Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge - Pretty in Pink

OK, where was I? That’s right, I’d just finished exploring Scabb Island, Booty Island and Phatt Island. It’s these moments that I both look forward to and dread in adventure games. On the one hand, with no more locations to explore (at least for now), it’s finally time to take stock of my inventory and see if I can actually solve puzzles. On the other hand, if I struggle to actually solve anything, then I have to face up to the fact that I’m stuck and start revisiting everywhere all over again. I’d just made a wager with the egotistical little fisherman on the Phatt Island wharf (that I could catch a bigger fish than him), so before I left there I pondered what this puzzle was all about. Why would I need his fishing rod? I had no idea. How could I possibly catch a fish without having a rod of my own? Could I make one? A quick look at my inventory told me it was very likely indeed. I had a piece of string, and I also had a stick that looked pretty suitable. I tried using the string on the stick: “I think I’m too clumsy to hold the stick and tie a knot at the same time.” Oh come on Guybrush, do I have to hold it for you? I tried to figure out how I might achieve the task but couldn’t.

Meanwhile the cheeky little bugger has got a huge head-start on me.

Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge - Cheaters Always Win

With my exploration of Booty Island complete, it was time to go visit the third and final island…Phatt Island. I knew from a conversation with Captain Dread that Phatt Island is ruled by a fascist dictator, but that’s about all I knew. As soon as I arrived, it was apparent that the residents were not all going to be as friendly as those found on Booty Island. A large, muscular man with a helmet over his eyes and a sword on his hip immediately recognised the similarity between Guybrush and a poster on the wall. He very politely asked me whether I was indeed Guybrush Threepwood, and I chose to take the brash, arrogant approach of admitting it: “That’s right. I’m the man who swashed the Ghost Pirate LeChuck’s buckles.” He wasn’t the slightest bit impressed, dragging me off to meet Governor Phatt.

Oh joy! Another island to explore.

I thought the moustache was a great disguise, but apparently it wasn't fooling anyone.

Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge - It's Always Mardi Gras

Written by The Trickster

While I have no idea how many parts there are to Monkey Island 2, I was feeling pretty happy with myself for having defeated Part I without too much trouble. It did seem odd to me that, apart from “lending” his monocle to me, Wally the cartographer played next to no role at all. It also seemed strange that the Voodoo Lady bothered telling me that she could raise the dead if I just happened to be in possession of some ashes, only for there to be no opportunity to actually do it. I was done with that part of the game though, so it was time to clear the slate and move forward, right? Well once again a lot of you will know that this way of thinking was incorrect, and I’ll explain why straight after this cut scene…

Part I took three posts. How long will Part II take?

Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge - Pride Before a Fall

Written by The Trickster

Those of you that have played Monkey Island 2 would have had a good laugh at the end of my last post. I’d been pretty certain that I was going to find some form of cheese in the kitchen, which I could then use to catch the rat in the box. My discovery of the open window to the kitchen did indirectly lead to me catching the rat, but not in the way I expected. In the kitchen I found a chef, flailing about making meals. I quickly surmised that I could interact with the stove, a saucepan on top of it containing vichyssoise (apparently a potato and leek soup), some cans of fruit cocktail on the shelves, a knife on the table, and the chef himself. Guybrush outright refused to touch most of the items, for three reasons: 1. He hates vichyssoise. 2. He’s not a cook. 3. He hates fruit cocktails. The chef was far too busy to talk to me too, meaning the only thing I was able to do after all my excitement at finding a new location, was pick up the knife. Still, this was progress, and I had a strong feeling that I knew what to do with my new inventory addition.

I'm not really sure what this guy is actually wielding. They look like corn cobs.

Missed Classic: Impossible Mission

After we came up with Panthro's Law, allowing us to play non-traditional adventure games, it occurred to us that we missed a lot more classics than we'd thought. So to rectify that we're doing a Missed Classic of a game that's not considered a traditional adventure game, but has enough adventurey elements for us to go, “Meh... Close Enough.” I'm talking, of course, about Impossible Mission.

This cover makes me think of the movie Wargames

Enough preamble, on with the review...

Impossible Mission is known now as a Commodore 64 classic. It was amazing for its time, and like many games of the time, would be considered simple and repetitive if released today. But it, unlike many of its peers, still somehow manages to be compelling (to me at least) to this day.

Wait, wasn't that just another paragraph of preamble? Ignore me, I've never been quite sure when preamble ends and amble begins.