If there's one genre of games that rouses the nostalgic digital exploration loving kid in me, it's classic point-and-click adventure games. In the dawn of the CD-ROM era a couple different developers made their imprint in gaming history with games that combined great graphics (for their time), interesting stories and most of all the sense of total freedom and exploration. While Sierra Entertainment came out with serious titles like King's Quest and Police Quest (though they also were responsible for the love it or hate it Leisure Suit Larry series), the other trendsetter in adventure gaming, LucasArts, went a different direction by coming out with games that were filled with over the top humor and yet balanced by tactful puzzles and interesting characters.
One of the very best of the early Lucas Arts game was The Secret of Monkey Island, a down right hilarious adventure of a hopeful pirate with a funny name who overcomes trials and tribulations on his journey through a remote island in the Caribbean. Like many of the early '90s adventure games, the legacy of the original Monkey Island has only been kept alive by the more updated sequels, but recently that has changed. Finally younger gamers have a chance to relive the original 1990 adventure in the brand new The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition, available for download on either PSN or XBox Live. Though the Special Edition does sport revamped graphics and music, otherwise the game is pretty much an exact copy of the original. Seeing as how Monkey Island was pretty flawless anyway, as far as adventure games go, not changing anything but the presentation is exactly how the Special Edition should have been handled.
The adventure begins rather inconspicuously. As a want-to-be pirate named Guybrush Threepwood you must complete three trials to officially become a pirate. As you attempt to complete these trials you’ll wander around the pirate infested Melee Island, meeting interesting people and collecting seemingly useless items. For new comers to these gloriously nostalgic types of games, it may take a little bit of getting used to the controls. Rather than controlling Guybrush with the analog stick you’ll “point and click” your way around the island. It also may take a bit of time adjusting to the fact that quick reaction time isn’t going to help you nearly as much as your wits will. To help improve the visual aspect of the game, the Special Edition introduces a new streamlined interface. Rather than having your list of commands and your inventory present on the bottom of the screen, everything has been relegated to button access. Sometimes this gets a little annoying though. For sheer compatibility with the game, the old SCUMM system is actually more practical.
Definitely one of the coolest features of the Special Edition is the ability to switch the game over to its original presentation with the click of a button. For a real nostalgic effect you can play the game with the original graphics and original music by simply pushing the select button in the PS3 version or the back button on the X360. It really is very cool to look at how closely the new art design matches the obviously dated but cherished old graphics. Though I did play most of game with the revamped graphics, I found myself switching the screen over to the old school version many times just for comparison's sake. Also there were at least a couple times when I found the old control system better for handling certain tasks (and seeing certain obtainable objects) in the game and decided to seamlessly switch it over accordingly.
I give major props to the team who spearheaded the remake of Monkey Island. It’s obvious that they too, like me, have a fond appreciation not only for this game but all of the nearly forgotten batch of amazing LucasArts early ‘90s adventure games. The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition keeps not only the spirit of the game alive, but also makes sure to keep every little nuance intact. Hopefully those who have never had a chance to play this game, or any classic adventure games for that matter, will see it as a breath of fresh air among the over crowded selection of shooters and action games. For those of us who can recall spending hours trying to figure out the inanely difficult obstacles laid out in front of us and then feeling like geniuses once we finally did, this will be nothing more than a halcyon cruise down the streams of nostalgia.
"The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition" is on sale April 22, 2010 and is rated E10+. Adventure. Developed and published by LucasArts.
