The Secret of Monkey Island (1990)
Developer: Lucasfilm Games
Publisher: Lucasfilm Games

A name like Guybrush Threepwood doesn't exactly carry the same heroic ring as Super Mario or Master Chief, but that didn't stop everybody's favorite wannabe pirate from becoming one of the most defining videogame exemplars of the 1990s. Monkey Island is a beautifully illustrated point-and-click adventure that many gamers would have little trouble heralding as one of the genre's defining masterpieces. It seems that the perfect recipe for adventure-game success is a healthy mix of ghost pirates, cannibals, snarky t-shirts, rubber chickens, and root beer -- just a few of the strange things Guybrush experiences throughout his quirk-filled journey. Monkey Island also helped to put writer/programmer (and Brutal Legend designer) Tim Schafer on the map. It's as humorous and relevant today as it ever was, as the recent Monkey Island: Special Edition goes to show.




Brian A. says: How can you not love a game that features "insult sword-fighting" as an integral part of the story? Monkey Island was one of the first games that taught me that humor (of the blatantly intentional variety) and videogames could work so well together. Sure, the numerous successors didn't always live up to the original's charm, but in an industry where franchise sequels are churned out yearly with little regard to quality, who's complaining?

Ryan says: With all due respect to Maniac Mansion and Loom, this is the game that really sent LucasArts (then Lucasfilm Games) soaring to adventure game fame. While the other adventure game luminary -- the dearly departed Sierra On-Line -- pumped out many more adventure games per year, LucasArts' releases adopted a quality-over-quantity approach; every new game was an event, and Monkey Island was one of the biggest and the best.