Return to Monkey Island creator deletes website over fan harassment

After its announcement earlier this year, Return to Monkey Island got an extended trailer during the latest Nintendo Direct Mini, where we got to see the game’s new art style. Not everyone is a fan of it, but some took such umbrage with it that they’ve been verbally harassing the game’s creator. Ron Gilbert, who also directed the first two Monkey Island games, has shut down his website as a result, citing “personal attack comments.” This means he won’t be sharing any updates on the game’s progress either.

“I’m shutting down comments. People are just being mean and I’m having to delete personal attack comments,” wrote Gilbert. “It’s an amazing game and everyone on the team is very proud of it. Play it or don’t play it but don’t ruin it for everyone else. I won’t be posting anymore about the game. The joy of sharing has been driven from me.”

While his website is no longer available, his statement was shared on Twitter by Dominic Armato, the original voice actor for Monkey Island protagonist Guybrush Threepwood, who has reprised the role for Return to Monkey Island. He adds that while there were some amicable discussions in the comments on Gilbert’s website, most of the comments were a “total s**tshow.”

Return to Monkey Island’s art direction is being handled by Rex Crowle, who previously served as the creative lead on Tearaway and worked on the LittleBigPlanet series while he was at Media Molecule.

Currently, Return to Monkey Island is only scheduled to release for Nintendo Switch and PC later this year, but will eventually come to other platforms. Although there have been several other Monkey Island games, Return to Monkey Island will pick up after the second game, LeChuck’s Revenge, meaning we might finally get an explanation for its bizarre ending.