Tales of Monkey Island has had a bit of a rough start. The game’s first episode was plagued by a bad control scheme, so-so jokes, and repetitive character models and puzzles. The second episode had better jokes and puzzles, but it still wasn’t quite Monkey Island, if you know what I mean. As a longtime fan of the series, I crossed my fingers, hoping that the third installment would steer the franchise back on course.
Immediately, Lair of the Leviathan adroitly ingratiates itself to the player. It opens with a clever, brief “last seen on” summary (told in humorous “character” by the ever-serious Voodoo Lady) of the previous episode’s events. From there, we join Guybrush, his deadly pursuer, admirer (and full-time pirate bounty hunter) Morgan le Fley, and of course Guybrush’s trusty navigator sidekick Winslow, as they are swallowed by a giant manatee.
Once inside the manatee’s belly, Guybrush meets Coronado de Cava, the Voodoo Lady’s former lover, and La Esponja Grande’s previous pursuer. He has been trapped in the manatee for many years, and he enlists Guybrush’s help to escape the Manatee, and reach the manatee’s secret mating grounds. There, of course, La Esponja Grande awaits the intrepid team.
The rest of the episode is traditionally, appreciably wonky. As Guybrush, you will cause the giant manatee to experience hideous intestinal movements, infiltrate a democratically elected pirate boys’ club, trick Morgan into going on a date, and give a giant manatee dating advice.
If that sounds even more ridiculous than your average portion of Monkey Island, that’s because it mostly is. That’s because Telltale has decided to pull out all the stops: the fourth episode will probably take things to weirder, wackier places. Luckily for you, this decision doesn’t feel forced or out of place. Guybrush’s manatee-related adventures feel like a pretty natural place for the game to go. Likewise, the mean face contest is a simpler, less frustrating version of all of those combat mini-games from previous Monkey Islands (and it’s infinitely better than the derivative, endless “Monkey Kombat”).
Another reason for the improved quality of episode 3 is the writing. The jokes are still more Telltale than Monkey Island (which is a completely subjective judgment... maybe you like Telltale’s style better), but they feel more natural this time round. Much like the Le Chuck “adventure game hero” puzzle from the previous episode, there are a few inspired puzzle sets here. The aforementioned mean face contest is a highlight, along with a surprisingly hilarious puzzle involving the Voodoo Lady (it’s the kind of thing that stares you in the face until you figure it out, and then makes you laugh at yourself for taking so long), and the Morgan Le Fley surprise date puzzle.
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