1. Bigger
2. Longer
3. LeChuck Zombie looks worlds better than LeChuck ghost did
4. Guybrush’s hair is also much improved
5. We finally get to hear Captain Dread speak in slick Jamaican
6. We finally get to hear the tune for “I’d rather be a pirate on Scabb than a scab on a pirate…”

Don’t bother rushing to a store, because this game is only available online. But it’s available for just about everything: XBLA, PSN, Steam, iPhone and iPad.

Oh, you probably want a link, don’t you? www.monkeyislandspecialedition.com

Chapter 1: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal

Read the rest of the article to see the other four videos…

Chapter 2: The Siege of Spinner Cay

Chapter 3: Lair of the Leviathan

Chapter 4: The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood

Chapter 5: Rise of the Pirate God

We had given up hope, mostly. True, it remained close to our hearts, but rarely at the forefront of our minds. Some fansites remained, although others had shut down for lack of material or purpose. And those in the know? They told us time and again to give up – there would be no more Monkey Islands.

Monkey Island represents a strange yet significant event in pirate history. Those of us who love pirates more than average; most of us would point to the Pirates of the Caribbean rides as the most influential element in our piratey formative years. This is a common experience we share across a wide age range – from the old to the young. But there exists a sliver of us – the piratey Gen Xers – that also largely fell in love with another piece of piratey pop-culture long before the floodgates were opened by the Disney films, and that was the 1991 videogame The Secret of Monkey Island. In many ways cutting edge at the time, today’s audience would likely view it as only a little better than Donkey Kong. But at the time, it was Pirate Monkey Magic, and no mistake. A game that existed solely to bask in a love of piracy, with little to no regard to history or realism. This was a game of pirate ghosts, pirate grog, entire pirate towns run by a pirate governor, and – of course – monkeys. Oh, the monkeys! And the music, for that matter. Cheezy midi tunes they may have been, they nonetheless carried power and emotion, and were catchy as all hell. To this day my phone ringtone library is almost exclusively made up of Monkey Island tunes.

Secret of Monkey Island inspired a sequel – LeChuck’s Revenge – that maintained the true spirit of the original. Curse of Monkey Island followed, and while a stark evolution in animation technology wildly changed the look, most fans more or less agree that Curse was a worthy successor (despite its not being written by the original author, and therefore not necessarily taking the story in the direction originally intended.) The fourth, and by all beliefs final game, Escape from Monkey Island, was something of an embarrasement with awkward, glitchy controls, a lame storyline, a dreadfully emasculated Guybrush, and a general “sequel for the sake of a sequel” feel.

And then there was nothing. For almost ten years, nothing. Not a peep. Fans would ask LucasArts about the potential for another Monkey Island sequel and get the equivelant of a sympathetic pat on the head. And then, out of nowhere, in June 2008 TellTaleGames announces Tales of Monkey Island to be released – not is some vague future – but in less than a month. They’d been working on it for some time, and yet not a peep ever leaked out. How they kept such a secret I’ll never know. But bless them, and may Neptune keep their socks dry.

Tales of Monkey Island is what’s called an “episodic” game, meaning it’s release in downloadable chapters rather than a single game on disc. Once all the episodes are released they can be purchased as a disc, but for now you have to buy them all upfront and then receive one segment per month. Episode 1: Launch of the Screaming Narwhal, released in early July. This is the only part of the game I’ve yet been able to play, so the review should be considered accordingly. However, I fully expect that all the episodes will likely maintain the same level of quality.

The game begins with two ships in battle – the first commanded by the cursed pirate LeChuck, currently embroiled in a voodoo ritual and holding Elaine Marley (Guybrush’s wife) hostage. The second ship is manned by our beloved hero, Guybrush Threepwood, through who’s actions we live out the adventure. Following in the spirit of Escape from Monkey Island, Tales is a 3D adventure, albeit vastly superior to Escape. Not only is the art cleaner, but the new Guybrush look is much more appropriate (meaning less girly) and calls to mind the ghotee, blue coat sporting Guybrush of LeChuck’s Revenge.  He’s still the awkward, less-than-robust pirate we’ve known in past games, but let’s face it, in Escape he was downright dainty. This initial scene is solved through a few quick puzzles, this of course being a game of problem-solving and dialogue rather than outright action, and Guybrush is soon stranded on Flotsam Island and looking for a way to commandeer the island’s only ship so he can defeat LeChuck and save Elaine.

Throughout, the art style and humor is very reminiscent of Curse of Monkey Island, although I still don’t find myself laughing as much as I did when first playing Secret and Revenge. Perhaps it’s just nostalgia, or perhaps it’s the same humor losing potency over time, but subsequent games just haven’t been as endearing or hilarious. That said, Screaming Narwhal is still great fun. The 3D controls are easier to master than they were in Escape, and the puzzles are challenging without being overly so (well, for the most part. I may have cheated just once or twice.) This first episode ends with a small mystery, the nature of which I won’t share but I will state – for the record – my own initial gut reaction: Kate Capsize.

Fans of Monkey Island should need no encouragement to buy this game, but those new to this aspect of piracy may find it more of a crap shoot. If you enjoy puzzles mixed in with lighthearted piratey humor, definitely give it a go. If you’re looking for true swashbuckling or high seas action, you might find this game more tedious than anything. And if you’re a stickler for history, physics, or common sense, you certainly have no place with Monkey Island. I, however, had fun with Launch of the Screaming Narwhal, and I actually think the episodic release works well – it breaks the game down into digestible doses, as too much all at once might prove a little trying. But playing this game for a few hours a month over five months – that sounds gold dust to me. Next up is “The Siege of Spinner City”, whatever that is. I’m disappointed to note that Epsisode 5 is “Rise of the Pirate God.” Being as TellTaleGames has NOT asked me to cameo, I can’t imagine what sort of Pirate God they have in mind (or perhaps they’re trying to be ironic.)

What, still not satisfied? Fine – check out the sweet new Monkey Island merchandise over at the Lucasarts Store.

I, for one, am utterly flabbergasted at how now – after most of us had accepted a Monkey Island-free future – we’re being treated to this deluge of monkey madness, to say nothing of how they managed to keep this all a secret until just before the release dates. It makes me what other surprises they have in store – a movie? a line of insult-driven cutlery? premixed grog?

I’m a lot excited, and a bit scared – the previous Monkey Island Game was the weakest of the lot, and by no small margin. And I don’t feel that 3D is the greatest medium for the series. And I have little faith that these latest ventures (yes, there will be five of them, being “eposodic installments”) will do much to rekindle Monkey Island’s roots. But all that said… MONKEY ISLAND!!!

You can read more at IGN, or visit the official site at www.talesofmi.com.

It’s Monkey Island custom shoes!

!!!

One shoe has Guybrush in a swordfight, the other portrays the night watchman of Melee Island. They don’t show what’s on the flip side of either, so I’m going to assume LeChuck in a tickle fight with Herman Toothrot on the left, and Elaine Marley in a seductive pose on the right.

So for your naysayers who thought Monkey Island was dead, EAT IT!

My discovery of On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers was a strange one. First published 20 years ago, it’s largely flown under the radar amongst the pirate crowds. I’d never heard its name uttered amongst fellow enthusiasts swapping their favorite reads, I’d never heard murmurs of it being made into a movie, never saw it pop up as an Amazon.com recommendation – it’s honestly a miracle I discovered it at all.

It was while reading an old interview with Ron Gilbert – creator of the first two Monkey Island games – that I first learned of this book. The Pirates of the Caribbean Ride has largely been attributed as the inspiration for these brilliant games, but in this interview Gilbert indicated that it was actually the book On Stranger Tides that spurred the creation of Monkey Island. Now, the PotC rides were indeed key to my early love of pirates, and the Monkey Island Games were themselves key during my teenage years. So to learn that there might be a third part of this equation – well, I certainly had to check it out.

Fortunately, On Stranger Tides is still readily available online through the usual retailers (you can buy it now via the links on the left – hint, hint!). And so I ordered the thing and quickly set to reading what I anticipated would be a swashbuckling tale ripe with the seeds of Guybrush Threepwood, LeChuck, Melee Island, and perhaps even giant monkey heads. However, it soon became aparent that if this novel indeed inspired Monkey Island, that’s all it did – inspired it. The story, characters – even the tone of On Stranger Tides was entirely unlike Monkey Island. This was darker, grittier, and utterly genius.

The story begins with John Chandagnac, a former puppeteer on his way to the New World to confront an estranged uncle who’d jilted John’s late father out of his due inheritance. But prior to reaching his destination, the ship is boarded by pirates in a surprisingly brutal battle that doesn’t go remotely as expected. John himself is pressed into service, friends reveal themselves to be enemies, and what’s more, the attack seems to be much more than a mere raid - rather it’s the first step in a much larger plan.

The “plan” here is the instrumental part of the tale, and the cornerstone of the brilliance at work. It’s a plan that involves Stede Bonnet, Blackbeard, the “governor” of Nassau, the Fountain of Youth, and even the devastating earthquake that destroyed Port Royal. Author Powers has taken the recorded histories of the time and meticulously filled in the cracks – not as a means of simply stringing together the facts of the day, but rather as the foundation of the much larger story. Think you know all about Blackbeard? In the world of Tim Powers, what you know is only the dorsal fin hovering on the surface, and you haven’t the foggiest clue of the vast predator that swims beneath.

Taking place in the early 1700′s, this is the Caribbean of legend. The colonial outskirts far removed from the Old World, where men create their own rules, and magic has not yet entirely faded from the world. Voodoo, in fact, is central to the lives of the pirates, and entirely entwined in the fates of Bonnet and Blackbeard. By all rights this would make for a fantasy novel, and yet Powers crafts it in such a way as to seem entirely feasible and in keeping with true history. Why did Blackbeard lay seige to Charleston? Why did Blackbeard take Bonnet under his wing? For that matter, why did Bonnet leave his comfortable life as a retired Major to pursue a life of piracy? All these questions are answered in full. And the answers – while steeped in Voodoo – seem as believable as walking to the market for a gallon of milk. It’s a remarkable feat and makes for a thrilling, intriguing read.

In a perfect world On Stranger Tides would be a modern classic of pirate literature. It’s as perfect a mixture of fiction and reality as I’ve ever read. Powers’ execution of his story is almost flawless, save for the very end where it seems as if he found himself suddenly overdue for publication and scratched out the rough equivelant of, “the heroes had pretty much wrapped things up, although there is still a little left so we’ll wish them well. The End.” But its peculiar conclusion aside, this remains a book that any and every fan of the pirate genre would do well to investigate.