Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 5

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Terry Terrones GamePro (online) 17/12/09 Follow @pcworldau

Pros

• Interesting characters, funny dialogue, simple gameplay

Cons

• Not for gamers unfamiliar with the series, some confusing puzzles

Bottom Line

While it may not be instantly accessible to newcomers to Guybrush's piratey plate, Tales of Monkey Island: Rise of the Pirate God is a fine finale to Telltale's acclaimed adventure revival.

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While it's a bit unusual for a protagonist to be killed before the final episode of a series, when it comes to Tales of Monkey Island you should expect the unexpected. With a main character named Guybrush Threepwood, why wouldn't you?

The final instalment of the five part Tales of Monkey Island series, Rise of the Pirate God offers everything fans have become accustomed to from developer/publisher Telltale: fencing, revenge, escapes, true love, witty banter, it's all here. A fine ending to a solid quintupology is what gamers who've been loyally following Guybrush deserve, but if you're new to the series, you really do need to start at the beginning of the series.

Rise of the Pirate God begins with our fallen hero literally rising from the grave. Guybrush is in the underworld and considering his situation he's taking it rather well. Calm, cool, and with plenty of one-liners to spare, the Mighty Pirate is determined to get back to the world of the living, but not at the expense of his sense of humor.

A slew of colourful characters, both familiar and new, dot the landscape, and there are plenty of puzzles to solve before a triumphant escape from the Crossroads can be made. Pointing and clicking has never been easier or more fun, and the interactions and dialogue between characters is at its most crisp and clever. Its almost as if Telltale was holding onto a final salvo, just waiting to send off Guybrush with a canonload of witty repartee.

As well crafted as it is, having Guybrush go out with a Manny Pacquiao-esque flurry of wisecracks isn't for everyone. Pirate God still contains Tales of Monkey Island's standard shortcomings (too brief, occasionally confusing puzzles, little replay value), and even more troubling is this episode's inability to be its own pirate.

Telltale Games has proven repeatedly that it handles episodic content like no other, and does so again with this series, but new gamers really need to start at the beginning of the series rather than just sample later episodes like this one. Unlike other episodic Telltale titles such as Strong Bad, Sam & Max, and Wallace & Gromit, Tales of Monkey Island, and Rise of the Pirate God in particular, doesn't stand well on its own. New players will frequently be confused by in-game events and relationships.

With solid gameplay and humour to spare, Rise of the Pirate God provides a fitting ending to a fun story. That leaves newcomers the task of doing what series vets have been up for since July -- getting on board.