EN ROUTE TO THE CARIBBEAN · SINCE 1999
Before the insult duels, islands and rubber chickens, there were pages waiting to be filled. An idea could become a character, a diagram could open a route and a joke could change a scene. This journey follows those transformations: how an imagined world becomes an adventure you can play.
We call it a diary because it travels through the years and retraces the creative process. It is an editorial account by Monkey Island Site, based on documents and testimony, not a diary written by Ron Gilbert. Alongside him are the people who drew, programmed, composed and tested these Caribbean worlds.
1987
Before pirates, a mansion full of possibilities
Maniac Mansion arrives in 1987. Behind Gilbert and Gary Winnick’s game is SCUMM, a tool for describing scenes and actions. Trying ideas without rebuilding every technical detail also prepares Monkey Island’s workshop.
The bar and the engine
SCUMM stands for Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion. Its appearance on the pirate bar’s sign brings part of the development toolkit into the fictional world. Our Inside SCUMM page follows the technical story.
At the source: Lucasfilm · Lucasfilm Originals: SCUMM Ron Gilbert · About
Late 1980s
A ride, a novel and a would-be pirate
In a recollection published in 2004, Gilbert distinguishes the atmosphere of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride from Tim Powers’ On Stranger Tides. The idea is set aside during Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, then revisited. Guybrush will be inexperienced, so the player can learn with him.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · On Stranger Tides Lucasfilm · The Creators & Team Behind Return to Monkey Island
1989 · republished in 2004
A challenge should invite, not punish
Why Adventure Games Suck emerges during Monkey Island’s design. Gilbert discusses clear goals, fair puzzles and avoiding dead ends. The pleasure should come from understanding the world, rather than restarting because a distant choice made the game impossible.
Two dates, two moments
The blog entry is dated 12 May 2004, but Gilbert dates the text to 1989. Reading only the page date would obscure its link to the first game. His 2004 introduction also acknowledges that some of his views have changed.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · Why Adventure Games Suck
1990
The first island is a team effort
The Secret of Monkey Island becomes a playable world. The manual credits Gilbert with creation and design, and Dave Grossman, Tim Schafer and Gilbert with writing and programming. Artists, animators, musicians and testers also shape the Caribbean identity.
The name that stayed on the desk
In 2020 Gilbert corrects a persistent myth: the protagonist’s file was guybrush.lbm, not guy.brush. The story comes from Steve Purcell’s work in Deluxe Paint. Our Curiosities section links to that original correction.
At the source: Lucasfilm Games · The Secret of Monkey Island, manual Lucasfilm · Rewind: The Secret of Monkey Island Ron Gilbert · Guybrush Fact vs Fiction
1991
LeChuck’s Revenge widens the horizon
The second game brings together new backgrounds, animation and music. Its manual credits Peter Chan, Steve Purcell, Sean Turner and James Dollar for backgrounds, and Michael Land, Peter McConnell and Clint Bajakian for original music. Land and McConnell are credited for iMUSE.
Pixels were not nostalgia
In 2022 Gilbert recalls the second game’s painted, scanned backgrounds: the aim was to move forward with available tools. Returning to the series did not necessarily mean reproducing its 1991 appearance.
At the source: Lucasfilm Games · Monkey Island 2, manual Ron Gilbert · When I Made Another Monkey Island
After the first two games
Other routes, the same craft
Gilbert’s work continues beyond the first Monkey Islands: Humongous Entertainment’s children’s adventures, DeathSpank with Clayton Kauzlaric and The Cave at Double Fine. Waiting for a sequel was not thirty years of inactivity: experience, tools and audiences were changing.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · About
16 November 2010
The binder nobody threw away
Gilbert posts about rediscovering a binder of Monkey Island 2 bug reports. It opens a window on essential, less romantic work: checks, errors and corrections. An adventure that seems to flow naturally also passed through pages of problems to solve.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island 2 Bug Report
13–15 April 2013
“If I made another Monkey Island…”
A post imagines a possible return but explicitly is not an announcement. Two days later Gilbert also clarifies his appreciation for Jonathan Ackley and Larry Ahern’s The Curse of Monkey Island. Resuming one’s own creative thread does not erase other creators’ work.
The famous 3a was not a finished game
Revisiting the subject in 2022, Gilbert describes a starting idea, not a complete third game left in a drawer. Return should not be presented as the delayed execution of an unchanged 1992 script. Ideas develop through work.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · If I Made Another Monkey Island Ron Gilbert · Just To Clarify Point Twelve… Ron Gilbert · When I Made Another Monkey Island
March–August 2014
The notebooks get some air
Gilbert shares sketches, notes and puzzle diagrams from the early games: an early island drawing, a Largo puzzle before the final name and attempts to organise progression. These are traces of development, showing how ideas move or change before becoming playable.
Three windows into the workshop
The 27 March post includes a map for more direct, overhead sailing. On 30 March Gilbert distinguishes notes from a formal design document and recalls the large puzzle chart. On 6 April he reflects on preserving notes: rewritten pages can conceal the path to the final idea.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island Design Notebook #1 Ron Gilbert · More Tales From The Monkey Island Design Notebook Ron Gilbert · Even More Monkey Island Design Scribbles Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island Design Notebook Scribblings Ron Gilbert · Puzzle Dependency Charts
2014–2017
Thimbleweed Park: back to verbs, somewhere else
With Gary Winnick, Gilbert develops Thimbleweed Park, funded on Kickstarter in 2014 and announced for release on 30 March 2017. Its development blog exposes experiments and discussions. The conversation with classic adventures continues without bringing Guybrush back.
At the source: Thimbleweed Park · About Ron Gilbert · Thimbleweed Park: Release Date!
1 and 4 April 2022
An announcement on the wrong day. Or the right one.
On 1 April Gilbert writes that he has decided to make another Monkey Island. On 4 April comes the Return post. The date becomes a small joke before the adventure begins: a genuine announcement wearing an April Fools’ hat.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · April Fools’ 2022 Ron Gilbert · Return to Monkey Island
1 May 2022
Returning does not mean staying the same
In When I Made Another Monkey Island, Gilbert revisits his 2013 ideas in light of the game being developed. He and Grossman want to move forward rather than simply build a nostalgic object. Rex Crowle’s art direction is part of that freedom to change.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · When I Made Another Monkey Island Lucasfilm · The Creators & Team Behind Return to Monkey Island
19 September 2022
Back to the Caribbean with a new crew
Return to Monkey Island arrives from Terrible Toybox, Devolver Digital and Lucasfilm Games. Gilbert and Grossman lead the return, Crowle and the art team shape its appearance, and Land, McConnell and Bajakian return to the music. The lead name never tells the whole production story.
At the source: Lucasfilm · Return to Monkey Island Coming September 19 Lucasfilm · The Creators & Team Behind Return to Monkey Island
23 November 2022 · document dated 21 August 2020
A map is not the finished journey
After release, Gilbert publishes an early Return puzzle chart dated 2020. He explains that some material was cut for pacing or interest. The document records a development stage, not a promised complete secret version. The external source contains spoilers; here we discuss only its historical value.
At the source: Ron Gilbert · Early Return to Monkey Island Puzzle Dependency Chart
Warning: Return puzzles and spoilers in this source
One signature, many hands
Following Gilbert also means recognising the team. These are selected documented contributions; the full credits tell a wider story.
Ron Gilbert · Dave Grossman · Tim SchaferFirst game: creation and design by Gilbert; shared writing and programming, as credited in the manual.
Steve Purcell · Mark Ferrari · Mike EbertAmong the first game’s background artists; animation has its own distinct credits.
Tami Borowick · Bret Barrett · Tim Schafer · Dave GrossmanSecond-game programming: names to place alongside the project leader’s.
Peter Chan · Steve Purcell · Sean Turner · James DollarLeChuck’s Revenge backgrounds: documented collective visual work.
Michael Land · Peter McConnell · Clint BajakianMonkey Island 2 music; iMUSE by Land and McConnell. The first game has a different music credit list.
Rex Crowle and the Return teamArt direction, artists, animators, programmers, sound specialists and testers: veterans and new contributors in a new production.
At the source: Lucasfilm Games · The Secret of Monkey Island, manual Lucasfilm Games · Monkey Island 2, manual Lucasfilm · The Creators & Team Behind Return to Monkey Island
Reading this diary
Chapter dates identify events or periods. Source dates identify when a document or recollection was published; these are not always the same. The notebooks posted in 2014 come from game development: we do not invent a precise date for every page. Game images are visual references, not evidence of a development stage.
This journey reveals neither the Secret nor the endings. Some external documents show puzzles or drafts; sensitive links are marked.
The papers on the desk
Primary sources: Gilbert’s writing and recollections, Lucasfilm announcements, developer blogs and original manuals preserved in archives. Titles remain in their original language.
- 01 · Lucasfilm · Lucasfilm Originals: SCUMM2021-10-15
- 02 · Ron Gilbert · AboutNo publication date stated
- 03 · Ron Gilbert · On Stranger Tides2004-09-19
- 04 · Ron Gilbert · Why Adventure Games Suck2004-05-12
- 05 · Lucasfilm Games · The Secret of Monkey Island, manual1990 · PDF · credits, p. 2
- 06 · Lucasfilm · Rewind: The Secret of Monkey Island2024-04-01
- 07 · Lucasfilm Games · Monkey Island 2, manual1991 · PDF · credits, p. 2
- 08 · Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island 2 Bug Report2010-11-16
- 09 · Ron Gilbert · Guybrush Fact vs Fiction2020-11-28
- 10 · Ron Gilbert · If I Made Another Monkey Island2013-04-13
- 11 · Ron Gilbert · Just To Clarify Point Twelve…2013-04-15
- 12 · Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island Design Notebook #12014-03-26
- 13 · Ron Gilbert · More Tales From The Monkey Island Design Notebook2014-03-27
- 14 · Ron Gilbert · Even More Monkey Island Design Scribbles2014-03-30
- 15 · Ron Gilbert · Monkey Island Design Notebook Scribblings2014-04-06
- 16 · Ron Gilbert · Puzzle Dependency Charts2014-08-10
- 17 · Thimbleweed Park · About2014-12-31
- 18 · Ron Gilbert · Thimbleweed Park: Release Date!2017-02-27
- 19 · Ron Gilbert · April Fools’ 20222022-04-01
- 20 · Ron Gilbert · Return to Monkey Island2022-04-04
- 21 · Ron Gilbert · When I Made Another Monkey Island2022-05-01
- 22 · Lucasfilm · The Creators & Team Behind Return to Monkey Island2022-09-15
- 23 · Lucasfilm · Return to Monkey Island Coming September 192022-08-23
- 24 · Ron Gilbert · Early Return to Monkey Island Puzzle Dependency Chart2022-11-23 · Warning: Return puzzles and spoilers in this source