Monkey Island is one of those beloved PC games from the early nineties that very many gamers hold very near and dear to their hearts, it’s is a series famed for it’s spot-on humour and a few fairly ridiculous puzzles. The sequel to the original Monkey Island is held in similar high regard, with some naming it their favourite game of all time. Now Lucasarts (The original developer) has decided to update Monkey Island 2 with an updated soundtrack, reworked art and a full voice cast in a similar fashion to last years Monkey Island Special Edition.
Now to start this review off I feel like I should inform you of my history with the Monkey Island series. I have played Monkey 1 Special Edition which I thoroughly enjoyed (Although I did get stuck on it and never finished it). I have played most of TellTale Games excellent Tales of Monkey Island, again, I thoroughly enjoyed them and was pleasantly surprised by the forgiving puzzle design.
Monkey 2 finds our loveable and incredibly quotable piratical protagonist, Guybrush Threepwood (Voiced by Dominic Armato) looking for treasure on Scabb island. Upon realising that Scabb is devoid of treasure and being controlled by Leckuck’s former right-hand man Largo Legrande, Guybrush seeks to return Scabb Island to it’s former glory. Oh yeah, and in doing so he accidentally resurrects Lechuck, so no big deal.
Monkey 2’s story is a joy, it’s not deep or enthralling, but neither should it be, it’s a silly pirate story where the vast majority of pirate names are puns (Rapp Scallion, Governor Phatt and so on) and you hunt for the treasure of “Big Whoop”. The writing is spot on and provides some hilarious moments that have made their way into popular culture since the original release. The story is relatively linear and only takes one left field twist towards the end of the game, which you will either love or you will hate (Personally, I was ready to be upset about the story until the literal very last second, which redeemed the twist in my eyes).
The gameplay is very much like everything that you would expect out of a early LucasArts Point n’ Click Adventure game. You’ve got you’r pointing, you’r clicking, you’r dialogue and you’r Kleptomaniac protagonist. You go around towns picking up items and solving dialogue puzzles, so there is nothing much new here. It is worth noting that some puzzles are ridiculously hard and sometimes have no reasoning at all, and while turning to the internet for answers is a viable and almost necessary playstyle, it does not leave you very satisfied.
So, we’ve covered the Monkey Island 2 part, now what makes this a special edition? First of all the interface has been updated from the nineties LucasArts Adventure game interface, and works perfectly, as opposed to Monkey 1: Special Edition’s interface.
There is also all of the new and beautiful art, that completely gets the feel and vibe of the Monkey Island series, which is a huge improvement over the last Special Edition’s art, which felt a bit off in my opinion. All of the music has been updated and has a great piratey feel to it, although the iMUSE technology of the original has not been carried over expertly, but I have had most of the tunes stuck in my head for a while and I legitimately love a few of them.
Switching between the original game and the updated version on the fly while playing was a joy, but what about the new content? LucasArts gathered Ron Gilbert, Tim Schafer and Dave Grossman (Three key players form the development of the original and also nerd celebrities) together for an excellent optional commentary track that plays through the game and is highly hilarious and informative. There is also some concept art thats quite a nice surprise, but is not really much to write home about.
Do i love Monkey Island 2: Special Edition? Undoubtably, it’s really great for anyone who was a fan of the original or people who want to be introduced into the wonders of Monkey Island. I do have a few gripes with it, such as some ridiculously hard puzzles and the exclusion of the awesome and iconic intro scene, but all the new stuff and the general quality of the original game makes this an easy Five out of Five