Do you remember the day you found out about Tales ?
It was the first week of June for me, on a Wednesday morning. It was a pretty normal day up until this point. I stopped for my morning coffee, picked up some breakfast and headed into work. The skies were blue, sounds of the bustling traffic were radiating from all sides and the voice of Mike and Mike speaking about last nights NBA game over the radio. It was just your average, early morning commute. Little did I know that this day, which started out so uneventful would turn my life upside down and change things forever.
I was going about my business, just working on some accounts in the office when it happened…..I got the call. It was my brother, who rarely calls, especially during the work day. I knew that this had to be important and my mind immediately gravitated towards something bad. As soon as I answered the phone, his trembling tone and the way his voice crackled just gave me an empty pit in my stomach. The last time I had a call that started out like this, I was informed of a death in the family. I waited impatiently for what he was about to say, hoping for something that would alleviate my anxiety. This was not the case. His first few words were…”Do you have a second” and when I said “Yes”, he asked me if I was sitting down. My heart started to race profusely now. A nervous reflex even knocked over my coffee that was sitting on my desk. I said in a worried tone “what is it?”……there was a brief pause, a deep breath and another hesitation before he said “Its about”…….then there was another pause. A million thoughts were circling my mind now. I was thinking about what, about who, what happened? This is when he spoke the 2 most significant words I have ever heard him say …… “Monkey Island”.
It had been many years since I had last heard the phrase “Monkey Island”. I realize that those are only 2 words, but they are about as powerful as they get. When I heard those words, it was almost like I had seen a ghost. Monkey Island was one of the best chapters in my life, but a chapter that has been closed for almost a decade now. I started to revisit in my mind a memory that for so long had been buried and untouched. A million memories started to flood my brain at this point. I thought of many random points of the epic game series such as patching the boat, getting past the Cabana boy, capturing Pegnose, or watching Marco De Pollo get attacked on his dive. These memories brought me back to a point of complete euphoria when we were able to enjoy probably the greatest game to ever be made. However, like all good things…..it had to eventually come to an end. The conclusion of the monkey island series caused me a great deal of depression and marked a very painful time in my life.
About 9 years ago when this series came to its end, I tried to look at the positive. I tried to be optimistic and I told myself that I would just wait 5 years and then I could just play monkey island again and it would be just as fun because hopefully I would have forgotten a lot of the puzzles. So...I waited and after 5 years when the time was right, I threw in the curse of Monkey Island. There were many puzzles that I did forget, but were also many that came back to me right away. I understood this experience would never compare to a new monkey island, but this is all I had. After I finished them for the second time, I knew that was it. I knew Monkey Island was officially over…..forever.
Ultimately, these memories were bottled up and kept in a very safe and secure part of my mind but were never touched because thinking about this classic would usually only make me even more depressed. There were several times in the early part of the decade that I would hear rumors of another “monkey island” release. I always was excited when I heard these rumors and would be the first one to investigate the legitimacy of them. Each and every time though, the rumors were squashed and one day I realized that Monkey Island was finished and wasn’t ever coming back.
So when I heard my brother speak the words “Monkey Island”, I immediately felt anger towards him. Why would he bring up such a delicate and sensitive subject for me. What would he possibly have to say about this game that wouldn’t take me back, when for so many years I have progressed nicely getting past and getting over this famed classic. I realize that only time can heal these kind of deep wounds and I was doing very well and coping nicely. He then said two more words that were equally as powerful. He said “Its back”.
My mind again started to go in a million directions. What did he mean “Its back?”……why was he doing this to me and playing with my emotions? I asked him what he was talking about and he said he was sending me a link over the computer. I waited and I waited and what was in actuality seconds, seemed like an eternity. I clicked on the link and what I saw on the screen and the words that I read, changed my life forever. I saw an illustration of Guybrush, LeChuck, the pirate ship and the voodoo lady. The words I read that were emblazoned over the image were the most instrumental and life altering words I have ever read. The caption said “ Humor, Romance and Piratey Swashbuckling in an all new epic saga”. That was the key part of the phrase….. “all new”.
I couldn’t believe my eyes and starting to think that this was just a practical joke, a gimmick of some kind. I was thinking it was just like a mirage of a pool of crystal blue water in the desert and just as you get close enough to take a sip, it disappears. I thought….how could someone play such a cruel joke? How can someone play with my innermost thoughts, hopes, dreams and fears? Especially, how could my own brother do this to me? He did his best to assure me that this was by no means a joke, but the real deal. So many times in the past he would joke about “another monkey island” but that never panned out and the last thing I expected was for one to be released after so many years. I was as skeptical and as cynical as they come but when I saw the trailer for the game and the forums with so many others rejoicing like I was, I knew that it was for real.
I still don’t think that reality has set in for me yet…….I still don’t think my mind has really processed the ramifications that this had , has and will have on my life. All I know is that on that early June morning, in the year 2009, my life was changed…….forever.
I was going about my business, just working on some accounts in the office when it happened…..I got the call. It was my brother, who rarely calls, especially during the work day. I knew that this had to be important and my mind immediately gravitated towards something bad. As soon as I answered the phone, his trembling tone and the way his voice crackled just gave me an empty pit in my stomach. The last time I had a call that started out like this, I was informed of a death in the family. I waited impatiently for what he was about to say, hoping for something that would alleviate my anxiety. This was not the case. His first few words were…”Do you have a second” and when I said “Yes”, he asked me if I was sitting down. My heart started to race profusely now. A nervous reflex even knocked over my coffee that was sitting on my desk. I said in a worried tone “what is it?”……there was a brief pause, a deep breath and another hesitation before he said “Its about”…….then there was another pause. A million thoughts were circling my mind now. I was thinking about what, about who, what happened? This is when he spoke the 2 most significant words I have ever heard him say …… “Monkey Island”.
It had been many years since I had last heard the phrase “Monkey Island”. I realize that those are only 2 words, but they are about as powerful as they get. When I heard those words, it was almost like I had seen a ghost. Monkey Island was one of the best chapters in my life, but a chapter that has been closed for almost a decade now. I started to revisit in my mind a memory that for so long had been buried and untouched. A million memories started to flood my brain at this point. I thought of many random points of the epic game series such as patching the boat, getting past the Cabana boy, capturing Pegnose, or watching Marco De Pollo get attacked on his dive. These memories brought me back to a point of complete euphoria when we were able to enjoy probably the greatest game to ever be made. However, like all good things…..it had to eventually come to an end. The conclusion of the monkey island series caused me a great deal of depression and marked a very painful time in my life.
About 9 years ago when this series came to its end, I tried to look at the positive. I tried to be optimistic and I told myself that I would just wait 5 years and then I could just play monkey island again and it would be just as fun because hopefully I would have forgotten a lot of the puzzles. So...I waited and after 5 years when the time was right, I threw in the curse of Monkey Island. There were many puzzles that I did forget, but were also many that came back to me right away. I understood this experience would never compare to a new monkey island, but this is all I had. After I finished them for the second time, I knew that was it. I knew Monkey Island was officially over…..forever.
Ultimately, these memories were bottled up and kept in a very safe and secure part of my mind but were never touched because thinking about this classic would usually only make me even more depressed. There were several times in the early part of the decade that I would hear rumors of another “monkey island” release. I always was excited when I heard these rumors and would be the first one to investigate the legitimacy of them. Each and every time though, the rumors were squashed and one day I realized that Monkey Island was finished and wasn’t ever coming back.
So when I heard my brother speak the words “Monkey Island”, I immediately felt anger towards him. Why would he bring up such a delicate and sensitive subject for me. What would he possibly have to say about this game that wouldn’t take me back, when for so many years I have progressed nicely getting past and getting over this famed classic. I realize that only time can heal these kind of deep wounds and I was doing very well and coping nicely. He then said two more words that were equally as powerful. He said “Its back”.
My mind again started to go in a million directions. What did he mean “Its back?”……why was he doing this to me and playing with my emotions? I asked him what he was talking about and he said he was sending me a link over the computer. I waited and I waited and what was in actuality seconds, seemed like an eternity. I clicked on the link and what I saw on the screen and the words that I read, changed my life forever. I saw an illustration of Guybrush, LeChuck, the pirate ship and the voodoo lady. The words I read that were emblazoned over the image were the most instrumental and life altering words I have ever read. The caption said “ Humor, Romance and Piratey Swashbuckling in an all new epic saga”. That was the key part of the phrase….. “all new”.
I couldn’t believe my eyes and starting to think that this was just a practical joke, a gimmick of some kind. I was thinking it was just like a mirage of a pool of crystal blue water in the desert and just as you get close enough to take a sip, it disappears. I thought….how could someone play such a cruel joke? How can someone play with my innermost thoughts, hopes, dreams and fears? Especially, how could my own brother do this to me? He did his best to assure me that this was by no means a joke, but the real deal. So many times in the past he would joke about “another monkey island” but that never panned out and the last thing I expected was for one to be released after so many years. I was as skeptical and as cynical as they come but when I saw the trailer for the game and the forums with so many others rejoicing like I was, I knew that it was for real.
I still don’t think that reality has set in for me yet…….I still don’t think my mind has really processed the ramifications that this had , has and will have on my life. All I know is that on that early June morning, in the year 2009, my life was changed…….forever.
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Comments
I remember calling my Dad though and his response "Nooooooooo wayyyy!!! We HAVE to get it", my dad being a 48 year old president of an international company.
If so tell him he plays games on his computer instead of doing real work.
Mi jaw dropped to the floor and i completly forgot about episode 3.*
I belive i shouted something and made some espasmodic little dance (advantages of living alone)
*But not for long. Come on Valve!!! My hardware is getting older and older each passing second.
But now, ohmygoshohmygosh :O
i remember it altho it isnt as epic. since EMI was out i was always checking back to the scummbar site evry few days ( one of those sites that become your daily routine to click on) then it kinda closed down and then womi did too. they updated very very rarely but i always looked every few months to see if there was anything new. in the end i gave up on a new monkey island game ever to come out and didnt go back for about 10 months.
then one day my bro (who was the 1st one to show me mi1 and 2 on amiga he likes the games but hasent completed them) sent me an e-mail with a link to SMISE becasue he knew how much i loved it! and i was like woooow! and i was hoping this may influence a new game but as i was watching the youtube footage i saw a link to a related video i was like hmm looks intresting maybe sum1 made some kool fan art. but when i clicked on it i went nuts! i was like a little kid again! it was tales of monkey island. instantly i went to my old MI websites and it was true! i began telling evry1 i know about it but they arnt fans
My reaction: 'WHAT!? wait.. no.. that's probably just people speculating...' ( I had had my hopes shattered by that kind of talk too many times over the years)
My dad: 'No, really, they have a release date, it's made by some other company this time'
Me: '!!!!!!'
Within minutes I had pre ordered the game and was jumping around like an idiot. So much happiness!
One night after feeling all nostalgic and more than a little merry I decided to google monkey island and couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that there was to be a new "tomi" and happily here I am.:D
www.grumpygamer.com
I cried tears of joy then made some pizza
I went to buy it on steam, but it wasn't there, so I got it off Telltale instead, which I'm glad I did.
I was just visiting the old sites, as usual, looking for some new LucasArts games and expecting a new StarWars thingie... when, suddenly, on the main page, there it was!
MONKEY ISLAND! no, no, wait...it's only a special edition... ah, well, better than nothing after 10 years. (don't get me wrong, I just played and replayed the games so much, I can actually write walkthroughs without checking in-game-details).
Searched on youtube for a trailer, found it... Laughed (in my soul, I was at work, I couldn't laugh out loud) as I saw Ron Gilbert for the first time in my life. A huge grin ended up on my face as I saw Dom talking about Monkey Island and how excited he is. "Yeah, Dom...", I thought. "But Monkey Island will never truly come back after all these years. They're just trying to get some extra money with easy work".
(No offense, I'm just honest, that's what I thought).
Well, I did want to buy it (which is rather rare for me, I usualy borrow games from friends).
Before I clicked further to find out details regarding the price and stuff like that... I saw a comment, right underneath the video.
<<Yeah, but I like the Telltale version better!!>>
I'll never forget that comment. Telltale? The guys with Sam n' Max? What do you mean Telltale VERSION??
After one search and two clicks later, I couldn't believe my eyes! I played that trailer for 20-25 times that day... showed it to everyone, talked with everybody about it.
As soon as I got my salary, I pre-ordered the game (which I never ever did before in my life, I thought pre-orders were stupid, but now I see their true value). I also bought SoMI: SE as soon as it was out.
I was so excited, talking with Dom, talking with fans... oh man! I just had to let the TT team know how much I appreciate what they did! I just had to share my happiness with the world.
One night, I was singing the first verse of "Monkey in my Pocket" loud, to annoy my neighbours who (gasp!) did NOT know anything about Monkey Island! Then it hit me... I'm gonna make a song, this song, an enhanced version of it!
...the rest is history
Wow... I think this is the longest post I've ever written here
I still think said trailer is one of the worst trailers ever made actually, it looked on its way to become a kiddie game.
I am so glad the game itself is awesome beyond reason and exceeded my expectations for the franchise.
I had to be won over, Telltale did win me over and I now completely trust them with the game.
I'm still secretly hoping somebody will drop a huge bag of cash on telltales doorstep so we can see a non episodic MI by Telltale.
More time to make the graphics a bit more advanced, no re-use of character models, all that stuff.
All the bad stuff about TOMI always comes back to the fact that they are making an episodic series. Lose that and we would have a game of legend instead of just a good one.
When I clicked on the link I was still doubting whether this would be just rumors once again...
then I saw the Trailer...
andthenarushofhappyexcitementfloodedmesohardthatIcouldn'tstophittingmydesk
inafitofaboutfifteenminutes
I had a really great time since that day!
I don't think "thank You Telltale" will ever do my feelings or their greatness any justice.
Being a Telltalian already because of Sam n Max, I got the news the ol' fashion way.
Didn't mean my excitement was any less though. =D
I had almost abandoned hope, when I found at youtube this special edition movie. After that I discovered the trailer of tales of MI, and I was all excited! At once I sent Majus an email, but of course he already knew!
Whoa... if I had a memory like yours, maybe I'd have been better at History
But seriously, I remember nothing else about the day I saw the Steam announcement regarding ToMI - whatever else I was up to faded into insignificance as my hands began typing in my payment details, seemingly enslaved by some arcane force ("But I have work to do!" I protested. "Your work will wait... Guybrush needs you once again!" commanded the Voodoo lady in my head. Uncontrollably, I began to hum the theme tune.)
I'm really glad the series has been resurrected, and by a really good team of people at that... More than anything I'd love to see another full-length MI game in the future which I realise is a lot harder technically, but the episodic releases really miss out by not having big islands to explore with loads of locations to travel back and forth between. I think it makes for a longer, more satisfying experience that way - you can extend the playtime by having to go back to places later on, and just the travelling around takes up a certain amount of time.
But, I'm not complaining - it's great to see Guybrush on new adventures, and see what all the old characters have been getting up to. Most of all I can't wait to find out where Stan's got to next - and please please, I hope you can make it as much of a surprise as it was in MI3, that was such a great moment. Murray was awesome but wasn't really a surprise, I guessed straight away when I saw where he was going to pop up (although that partly got spoiled because I already knew he was going to be in that episode
At first I thought it was some kind of joke, I couldn't believe it!
i spent all evening bouncing around the house rambling about Monkey Island to my bemused and then annoyed parents - "It's Monkey Island - why don't you understand how incredible this is?!"
And then I spent the rest of the evening persuading my sister to preorder it because I wouldn't get paid till the end of the month and couldn't wait that loooong.
XD
Anyone else still not really over the whole "They made another Monkey Island?!" thing... I'd given up hope.
Ah June....what a great month you were....
I was very happy. What a lovely surprise.
But when I read more about Tales and learned about the pre-order deal, I jumped on it immediatly. I was really at the point where I didn't expect to see any new Monkey Island games. I had just played through the originals again a few weeks earlier and was ready to just let it be, so the announcement really caught me off guard.
Then with my free game code I got in to the Sam & Max games.
Thank you Telltale!