Will and Tes’ment
Let’s talk about video games again. I don’t know, I’m in the mood.
In 1997, The Curse of Monkey Island for the PC came out. I was nine at the time (do the math to determine my current age). I’d played some adventure games on the PC before – I believe I had Myst and The 7th Guest by that point – but most of them were geared at a more mature audience, and a lot of them creeped the shit out of me with their oppressive loneliness. Imagine my surprise when I popped this disk in, and I was suddenly watching an interactive, pirate-themed cartoon! It was nearly bursting with corny jokes, the kind that it’s impossible not to find charming, and it married my two great loves: art and voice-acting (Dominic Armato is the awesomest).
This past week I downloaded the final episode of Tales of Monkey Island, the TellTale Games revival of a franchise I thought was long since dead. And you know what? Although the visuals are relatively clunky by today’s standards, the spirit of it is unmistakable. I was nine again. Except with sporadic body hair, and 30,000 in student loan debt.
So long, Guybrush Threepwood. I hope it won’t be another decade before I get to play another of your games.
– B.
February 8th, 2010 at 8:49 pm
Old Uncle Arthur just wants an exucse for someone to use that victrola. They paid so much for it, but it’s hardly ever used.
February 9th, 2010 at 10:57 am
Fun fact: When other children wanted slinkies, bikes, and etch-a-sketches, I wanted expensive/obscure/impossible items like victrolas, top hats, and pocket watches. Looking back, I’m not sure how I escaped turning all steampunk.
March 22nd, 2010 at 9:55 pm
There’s still hope – you can still turn all steampunk!