While the presentation of the game is outstanding, it is pretty much the same across the other past episodes; what makes
Tales of Monkey Island: Lair of the Leviathan a truly strong (and better) experience is the rest of the package.
Between the episode's great dialogue trees, amusing characters and a much more focused story, it just feels like a better game all the way around. Of course, since this is an episodic game and it is really meant to be a part of the whole Tales of Monkey Island story, the strength of the game's mid-point (this is chapter 3 of 5 after all) really helps the title as a whole.
When we last left Guybrush, he had been reunited with his wife Elaine, as well as the now-human LeChuck. But before continuing his search for La Esponja Grande, he finds that his path is not with her as she helps the former zombie-ghost-pirate bring all of his slave monkeys back to their homes. So, Guybrush and his crewman, Winslow, once again board the Screaming Narwhal and search for the creature that will lead them to the magical sea sponge and hopefully cure the Caribbean of the evil Pirate Pox. As the last chapter closes, the pirate hunter, Morgan LeFlay, shows up. Guybrush's duel with the female bounty hunter is only stopped when a massive sea pig (... err... I mean sea cow) swallows the boat and takes them deep under the sea.
Needless to say, Guybrush's new task is to break free of the mammalian behemoth and hopefully get a little closer to La Esponja Grande and the cure for the disease he unwittingly released upon the pirating community.
This new adventure will have him meeting several new characters, but best of all is the return of a classic Monkey Islander who has only been mentioned in past chapters, but plays a prominent and hilarious role here. In fact, it is partially the inclusion of this character (I don't want to mention him and ruin the fun) that adds a lot to Lair of the Leviathan. One of the new characters is Captain Coronado De Cava, who has been mentioned before and suspects a relationship between Guybrush and his former love, The Voodoo Lady. It seems he has been shipwrecked in this manatee for quite some time and his entire crew has left him. Also in the belly of the beast is a group of long lost pirates who refer to themselves as The Brotherhood and events surrounding this particular group have parallels to Guybrush's first adventure when he tries to actually become a pirate. Most notably among these similarities is Guybrush's need to prove himself to the group in order to join. Only this time, instead of Insult Sword Fighting (something he is now renowned for), he has to duel with scary faces in the Pirate Face-Off. Long-time fans of the series should love this as it bears more than a passing resemblance to the insult fighting and is just as enjoyable.
