Return to Monkey Island

[ThunderPeel2001]

Any derivative work is automatically owned by Disney and can be shut down by them. Nothing Ron can do will change that, and as someone who is currently having to work with Disney… let’s just say they can be VERY protective of their IP. (Ron is in a great place because the IP currently dormant and not making them any money, but they still most likely don’t want to open the door to Guybrush and Herman Toothot erotic fan games.)

[CalisDraws]

3 hours ago, ThunderPeel2001 said:

Any derivative work is automatically owned by Disney and can be shut down by them. Nothing Ron can do will change that, and as someone who is currently having to work with Disney… let’s just say they can be VERY protective of their IP. (Ron is in a great place because the IP currently dormant and not making them any money, but they still most likely don’t want to open the door to Guybrush and Herman Toothot erotic fan games.)

 

Aw man, I almost forgot we can't have nice things with Disney.... 

[Lagomorph01]

11 hours ago, CalisDraws said:

 

Aw man, I almost forgot we can't have nice things with Disney.... 

I’d say a sixth Monkey Island helmed by the original creator is a pretty nice thing. 😉

 

But yeah, I think it’s a very scary company as a whole…

[Lechuck]

Here's hoping for some new Steve Purcell box art.

[Udvarnoky]

With the exception of TMI, the tradition with box art has been to have it handled by a member of the game's art team. I would hardly turn down another Steve Purcell Monkey Island cover, but it would be highly appropriate for Rex Crowle to get the assignment as well.

 

It's worth noting that Purcell turned down the opportunity to do the cover of CMI because he was impressed by what the art team had come up with and felt they would better represent the style of the game.

[Goury1]

Here's hoping for Largo LeGrade's return!

[Udvarnoky]

Have him voiced by Dom, and I approve!

 

I'm hoping Guybrush bumps into The Men of Exceptionally Low Moral Fiber.

[Scummbuddy]

@Goury1 I believe Dom did voice Largo in the MinNMojo April Fool's audio clips from years back.

[Goury1]

4 hours ago, Scummbuddy said:

@Goury1 I believe Dom did voice Largo in the MinNMojo April Fool's audio clips from years back.

 

I've always wondered what happened to Largo, since his character was notibly absent from COMI. Yes, I remember the old April Fool's sound clip from way back. Does anyone know where I can find the sound clip? I've acctually tried to find it earlier with no luck... 

Edited April 9, 2022 by Goury1

[OzzieMonkey]

Largo has always been my top pick for a returning character. The advantage of this being a world full of voodoo magic, ghosts and zombies also means that even if he died in the explosion at the fortress, you could easily bring him

back. Bring on undead Largo!

[Lagomorph01]

5 hours ago, Udvarnoky said:

Have him voiced by Dom, and I approve!

I actually always liked his April Fools rendition of the character.
Never cared for the SE’s voice actor though, way to heavy and gruff, like they casted a generic bully instead of looking at the way the character looks and acts.

[Goury1]

14 minutes ago, OzzieMonkey said:

Largo has always been my top pick for a returning character. The advantage of this being a world full of voodoo magic, ghosts and zombies also means that even if he died in the explosion at the fortress, you could easily bring him back. Bring on undead Largo!

 Guybrush was in the room with the explosives, and he didn't die. I doubt Ron just decided to kill Largo off-screen, so I'm hoping for his return.

[ThunderPeel2001]

7 hours ago, Udvarnoky said:

With the exception of TMI, the tradition with box art has been to have it handled by a member of the game's art team. I would hardly turn down another Steve Purcell Monkey Island cover, but it would be highly appropriate for Rex Crowle to get the assignment as well.

 

It's worth noting that Purcell turned down the opportunity to do the cover of CMI because he was impressed by what the art team had come up with and felt they would better represent the style of the game.

 

It didn't stop him designing the Tales of Monkey Island box art

[Glokidd]

I'm hoping that we see largo as well but for only a short scene before lechuck puts a curse on him that turns him into Dinghy Dog forever... or maybe the grumpy rat guy you shoot a pie at 😀

[Jake]

2 hours ago, ThunderPeel2001 said:

 

It didn't stop him designing the Tales of Monkey Island box art

On Tales Steve said he thought Ryan Jones’ rendition of Guybrush was complimentary to how he saw the character at the time, and Steve and Ryan worked together on The Devil’s Playhouse. Of course Steve, Ron, and Dave have worked together before too believe it or not, so who knows! I’d love to see a Steve box, but I’d also love to see what Rex Crowle would do!

[Goury1]

I also hope that RTMI reveals Guybrush's family backstory! MI2 implied that Guybrush is an orphan and that he has a brother and a sister. If LeChuck is the brother, could Elaine be the sister? Maybe the whole world of Monkey Island is just a way in which the three siblings are coping with the loss of their parents? It's just my theory...

[ThunderPeel2001]

So wait… if Ron has been working on this for two years, does that mean he was working on Return while he did this?

 

 

[MurraySchull]

So, in the light of this new announcement, any chance of @Jakeand @Marius (and Dom?) playing the rest of the MI games in the leadup to the new game? Seems like there’s no better time to do it now! *hint*
 

We could also do with a new Mojo podcast discussing the announcement at some point!

[OzzieMonkey]

10 minutes ago, fentongames said:

So, in the light of this new announcement, any chance of @Jakeand @Marius (and Dom?) playing the rest of the MI games in the leadup to the new game? Seems like there’s no better time to do it now! *hint*
 

We could also do with a new Mojo podcast discussing the announcement at some point!

Both of those things would be awesome! I'm also hoping Mojo might be able to nab an interview or two

with the key people

involved with Return and find out how this all came together and also clarify some of the finer details (Canon, for example). 

[BeleG]

3 hours ago, OzzieMonkey said:

Both of those things would be awesome! I'm also hoping Mojo might be able to nab an interview or two

with the key people

involved with Return and find out how this all came together and also clarify some of the finer details (Canon, for example). 

These would all be great, but we'll probably have to wait until at least launch to get some clarifications. In the meantime I'm in the market for some wild, groundless speculation! :P

[Lechuck]

So what do we know so far?

 

Melee Island is back. Guybrush probably gets there through through the elevator in the tunnels.

 

LeChuck's ghost ship is docked at Melee Island... but didn't Guybrush wipe out his crew? And how will Zombie LeChuck engage with his old crew? Why didn't he use them in MI2?

 

The one thing Ron's said about this in the past is that Guybrush will probably go to hell. But what does that mean? Is that different to what's below Monkey Island? Are we doing a Dante nine levels of hell? Or is it a different kind of hell? The hell of everyday life as a young boy?

 

Confirmed returning characters: Murray and the lookout. We can probably assume Elaine, Voodoo Lady and Stan will be back too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[OzzieMonkey]

3 hours ago, Lechuck said:

 

Confirmed returning characters: Murray and the lookout. We can probably assume Elaine, Voodoo Lady and Stan will be back too.

 

Alexandra Boyd is confirmed as Elaine and interestingly, Gavin Hammon as Stan, who played him in Tales. I wonder if Pat Pinney was asked or did Ron not like his voice? Idk, that's adding to my suspicion that we're getting some post-Tales stuff. I mean, his very presence in this game would nullify Curse as canon (which we now know they have been careful not to do). Either that or we just put him in the coffin AGAIN, but that just feels really uninspired for these writers. The presence of the Voodoo Lady would nullify Curse as canon too because Guybrush clearly hasn't seen her since the events of 2 when he sees her in that game. The more I think about it, the more I'm thinking that this is gonna be a MI3/MI6 at the same time sorta deal, where the people who want to ignore the post-Gilbert era are free to, but it can take place mostly at a much later period of the characters' lives after we deal with the immediate aftermath of MI2's ending.  To me, that's the cleanest way to bring in fan favourites from any entry in the series and not have to engage with any inconsistencies. I can picture the structure going something like: Part One - Carnival, Part Two - Time skip with a new status quo that sets up the main plot. Part Three and Four - Ending, Secret Revealed, Battle with LeChuck, etc. I also just like stories that take places over different time periods, and the Monkey Island series has never done that, it would be something new to explore and an older, experienced Guybrush with Ron's writing would be super cool and kinda unexpected.

Edited April 11, 2022 by OzzieMonkey

[Goury1]

3 hours ago, OzzieMonkey said:

Alexandra Boyd is confirmed as Elaine and interestingly, Gavin Hammon as Stan, who played him in Tales. I wonder if Pat Pinney was asked or did Ron not like his voice? Idk, that's adding to my suspicion that we're getting some post-Tales stuff. I mean, his very presence in this game would nullify Curse as canon (which we now know they have been careful not to do). 

I have a problem with Escape and Tales, because they retcon some stuff. In Curse we learn that LeChuck became an immortal living-dead being, by crossing through the Gates of BIg Whoop, yet, in Tales we learn that he escaped the Land of the Dead by using a spell. Tales directly contradict Curse. It would be very difficult for Ron to explain all the inconsistencies of EFMI and TOMI.

 

And what about Stan, Murray and the Vodoo Lady, how can they be in the game if it respects COMI as canon? Something very strange is happening with the plotline of RTMI! It might be part sequel to MI2 and part sequel to Tales, although I would prefer if Ron managed to tell his original story and was somehow able to explain the existance of COMI, EFMI and TOMI at the same time. Am I hoping for too much?

[OzzieMonkey]

1 hour ago, Goury1 said:

I have a problem with Escape and Tales, because they retcon some stuff. In Curse we learn that LeChuck became an immortal living-dead being, by crossing through the Gates of BIg Whoop, yet, in Tales we learn that he escaped the Land of the Dead by using a spell. Tales directly contradict Curse. It would be very difficult for Ron to explain all the inconsistencies of EFMI and TOMI.

 

And what about Stan, Murray and the Vodoo Lady, how can they be in the game if it respects COMI as canon? Something very strange is happening with the plotline of RTMI! It might be part sequel to MI2 and part sequel to Tales, although I would prefer if Ron managed to tell his original story and was somehow able to explain the existance of COMI, EFMI and TOMI at the same time. Am I hoping for too much?

EMI to me has the more aggregious retcon with Herman Toothrot, because it actively changes a character to the point where they can never re-enter the series as the same person; in other words, it did Irreparable damage. Tales, on the other hand, is an inconsistency at worst. I liked all the Crossroads stuff in Chapter 5 anway, so I'm not too bothered about that, but you could always argue that LeChuck used Big Whoop AND a spell, though I understand if that's a bit of a stretch.

I don't think Ron needs to explain anything, just don't acknowledge it. Really, the only thing I hope Ron addresses if in fact any of it is set Post-Tales, is the after credits scene where the Voodoo Lady is clearly not done meddling with, as she puts it "the tides of destiny".  That entire plotpoint, to me, was some of the best in the series and I'd love to see that developed more. It wouldn't surprise me if that reveal was Ron's idea in the brainstorming (maybe jake or someone can confirm). 

Edited April 11, 2022 by OzzieMonkey

[neoncolor8]

47 minutes ago, Goury1 said:

And what about Stan, Murray and the Vodoo Lady,

I get Stan and Murray, but what about the voodoo lady?