Not everyones questions could be answered on the day of the chat event so I asked Bill would he answer the few that weren't asked. He agreed :) So, here they are:

1. <twif> I want to know more about this game you are working on
Well it is 2d adventure game very much like The Curse of Monkey Island except it is in the gothic horror genre. Think Monkey Island meets Frankenstein and you get the picture. You play a vampire woman who want to resume her normal life again, and in the process she meets with all the classic monsters from the Universal horror movies of the thirties and forties. It is point and click and is very light hearted like CMI and has a fun but creepy mood.

2. <haggis> Is there any art book you would recommend (e.g. - Art for Dummies)
Yes. The illusion of Life: Disney Animation by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, and The Fantasy Techniques of Tim Hildebrandt by Jack E. Norton. The first book is published by Hyperion -114 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York, 10011. The second by Paper Tiger, and imprint of Dragon's World Ltd, Limpsfield, Surrey RH8 0DY, Great Britain. Also N.C. Wyeth: The Collected Paintings, Illustrations and Murals by Douglas Allen and Douglas Allen, Jr., thought that one may be out of print. Also any of the 'Art Of' books for nay of the recent Disney films are very educational. Now some of you may think Disney sucks and it is just silly fairy tales for kids. That may or may not be true, but they do know their art. All the rules they follow work for any type of art you want to create. They are inspired by the masters and learned from them ,so their foundations are rooted in art theory that has been used for a millennium. So just because they may be drawing a mouse or a dragon, the rules they follow are the same Rembrandt, Da Vinci, and Michelangelo used.

3. <dansky> So, are you going to take the Art direction for MI5
Hell if I know. It is a complex issue. I had a hard time working with some of the project leaders/ directors at LEC so if one of them were to be the Director on MI5 then no. Plus I didn't care for some of the decisions Randy Breen has made, and he knows it. So, even if I wanted to he may block me being hired back. Simon and I generally got along and he wanted me to come back and be the lead artist on MI5, but I am not sure if that still holds true.I haven't asked him in while. I love Monkey Island, and I would just about art direct it for free, but there are a lot of issues that would have to be worked out for me to come back and LEC may not think it is worth it.
Also if I were to do it I would want the backgrounds to be in 2d, 24 bit high color, 800 x 600 and the characters in high poly either pre rendered or real-time 3d. And it would have to be point and click. There is no need to pilot around in an adventure game. It was a nice experiment in Grim but it causes the player to work too much. Point and click is just a hell of a lot easier. These views may clash with LEC marketing and the current trend toward 3D. Just another reason why I might not work on MI
But who knows? We will see. Cross your fingers. I am.

5. <mymipage> The Secret of Monkey Island has come in some forums recently. Can I just ask you - what was Ron Gilbert's Secret of Monkey Island? Do you know it? Was it all a kids imagination or is that just a theory?
Well this is all I know, and I learned it from Larry Ahern and Dave Grossman. Ron went to Disneyland, rode Pirates of the Caribbean ride. thought it was cool and wondered what it would be like to get out of the boat and explore the pirates cave and village. Calvin and Hobbs http://www.geocities.com/dlazechk/subjects.html was very popular back then. It is a daily cartoon strip about a boy and his stuffed tiger going on all sorts of adventures and imagining themselves in all sorts of different things like dinosaurs, spacemen and monsters. I speculate that Ron combined the to together- Pirates of the Caribbean and Calvin and Hobbs- and created Guybrush. I was told that the ending of MI2 was originally going to be the ending of MI1. But Dave Grossman and Tim Shafer didn't like it an talked Ron out of it. Then I heard from Larry Ahern that two to three months before MI2 was supposed to be done, an ending had still not been decided upon. And about then Ron decided to go with the amusement park ending he was originally going to use in MI1.
The explanation I heard is that Guybrush was lost in the Pirates Ride at Big Whoop Amusement Park the whole time, imagining the whole adventure. Then Chucky, his mean older brother goes and pulls him back to reality. The end. And that magical lightning coming out of Chucky's eyes and Elaine waiting by the hole on Dinky Island (which sounds a lot like Disney Land) was put there just in case there was to be a Monkey Island 3. The secret is that the MI world is not real. now I have no clue how Ron would have written his way out of the MI2 ending. He either knows and isn't telling. Or He doesn't know and he isn't telling you he doesn't know. Or he has a bunch of ides of what he would do and isn't telling you that either.That is a bigger secret then what the secret of Monkey Island is.
But secret being that the whole MI world is imagined sucks. Why? Because we want the world of Monkey Island to be real, not in a kids imagination.
Enter big whoop the portal of hell. Lechuck goes in, comes out a powerful ghost. Then he is killed again, comes back as a zombie and hatches a plan to lure pirates through the portal of big whoop and come out zombie/ ghosts. Guybrush had spell cast on him and that is why he was a little kid. he escaped Big whoop in a bumper/ dodgem car and reverts back. Elaine had to rush back to Puerto pollo to defend it from Lechuck renewed attacks because Guybrush is safely under his spell back on Monkey Island. That is the official secret of monkey island in CMI.
Sean and Mike don't like that secret or want to add to it, so they either borrow Dave Grossman's idea that the monkey head is jut the top of a giant monkey robot, or they came up with it independently. That is the official secret of Monkey Island in EMI.
Is this all cleared up now? There is no 'one' secret of Monkey Island. Period. Maybe in Monkey5 there will be yet another one. Personally I'd like to know more about Guybrush' s origins. Where did he come from? Who are his parents? Any brothers or sisters? WHo was the voodoo priest who brought LeChuck back to life?

Thanks once again Bill :)

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Bill Tiller, lead artist for The Curse of Monkey Island came in to talk with us (In #brimstone) on February 8th 2003. Approx 50 people entered the Chat altogether for the hour and a half that Bill was there. I would like to thank everyone who came to the event, especially Gabez (for helping out), Haggis (for setting the Chat with Bill Tiller up) and Bill (for agreeing to do the event).<btiller> is Bill Tiller. Everyone else is in Black, questions are bold, Quit IRC is Red and Join chat is in green. The following is the log from the Chat Event.

Session Start: Sat Feb 08 19:54:58 2003
Session Ident: #brimstone
* Now talking in #brimstone
* Topic is 'Bill Tiller Chat at 8:00 GMT Today (Saturday) '
* Set by mymipage on Sat Feb 08 11:39:52
* ChanServ sets mode: +o mymipage

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<gabez> Hey mymipage.
<mymipage> Hey
<btiller> we doing this now?

* mymipage sets mode: +o Btiller
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<btiller> or are we waiting till noon
<gabez> Yeah.

* mymipage sets mode: -o battlecat
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<gabez> We can wait till noon if that's better.
<the_ed> might as well start
<the_ed> unless people have any objection to that
<btiller> doesn't matter to me, just say go and I will start shooting off answers
<the_ed> (you can't really tell us if you do can you?)
<mymipage> wait another minute
<btiller> ok

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* mymipage changes topic to 'Bill Tiller Chat NOW :) If you want to ask Bill a question PM mymipage or ED with the question and why you are voiced you may ask it then'

<mymipage> Ok, people - lets do the voiced way for about 10 mins and see how it goes
<gabez> Sounds good.
<the_ed> ok shall we start?
<mymipage> then we might let people ask as normal
<mymipage> ok, Bill, ready to start?
<btiller> let us
<btiller> yes I am
<the_ed> we'll start with Dalixam then?
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* The_ED sets mode: +v Dalixam
<dalixam> How is the development of your new game coming along?
<btiller> slow, but steady. the thing slowing it down the most is the animation and the fact that my lead programmer lives 2000 miles away
<btiller> and it is only a demo or should we say a proof of concept
<btiller> not a full game
<btiller> done
<dalixam> ok
* mymipage sets mode: -v Dalixam

* mymipage sets mode: +v RemiO
<remio> Can you tell us anything about the cancelled post-CMI Ackley/Ahern project "The Magic Box"? Were you involved with this at all?
<btiller> I could have been involved but I wanted to try something else, but in hindsight I should have stuck with them on it.
<btiller> It was called vanishing act which was an unfortunately named project because it did just that
<btiller> It was going to be real time 3d but very much like a traditional game. the genre was steam punk/ Bavarian. Think Baron munchuasen (?) meets MI
<remio> Heh, cool.
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* The_ED sets mode: +v THATinkjar
<thatinkjar> Which game, for you, has the most enjoyable and unique graphical style? And have you ever considered emulating this style?
<btiller> CMI was the most fun because it was original. The 3d games I have worked on were very limited in their technology so a true 'art' style really couldn't be achieved. but as the tech gets better I think you will see more artistic styles pop up in 3d games.
* The_ED sets mode: -v THATinkjar

* Gabez sets mode: +v DanSky
<dansky> Hey Bill nice to meet you, this is an hot question but... What you really think about EMI graphic? Lots of fans were disappointed with it. I think with 3d, MI lost that mappy-style only handrawings can transmit... I mean, your famous pink clouds aren't the same, with 3d :-)
<btiller> Dansky, I thought EMI lacked an experienced background artist who understood the basics of making adventure game backgrounds. I think the artists who worked on it were cool people and very talented, even more talented then me. but it goes to show your art is not just about talent, it is about careful thought, and I don't think they thought carefully about the EMI backgrounds
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* mymipage changes topic to 'Bill Tiller Chat NOW :) If you want to ask Bill a question PM mymipage or ED or Gabez with the question and why you are voiced you may ask it then'

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* The_ED sets mode: +v LucasTones
<lucastones> Hiya Bill! The background art for The Dig and CMI are both quite different - both are landscapes, but different styles. Which do you prefer, both to look at and to actually draw? The Dig is mostly rocks, but CMI is very natural, with trees etc.
<btiller> CMI absolutely!
<lucastones> Me too
<btiller> The shapes are more fun and the colors are more vibrant, I think a combo of the styles would be good. That is sort of what I am doing with my game- I keep the fun shapes of CMI but paint them more realistic like the dig
<btiller> done
* The_ED sets mode: -v LucasTones

* The_ED sets mode: +v Haggis
<haggis> Have you found any sponsors for your project yet?
<btiller> No, but that is what the demo is for, to convince them that we can make the game given the budget and time. I will also have to convince them that a 2D adventure game would sell in this market
<btiller> done
* mymipage sets mode: -v Haggis

* mymipage sets mode: +v Metallus
<metallus> Sometimes when I try to draw, there are certain things that really frustrate me and I have a hard time with, such as the creases/wrinkles in clothing. Is there anything that you consider your least favorite, or most frustrating thing to draw?
<btiller> Drawing anatomy without reference is the most difficult thing for me.
<btiller> I generally try and find an image of a person in that pose and refer to it, or take a picture of my wife or a friend in the pose I need and use that. I would suggest looking at artists you like and see how they draw clothes and wrinkles
<btiller> done
<metallus> thanks

<btiller> anybody know how well Tony Tough is selling?
<mymipage> Bill, no one else can answer
<gabez> Uh... if you do, then PM an op. :)
<metallus> I have no idea...heh
<mymipage> I will let them talk coming towards the end
<gabez> Yeah, or wait until the end.
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* mymipage sets mode: +v LucasTones
<lucastones> So, what do you make of cell shading? How much would it limit you as an artist?
<btiller> can you elaborate more on the question. Do you mean do I like the style or that using less shades ruins the look of the character?
<lucastones> I mean, do you think it looks good? or does it take some of the personal touch away?
<btiller> It looks bad on realistic characters like in the Dig, but looks great on Ben from FT. If we were to do the dig again I would do it in 3D. But the style we used for inking and painting CMI was fine. In that case the character was so exaggerated that his shape gave you the information about his acting, where as in the dig you can't do exaggerated movements like in CMI so a fully renderd 3d character would be need to capture all those
<lucastones> ok
<lucastones> thanks
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* mymipage sets mode: +v telarium
<telarium> Bill, if you get financing and your own project goes into full production, are you just going to assemble a small group of freelance employees or will you actually attempt to form your own central company?
<btiller> a little of both
<telarium> That sounds promising. :)
<btiller> To set a company will be expensive but you have to have everybody in the same building coordinate such a complictes project. but certain things like character design and voice recording can be done with people offsite, even music. but art animation and programming has to be done in house, same with the game design
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* mymipage sets mode: +v THATinkjar
<thatinkjar> Did working on CMI lessen the enjoyment of actually playing the game, or any of the others in the Monkey Island series?
<btiller> no not at all
<btiller> it actually helped that I was a big MI fan before I