6 ms·

What was special about the first two Monkey Island games (at least for me) was the atmosphere. I mean, just look at this screenshot: https://www.adventurecorner

by rob74 5y ago

What was special about the first two Monkey Island games (at least for me) was the atmosphere. I mean, just look at this screenshot: https://www.adventurecorner.de//uploads/images/games/monkey1/screens/image002.jpg https://www.adventurecorner.de//uploads/images/games/monkey1... Parts 1 and 2 had this effect on me, with part 3 the magic was mostly gone unfortunately. If Return to Monkey Island manages to recapture some of that, I don't care if it's pixel art or whatever else...

windmaster 5y ago
That! Monkey Island was all about the atmosphere. It brought the caribbean to my living room.
ykonstant 5y ago
Oh! I am glad to see the atmosphere aspect of MI emphasized! I played these games as a preteen, and much of the humor went above my head (non-native speaker). It was the atmosphere, the setting and the characters that made me love the games, especially the first one. I spent so much time on Melee Island; the eerie forest, the voodoo lady, the jail, the docks... these places and people made a tremendous impression on young me. EDIT: Oh, and how can I forget the music!
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- technovader 5y ago
  Fortunately Michael Land has made the music for every Monkey Island game yet, and is also onboard to do the music for this one
interpol_p 5y ago
I don't think the atmosphere is quite there in this new one, here's Melee Island from The Verge's screenshot. The art doesn't sit well with me: https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/dQbYIfWFh5WfWwby87FoHyI8uog=/0x0:2560x1440/1920x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23389447/return_to_monkey_island_02.png https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/dQbYIfWFh5WfWwby87FoHyI8uog=... In the modern version the town is no longer twinkling and glittering. It appears smaller due to the large buildings. The strong purple tints (especially on the horizon) gives the scene an uneasy feeling. And the lookout point is no longer forlorn, it appears close to the town due to the way the whole island appears downscaled because of the larger town elements. We have also lost the reflection of the lights in the water, making the island appear to sit on the ground rather than in the waves I'm still going to play the game and hope to love it. But the art style seems to feature very strong colours and intense gradients. When animated the motion seems too fluid, with characters deforming like in a Flash animation
- practice9 5y ago
  The old art feels, in a way, more realistic. One underappreciated aspect of low definition graphics is that your mind can interpolate the visuals, and you feel more immersed. (suspension is disbelief has a positive effect here) When graphics become HD or closer to photorealistic they are starting to trigger an uncanny valley effect.
  - the_af 5y ago
    > One underappreciated aspect of low definition graphics is that your mind can interpolate the visuals Yes, what Scott McCloud calls "closure" in Understanding Comics. That said, my mind also interpolates the newer version of Melee Island, because it's cartoony and "abstract" enough, and so I also like it.
    - practice9 5y ago
      > Yes, what Scott McCloud calls "closure" in Understanding Comics. Exactly! I forgot about reading this book, but it was very insightful.
- wellthisisgreat 5y ago
  Interesting. I think the old picture linked above have a dreamy atmosphere because of the jagged edges which create a foggy / twinkling effect
Biganon 5y ago
I've been thinking about that quite a lot, but with Zelda games. I've come to the conclusion that the old games feel beautiful and mysterious and nostalgic because I played them as a child. I'm no longer a child, life is no longer the same. It's not necessarily worse, it's just fundamentally different. I will never blame Shigeru Miyamoto for that, it would be absurd.
- ncann 5y ago
  Yeah, it's a sad fact that I've realized myself as well. No matter how good a game is, I'll never be able to experience again that magical feeling when I played Pokemon for the first time on the GB.
  - sigg3 5y ago
    But you can experience it with new things! If you approach stuff with positivity, openness and wonder you'll have a blast! This is my current experience with learning Go, having learned Python previously. I don my explorer's hat and force myself to live into the text, subject or code (Herder's Einfühlung). Personally it makes the journey so much more entertaining than merely as a tools to an end.
    - ncann 5y ago
      I mean yes, the joy is still there when trying new things for the first time, I would be lying if I said otherwise. But it's just not the same. You know that feeling of total absorption/encompassment when you played your favorite game for the first time in your childhood? There's nothing like it. I went to dinner thinking about the game. I went to sleep thinking about the game. I went to school thinking about the game. The joy when my starter Pokemon evolved was indescribable. The game was the only thing that was on my mind. What's even more amazing is that I'm not a native English speaker, and I did not understand a single word in the game back then, yet somehow that did not impede me at all, in fact I think it even added to the joy of exploration.
      - mlyle 5y ago
867-5309 5y ago
you'd be hard pushed to recreate that in mspaint!
aidenn0 5y ago
The first MI is almost not believable that it is an EGA game. Then Loom came out and looks even better. These games pushed the limits of what graphical hardware of the time was capable of.
simulate-me 5y ago
Without having context of when this was made and that it was part of a game, this looks like a fairly generic picture of a mountain. You regularly see images with far more atmosphere on r/PixelArt.
- auselen 5y ago
  It was clearly something better for me, and I think I played it around ‘94, it was better than what was on tv or video. And it was why we were playing video games, because with each one they kept getting better.
- AdvancedCarrot 5y ago
  I think a big part of it as well is the music that comes in when you're first presented with this scene. I genuinely think this game (which I didn't discover until years later following its release) has the impact that it has for me because of the brilliant soundtrack.
  - pcthrowaway 5y ago
    That music on tinny computer speakers (if you didn't have Soundblasters at the time) was something else: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IOL4q5tDDQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IOL4q5tDDQ I think it was here on HN that I previously read a comment breaking down how the PC speaker could only play one tone at a time, but the team managed to simulate two overlapping melodies
    - mdpye 5y ago
      While that sounds like an amazing technical accomplishment, I can tell you that discovering it on an amiga with a hifi separates amp and speakers[1] was definitely better. I was very lucky, but I'm not sorry! ;) The soundtrack is sensational. 1. To be fair, the speakers were intended for the back shelf of a car. It was cobbled together from castoffs found in the loft...
      - darkwater 5y ago
hhlevnjak3 5y ago
I could never say part 3 doesn't have atmosphere. The music, the art, the overall feel was different, but great on it's own. On the other hand, the story, and the subtle humor from 1 and 2 was lacking or different.
- wenc 5y ago
  In MI1, there was a sense of questing as Guybrush Threepwood goes through training to become a swordfighter (the classic training trope like in Rocky and in martial arts movies), plus there was also the will-they-won't-they romantic tension with Elaine. MI1 was an origin story so it had the advantage of being able to use these well-loved tropes. Stan was a great character. MI2 took it a little further with the unresolved tension with LeChuck. MI3 didn't really have that same sense of tension or urgency because Guybrush is already in a relationship with Elaine and he's just trying to break the curse. MI3 (or CMI) was a great game, but it just didn't leave you wanting more.
Razengan 5y ago
> What was special about the first two Monkey Island games (at least for me) was the atmosphere. Same! First of all I LOVED the “eternal night” in some locations. It was unexplained and unmentioned (though an easy headcanon might be that everything you do there takes place during a single night) but it has a huge effect on the aesthetic feel of the game world. The other thing that evoked the sense of adventure was the balance between the Civilized and Unexplored parts of its world, a common theme in pirate settings. > with part 3 the magic was mostly gone unfortunately. Curse certainly felt a bit “off” to me (I wasn’t aware that it wasn’t made by the same people but I could feel it) but it still had some charm, except for the abrupt final episode.
- a_e_k 5y ago
  > Same! First of all I LOVED the “eternal night” in some locations. Playing it as a tween, it evoked this feeling of one of those rare special nights where I got to stay up way past my bedtime on a warm summer night at an amusement park, fair, circus, camping, etc. (Where the twilight and temperature is perfect after the day's brightness and the heat has broken.)
babyshake 5y ago
If you look at the screenshots and art released, they are definitely at least attempting an atmospheric feeling. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. For me the thing I really love most is the MIDI music. Occasionally I'll put on the score from MI2, Loom or another game and it brings me back.

by rob74 5y ago

windmaster 5y ago

That! Monkey Island was all about the atmosphere. It brought the caribbean to my living room.

ykonstant 5y ago

Oh! I am glad to see the atmosphere aspect of MI emphasized! I played these games as a preteen, and much of the humor went above my head (non-native speaker). It was the atmosphere, the setting and the characters that made me love the games, especially the first one. I spent so much time on Melee Island; the eerie forest, the voodoo lady, the jail, the docks... these places and people made a tremendous impression on young me. EDIT: Oh, and how can I forget the music!

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
technovader 5y ago
Fortunately Michael Land has made the music for every Monkey Island game yet, and is also onboard to do the music for this one

interpol_p 5y ago

I don't think the atmosphere is quite there in this new one, here's Melee Island from The Verge's screenshot. The art doesn't sit well with me: https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/dQbYIfWFh5WfWwby87FoHyI8uog=/0x0:2560x1440/1920x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23389447/return_to_monkey_island_02.png https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/dQbYIfWFh5WfWwby87FoHyI8uog=... In the modern version the town is no longer twinkling and glittering. It appears smaller due to the large buildings. The strong purple tints (especially on the horizon) gives the scene an uneasy feeling. And the lookout point is no longer forlorn, it appears close to the town due to the way the whole island appears downscaled because of the larger town elements. We have also lost the reflection of the lights in the water, making the island appear to sit on the ground rather than in the waves I'm still going to play the game and hope to love it. But the art style seems to feature very strong colours and intense gradients. When animated the motion seems too fluid, with characters deforming like in a Flash animation

practice9 5y ago
The old art feels, in a way, more realistic. One underappreciated aspect of low definition graphics is that your mind can interpolate the visuals, and you feel more immersed. (suspension is disbelief has a positive effect here) When graphics become HD or closer to photorealistic they are starting to trigger an uncanny valley effect.
- the_af 5y ago
  > One underappreciated aspect of low definition graphics is that your mind can interpolate the visuals Yes, what Scott McCloud calls "closure" in Understanding Comics. That said, my mind also interpolates the newer version of Melee Island, because it's cartoony and "abstract" enough, and so I also like it.
  - practice9 5y ago
    > Yes, what Scott McCloud calls "closure" in Understanding Comics. Exactly! I forgot about reading this book, but it was very insightful.
wellthisisgreat 5y ago
Interesting. I think the old picture linked above have a dreamy atmosphere because of the jagged edges which create a foggy / twinkling effect

Biganon 5y ago

I've been thinking about that quite a lot, but with Zelda games. I've come to the conclusion that the old games feel beautiful and mysterious and nostalgic because I played them as a child. I'm no longer a child, life is no longer the same. It's not necessarily worse, it's just fundamentally different. I will never blame Shigeru Miyamoto for that, it would be absurd.

ncann 5y ago
Yeah, it's a sad fact that I've realized myself as well. No matter how good a game is, I'll never be able to experience again that magical feeling when I played Pokemon for the first time on the GB.
- sigg3 5y ago
  But you can experience it with new things! If you approach stuff with positivity, openness and wonder you'll have a blast! This is my current experience with learning Go, having learned Python previously. I don my explorer's hat and force myself to live into the text, subject or code (Herder's Einfühlung). Personally it makes the journey so much more entertaining than merely as a tools to an end.
  - ncann 5y ago
    I mean yes, the joy is still there when trying new things for the first time, I would be lying if I said otherwise. But it's just not the same. You know that feeling of total absorption/encompassment when you played your favorite game for the first time in your childhood? There's nothing like it. I went to dinner thinking about the game. I went to sleep thinking about the game. I went to school thinking about the game. The joy when my starter Pokemon evolved was indescribable. The game was the only thing that was on my mind. What's even more amazing is that I'm not a native English speaker, and I did not understand a single word in the game back then, yet somehow that did not impede me at all, in fact I think it even added to the joy of exploration.
    - mlyle 5y ago

867-5309 5y ago

you'd be hard pushed to recreate that in mspaint!

aidenn0 5y ago

The first MI is almost not believable that it is an EGA game. Then Loom came out and looks even better. These games pushed the limits of what graphical hardware of the time was capable of.

simulate-me 5y ago

Without having context of when this was made and that it was part of a game, this looks like a fairly generic picture of a mountain. You regularly see images with far more atmosphere on r/PixelArt.

auselen 5y ago
It was clearly something better for me, and I think I played it around ‘94, it was better than what was on tv or video. And it was why we were playing video games, because with each one they kept getting better.
AdvancedCarrot 5y ago
I think a big part of it as well is the music that comes in when you're first presented with this scene. I genuinely think this game (which I didn't discover until years later following its release) has the impact that it has for me because of the brilliant soundtrack.
- pcthrowaway 5y ago
  That music on tinny computer speakers (if you didn't have Soundblasters at the time) was something else: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IOL4q5tDDQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IOL4q5tDDQ I think it was here on HN that I previously read a comment breaking down how the PC speaker could only play one tone at a time, but the team managed to simulate two overlapping melodies
  - mdpye 5y ago
    While that sounds like an amazing technical accomplishment, I can tell you that discovering it on an amiga with a hifi separates amp and speakers[1] was definitely better. I was very lucky, but I'm not sorry! ;) The soundtrack is sensational. 1. To be fair, the speakers were intended for the back shelf of a car. It was cobbled together from castoffs found in the loft...
    - darkwater 5y ago

hhlevnjak3 5y ago

I could never say part 3 doesn't have atmosphere. The music, the art, the overall feel was different, but great on it's own. On the other hand, the story, and the subtle humor from 1 and 2 was lacking or different.

wenc 5y ago
In MI1, there was a sense of questing as Guybrush Threepwood goes through training to become a swordfighter (the classic training trope like in Rocky and in martial arts movies), plus there was also the will-they-won't-they romantic tension with Elaine. MI1 was an origin story so it had the advantage of being able to use these well-loved tropes. Stan was a great character. MI2 took it a little further with the unresolved tension with LeChuck. MI3 didn't really have that same sense of tension or urgency because Guybrush is already in a relationship with Elaine and he's just trying to break the curse. MI3 (or CMI) was a great game, but it just didn't leave you wanting more.

Razengan 5y ago

> What was special about the first two Monkey Island games (at least for me) was the atmosphere. Same! First of all I LOVED the “eternal night” in some locations. It was unexplained and unmentioned (though an easy headcanon might be that everything you do there takes place during a single night) but it has a huge effect on the aesthetic feel of the game world. The other thing that evoked the sense of adventure was the balance between the Civilized and Unexplored parts of its world, a common theme in pirate settings. > with part 3 the magic was mostly gone unfortunately. Curse certainly felt a bit “off” to me (I wasn’t aware that it wasn’t made by the same people but I could feel it) but it still had some charm, except for the abrupt final episode.

a_e_k 5y ago
> Same! First of all I LOVED the “eternal night” in some locations. Playing it as a tween, it evoked this feeling of one of those rare special nights where I got to stay up way past my bedtime on a warm summer night at an amusement park, fair, circus, camping, etc. (Where the twilight and temperature is perfect after the day's brightness and the heat has broken.)

babyshake 5y ago

If you look at the screenshots and art released, they are definitely at least attempting an atmospheric feeling. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. For me the thing I really love most is the MIDI music. Occasionally I'll put on the score from MI2, Loom or another game and it brings me back.