Petition: Disney, please sell the rights to 'Monkey Island' back to its creator Ron Gilbert

Probably most of you know this already, but I like to share it.
Monkey Island on a stage play, made by a group of teenagers, about 10 years ago.
They recreated the whole Monkey Island story… with their means!
That was when Lucasarts still owned the rights…
Enjoy!

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I’d ask Ron: what’s the bus factor of the Secret of Monkey Island?

I share his concerns. A simple solution would be: he gives to an attorney/notary instructions about how to share the secret when he’ll die but he never tells anyone that he made this arrangements.

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Or maybe he just hasn´t given part 3 all that much thought, yet and “The Secret Of Monky Island” was nothing more than a catchy title like so many other “Secret of…” titles?

That’s quite possible. I think I’ve made a similar hypothesis in a previous post: maybe he never decided what the secret was.

As a kid I watched a cartoon show called the Bluffers. That also had an ominous secret, but it was more than just a title it was a crucial plot point. And that never was revealed.

I think Monkey Island started out as a title, and people started reading more into it than there ever was and when he saw that he started toying with it. I think that´s quite brilliant because it obviously works and keeps people talking, but honestly I never lost any sleep over what that secret might be. Because most likely there is none. If you don´t count a giant lava lake that is home to ghost pirate ship hidden under a giant monkey head that is worshipped by the world´s least intimidating cannibals who don´t really get along with the ghosts who live in the head to begin with a secret that is.

I understand and to me it’s perfectly OK if Ron has yet to decide what the secret is. I don’t care if it’s not a 27 years old secret, I just want him to complete the story.

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Oh, I´d love to see another Monkey Island as much as the next guy. It´s just that I don´t lose any sleep over it, because the likelihood of it ever happening is really close to zero and I see absolutly no scenario that doesn´t include Disney going broke (and desperate to sell properties) or finding someone really influential in the company who is a fan.

I have not expectations either. But I want to emphasize that I’d settle for an underground-shared story, I don’t expect necessarily a game.

Not sharing that sentiment at all. Because I would so not care for that, because it would just feel like fanfic in that form even if it comes from the original author.

Remember Star Trek the animated series? That was meant to be an official continuation of the original series that got cancelled too early. How many people care about or remember that?

Nope, just reading it wouldn´t feel the same to me as playing a full fledged game.

It´s not that I don´t care how the story goes on, but maybe not enough to start having morbid thoughts about it(I´m not fingerpointing here people, relax!).

But why? A lot of movies spawned official books that officially expanded the original story.

Jane Jensen a few years ago published a short novel about Gabriel Knight, the first official sequel after GK3. The story has been eventually adapted into a comic book.

I don’t see why a different medium would deprive the series of its charm or quality.

Of course, I agree about this: it would never feel the same. My personal preference is that I would accept to get a short official story/novel instead of absolutely nothing.

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As long as Disney own the IP, it all should be hopeless. They ought to keep on creating their own IPs. I wouldn’t like to play a MI 3a that isn’t called MI for legal reasons or read a book only to get to know the secret of MI. In my opinion, they ought to create a similar game series that doesn’t seem too much like a MI rip-off but follows the same concept.
Ron already stated that he would never create a non-MI adventure game with pirates and monkeys.
By the way, Disney may consider legal measures, if someone ripped off MI or PotC. Back in the 70s, Universal was sued by Fox because Battlestar Galactica was a Star Wars rip-off. For this reason, I presume that an unofficial MI game would have to come along with a lot of limitations.

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As Disney will never sell the MI IP a book or something like this is the only way for the fans to know how the story ends. And I would like to know how it ends. :slight_smile:

How did this end? Battlestar Galactica is still there.

In the past several game companies tried to sue several other game companies and they lost. If you don’t copy the graphics and use the trademarks I don’t think that they will successful in a trial.

Meanwhile, Bill Tiller did this: :stuck_out_tongue:

> Duke Grabowski, Mighty Swashbuckler

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Also, all you pessimists maybe forgot that Ron Gilbert already wrote a draft about MI under a pseudonym, the only issue is that it’s too short. But completing it isn’t in the realm of dreams.

Yes, it’s still there, but the legal proceedings took years.

Well, I have to admit that Star Wars was actually a rip-off of Flash Gordon and Dune. Also, Monkey Island is a rip-off of the PotC ride at Disneyland from the 60s. Almost everything is a rip-off in a way nowadays. Therefore, it would be a catastrophe for every entertainment company if the law was more restrictive.

However, I think that an adventure game ought to be either an official genuine MI game or something new that stands for itself - but maybe also with (ghost) pirates, sailing ships, islands and (especially) humor.

I know there is tons. And I care for exactly zero of them. Couldn´t really explain you why though.[quote=“BigRedButton, post:92, topic:76”]
I wouldn’t like to play a MI 3a that isn’t called MI for legal reasons or read a book only to get to know the secret of MI
[/quote]

This! Either both or nothing for me. I´m glad Return Of The Jedi exists and isn´t comic book released in 2007 or a semi official sequel in the guise of a rip off film.

Dave Grossman and Tim Schafer also know the secret.

Yeah, and I know which one

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… and also he did Ghost Pirates of Vooju Island. That’s true! :smiley: