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Brother
02-20-2006, 02:33 AM
The soundtracks for the Monkey Island games were always one of my favourite parts of the games. In fact it's hard to imagine the games without the telltale steel drums or traditionally Caribbean music that have become such a prominent feature.

On top of that there were some great Comedy songs such as the Barbershop Quartet. Here were soundtracks that weren't just there as add-ons or just to fill in the background space; they really enhanced the atmosphere of the different environments and i really get a sense that the team worked hard on them. If only they'd actually release a proper soundtrack of each game.

To me, these games had some of the most fitting soundtracks of it's genre. It's set in the Caribbean with a strong pirate theme to it and a lot of it because of this is your typical pirate style tune mixed with some steel drum or other Caribbean instruments.

I thought the music really got you into the mood of the games. They worked it all in well and some of the tracks I just fell in love with. A lot of it' moody, a lot upbeat and happy with the feel of the time of the games evident throughout. It's all relevant to what you're doing at the time if you understand me, and none of it ever seems out of place.

There's different music for each character that you speak to and it's done with such a subtlety that you barely recognise it. The music adds a whole atmosphere to the games, most of which is already incredibly atmospheric. To me it's music that not only sets the mood but sticks in your head afterwards.

In CMI, each major change of scenery seems to alter the chorus slightly, or add a subtly different overtone. The effect is so subliminal that it all just seems to fit. A lot of it in the later games is slightly altered parts of other music and rehashes of old tunes but one thing that seems to fit is the Monkey Island Tune that we all recognise and love.

They honestly are one of the best gaming scores i've heard. Maybe it's not 'listen to as a soundtrack' worthy but it's an excellent compliment to the game as a whole and it does a fantastic job of immersing you into the story.

For new listeners, here's the classic Monkey Island Theme from the original game, The Secret of Monkey Island;

http://d3.ffshrine.org/soundtracks/Monkey%20Island%201%20-%20The%20Secret%20of%20Monkey%20Island%20(PC%20Rip )/01_-_monkey_island_theme.mp3

And this is a better quality, direct rip of the theme from Curse of Monkey Island, which is why it includes voices too;

http://d3.ffshrine.org/soundtracks/Monkey%20Island%203%20-%20The%20Curse%20of%20Monkey%20Island%20(PC%20Rip)/03_-_intro_-_theme_.mp3

Izzy
02-20-2006, 02:37 AM
Oh man, I loved the music. In fact, whenever there was dialogue, even though the voicing was spot on, I half wished it would have just left it all to text and let the music play on predominantly. It was natural and unassuming, like the game, just good ol unpretentious fun.

Brother
02-20-2006, 02:44 AM
Oh yeah, the voice acting in the game was amazing. Dominic Armato really hits the nail on the head with his Guybrush. I wasn't sure about how exactly things would go when they made the switch to VA but I couldn't have picked anyone better. For me they set somewhat of a benchmark for other companies to aim for, despite not being a big player, because I can't fault anything that they did sound-wise.

Izzy
02-20-2006, 02:50 AM
Oh definately, I mean I thought the voice acting was good, I'm just saying I think I would have enjoyed the game just as much if not more if they had left it text based, which is a testament to it's overall kickbuttness. The thing is the voicing seemed to chop up the general gameplay sound flow a little bit more than I'd like, because when it was just music it was a constant level, where the voiced parts varied in volume and had certain pauses or lulls that just took me off guard.

Brother
02-20-2006, 03:04 AM
Oh no, I wasn't saying that there was anything wrong with what you said, I was just taking the opportunity to express my own thoughts on the voice acting. I did notice what you said about the levels of sound and voice, though I don't know if it was intentional or not.

I appreciate what you say about it working with voice or text aswell (Even though I'm glad they went down the voice route). It's the sort of music that you can just lay back and get lost in. That's when it's not being silly at least;

http://d3.ffshrine.org/soundtracks/Monkey%20Island%203%20-%20The%20Curse%20of%20Monkey%20Island%20(PC%20Rip)/27_-_ship_song.mp3

Best song in a game, ever. :D

Izzy
02-20-2006, 03:11 AM
That song is genius. Best game song ever. And the lulls actually give this one more character because they don't have to constantly fire off rhymes.

~SapphireStar~
02-20-2006, 07:01 PM
The soundtracks for the Monkey Island games were always one of my favourite parts of the games. In fact it's hard to imagine the games without the telltale steel drums or traditionally Caribbean music that have become such a prominent feature.
I totally agree with you Le Brotherhood. After not hearing it for years and playing Escape from Monkey Island, I got goosebumps. Its amazing. Dominic Armato is perfect for Guybrush, he has this charming, yet clusmy atmosphere. Excellent casting and thanks for the links :D

Gizmo
02-24-2006, 09:04 AM
You may call me Murray!! Bwhahahahahahahahahahahaha

What i ment is... The voice of Murray.. brilliant! The character even more brilliant..... head :D