A new, unofficial entry in the Monkey Island saga is currently in development from indie studio BeanAdventureAgency. Designed as a love letter to the classic point-and-click franchise, The Booze of Monkey Island is available as a free, early-access download and nails the atmosphere and wit of the earlier adventure titles.
The most recent official series entry, 2022’s Return to Monkey Island, had all of the necessary ingredients for a worthy sequel to the point-and-click franchise, including the original voice cast reprising its roles, and hilarious writing courtesy of Dave Grossman and Ron Gilbert. However, I found the new scrapbook style somewhat divisive. Personally, I preferred the lush, hand-drawn aesthetic from The Curse of Monkey Island, which clearly inspired the artists responsible for Booze.
The Booze of Monkey Island is still in the works, lacking voice acting and featuring some rough animations, but the artists and developers nailed the vibe. The game uses a radial menu system, similar to what we saw in The Curse of Monkey Island, and while only a small section of the game is currently playable, it’s full of appearances from classic characters like Wally and Kate Capsize.
While the developers at BeanAdventureAgency have stated that The Booze of Monkey Island is being made purely as a non-profit tribute, they are currently attempting to fund their own original adventure title, The Adventures of Tango Rio, via Kickstarter for those who want to support their work.
