The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition similar games & best alternatives

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition - Trailer
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The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition

PlayStation 3, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, Mac, Xbox 360 • 2009

Should you play it?

Back by popular demand, The Secret of Monkey Island™: Special Edition faithfully re-imagines the internationally-acclaimed classic game (originally released in 1990) for original and new audiences alike.

What works

  • Timeless humor and story
  • Clever and engaging puzzles
  • Option to switch between original and remastered graphics
  • Excellent voice acting
  • Immersive pirate fantasy setting

Things to keep in mind

  • Some puzzles can be illogical or frustrating
  • New interface can be clunky
  • Remastered character art divisive
  • Lack of replayability beyond nostalgia
  • No multiplayer or social features

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feels the closest overall

  • The Inner World

  • Deponia

  • The Wardrobe - Even Better Edition

  • Return to Monkey Island

  • Leisure Suit Larry - Wet Dreams Don't Dry

  • The Book of Unwritten Tales

More thrilling

Games that feels like The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition but with more suspense and thrill

  • Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers 20th Anniversary Edition

  • Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse

  • Children of Silentown

  • Slender Threads

  • Monkey Island™ 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge™

  • Gibbous - A Cthulhu Adventure

Less value-seeking

Games that feels like The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition but with less emphasis on value for time or money

  • Kelvin and the Infamous Machine

  • The Journey Down: Chapter One

  • Down the Rabbit Hole

  • My Brother Rabbit

  • Darkestville Castle

  • Nelly Cootalot: The Fowl Fleet

More expressive

Games that feels like The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition but with more self-expression and customization

  • Whispers of a Machine

  • Helheim Hassle

  • Simon the Sorcerer Origins

  • The Book of Unwritten Tales 2

  • Chaos on Deponia

  • Down the Rabbit Hole Flattened

Choose your own criteria ->

From the same developer

From the same developer, ranked by motivational fit.

  • Monkey Island™ 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge™

  • Sam & Max Hit the Road

  • Under The Island

  • STAR WARS™ Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II

  • STAR WARS™ - The Force Unleashed™ Ultimate Sith Edition

Similarity map

How to use the graph

Similarity map

Each dot is a game placed from its motivation profile relative to this page’s game. Direction shows which motivation differs most; distance along that axis shows how large the gap is.

  • Purple star: this page’s game at the centre — everything is relative to it.
  • Direction: each axis is a main motivational difference vs this game (e.g. more / less competitive).
  • Distance on an axis: how large that difference is (ring scales show +/− points).
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot to preview that game in the panel on the right; click to keep that comparison.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom.

How to read the map This is a polar difference map: direction = which motivation differs, and distance = how much (same units as the sidebar deltas).

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition: A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Survival, Violence, Competition, Thrill. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Strategy. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Intimacy, Thrill.

Last update: 04/08/2026