13 years since the last game, Telltale’s Tales of Monkey Island, a temporary adventure from 2009. That hiatus was preceded by a nine-year hiatus. Curse of Sarushima, was LucasArts’ last adventure game. Did I mention there was a lapse of 6 years before that?

Return to Monkey Island It marks the return of two of the three original series creators (Ron Gilbert and Dave Grossman are back, but DoubleFine’s Tim Schafer is not). So it’s perhaps not surprising that the mighty pirate Guybrush Threepwood’s latest adventure is the most fixated on his own legacy.

After the events of Gilbert’s final entry, the game recovers, but monkey island 2, return I’m not trying to wipe non-Gilbert games out of the canon.I decided to take up an unanswered question that hangs over the history of the series. was The secret of Monkey Island? Despite being the title of the first game, the secret of the title was never really revealed.

yes return Guybrush embarked on a race with his constant nemesis, the ghost pirate LeChuck, to uncover the secret with the help of Elaine Marley, a former governor-turned-scurvy activist who is also Guybrush’s wife. continue. Throughout the voyage, there are plenty of fun meta-jokes about how long it’s been since the last game of Monkey Island: Melee, Guybrush’s home. Threepwood states that the town has seen a suspicious number of modifications.

nevertheless Return to Monkey Island Aware of what relics it can feel like at times, it doesn’t seem very interested in evolution.

Of course, there are obvious upgrades.really ugly polygonal visuals escape When Tales of Monkey Island replaced by a sort of Henry Selick aesthetic, like a living map filled with hinged paper puppets. This look will undoubtedly polarize the game’s longtime supporters (I think it’s the first of its kind in pop culture fandom), but to all other Monkey Island games released this millennium It is certainly outdated than the 3D models employed.

One of the notable ways adventures are streamlined: no more choices. how Interact with objects in the world. Instead, it is established through context. A left-click might continue a conversation with a friend, peek at a painting, or simply walk to another part of the room. If you can talk to the aforementioned friend or steal a wallet, you may be able to right-click, but there are two options for her that have never been seen before. It makes for a more immersive experience where the UI actually contributes to the story rather than being the protagonist, as is often the case in this genre. This is a welcome improvement, but it’s a shame to have Guybrush explain the sound of lamps or why he can’t talk to trees.

Image: Scary Toy Box/Devolver Digital

I wish there had been similar improvements to moving around the world.Watching Guybrush take a stroll after violently clicking the cursor from screen to screen wasn’t particularly fun The Secret of Monkey Island, And that’s a chore about 32 years later.

Fortunately, the rest of the series’ lineage is Return to Monkey Island Being held is much more welcome.

This is still the heartwarming, jarring and corny Caribbean trip that Monkey Island always traded in. Hardy folks like Stan, a slippery second-hand ship salesman, and Otis, a frequently imprisoned thief, help Guybrush on his journey and fight with swords. It is done by hurling insults (both literal and figurative opponents). It’s the same ravenous, eager-to-please Monkey Island you’ve always known.

Puzzle solutions are smarter than ever. You cannot borrow the chef’s mop. To discover the fabled mop tree, one must obviously go on a spiritual quest. Wasn’t the apology you wrote to the frog personal? There’s also a casual mode with fewer puzzles, but it feels more like a summary than an evolution. If you get stuck, there’s no need to call the LucasArts 900 number. Instead, you’ll see a built-in hint book that can point you in the right direction.

return‘s humor is perhaps the most basic aspect of the series, and it doesn’t try as hard as its more jaded efforts in the comedy-adventure genre. Few pop culture references or excessive visual gags (I look at you, star buccaneers). It seems content to just hover between “somewhat funny” and “smirking” on the Chuckle-O-Meter. The game holds firmly to its predecessor’s workmanlike refusal to leave gags that aren’t necessarily my bag. Some laughed heartily, some.

Image: Scary Toy Box/Devolver Digital

It’s definitely fascinating to read about what grown guys do and don’t find funny, but about composers Michael Land, Peter McConnell, and Clint Bajakian, who continue the franchise’s “pirate reggae” score. I have to stop mentioning it specifically. 90’s Adventure is the way he feels like the perfect blanket for geeks. Same goes for the returning voice cast, including Alexandra Boyd’s relentless Elaine and Dominic Armato’s affable, always-unhappy Guybrush.

All blended into a supremely nostalgic experience. Return to Monkey Island It truly recaptured the joy that the series provided in my youth.

Strangely and refreshingly, for a series with a long and uneven history, Return to Monkey Island It doesn’t seem particularly interested in reaffirming its own importance or greatness. It seems satisfying to see how the rest of the world, especially the player, contextualizes its existence. I don’t even do it.

Return to Monkey Island is another game in the Monkey Island franchise that makes only a small effort to reflect the ever-changing gaming environment, confidently sticking to the DNA that made this game so beloved in the first place. . And if you’re looking for the secret to creating an enduring franchise, you could do much worse than that.

Return to Monkey Island Released September 19th on Windows PC, Mac, and Nintendo Switch. This game was reviewed on PC using a pre-release download code provided by Devolver Digital. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not affect editorial content, but Vox Media may earn commissions on products purchased via affiliate links.discoverable Additional information on Polygon’s Ethics Policy can be found here.