Return to Monkey Island

[MurraySchull]

I'm surprised there hasn't been more speculation on if Largo might return. He's not been mentioned or alluded to yet, but given that his ending was pretty ambiguous in MI2 (as was the Voodoo Priest's for that matter) I suppose the door might be open for him to reappear.

 

If he doesn't, I guess we just have to assume that he and the Voodoo Priest died in the fortress explosion! (Hell, maybe Largo became one of the skeleton pirates for all we know!)

 

 

I'm still very curious if all of the returning characters will have their original voice actors or not. Otis in particular. Carla seems to be her MI1 voice actress (and she also voiced the Voodoo Lady) but everybody else is unanswered on that front so far.

Edited August 3, 2022 by fentongames

[BaronGrackle]

I honestly think it would be for the best if this were the finale.

 

1) Ron has made sad comments about the hard work he puts into his own original creations, without owning the IP. I read one he made about The Cave. The sad truth is, it's very unlikely that Ron will ever own the IP to Monkey Island.

 

2) This game's internet drama is just a sample of the baggage that comes from a new entry in a decades-old franchise, in which there are fans from multiple generations and entry points, with different/contradictory expectations based on that. It's impossible to perfectly balance that, EVEN BEFORE you get to the concept of appealing to new players in a new generation.

 

If Ron's creative juices are still flowing after this, I think he and his fans would get the most out of a new story that he owns entirely, and which has a blank slate. Just my opinion.

Edited August 3, 2022 by BaronGrackle

[Wally B.]

51 minutes ago, Toymafia88 said:

Oh while its on my mind, do you all really think this is the final Monkey Island?

It wouldn't bother me at all if it was.

We get to uncover the secret of Monkey Island, in a game made by the creator of the series itself. It's kind of like the end of an era. I'm open to the possibility of new games after this one, either sequels or spin-offs, but to me this will probably the end of the Monkey Island "saga".

(Unless we get a completely open ended finale with a lot of unresolved plot points and character arcs, in that case nevermind...)

[MurraySchull]

Very curious if they've given the game a definitive "ending" scene for the series or not. If so... man, that'll feel weird. Not gonna lie. But after all this time of not having these questions answered, and the uncertainty of weather the series would ever return, let alone Ron's trilogy being completed, it'll feel welcome.

 

The team have made a few points of noting that the game will have a bittersweet, emotional feeling in parts. But weather that means just a general sense of nostalgia throughout, or weather it means we'll end with old-man Guybrush handing down his sword to his son is anybody's guess right now.

[Wally B.]

42 minutes ago, BaronGrackle said:

I honestly think it would be for the best if this were the finale.

 

1) Ron has made sad comments about the hard work he puts into his own original creations, without owning the IP. I read one he made about The Cave. The sad truth is, it's very unlikely that Ron will ever own the IP to Monkey Island.

 

2) This game's internet drama is just a sample of the baggage that comes from a new entry in a decades-old franchise, in which there are fans from multiple generations and entry points, with different/contradictory expectations based on that. It's impossible to perfectly balance that, EVEN BEFORE you get to the concept of appealing to new players in a new generation.

 

If Ron's creative juices are still flowing after this, I think he and his fans would get the most out of a new story that he owns entirely, and which has a blank slate. Just my opinion.

You make some interesting points, but you're forgetting that a new Monkey Island game doesn't necessarily need to be made by Ron & co.

Also "internet drama" is kind of a stupid reason not to make a game or any form of art.

I do agree that after this one, I would like to see Ron focusing on an original game idea (probably that RPG he was trying to make before Return).

 

10 minutes ago, fentongames said:

Very curious if they've given the game a definitive "ending" scene for the series or not. If so... man, that'll feel weird. Not gonna lie. But after all this time of not having these questions answered, and the uncertainty of weather the series would ever return, let alone Ron's trilogy being completed, it'll feel welcome.

I think we kind of had this situation before with Escape. It had a pretty definitive ending for 9 years, even though it was kind of a stupid one (maybe that's why some people hated it, in retrospect). Thinking about it now, Guybrush being thrown off the cliff at the end could have meant that there weren't any more cliffhangers and that it was meant to be the final chapter of the series.

[Vainamoinen]

3 hours ago, Toymafia88 said:

I think the reason why there is more returning characters in this game than any other is because according to the website, this is the conclusion to the Monkey Island series.

 

Every franchise should treat every instalment, episode, movie, or game title in the series like it is the final one and wrap up everything neatly and tidily. I say that because storytelling nowadays seems to consist of nothing but unresolved foreshadowing, plot twists that never make sense, character arcs that are never completed until the actor leaves and they kill him off, sudden stupid cliffhangers, red threads lost and found, a gazillion between and after credits teasers, stories that tend to end in the middle and have never even begun. Lots of friction always ending in the status quo. Story hooks and story hooks but never resolution, never closure because they're not letting you off that hook.

 

It doesn't really matter whether Return to Monkey Island is "planned" as the last part. If it sells badly, it will be the last part, and if it sells well, it won't be. Even if Dave and Ron kill off Guybrush and Elaine in the last scene (I mean a good, visible, undeniable "Beyond Time and Space" character death), and ReMI sells well, in two years somebody will have them both pulling a Ripley, a Westley, a Shepard, or a Spock.

 

Thesis: You can not "conclude" a truly successful serialized narrative.

 

 

2 hours ago, BaronGrackle said:

(...) The sad truth is, it's very unlikely that Ron will ever own the IP to Monkey Island.

 

(...) This game's internet drama is just a sample of the baggage that comes from a new entry in a decades-old franchise, in which there are fans from multiple generations and entry points, with different/contradictory expectations based on that. It's impossible to perfectly balance that, EVEN BEFORE you get to the concept of appealing to new players in a new generation.

 

If Ron's creative juices are still flowing after this, I think he and his fans would get the most out of a new story that he owns entirely, and which has a blank slate. Just my opinion.

 

No, you're quite right. I would alway favor the exciting new narrative from the same creator. Sadly, it's not how the market works. The license drives the sales. Make a new franchise, no one gives a ship. The positive outlook is of course:

 

(1) More Monkey Island from Dave and Ron? Where do I have to sign with my own blood?

 

(2) One of the core reasons we're so excited is that it's A NEW MONKEY ISLAND BY RON AND DAVE. If Ron ever had the license for Monkey Island, he would have made a new one every few years. This is new, this is fresh, this is exciting because the series was dead for 13 years and returns to Ron after 31 years.

 

(3) I've long held that belief, i.e. that a truly satisfying instalment in a generations old franchise is indeed impossible. Then I watched Blade Runner 2049. Maybe it's the one in a thousand sequel, but even if it is, other sequels should get the same chance.

[demone]

I don't necessarily agree that every piece of media should have a clean conclusion with no loose ends. I do think though, that if the intention is for a larger series with foreshadows, it needs to be appropriately mapped out, so there is some real pay off for those foreshadows. 

 

There is nothing quite as satisfying than when a story comes together. It adds further value to previous installments and makes it extremely satisfying to go back and see all the hidden references that now make perfect sense. 

 

Many writers will make the claim that they had the story mapped out. When watching or reading it though, it's usually incredibly obvious when a story was mapped out vs when it's not. 

 

I agree that too many forms of media are too preoccupied with jumpstarting a franchise, that they don't focus on making nice, self-contained entries that hint towards something more. When done right though, both can be achieved, and can be immensely gratifying to follow, so long as real thought and planning is given to the bigger picture and not skimping on the details and care for each, individual entry. 

 

That being said, I am hoping for some sense of closure with Return to Monkey Island. I'm fine with some loose threads, but would love for the larger narrative and saga to have some form of a conclusion, as the website is implying.

Edited August 3, 2022 by demone

[BillyCheers]

1 hour ago, Vainamoinen said:

If Ron ever had the license for Monkey Island, he would have made a new one every few years.

 

Not so sure of that. I always had the impression that he just wanted to make his “real” third entry and that’s it… 

[MurraySchull]

2 hours ago, demone said:

I agree that too many forms of media are too preoccupied with jumpstarting a franchise, that they don't focus on making nice, self-contained entries that hint towards something more.

 

This was particularly common in the early 2010's, during the whole "young adult novel turned movie" phase.

 

Lots of movies at the time were so confident and dedicated to the idea that they were going to be "the next big thing!" that they forgot to focus on just making it good. So many movies that I can't for the life of me remember the titles of now fell into the trap of starting a bunch of plot threads in the first movie, resolving none of them, ending on a cliffhanger, and never making a sequel. Which now in the grand scheme of things, ten years later, made that viewing experience ultimately worthless. Only a very small number of those franchises ultimately made it through to the end of the series as I recall (Divergent never even made the final movie due to diminishing returns and poor fan reaction.)

 

My point is (and I know I've made this point before) I'd rather MI ended neatly (or as neatly as we could expect from Ron at least) on a strong note with as much of the legacy talent still with us as possible, than have it continue for years and diminishing in quality overtime, losing more and more of the talent over the years, eventually having to recast Guybrush with Harry Styles, or the like. I'd actually rather have a complete reboot than watch MI slowly lose, piece by piece, what makes it so special.

 

 

Edited August 3, 2022 by fentongames

[BaronGrackle]

I thought we agreed Chris Pratt is the definitive voice of Guybrush?

[demone]

I just noticed Devolver Digital's tweet yesterday talking about all the secrets in the game including the Secret. They are really hyping up the secret.

[Marius]

2 hours ago, demone said:

I just noticed Devolver Digital's tweet yesterday talking about all the secrets in the game including the Secret. They are really hyping up the secret.

Obviously this means Monkey1 will be playable inside ReMI, like Maniac Mansion was in DOTT. Bravo Ron!

[Laserschwert]

1 hour ago, Marius said:

Obviously this means Monkey1 will be playable inside ReMI, like Maniac Mansion was in DOTT. Bravo Ron!

This would mean the first for a SCUMM adventure on the Switch.

[OzzieMonkey]

2 hours ago, Marius said:

Obviously this means Monkey1 will be playable inside ReMI, like Maniac Mansion was in DOTT. Bravo Ron!

Put it inside the stump, then the stump inside Monkey1 takes you to Monkey 2  

[Garystu]

2 hours ago, OzzieMonkey said:

Put it inside the stump, then the stump inside Monkey1 takes you to Monkey 2  

 

Then, exiting the stump again will take you to Curse.

[BillyCheers]

4 minutes ago, Guybrush Transmasc said:

 

Then, exiting the stump again will take you to Curse.

After hours of hopping through various versions of different Monkey Island games: “Oh yeeeah, I was playing Return…” 🤨😅

[OzzieMonkey]

4 hours ago, Laserschwert said:

This would mean the first for a SCUMM adventure on the Switch.

I hope Return sells like hotcakes so we get everything on Switch....EVERYTHING. 

[Staple Remover]

I’m curious if this finale will address the cliffhanger set up in Tales regarding the voodoo lady setting up Guybrush and LeChuck, that was always something I was eager to see addressed in a future Tales sequel. 

[demone]

2 hours ago, Staple Remover said:

I’m curious if this finale will address the cliffhanger set up in Tales regarding the voodoo lady setting up Guybrush and LeChuck, that was always something I was eager to see addressed in a future Tales sequel. 

I'm curious what specific plot points Ron really advised in Tales during the discussions on the game's story and structure. I would imagine the Voodoo Lady's character was a pretty big piece of those conversations. If Ron spearheaded that in those discussions, I think it's very likely it will at least be touched upon in Return, especially with Dave also involved and Tales already getting a reference in the first trailer. 

Edited August 4, 2022 by demone

[Wally B.]

It's possible that it was always Ron's intention to make the Voodoo Lady an ambiguous character. After all, she did say to Guybrush to go find Big Woop in Monkey2 and we all know how THAT turned out!

I really like the Tales twist and it does explain some small incongruences in the other games regarding her character (like the fact that in Curse she said that Big Woop was evil and that Guybrush was an idiot for looking for it, after saying in Revenge that it was his only hope).

 

I am actually more curious to find out what they do with Herman though. I mean, Ron confirmed he went back to be a regular cook, so what happened since Escape? Did he just got hit in the head again? Was he never Horatio Torquemada to beginning with? Did he just get into philosophy again???

 

[demone]

I think the whole plot thread of Herman being Elaine's grandfather might be one they strategically omit. 

[KestrelPi]

18 minutes ago, demone said:

I think the whole plot thread of Herman being Elaine's grandfather might be one they strategically omit. 

I'm pretty sure one of them basically said as much somewhere, but annoyingly I can't find it

[Vainamoinen]

I think I'm ready for a new trailer now.

 

 

 

1 minute ago, KestrelPi said:

I'm pretty sure one of them basically said as much somewhere, but annoyingly I can't find it

 

Maybe you remember the first adventure gamers interview? It wasn't specific at all, but at least when I read those lines, I thought "Herman family Star Wars gazongas" immediately.

Dave: "And the other caveat is that too much canon can get in the way of the story you’re trying to tell, so we decided that we would adhere to canon unless it was going to get in the way, and we would ignore some minor details if we needed to."

Edited August 4, 2022 by Vainamoinen

[demone]

8 minutes ago, KestrelPi said:

I'm pretty sure one of them basically said as much somewhere, but annoyingly I can't find it

Yeah, I think it was one of Ron's earlier tweets from April where he said Herman is back to be just being an old coot. 

Edited August 4, 2022 by demone

[KestrelPi]

5 minutes ago, Vainamoinen said:

I think I'm ready for a new trailer now.

 

 

 

 

Maybe you remember the first adventure gamers interview? It wasn't specific at all, but at least when I read those lines, I thought "Herman family Star Wars gazongas" immediately.

Dave: "And the other caveat is that too much canon can get in the way of the story you’re trying to tell, so we decided that we would adhere to canon unless it was going to get in the way, and we would ignore some minor details if we needed to."

 

Nah, I remember something specific from either Ron or Dave saying that he's back to being a weird old castaway or something LIKE that, but I can't remember where I saw it.