Monkey Island: A Nostalgic Reflection
Arr! It be the week leadin up ta “Talk Like A Pirate Day” ,and what better way to start than to fondly be lookin back at one o’ the greatest pirate stories ever bein told in a video game, Monkey Island. So, let’s walk the plank and hold our breaths for ten minutes as we have a nostalgic reflection of the series.
This be a thrillin graphic adventure game series that has charmed gamers of all ages, and follows the events of a young wannabe pirate named Guybrush Threepwood (that’s the stupidest name I’ve ever heard!) and his never-ending battle with the evil pirate Lechuck as he attempts to free the love of his life Elaine Marley from the obsessive clutches of the fearsome ghost/zombie/demon/giant statue/”nice guy” human/ killer walrus.
As soon as you start playing one of these games you immediately get a huge atmospheric feeling. From the Caribbean reggae music (the theme is epic!) to the cartoony and sometimes dark graphics, there’s really nothing so distinct in feel than this series, as you can see in this collaboration of screenshots I’ve put together below. This is in no way a “silly little kid’s game”, and if you say it is, you just don’t have a very good appreciation for fine art. These games are art, and rightly so, being that the game’s creator, Ron Gilbert, has clearly said in numerous interviews that he feels games should be taken seriously as an art form.
For me, games need to be more than just shooting a whole bunch of terrorists every 5 seconds, and this is where Monkey Island truly shines. The gameplay, while simple, makes you think really hard and makes paying attention at school all the more worth it. That doesn’t make them educational games though, so they challenge you in a different way, by making you say “Why on Earth would I use a monkey on that?” when presented with certain puzzles.
Now, if you’re new to the series you might be thinking “It’s a 20 year-old series, how can it be so popular still?” Well, this is thanks to the massive fan base that has just kept growing thanks to all the fan art and fan sites that have been made, such as SilverWolfPet’s “Monkey In My Pocket” video or “The Legendary Monkey Island Fan Art Thread” on the Telltale Games forums. Another reason why the series is so popular is thanks to how popular pirates are with all the Pirate of The Caribbean movies and the humorous antics of Jack Sparrow, which are actually almost Monkey Island films in themselves. You play these games and tell me you didn’t think Sparrow had a bit of Guybrush in him.
In essence, Monkey Island is a great ride for anyone who’s into pirates, adventures on the high seas, people with silly names (c’mon, Guybrush Threepwood is a pathetic name, but awesome!) and spooky voodoo curses hat turn your girlfriends to gold (hey, I wonder how many carrots she’d be worth.. wait, what am I saying?) , this is a definite must and you should get out of that rock you’ve been under and buy these games (don’t be ironic by pirating a pirate game, geez…) . Just look at that face in the picture above, and tell me you can resist that lovable expression, I dare you.
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