Escape from Monkey Island

"Monkeys Monkeys! Its full of Monkeys!"

PC to Console game don't turn out that good, A lot of people say that PC games should stick to PC, as their better, but the Playstation 2 version of the game is one of the conversatians, which prove that some PC to Console version is something worth buying. of, I almost forgot...this is the fourth installment of the incredible Monkey Island seris.

Storyline - 10 : ---WARNING---- The following paragraph may contain some spoilers from the last games, but I tried my best to hide spoilers ;). The only spoilers I have put in, is read from the back of the box/ instruction manuel.

Guybrush and Elaine Marley, come off honeymoon and reach Mélée Island, but are shocked to find that a) both have been declaired dead, b) Elaines manor will be demolished, c) Elaine has a rival in her election, and d) there is an Austraillian developer who is challenging people to a insult something, and take over their houses / shops. It's all up to Guybrush to put things right.

What I have noticed, in the story that the story moves quick during the cut-scenes/FMV's, It is rather hard to explain, but lets say that (This does not happen) Guybrush is speaking to Elaine, and then three clones of Elaines come of nowhere, Guybrush will start speaking to them about the task in hand, rather then ''Who are you, where did you come from?'' etc.

When I wrote this review, I was only half way through the game, but over the past few weeks, Escape from Monkey Island has been really exciting, It has gripped me so much that I really want to know what will happen next (I will not cheat and look up in a guide) and you won't be able to belive some of the major surprises in store!

Graphics - 9 : Lucasarts took a huge leap this time round, from 2D to fully 3D. The characters we once knew in previous games are in glorious, if not blocky 3D graphics. The characters are well done, and so are the animations. What I almost forgot to say, was the 3D backgrounds. These are rendered backgrounds, meaning they don't change. The art is outstanding, just looking at the water and sky is just....peaceful, it might even take you away from your task in hand.

Sound and Music - 8 : Escape from Monkey Island has voice acting, which The Curse of Monkey Island also had. The same voice actors are back, acting as their characters, plus there are new actors, who are greeted with open hands. My two personal favourite voice actors are Dominic Armato, who plays Guybrush, and has one of the best voices in the world and Earl Boen, who plays LeChuck.

The sound effects are okay, but not great, they either act on time, or take delays or act before, few of us might only notice this. The music, on the toher hand is super! tunes from previous Monkey Island games are back, with more beat. I don't get board of the famous Monkey Island theme tune, and never will.

Gameplay - 8 : Escape from Monkey Island is much unlike the other three games, it is not a point and click adventure, but a 3D adventure, like Grim Fandangom but thank god that the control and gameplay is better. I personally think the change was risky, but it still worked. What I find annoying, is that you have to get Guybrush in just the right spot to do things, and you might have to walk slow to find the option your looking for. The PS2 Analog stick works well in this game, making Guybrush a dream to control.

Replaybility - 9 : Escape from Monkey Island will take awhile to complete, if you don't use a walkthrough. The game is hard, but once you pounder around for ages, you can easilly think of something.

Overall - 9 : Escape from Monkey Island is a classic, and a must buy for the Playstation 2, even if you havn't played the first 3, you should give this a try. There isn't many games currently out at the moment for Playstation 2, with has an estimated 20+ hours of gameplay (That is if you don't use a walkthrough).

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/13/01, Updated 08/10/01