The Secret of Monkey Island - No Floppies Ma!

Way back in 1987 I was totally hooked on a game by LucasArts called Maniac Mansion. It was an absolutely incredible adventure-type game that debuted LucasArts SCUMM engine. The SCUMM user interface bundled with a great humorous storyline made Maniac Mansion a HUGE success, and two other sequels followed. I played these titles religiously while my Zork diskettes collected dust. After I solved the series, I wondered to myself how LucasArts would top the success of Maniac Mansion. How could they?

In 1990, LucasArts released another titled based on the SCUMM engine called The Secret of Monkey Island. Now, I was never into pirates, but this game had it all. You are Guybrush Threepwood, a young lad who wishes to be a pirate, and the adventure that ensues is his dream. The Secret of Monkey Island is filled with great characters like The Ghost Pirate LeChuck and The Men of Low Moral Fiber just to name a few. The game had an AWESOME storyline, great humor and an expansive universe. Well, as expansive as 8 floppies would give you in 1990.

[Video Review by Mr. Pence and a rogue fly named Jack]

You can imagine my excitement when I heard LucasArts was releasing a Special Edition version of Monkey Island for the iPhone. The Secret of Monkey Island for my phone! Seriously?! Well, The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition is indeed special. The music is no longer MIDI in nature but is full-blown with instruments. The characters finally have a voice...no more reading text onscreen and imagining what LeChuck or Guybrush sound like. Graphics have also been improved here and there. So what do we end up with? Simply the BEST graphical adventure game of ALL-TIME on a device smaller than the floppies the game originally came on.

I know $7.99 might seem crazy for an iPhone app, but this one is worth it. It was released on the X-Box 360 at the same time for $10. Believe me, if you have never played a LucasArts adventure game, do yourself a favor and download The secret of Monkey Island.

I hope the rest of The Monkey Island Series is in the works.

You can buy The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition HERE.

You can also learn more about the World of Monkey Island HERE.