Select Gaming Platform and game

Monkey Island 2 (Ultimate Talkie Edition) DOS

The Secret of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge Ultimate Talkie Edition, MI2 DOS
Genre: Adventure
Perspective: 3rd-person
Visual: 2D scrolling
Gameplay: Graphic adventure, Puzzle elements
Interface: Point and select
Setting: Sea pirates / Caribbean
Narrative: Comedy
Published by: Lucasfilm Games LLC
Developed by: Lucasfilm Games LLC
Released: 1991
Platform: DOS

Meet - a masterpiece, part two! I know it sounds like a curse. Nowadays, you are no longer surprised to find, under the candy wrapper with the number two, an awkwardly glued, insipid craft, designed to make some more money on the promoted brand. However, in this particular case, this is not hack-work and not even the third leg of the masterpiece, namely, “Masterpiece, part two”!

The plot of the first part of Monkey Island has come to a logical end: the sinister ghost pirate is defeated, the beautiful Elaine is saved, the fool Guybrush Threepwood is recognized as a real pirate. Above the horizon, a pink, curled inscription "And they lived ..." slowly rises. Yeah, no matter how it is! The second part cleverly intercepts the narrative and, with a nasty giggle, hides in the thicket of Scabb Island. The dead captain LeChuck has not yet said his word, the storm of the otherworldly seas longs to return to the world of the living with retribution! Tremble, Threepwood!

The second part presents something new in moderation: firstly, the graphics have been significantly improved. Locations with characters in the first part were of high quality, but LeChuck's Revenge makes even its predecessor fade. In addition, the game has lost inserts with "realistic" portraits of characters, finally settling on the "cartoon" design. In my opinion, this is a plus, attempts at cinematography (especially in 16 colors) did not particularly harmonize with the general atmosphere of the game. Secondly, the interface has become much more convenient: bulky atavisms like "turn on - turn off" have disappeared from the list of commands, and interaction with many objects has been reduced to one mouse click. The inventory has also become clearer - instead of a dry list of items, we now see their pictures. Thirdly, Monkey Island 2 boasts a lightweight level of difficulty "Lite", which is a rarity for quests, you see. In this mode, the most intricate puzzles are cut out. An excellent compromise for those who have a hard time at a leisurely quest pace or simply do not have enough time to play. A matter of taste ... for me, too many good jokes have been sacrificed for simplicity. And fourthly, this game was the first to test the iMuse system, which synchronizes music with events on the screen and ensures smooth transition from one topic to another. It would seem nonsense, but Lucas does not knit brooms: music here is a really important part of the atmosphere.
Other things have changed little compared to the first part (and this is a compliment!), But it is worth emphasizing that the game does not require an obligatory acquaintance with the original source. The author of this review went through "LeChuck's Revenge" before "The Secret of Monkey Island", and still had a lot of fun.

Summary. What is worth mentioning is worth repeating. Monkey Island 2 is a masterpiece. It is even considered by many to be the best game in the series. This is an excellent example of the embodiment of the principle "The same and thicker!" plus some nice innovations. In fact, the LucasArts company took the same bar for the second time, but made it cleaner and with a slight acrobatic pirouette at the highest point. Ten points, I can't put less. The only drawback Monkey Island inherited from a parent is the high language barrier. To fully appreciate the talent of screenwriters, you will need either an Upper Intermediate knowledge of English, or a good vocabulary and unbending tenacity. But even this minus is subjective. As a practicing translator, the author seriously recommends this product as a guide for conversational English learners. It is difficult to think of a better incentive to study than a good game and high-quality humor.

He trembles, how ... our protagonist, the very speck in the eye and the anchor in the ... uh ... thigh of the ghost pirate, with outrageous carelessness continues to disgrace the ranks of sea robbers. He grew a thin beard, got a lot of money with a beautiful blue jacket to boot, and now, pouting with importance, for the hundredth time torments his friends' ears with a story about how he ripped out Captain LeChuck's beard with his bare hands. It would seem, what else is needed? But Guybrush is sure that without real treasure, a pirate is not a pirate. And a simple treasure with trinkets will not suit him, no: the killer of ghosts swung no less at the legendary "Big whoop" ("Big noise"), looking for which many famous pirates have already disappeared. Guybrush is determined to find the famous treasure! A stop at Stroop Island is just an annoying misunderstanding: now he will charter a ship, and nothing will delay him! Unless only in-oh-he is that short man on the bridge ...

This is how the Guybrush begin, and hence our misadventures. Looking ahead, I will say that there will be few locations available to us, but they are so full of humor, difficult puzzles and non-standard plot twists that only the most impetuous gamers will seem to be a short game.

A few words about the mechanics of the game: in general, everything that can be said about the first part applies to the second. High density of humor per unit of time? There is! Making fun of the player? There is! Excellent music? There is! Wholeness and fascination of the story? There is! The murderous absurdity of situations and problem-solving? But how! The entertainment program includes dressing up Guybrush in a lady's dress, competitions in spitting at length, stealing pets and placing them in your inventory - and these are not the strangest acts! It is traditionally impossible to die in the game, or rather ... in two places you can, if you try very hard, but the story is structured in such a way that this death becomes another witty joke. “- And then what?”, “- What, what! They killed me, that's what! " The latter, by the way, is the principled position of the creators of the game. Tim Shafer, the developer of Monkey Island, admitted that he is very annoyed by the constant death of the hero in the Sierra quests. “You die whenever you make a mistake. But it’s easiest for a screenwriter to kill the protagonist. ”