The look will undoubtedly polarize long-time adherents to the games (a first in all of pop culture fandom, I’m sure), but it’s certainly less dated than the 3D models employed for every other Monkey Island game released in this millennium. The downright ugly polygonal visuals of Escape and Tales of Monkey Island have been replaced with a sort of Henry Selick aesthetic, like a living map populated by hinged paper dolls. Of course, there have been clear upgrades. Return to Monkey Island trailer shows off long-awaited sequel’s gameplay

Namely: “What actually was the Secret of Monkey Island?” Despite being the title of the first game, the titular secret was never actually revealed. It just decides to pick up on an unanswered question hanging in the series’ history. Though the game picks up after the events of Gilbert’s last entry, Monkey Island 2, Return doesn’t attempt to brush the non-Gilbert games out of the canon. So it is perhaps not surprising that the newest adventure for Guybrush Threepwood, mighty pirate, is most fixated on his own legacy. Return to Monkey Island marks the return of two of the three original series creators (Ron Gilbert and Dave Grossman are back, DoubleFine’s Tim Schafer is not). If you want curated lists of our favorite media, check out What to Play and What to Watch.

When we award the Polygon Recommends badge, it’s because we believe the recipient is uniquely thought-provoking, entertaining, inventive, or fun - and worth fitting into your schedule. Polygon Recommends is our way of endorsing our favorite games, movies, TV shows, comics, tabletop books, and entertainment experiences.

Download return to monkey island