Game Review #27: Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge
In 2009 I began working with Mrs B on her website www.femalegamers.co.uk reviewing the latest console games. Sadly, our other commitments meant the website couldn't continue and we brought it to an end early in 2010. I'll be using this blog to review all the games, recent and not so recent, that I encounter. With Mrs B's kind permission, I'll also be posting some of the reviews I previously worked on, so don't panic if they refer to previous years and months.
Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge (1992) (PC)
After the massive success of The Secret of Monkey Island in 1990, you would have forgiven LucasArts for not pursuing the challenge of creating a follow-up. That they did is a great testament to their bravery and also a huge relief to those of us that were given the ultimate point and click adventure – Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge.
The story begins with Guybrush Threepwood – now a renowned but still unorthodox pirate – hanging precariously from a rope with one hand while the other clutches a treasure chest. Guybrush's love interest from the first game, Elaine Marley, appears and Guybrush tells her the story of how he found himself in such a predicament. Guybrush's adventure opens on Scabb Island where he regales the now familiar story of how he defeated LeChuck. With fellow pirates weary of this ghostly tale, Guybrush is on a new adventure in search of the legendary treasure known as Big Whoop. Pursuing Big Whoop becomes Guybrush's only means of survival when an unfortunate oversight on his part allows LeChuck to be restored to life. Bereft of any mercy, LeChuck is hell-bent on revenge against Guybrush and will stop at nothing to capture his nemesis.
Following on from its predecessor, Monkey Island 2's graphics still look superb for a game that is seventeen years old. There are four islands for Guybrush to explore in the Caribbean making this a much longer adventure than the first game. The humour remains a joy with some slapstick moments and hilarious dialogue, most of which you are able to choose in the list of responses available to Guybrush during his many encounters and conversations. The characters are a varied and delightful bunch with welcome returns for the Men of Low Moral Fibre, the salesman Stan who has now turned from selling ships to coffins, and the Voodoo Lady is back to offer Guybrush some fresh insight on his latest outing. New characters and events are equally memorable with Guybrush taking part in a spitting contest, diving to the bottom of the sea to retrieve an artefact, wearing a pink dress to a party and learning about the messy business of putting together a voodoo doll.
LucasArts offered a welcome option to Monkey Island 2 to make the series more accessible and the puzzles less of a headache. There is a setting for beginners, which limits the amount of puzzles and makes navigating the long story much easier. If you are new to the series this is probably the best option to ease you in, as there are some difficult puzzles to overcome. To assist your head scratching, Guybrush dons a long blue jacket, which must contain a thousand inside pockets based on the amount of items our hero can stash there. Everything from a shovel and mug of grog to a monkey and dog (no questions please!) can be stored in his attire, with some often amusing results.
It's hard to find fault with Monkey Island 2. Compared to games today it is visually inferior but the core of the series has always been in the humour and story lines. It's somewhat fitting that later incarnations in the series, with improved graphics, could not match up to the high standards raised in the first two games. Some of the puzzles in Monkey Island 2 could be difficult for younger gamers to decipher but the option of an easier version eradicates this potential issue. The game may be short by today's standards but in the context of the early nineties this was great value.
Monkey Island 2 deserves to be on a list of the all-time classic games. I personally believe this to be superior to the original and rate it as one of the best games before the emergence of the Playstation, Xbox and Wii. With the foolhardy but loveable Guybrush Threepwood as the hero, some memorable characters to interact with, and a great story with a very surprising ending, Monkey Island 2 comes close to gaming perfection.
Final Score: 96%
* Previously published on www.femalegamers.co.uk
