Tales of Monkey Island: Lair of Leviathan (Chapter Three)
Available for Windows PC, Wii (soon)
Release Date (PC): September 29, 2009
Developer: Telltale Games
Official website: www.telltalegames.com

Game summary from Telltale Games:
"In the third Tales of Monkey Island chapter, Guybrush gets in deep (literally!) as his quest for the voodoo exfoliating La Esponja Grande takes a scenic twist -- through the guts of a giant manatee! Trapped in the belly of the beast, our hero encounters a surprising band of castaways, including the long-lost (and obsessive-compulsive) explorer Coronado De Cava. Can the Mighty Pirate win the suspicious De Cava's trust? Will sexy pirate hunter Morgan LeFlay prove to be a ruthless enemy, or an unlikely ally? Will the group find La Esponja Grande in time to save Elaine from the rampant Pox of LeChuck? And will the world be crushed by the gnashing teeth of a certain demonic skull? Tales of Monkey Island's moist and absorbing third episode, Lair of the Leviathan, will answer some of these urgent questions -- and raise still more -- as the five month adventure builds to its epic climax!"

Review summary:
Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 3, The Lair of the Leviathan does not stray to far from the Telltale Games formula. It incorporates top notch voice acting and animations with unique environments to bring a great episodic experience to the player. You will not be disappointed with this chapter. It is definitely worth the price of admission.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Read the full review below.

Tales of Monkey Island: Lair of Leviathan review

The third chapter of the episodic Tales of Monkey Island, named Lair of Leviathan, puts Guybrush in the belly of a Giant Manatee. You are charged with finding your way through its insides and eventually some way out. This being my first experience with the new Tales of Monkey Island game series, I enjoyed the new art style along with the familiar voices of Guybrush and others. It is very important to keep conveying a similar humor as the original games, and there is only one Guybrush Threepwood. Telltale Games continues perfecting true episodic gaming through a great franchise like Monkey Island. Chapter 3, Lair of the Leviathan, lives up to everything you would come to expect from a small part of the Tales of Monkey Island story.

Judging the game purely on looks and quality, it is top notch. Taking into consideration the very short development time, the animation and voice work are quite good. Personally, I did not like some of the syncing of the voices with the animation because it was a bit off and pulled me out of the experience. This only occurred a couple times, but that is a few times too many for me. Other than those small issues, I really enjoyed following the whole story from start to finish.

The environments are excellent in this chapter because you are able to explore the belly of the leviathan. Telltale Games has made this small environment gorgeous and full of hidden items allowing for creative puzzles. Unfortunately, I would be giving away major plot points if I explained the rest of the environment but trust me, it is great. With these great locales, there are some parts that just seem like they could use a little more polish. There is a spot specifically where I felt like I could go some places, but in fact, I could definitely not; think the dreaded “invisible walls.”

All in all, this chapter is one of the best chunks of adventure gaming I have played in a long time. It brings me right back to playing through the old adventure games, and that is something I miss. Adventure games are back and here to stay now with Telltale Games at the helms. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next chapter and see where Guybrush ends up.