I used maybe 5 hours to complete the first chapter without any hints. I am not sure how they actually work? Seems a bit deep if it has 6 different settings. I guess I will have to try turning it on some other time.
In Monkey 2 the game really grows. First chapter is nothing compared to when you get several islands to explore. I am hoping it will be something like that in some of the next chapters in TOMI, although I was okay with the length of this one. Even without hints I didnt get stuck much, but I expect I will get stuck in some of the other episodes. I remember getting quite stuck at least 4-5 times in Monkey 2. Chapter 1 in ToMI everything seemed to be logical enough for me to figure it out. I guess it would be nice making it a bit less obvious, something like the "monkey wrench" if anyone remembers that
But it takes alot of work to make both lots of dialogue (with voiceover), scenery and all the scripting for the puzzles. Back in the days of the original Monkey Island it was something that could be done by 5 people. Today the quality we expect doesnt just make itself. Im sure we would complain alot more if the overall quality was lowered to get 5 more puzzles to solve.
My favorite puzzle in the first chapter was stealing the ship That was the nearest I got to being stuck. So it gave me at least 4 hours to just complete the game. I have spent at least 1 hour playing through it again just to get some extra jokes, and I guess I might have 30 minutes more left to get the rest. I at least need to read the book titles in that cabin
So it seems it will easily amount to 25 hours of playtime for me, and I suspect there might be even more.
What i really, really REALLY hated about this episode is the jungle. It killed the game for me. Walking around aimlessly for puzzles isn't fun. It has the smell of filler all around. I was disapointed too with the game... However, now that you mention Sam and Max episode 1, i'd say don't judge it too quickly. In perspective, Culture shock was just a setup for great things. I recomend getting episode 4 for free on this very site to see what i mean. It utterly destroys the first episode.
I also didn't particularly like the junge, but I'm not sure what you're talking about - "walking around aimlessly"? I thought the map puzzles were actually very straightforward, and not particularly innovative given that we've been having puzzles of this type since SMI ...
In fact, your opinion might make me reconsider my thoughts on the jungle, as clearly not everyone found the map puzzles as obvious as I did.
Well, I was thinking more along the lines that we stand up, admit we suck, and discuss are inadequacies........but your idea is much cooler. I really like the way you point out that we were just taking the necessary time to truly enjoy the game. Pure genius.
I didn't like the jungle either. You spend most of your time there and get sick of the scenery, the animal noises and the appearing in random locations. I believe every MI game has a puzzle that involves you walking around in a maze in a correct sequence to get to the destination, except for MI3, and I've always hated those puzzles. Usually those maze puzzles aren't in the first chapter. I'd rather spend a first chapter exploring a new or familiar, but redesigned island with the best characters avialable and an introduction to a quest. I felt this lacked in that department. The characters seemed generic and annoying. 3 short, fat faced characters, 2 skinny long faced characters. They lacked the unique personalities of previous MI games. The 3 judges from the Marco de Pollo diving competition in MI4 seemed like more interesting characters. I think Guybrush is in top form though. The puzzles seemed to be a bit harder than I would have expected, but in the sense that you didn't know what you were supposed to do, or you didn't do something a certain way. I also would have liked an environment where you could walk around more freely. Along the dock seemed more like a 3D side scroller. I'm also getting used to the controls. I keep wanting to press the direction keys relative to guybrush, rather than relative to the screen, like in Escape from Monkey Island and Grim Fandango. I spent several hours playing it over 2 non consecutive days, but it felt short. I'm also not a fan of the episodic nature of the game either. Maybe Telltale knows something I don't, regarding the marketing or the ease of it, but I'd rather just buy the game in it's entirety. Despite those criticisms, I think it will be a great game. I think it's the sequel the series has been waiting for and will rank fairly high for the franchise. The opening scene with LeChuck...PURE AWESOME. I hope the rest of the game falls more along those lines.
I did play the whole episode thinking "this isn't the end, is it?" But overall i was almost even impressed by the length. The idols took me no time at all, even the jungle mazes were very easy for me, but i enjoyed them - because i didn't reach that point of frustration but still felt awesome when I completed them. I counted, there are about 14 individual puzzles there. If you count other games, i think that compares pretty well. Also, it is heartening to hear that the puzzles in later chapters are likely to be harder/more expansive. I think this episode was a way of settling in, while still having an adventure and solving the mystery of Flotsam.
Time to braaaag!
I enjoyed the game so much, I deliberatley clicked on everyhting and went through each line of dialogue... took me two days. Actually, more like 6 hours. 2 hours in the first day, and the next day I went for the last 4.
I don't think it's short. I like it so much, I'm just glad that it exists!
Yeah, and I mean you also almost HAVE to play it a second (sometimes a third) time through.
Take the "Did You Try?" list for example. Its a compendium of over 40 gags, Easter eggs, and hidden commentary lines commonly missed in a first playthrough.
Did you see all of those as well? (cause I can guarantee that anyone who has not recently read that thread will find at least five items on it that they have not done.)
Comments
In Monkey 2 the game really grows. First chapter is nothing compared to when you get several islands to explore. I am hoping it will be something like that in some of the next chapters in TOMI, although I was okay with the length of this one. Even without hints I didnt get stuck much, but I expect I will get stuck in some of the other episodes. I remember getting quite stuck at least 4-5 times in Monkey 2. Chapter 1 in ToMI everything seemed to be logical enough for me to figure it out. I guess it would be nice making it a bit less obvious, something like the "monkey wrench" if anyone remembers that
But it takes alot of work to make both lots of dialogue (with voiceover), scenery and all the scripting for the puzzles. Back in the days of the original Monkey Island it was something that could be done by 5 people. Today the quality we expect doesnt just make itself. Im sure we would complain alot more if the overall quality was lowered to get 5 more puzzles to solve.
My favorite puzzle in the first chapter was stealing the ship
So it seems it will easily amount to 25 hours of playtime for me, and I suspect there might be even more.
I also didn't particularly like the junge, but I'm not sure what you're talking about - "walking around aimlessly"? I thought the map puzzles were actually very straightforward, and not particularly innovative given that we've been having puzzles of this type since SMI ...
In fact, your opinion might make me reconsider my thoughts on the jungle, as clearly not everyone found the map puzzles as obvious as I did.
thx.
I enjoyed the game so much, I deliberatley clicked on everyhting and went through each line of dialogue... took me two days. Actually, more like 6 hours. 2 hours in the first day, and the next day I went for the last 4.
I don't think it's short. I like it so much, I'm just glad that it exists!
Take the "Did You Try?" list for example. Its a compendium of over 40 gags, Easter eggs, and hidden commentary lines commonly missed in a first playthrough.
Did you see all of those as well? (cause I can guarantee that anyone who has not recently read that thread will find at least five items on it that they have not done.)