I seem to remember the savegames are synced, but it’s been a long time since I tried another machine…
1 Like
Stan’s theme uses Wedding March and Funeral March, but is mostly Go Tell Aunt Rhody.
The Phatt alley gambling is O du lieber Agustin.
The Bone Song is often called Dem Bones.
Rum Rogers’ cabin has Blow the Man Down, which is a sea shanty but also counts as a folk song (with lyrics that involve a ship capsizing, or occasionally a young man getting knocked unconscious and forced into the navy).
Not a folk song, but Sailors’ Hornpipe is in the last few bars of the opening cutscene, just before the Part 1 title card.
EDIT: I can’t prove intent, but I swear the beginning of Kate Capsize/Guybrush Floating reminds me of Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho.
2 Likes
Only 20 minutes in and I’m really enjoying pretty much every aspect of the game. Lot of innovation and care seemed to have gone into the UI and it shows. Artstyle is better than I was expecting (and I gave it a 4 on the poll), it’s the animations that really brings the art alive. So yes, I’m very happy. My only worry is what @seguso mentioned about the puzzle difficulty, I was really hoping for old style hard puzzles…
I just finished part I without much troube. Could a third of the game be over already? Maybe the next parts will be longer.
part4 seems to be the big part, with several islands at a time.
Parts 1-3 are just an intro. It seems…
I hope it will get harder now.
2 Likes
The answer is yes. Just hopped over to my other computer, installed everything, and picked up where I left off yesterday.
I’m in part three, where I’ve done a couple of things. And for 7 hours of gameplay I feel like the puzzles have sure been a lot of like, character says “I need a toenail clipper!” Then I go get a toenail clipper. Rinse, repeat.
2 Likes
I’m at the same point in the game that you are. I sort of see what you mean about the puzzles so far. They seem to be a little on the linear side. I thought the puzzle chains in TWP were more open, working on multiple things at once sort of thing.
3 Likes
Return is very much a return to the Ron Gilbert style of P&C adventure games for better or for worse. Here’s all the negatives I can think of:
-
Heavily reliant upon MI1, really the game is like an appendix for MI1 more than anything else. MI2 and Curse are very much their own games, whereas this one isn’t. Curse expanded the MI world whereas it feels that Return has contracted it.
-
Like Curse it tries to relive too many aspects of the original. To give an example from Curse, the insult sword-fighting from MI1 is replaced with the rhyming sword-fighting and in my view is one of the worst parts of the game. It would have been better if Curse had simply decided to do sword fighting in its own completely new way instead of trying to reinvent the Monkey1 insult sword fighting.
-
Curse is probably a better sequel with more consistent humour.
-
Thimbleweed Park is better in several ways.
-
The verbless interface is a downgrade.
-
No proper MacGuffin to drive the story forward.
-
The secret was already figured out some 15+ years ago. It feels like Return is too self-aware.
-
The ending is abrupt.
Return avoids the mistakes made by Escape and Tales, but makes some of its own.
On the other hand it brings its own benefits as well. It picks up after Monkey 2 with an improvement over Curse’s handling of MI2’s conclusion. Arguably this is one of the things it does best. The art style is fresh and amazingly appropriate for the game, and the voice acting is of course great unlike the not-so-special Special Editions of MI1 & 2. The in-built hint system is amazing and allows the player to complete the game without getting stuck for hours or relying on external guides, and it’s now clear this feature is missing in every other MI and LucasArts game. It works far better than the traditional hint books and is a model system that every new point-and-click adventure game should follow.
Return won’t please everyone, but it is a good game as long as you don’t expect it to be something it isn’t. It has effectively revised the series that was all but dead and buried and it has repaired the damage done by the previous instalments (in particular Escape). It is very much a Ron Gilbert game so who knows, maybe someone else will carry the story forward in the future with a new instalment the way Curse did.
1 Like
Yes, part 4 is huge. Just like Monkey2 part 2! It’s great guys. And the inventory fills up and starts scrolling!
It seems that in Iran we don’t have time to play “RtMI”.
In Iran, people are demonstrating against the Islamic Republic, people are attacking the policemen and chanting death to the dictator.
“Return to Monkey Island” was released at a bad time for Iranians.
9 Likes
Yes, part 4 finally feels like I’m playing an adventure game with puzzles, and mysteries, and having to write down some notes and keep small things in the back of my mind.
Even as someone who has only played six or seven adventure games in my life, until now it felt like easy mode even though I’m in hard mode.
2 Likes
Only six or seven? 
I think so.
Maniac Mansion
Monkey 1
Monkey 2
Monkey 3
The Dig
Thimbleweed Park
I think that’s it as far as fully playing through. There have been some other games I started and gave up on within a few hours. Day of the Tentacle, Broken Sword, I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream, Zack McKracken, Loom, The Neverhood, Leisure Suit Larry. I didn’t necessarily dislike all of those games but none of them made me want to keep playing.
What about Fate of Atlantis!
nope!
You’re letting me down dude. I have been let down!
I did play Putt Putt on the 3DO display at Topps Appliance City in Edison, New Jersey.
2 Likes
Try Grim Fandango.
You started Loom but didn’t finish it? (I smile to myself because it is famously short.)
1 Like