If you played videogames in the early 1990s, you probably spent many hours engrossed by the devious puzzles and tight storytelling of LucasArts adventure games such as Maniac Mansion, Indiana Jones & the Fate of Atlantis and The Secret of Monkey Island, writes Lance Harris.

Though LucasArts itself has since become a sausage factory that churns out Stars Wars games of variable quality, some of the maverick designers and writers responsible for its classic adventure titles are still around.

One case in point is Ron Gilbert, one of the fertile creative minds behind the first two Monkey Island games. He has hardly been prolific in recent years, doing little besides acting as a consultant for games such as Penny Arcade Adventures and Tales of Monkey Island.

But this month we’ve been treated to a double dose of his work: a brand new game called DeathSpank and a rerelease of the classic Monkey Island 2. Both titles are available for digital download on a range of gaming platforms.

Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge
Of all of LucasArts’s adventure games, the first two Monkey Island games are perhaps the titles mostly fondly remembered nearly 20 years later. The reissue of LeChuck’s Revenge follows on from successful releases of a remastered version of The Secret of Monkey Island and a new adventure called Tales of Monkey Island in 2009.

LucasArts has lavished a great deal of love on its high-definition remake of LeChuck’s Revenge.

LeChuck’s Revenge trailer (YouTube video):

If you picked up the studio’s makeover of The Secret of Monkey Island you’ll have a good idea of what to expect from LeChuck’s Revenge: colourful and cartoonish visuals that beautifully capture the spirit of the original title as well as fresh sound effects and polished voice acting.

Other additions include a developers’ commentary track that gives some insight into the development of the original game as well as a hint system that you can turn to for help when you get stuck on a puzzle.

Whichever platform you play on, you’ll also benefit from an elegant new control scheme and interface.

The aesthetic makeover has been done with so much reverence that one senses that this is the game Gilbert and his team would have made if they had today’s technology back in 1991. The many humorous details present in the original game really come to life in the new artwork. But if you’re a purist, you do have the option of playing the game with its original sounds and visuals.

Under the new skin, LeChuck’s Revenge is still the same game as it was in 1991. Most videogames don’t age particularly well, but LeChuck’s Revenge is every bit as good as it was 20 years ago. LeChuck’s Revenge’s cheeky sense of humour is every bit as appealing as it was back then, and solving the game’s many well-designed puzzles through trail-and-error and lateral thinking is still enormously satisfying. 8/10

DeathSpank
Gilbert’s newest game is a tongue-in-cheek take on the action role-playing game (RPG) that follows a heroic adventurer called DeathSpank as he hunts down an artefact known only as — read this in a deep voice — the Artefact. It’s a mocking take on the genre that pokes fun at many of its sillier conventions.

The game might make you grind for loot, don powerful weapons and magical items with absurdly portentous names (Thong of Justice!), and fetch and deliver random items for peasants, but it winks at you as it does. DeathSpank himself is an improbably dashing and muscle-bound meathead who speaks in voice packed full of bravado.

Gilbert’s writing is as strong and as funny as ever. The game is as packed with fourth wall-busting jokes and mischievous digs at videogame conventions as the Monkey Island titles. Many of the jokes are carried through into the gorgeously designed visuals. The infectious menu music and voice acting are also top-notch.

DeathSpank trailer (YouTube video):

The gameplay isn’t quite as strong as the writing and the visual design. Though it’s fun to experiment with weapons, potions and magical attacks to find effective combinations to fight the monsters you encounter, the game quickly becomes repetitive.

There is cooperative play, but it has been so sloppily integrated into the game that it’s better to play solo. While there’s plenty of loot to be discovered, the options you have to develop your character’s skills and abilities are disappointingly limited.

DeathSpank offers a generous amount of content for a downloadable game and will keep you going for about 10-12 hours. It’s not a substitute for Diablo 3 by any stretch of the imagination, but DeathSpank is an entertaining enough way to spend a couple of evenings. 7/10

LeChuck’s Revenge reviewed on Xbox 360. Also available on PlayStation 3, Windows PC, and Apple iPad, and iPhone/ iPod Touch. DeathSpank reviewed on PlayStation 3. Also available on Xbox 360 through the Xbox Live Arcade service.