The Adventurer - Issue #12: The Return to Monkey Island Trailer Special
The Adventurer - Issue #12: The Return to Monkey Island Trailer Special
In celebration of the Return to Monkey Island trailer, we give you an early newsletter for you to enjoy!
The Editor Welcomes You
Holy hell, me hearties! After a grueling 11 issues of this newsletter coasting by with little new Return to Monkey Island material to share, an incredible trailer was launched this week absolutely packed with revelations.
I don’t even know where to begin. I love how Guybrush looks and indeed the art in general, I love the returning characters and locations, I love Marius’ reaction, and I love the music. The only thing I’m waiting for is LeChuck’s new voice, assuming that Earl Boen has managed to resist the temptation to jump into a kayak and get himself over to Bay Area Sound.
Be sure to check out our forums, where everyone is having a great time getting into all the stuff we’ve learnt as a result of this trailer. For example, those Curse of Monkey Island-style clouds that have become a recurring motif now spanning four games… chef’s kiss.
The Trailer
Trailer Talk
We put together a scene-by-scene walkthrough of the trailer with the type of speculations usually reserved for pinboards and red threads. So, par for the course, really. Additionally, we have gathered all the official screenshots in a handy gallery.
The discussion is running rampant over in our ReMI forum thread. Have the characters aged? How will the secret be presented? Hey, it's Dom! Is this the last game in the franchise?
Some Very Random Thoughts
The official "Overview" page is, as the norm with these things is, PR-heavy. Putting in breathless hyperbole like "the exciting conclusion to the Monkey Island series" isn't abnormal, but it is still just that: hyperbole. Maybe it should be the last game of the series, but neither Disney nor Lucas have a history of abandoning (profitable) IP. That it's the final installment of the Gilbert Trilogy seems pretty certain, though. (And to state the obvious: "trilogy" refers to Gilbert heading up three games. This isn't Monkey Island 3a, and all six games are part of a single canon.)
But let's get into some real speculation: There are hints that the passage of time will play a big part in the game -- sourced from both the aforementioned marketing page and interviews -- and if we really want to get down the rabbit hole... We don't see Elaine and Guybrush together in the trailer at all. Coincidence? Time-related? Dimension-related? To quote the proverbial right-wing news commenter: "I'm only asking the questions."
Release date: I mean, who knows, but let's just make some guesses, as many already have, ranging from tomorrow through December. If I was a gambling man, I would say sooner rather than later. The reason: The game has already gotten a rating ("Teen"), and the VO work concluded a few weeks back. If I was a gambling man, I would say August 26th.
But just play it now: The small web game might not be deeply interactive (or overly informative), but man, do you get a nice amuse-bouche of what the game will look like. Which is awesome.
And the official cover? Confirmed! It also makes for a nice Lock Screen background easily borrowed from the official website.
Let's call all of that wide-spanning speculations. And a conversation starter. An icebreaker if you like. Hit us up on Twitter or our forums to make your voice heard! And for god's sake, wishlist the game on Steam and Nintendo Store.