About The Secret of Monkey Island
The Secret of Monkey Island is a point-and-click graphic adventure that Lucasfilm Games developed and published in 1990. It takes place in a fictional version of the Caribbean during the age of piracy. You play Guybrush Threepwood, a young man who dreams of becoming a pirate, and you explore a group of fictional islands, solving puzzles along the way. It is a single-player game, and it was the first in the Monkey Island series.
Ron Gilbert directed it and designed it with Dave Grossman and Tim Schafer. Greg Hammond produced it, and Michael Land and Patrick Mundy wrote the music. The game was built on the SCUMM engine.
The first release, with 16-color graphics, came out in October 1990, and a 256-color version followed in December. A CD-ROM version arrived in 1992. Lucasfilm Games published the game in North America, U.S. Gold handled Europe, and The Software Toolworks put out the CD edition. Versions appeared for the Amiga, Atari ST, FM Towns, classic Mac OS and Sega CD, and a Special Edition was released on July 15, 2009, with later platforms including iOS, Windows, OS X, the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360. Lucasfilm Games, now owned by Disney, holds the rights.
How it runs in your browser
Press Play and the game’s page on dos.zone opens in a new tab. The site boots the original MS-DOS release there with js-dos, its open-source build of the DOSBox emulator for browsers, which stands in for an old IBM PC. DOS.Zone supplies the game files, so you skip the installer, don’t need a copy of your own and don’t have to create an account. The site carries no ads.
The listing files the game under adventure and shows a 5-star average from 30 player reviews. It doesn’t say which MS-DOS release you get, whether that’s the 16-color, 256-color or CD-ROM version, but it isn’t the 2009 Special Edition. The page also doesn’t mention whether your progress is kept between visits, so check with DOS.Zone before you settle in for a long session.
Controls and devices
The game was made for a keyboard and mouse. In a point-and-click adventure, most of what you do is pointing at people and things on the screen and clicking on them. DOS.Zone doesn’t list any keyboard commands for this game, so look through its own menus if you need them.
DOS.Zone’s description says you can also play on a phone using its virtual on-screen controls. A pointer-driven adventure is a tighter fit on a small touch screen, though, and a desktop or laptop is the better choice. Chromebooks haven’t been confirmed.
Who it’s for
It suits adventure fans who want to revisit Guybrush’s first outing in its original DOS form, and newcomers curious about where the Monkey Island series began. The challenge comes from puzzles rather than reflexes, so you can think each one through at your own pace. If you enjoy it, The Neverhood is another point-and-click adventure on DOS.Zone, set in a world made entirely out of clay.
Is The Secret of Monkey Island Free, Safe and Official?
Can I play The Secret of Monkey Island online for free?
Yes. DOS.Zone runs the MS-DOS version free in a browser tab. There’s nothing to download and you don’t need to register.
Is this the Monkey Island Special Edition?
No. It’s the original MS-DOS game running in an emulated PC, not the 2009 Special Edition. DOS.Zone’s listing doesn’t say whether it’s the 16-color, 256-color or CD-ROM release.
Can I play Monkey Island on my phone?
DOS.Zone has virtual on-screen controls for phones, but the game was made for a keyboard and mouse, so a computer is the better fit.
