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Thread: The Secret of Monkey Island (DOS, Windows, SEGA CD)

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    Talking The Secret of Monkey Island (DOS, Windows, SEGA CD)

    The source of so many memorable characters and unforgettable lines, The Secret of Monkey Island is considered by many to be a timeless classic. The point-and-click adventure game is not only a fan favorite, but in many ways it created the mold that later adventure games would follow.

    This month marks the 30th anniversary of the game, so it seems like a good time to reminisce about its history, its legacy, and what it means to game players around the world. While one might hope that Disney, its current copyright holder, might make a new mighty Monkey Island game, it seems unlikely, but pirates of the digital seas everywhere are still eager to return to the Caribbean of its universe and sail the waters near Melee Island, Lucre Island, and naturally, Monkey Island itself once again! (Perhaps with all of the changes over the decades, Disney should now be called Neo Disney?)
    Last edited by Nz17; 11-05-2020 at 06:50 PM. Reason: Added pertinent consoles

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    Ron Gilbert in the past has been quoted he like to make a new monkey island but only if disney sold the ip to him.

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    I'm still disappointed that the line "How appropriate, you fight like a cow" never happens in swordfights in movies.... even when the situation seems perfectly set up for it.

    Funny thing I actually didn't play Monkey Island as a kid (though I read about it). I first heard about it as an adult and had to track down a copy (which was easy as it turns out the first Monkey Island was once included in full on an anniversary CD of PC Gamer). I still have not played the sequels.

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    I still reaaallly need to play this game. I've started it a couple times but never had the time to really play through it. I've loved all the other LucasArts point and clicks I've played but I guess figured I'd wait and play this one when I could give it the attention it deserved.
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    He's not in his right mind. Disney doesn't sell off IP's to anyone as far as I know. They are in the business of acquiring IP's, not selling them. Even if they were willing to sell it, he couldn't afford it from the previous owner and he couldn't afford it from Disney neither. He also wants to renege everything that happened after MI2. That means abolishing all of the characters, stories, and events from MI3, MI4, and Tales of Monkey Island. As he can't afford to buy the IP that Disney isn't willing to sell, thankfully we don't have to really worry about this happening.

    I sure wish there was another Monkey Island game - especially now that the same company owns both Pirates of the Caribbean and Monkey Island, meaning everything from Pirates of the Caribbean is fair game without having to mask the source of the influence like when they were owned by two different companies. Sadly, Disney doesn't seem interested in developing new games from any of the adventure game series it bought in the wholesale acquisition of said company, so we'll probably never see any sequels, etc., from any of these IP's. Heck, Disney doesn't even treat its own old original IP's with much respect nor thought, and none of its own game tie-ins are made with much care. It's a sad state, but that's how it is.

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    I doubt anyone would be surprised but The Secret of Monkey Island is still one of my favourite games, I probably should play it again as it's been years since I've played it. I had the enhanced CD-ROM version.

    I've played the second and third game too, I've started the fourth but haven't finished it yet. Basically when I tried to play Escape from Monkey Island it wouldn't run well on my XP PC so I didn't push myself to finish it, it's sadly lacking compared to the previous games with a new awful control scheme designed for consoles. I haven't looked into anything beyond this game as I haven't finished it.


    Quote Originally Posted by Nz17 View Post
    He's not in his right mind.
    Ron Gilbert has long said he hoped he could somehow own the IP, this was long before Disney bought the rights to it. He always doubted it would be possible, he just mentioned it would be a dream of his. Similar to how someone would say they hoped they could own a Ferrari and then drive it across the country, it's not usually said as a realistic goal.

    Quote Originally Posted by Nz17 View Post
    ...thankfully we don't have to really worry about this happening.
    Worry? Why would anyone be worried that the original creator of the game, would finally own the IP, make sequel games in the same quality as the originals, and continue off the narrative he originally planned when the last game he was involved with ended on a cliffhanger?

    Yes, thankfully the rights are still owned by a company who has no interest in doing anything with them, and would only have an interest if they believed there was a way they could exploit fans and make a profit off of them. The rights ending up with the creator who actually cares about the property and just wants to make quality games with the same feel as the originals above simply profiting on them, there's no chance of this happening. Bullet successfully dodged.

    Quote Originally Posted by Nz17 View Post
    I sure wish there was another Monkey Island game - especially now that the same company owns both Pirates of the Caribbean and Monkey Island, meaning everything from Pirates of the Caribbean is fair game without having to mask the source of the influence like when they were owned by two different companies.
    The Monkey Island games made plenty of parodies and references to Pirates of the Caribbean and the theme park itself, now that the company being parodied actually owns the property, why would they ever be ok with including further parodies of themselves? If they somehow ever planned to make new games in the series, there wouldn't be any relation to the theme parks or Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. In fact, as there has long been talk about how the Pirates of the Caribbean films borrowed heavily from the Monkey Island games in terms of plot, Disney would never allow any part of the Monkey Island brand to resurface as it could dilute or affect their Pirates of the Caribbean brand which they view as far more valuable. Being owned by Disney killed Monkey Island completely. Honestly I'm surprised they're still allowing the existing games to be sold on Steam.

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    I don't want everything after Monkey Island 2 to be retconned. I don't want someone to abolish all of the characters, stories, and events from MI3, MI4, and Tales of Monkey Island. That's why I am thankful I don't have to worry about this happening.

    Now that Disney owns both properties, if hypothetically there was ever another Monkey Island game, then it could contain direct references and inclusions from Pirates of the Caribbean if they chose to as well as parodies. Disney's properties have often been parodied or rebooted by Disney itself. Both properties have been dormant for some time, so either one could either be continued or rebooted.

    They are still allowing the existing games to be sold on Steam as it turns a revenue and it would cost to pay an employee to remove the games and cut off that revenue for no good reason.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Nz17 View Post
    Both properties have been dormant for some time, so either one could either be continued or rebooted.
    The last Pirates movie was just a few years ago, and last I heard there were still like 2 more planned.
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    I purchased it a few weeks ago in a Steam sale, I have heard so much about it on forums and podcasts I decided to take the plunge. I am at the beginning of Beneath a steel sky though and I want to complete that first.

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    I plan to purchase the PS3 versions with leftover gift card money after purchasing Hitman 3 on the PS4. I also have the X360 versions and still have my Commodore Amiga disks.
    The accumulated filth of all their sex and murder will foam up about their waists and all the whores and politicians will look up and shout "save us!"......and I'll look down, and whisper "no."

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    Played the first Monkey Island back in the day - got it in a five-pack with Maniac Mansion, Zack McCracken, Loom, and Indiana Jones (Last Crusade). Best $50 I ever spent - it seemed like such a deal at the time, five games for $50! I think Zack McCracken was the only one I never finished.

    Loved the humor, loved the puzzles. It's a very forgiving adventure game, at least compared with the Sierra games that came before. Evocative graphics - I kind of prefer the style of MI + MI2 to the style of MI3+.

    That whole early 90s era in PC games was a golden age of experimentation and creativity. There's good stuff happening today, too, in the indie space - but those days were especially fun.
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    Physical complete copies with the floppy discs go for over $400. A cheap CD copy of the game can be had for $50.

    if I had a decent computer setup, I'd buy the digital version which I am sure is a lot more affordable. My DVD/CD drive in my Windows XP PC doesn't work anymore

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    Well,well it's happening a new monkey island and ron gilbert is involved.

    https://www.polygon.com/gaming/23010...d-release-2022

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    Well this is some unexpected news, I wouldn't have thought it possible unless the rights were actually sold off entirely. Hopefully the minimum requirements for this game won't be too high, my PC is quite old at this point.

    Now to wonder if this game is a sequel to all the previous games, or more of a new Monkey Island 3. The most surprising thing I've learned from that article is that Tales of Monkey Island came out 13 years ago, which I've still never played. I remember when that was first announced.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gameguy View Post
    Well this is some unexpected news, I wouldn't have thought it possible unless the rights were actually sold off entirely. Hopefully the minimum requirements for this game won't be too high, my PC is quite old at this point.

    Now to wonder if this game is a sequel to all the previous games, or more of a new Monkey Island 3. The most surprising thing I've learned from that article is that Tales of Monkey Island came out 13 years ago, which I've still never played. I remember when that was first announced.
    If you haven't seen all ready another trailer is up.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Tron 2.0 View Post
    If you haven't seen all ready another trailer is up.
    I didn't see that so thanks for posting it. It looks alright, I don't like the visual style that much but it could still be a good game.

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    Ron had some sort of blog going about the game but just took it down due to people getting quite toxic about the game's visuals. In addition, earlier in this thread I mentioned acquiring the PS3 versions of the MI games. It turned out that just after I prepaid for Hitman 3, and just before I could acquire them, the games got delisted on the PS Store and I couldn't get them. However, just after the announcement of the new game, I did a check of the PS Store and they got relisted. So, if you already hadn't acquired either the X60 or PS3 versions, get them now while you still can. Finally, I did a four month temporary stint doing gametseting work for LucasFilm Games in late 1991. They were still finishing up MI2 at the time. I wanted to work on the Amiga version of the game but they did not keep me and I wasn't able to go back.
    The accumulated filth of all their sex and murder will foam up about their waists and all the whores and politicians will look up and shout "save us!"......and I'll look down, and whisper "no."

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    Seeing the new trailer I think the visuals aren't as bad as people make them out to be, but I still can't say I like them. I can tolerate them, much like the crappy Flash looking games from a decade ago that this new game looks very much like. Really it doesn't do much to look visually impressive, not like how the older games would have looked back when they were new. It doesn't look really modern and cutting edge, and it doesn't look styled similar to the classic games, it's more of a cheaper modern budget looking style. In terms of looking animated, Curse of Monkey Island looks much better with it's animation. I'm sure he tried to reduce costs where he could because he doesn't expect it to sell that well, it's a niche game aimed at a small audience of loyal fans.

    As for the Xbox 360 or PS3 versions, I never liked the look of the updated graphics so I didn't see much point in getting them. I'd rather stick with the older versions of the games which I already own. I still haven't played through Escape from Monkey Island, maybe someday I'll go back to it. I remember it running like crap on my old computer despite being above the minimum requirements, combine that with the irritating controls and average at best jokes, and I just walked away from it.

    Getting to game test those early LucasFilm adventure games back then would have been nice, I'm not into the "dream" of game testing as it's not as fun as people generally think it is, but even as a job that would have been nice. Those early games of theirs really hold up. I only started playing those early games in the mid 2000's, I still really liked them despite being considered outdated.

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    The X360 and PS3 versions had a setting that allowed you to play them in the original 640x480 256-color VGA style and there was even an Achievement/Trophy for switching into that mode. As far as testing, that depends on the company. I mean, I did work for LucasFilm Games. That's a nice little gold star on the old resume. BTW, I have a little photo album of old games and souvenirs from years past including some stuff I acquired from my time at the Games division: https://imgur.com/gallery/p3tY1AC
    The accumulated filth of all their sex and murder will foam up about their waists and all the whores and politicians will look up and shout "save us!"......and I'll look down, and whisper "no."

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    That photo album is really neat to look through, lots of cool stuff there. I didn't know Fate of Atlantis had an action game, I know the previous Last Crusade had both a graphic adventure and an action game, but I thought Fate of Atlantis was just an adventure game. Zak McKracken is one of the few LucasArts adventures I haven't managed to find yet, eventually I'll find a copy and play it.

    I do remember The Three Stooges and some other Cinemaware games, I played the NES version of that personally. I do like the game even though most people don't seem to for whatever reason.

    And that is true with the 360/PS3 versions having the option of the old visuals too, I just didn't see the point to get these new versions if I'd just want the old visuals as I already owned the older versions for the PC. There is new voice acting as well, but I still don't really need that either. Maybe I'm wrong and the newer versions are better, but I don't tend to rebuy my games if I already own them, unless they're entirely new like the Resident Evil remakes.

    I do seem to hate imgur now, often when I'm trying to scroll down slightly to keep reading, the page just randomly jumps down significantly and I have to rescroll back up again. And it can keep jumping when I'm trying to slightly scroll down again, it's very finicky. But very cool post to read through.

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