Hello Enthusiasts,
Today I will be reviewing the full chapters released so far of Telltale Games' The Walking Dead. Now these games are very much story driven, so I will try to keep spoilers at a minimum, but there may be some Mild Spoilers Below.
So the game isn't based on the group from the comic book series or TV show of the same name, though you may see a character or two from time to time. Instead, it focuses on a entirely different group of survivors. In season one you play as Lee, a man who, at the start of the game, was just arrested for murder. However, as we find out, the murder was a crime of passion, and Lee is actually a pretty level-headed guy. We are also introduced to a young girl named Clementine, whose parents had left her with a baby sitter while they went to the city for a few days. The baby sitter has become a walker though, so Lee kills the zombie and decides to take care of the young girl until they can find her parents (or forever, since her parents are probably dead). They meet others along the way and work to survive the terrible world they live in.
The second game has you playing as Clementine, who is now a bit older than she was previously. This game sees a lot of new characters added, as well as bringing back some old ones from season 1. Clementine has learned a lot and is kind of a certified badass in this season, but I won't give anything away story wise, because giving things away for this game will lead to more spoilers from the first game, and that's not what I'm looking to do here.
So as I said, these games are very story driven. Most of the actions in the games involve exploring, quick time events, some shooting/melee attacks, and choosing things to say in conversations. They players actions in the game can directly effect the outcome of the game, including who lives and who dies (though some characters cannot be saved). You can earn favour or distrust from other characters by the actions you take or the things that you say. I always found myself trying to cater to one or two people rather than the group (though a lot of the people I kept trying to please were the ones who were definitely going to die). The games are also hard to predict, and some actions that I was sure was the smarter, safer option, were actually ones that would cause the most chaos.
I really liked the graphics for these games, they are simplistic in that they try to make the games look like a comic book. This leads to dark outlines of each character, and I think it really worked in the games' favor. The story is compelling and addictive to play, and the games are actually pretty long, so there is a lot of story to get through. I also felt like the ability to remain calm in conversations allowed for the player to make more rational decisions than you would see in the show, so there's less of me shouting at the stupid people on the screen. Speaking of stupid people, you will run into some, but it's not a bad thing. Each character has a distinctive personality, and you will grow to predict each character based on their prominent motivations.
The game does have a few flaws though. I have experienced some performance issues when playing, which can be detrimental if it happens at certain points. This led to a few moments of real frustration on my part, but these issues are few and far between. Also, some events will happen regardless of your decision, even if it seems like choosing differently would have allowed you to completely avoid certain scenarios. Giving more details or examples would likely give things away, and you should still treat every decision like it matters in the game, but some of them really don't.
Overall, these games is a lot of fun, and the flaws can be overlooked pretty easily. A solid story was conveyed, one that was worthy of the show, but the games are their own thing, and I liked that. If you're looking for a good story that isn't as high-energy as some shooting games can be, this could be a good one to pick up.
I give seasons 1 and 2 of The Walking Dead an 8 out of 10.
Sincerely,
The Bored Enthusiast
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