Monkey Island Tall Tale Missed the Mark

  • Nitroxien
    Captain
    Insider

    I realize a lot of people liked this tall tale, but as someone who never played monkey island before I have to say this tall tale was frankly disappointing. The tall tale overall felt more like a scavenger hunt than a puzzle, at no point in the tall tale was I given an item and trying to figure out how to use it everything in the tall tale was explicitly told to the player in terms of how to solve it resulting in the tall tale feeling more like a bad scavenger hunt than anything else.

    After completing the in game portion of the previous mysteries I was frankly SUPER excited for this tall tale having had an absolute blast especially on Sea Dog Tavern trying to find the dig spot, but this tall tale fell extremely short.

    I understand how this tall tale would be more appealing to someone who played monkey island before being probably extremely nostalgic, but for me and my friends POV honestly the comedy was dull, the action was lacking, the plot was uninteresting, and the puzzle was lacking. Hoping the 2nd one picks it up and we get to see an actual Tall Tale experience that I have come to expect from Rare.

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  • EVA1977
    Captain
    Insider

    Well Monkey island game is basically that, you go around searching items, finding them and knowing where to use them is the challenge and the real puzzles are in the dialogue as you have to figure out what to respond to characters to advance.

    Here it's simple enough for all players but tall tales do seem to get progressively harder so who knows maybe the next one will have a harder challenge minus the dialogue options as players might find this boring in my opinion.

  • Thorumsu
    Commander
    Insider

    You just don't like adventure games then. There is nothing wrong with it, mind you. The formula is pretty much older than time itself and requires decent attention spans from players. They also rely a lot on dialogue and immersion. So they are really not for everyone.

    But for someone who does love adventure games (like me), this tale is great. Even you can see the effort put into it, I am sure.

    The second tale promises to introduce insult sword fighting, which may be more interesting to you. So I wouldn't give up on the campaign yet.

  • WolfManbush
    Champion

    Missing the mark would be if casual players had poor experiences and if lore focused players took significant issue with it

    Casual players have largely expressed enjoying it as have lore focused players, so, the mark was hit

    I view these experiences like watching a movie with a significant other or with family/friends. One that is important to them and one that some don't have much attachment to as a genre.

    We can drag our feet into it, make a stink about how it's not our kind of thing, bring down a vibe that would otherwise be excited people getting the opportunity to enjoy something they are interested in.

    or, we can go into it to enjoy the experience, find the parts we do enjoy, find appreciation in the fact that other people are enjoying something for a few hours. Make the best out of the moment.

    as you said, a lot of people liked this tale, imo that's the win right there.

  • Schwammlgott
    Champion

    @nitroxien I disagree...never played Monkey Island myself and I really liked it...if you have trouble knowing where to find or get items, those 3 guys in the streets give you hints

  • Reverend Toast
    Lord
    Insider

    Keep in mind, this is just 1/3 of the overall story. Its just being drip-fed to us.

  • LordQulex
    Captain

    As a pirate who played the original Monkey Island on MS-DOS from 5" floppies, the tall tale was spot on. Walk around, find things you're allowed to pick up, figure out what you need to use them with to get the next item to figure out what to use it with to get the next area... rinse and repeat. This was a classic point and click adventure game but in a 3d setting. The only thing I didn't like was how long the walk up to the lookout took. šŸ¤£

    Yea, I'm sorry you don't like the point and click adventure paradigm. But this was nostalgia in a can for anyone who grew up with Monkey Island. My only major criticism is that many of the objects were loot and not quest items, that is you had to carry them instead of having them in the voyage radial. I played this in a brig and if I had to do it solo I'd hate all the running back and fourth I'd have to do.

  • Schwammlgott
    Champion

    @lordqulex sagte in Monkey Island Tall Tale Missed the Mark:

    The only thing I didn't like was how long the walk up to the lookout took. šŸ¤£

    Just...walk at the start to the right into the fog...it teleports you to the top

  • R3troRaccoon
    Marauder
    Insider

    @nitroxien
    It's more or less a love letter to the original games, which were point and click, fetch type games. Everything imo was cool, stayed faithful and HOPEFULLY helps move the main story along i.e. Flamehearts return. Where it really soured for me and my family and the few friends I keep online, it was the 2 shelf dolls and a picture being it for 100%ing the 1st Tale. I know everyone wants to say "well there's 2 more to come" and "they need stuff in the emporium for income". And as I semi agree, we could have gotten something wearable. One item. Hat, sword, jacket, something, anything for our pirate to have. Alot of players, new and old, already have or working towards the trinkets and pictures they want. And with limited wall space on sloops and brigs, the "rewards" will go unused and forgotten by the majority. People get tired of waiting months for a 3 hour Major Event Tall Tale, which forces back yet ANOTHER season (10) by months. All to get 2 shelf dolls. And a picture. Yeah......

  • Valor Omega
    Champion
    Insider

    That style of puzzle-solving, scavenger hunts, etc are the core of the Monkey Island games - I can see how that might miss the mark for people who have never played. I think it was brilliantly and beautifully crafted, though!

  • heslashthem
    Legend
    Insider

    Iā€™m no fan of point and click games, but this new Tall Tale, and assuming the others too, nailed the feeling brilliantly.

    CaptainCoco also stole the show for me.

    ā€letā€™s open a furniture store!ā€

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