The Walking Dead spans several mediums, with ongoing comics, a TV show, an episodic game from Telltale and even an upcoming first person shooter based on the TV show. They’ve all been well received too – well, the released ones have anyway – and the episodic game is a particular highlight, largely due to its extremely good, yet sometimes absolutely devastating narrative.
In fact, it’s one of the best games of last year, backed up by numerous game of the year awards and near unanimous praise from critics (it holds a 92 Metacritic rating, though that’s only based on twelve reviews).
Personally, I think that it’s one of the best games I’ve played this generation and, to my mind, there’s few other examples of storytelling in gaming that are as good as The Walking Dead. While we didn’t review each episode individually, I took a look at the game as a whole after all five episodes had fully released, so I’ll let those words do the talking:
This game connects you and the characters like no other. You are living the zombie apocalypse, not just glimpsing into a world through a screen. Emotions are raw and genuine, choices are brutal and yet necessary, the outcome is heart-wrenching and yet so incredible.
It’s arguable that The Walking Dead hasn’t only forwarded the zombie trope in interactive media, but the medium as a whole. Choices you make have a huge impact – it’s not a matter of gaining XP or being at a certain point on a morality scale but instead a matter of life and death.
To put it simply, it’s a game that shouldn’t be missed by anyone seeking a good story. It might be Lee and Clementine’s story but in the end it’s yours too, since the choices you make affect the outcome of the game to such a large extent. Even if you aren’t a fan of zombies, the connections between each of the character’s and their tale – their plight – is one of the best pieces of fiction that released last year.
Now it’s your turn to tell us what you think of Telltale’s The Walking Dead. I’m confident that most of your reactions will be positive, though it should be interesting to hear from anyone who didn’t quite click with the game. All opinions are welcomed, so long as you’ve played the game.
Simply drop a comment below with a concise review of The Walking Dead and make sure to put a Buy It, Bargain Bin It, Rent It or Avoid It rating on the end. As always, we’ll have a round-up of your thoughts on Monday, so if you want a chance to be included make sure to comment by Sunday afternoon.
davidtcawley
Buy it.
From the comments above, seems a bit of a marmite game.
For me, the gameplay is shit and I don’t particularly like the graphical style.
These things don’t matter though – the story and characters are great and make you want to keep going to the next episode. It does get you emotionally involved and I would say its far more effective than Heavy Rain at achieving this.
One of the best ps3 experiences for me. Maybe it was the episodic nature which made it feel fresh for me? Either way its one of the very few games to keep the missus gripped.
TSBonyman
I’ve only played the first episode and after playing about halfway it took me a few weeks before i got around to completing it. Perhaps it’s telling that i also stopped watching the tv series a few episodes into season two. Can’t explain it really, just lost interest. It’s not a bad game but i haven’t really warmed to what travellerstales have been doing this gen anyway – although i’ve tried many of them and i will say this is the best example of what they do.
If you like their other games or you are a fan of the tv series you’ll probably like this,in which case Buy it.
TSBonyman
D’oh – where did i get travellers tales from – i meant telltale.
deadwelsh
rent it, there is not enough replay value for a purchase, also how the releases were handled for the early adopters was shockingly bad customer service (although SCEE to blame for some…)
Well worth a play, tell tale need funding for new engine and a 2nd installment would be great so buy it if you want to support, but a firm rent it is all i can offer
Lyts1985
Tuffcub – grow up. We heard your opinion the first time and you’ve nothing new to say. Hardly becoming of a staff member!
Anyway. I can’t add anything that hasn’t been said. In my opinion, the best example of story telling within a game. Got completely drawn in to the world and the characters to the point where genuine emotion was felt. Thats a first. The missus even looked forward to me playing it so she could watch… Another first! We even ended up debating over the decisions made. Can’t praise TWD enough. BUY IT. Without a doubt.
tonycawley
As a game it’s pretty poor. The gameplay is almost nonexistent, though the graphical style is quite nice it’s poorly implemented and the game contains a lot of little bugs and glitches, it can be very jerky and jumpy at times. However it’s not in the gameplay or technical areas that this game excels, it’s the story, the characters, the script, the voice acting and the way the whole thing pans out.
By the end of episode 5, I actually gave a shit what happened to the main characters which is unusual for me and games.
Forget the piss poor gameplay, lie back on the sofa, relax, enjoy this story in its 5 bite sized chunks. Oh, and enjoy the guaranteed platinum. Buy it.
igotmy9milli
An awesome interactive story. Great characters and a truly immersive experience. Only so often do games come along that really get the emotive juices flowing and this is defintely one of them and should not be missed.
Shame my save data got fucked twice and did tarnish my experience, but I still loved it.
Cort
[A belated contribution, reposted from another page, simply because I wish to add to the general chorus of approval. Sorry Mr Cub.]
I took a chance on this game because it was on sale on PSN (I think I paid 10 squids).
It’s a masterpiece. Yes, it has some flaws (there is no such thing as perfect art, but that’s a discussion for another time and place) but those flaws do not detract from the very good experience the title delivers. It looks absolutely beautiful. It sounds great. You quickly invest in the character of Clementine (I shouldn’t think I need to explain why, we’re all decent human beings, right?). You can empathise with Lee, and understand why others act in the ways that they do; everyone acts and reacts like real people. And the way that the story is told and progresses is so expertly done that you feel under a great deal of pressure to make morally-justifiable decisions – more than once I wanted to change my mind straight away but it was too late, I couldn’t turn back the clock and I had to live with my decision. I was gutted, and on more than one occasion I felt guilty or thoroughly ashamed. But at other times I felt noble, and decent. Just like life….
As I briefly mentioned above, I felt strongly emotionally engaged with this story. At one point (don’t worry, no spoiler) you find yourself in the loft of a family home looking at one of the zombies. This is a very powerful scene, and I had to stop the game, pause, and found myself thinking about … well, if you’ve played it, you know what I was thinking about. I had to put the controller down for a minute and go find what I was thinking about.
The end was slightly disappointing, but only because I think the tension suddenly evaporated. When the denouement arrived, I would have expected a bit more drama, a more rousing soundtrack, and if I was the writer I would have extended that scene in the room to show more of the human situation, and the pain. It should have lingered for more than just the couple of seconds it did.
What would I change for episode 2? A bit more interactivity with the environment. An end to the horrible loading screens (or at least some decent-looking ones, say comic book-style frames) which spoil the flow. Maybe the chance for more than one story arc, like Heavy Rain? I don’t know.
9.5/10. A must buy.