Post by trashcanman on Dec 31, 2012 14:01:37 GMT 2
So I might have mentioned earlier that my first post-Christmas purchase was The Walking Dead game. It was originally released in five episodes as a download-only game, and just this month it was made available on disc. Now, I figured given the low-budget nature of this release and the piss-poor history of licensed games that this would be one to pass on. After all, it didn't even star characters from the comic or the show so how exactly would it really be TWD rather than just another generic zombie game, right? Well, after each episode was released a wave of universal praise and excitement followed and suddenly this game was getting nominated everywhere for game of the year awards. So naturally, I had to check this thing out.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhL776xz9YU
Brace for review:
All I can say is that if you only get one zombie game ever, this is the one. It has last-gen graphics and voice acting, very little actual gameplay in the traditional sense (it's really more like an interactive tv show), but goddamn if this game does not tell one hell of a story. Better than the show.....maybe even better than the comic at times. Even without the appearances from TWD characters, this game is clearly in the same vein as the comic it is based on and does it absolute justice. It puts all the choices in your hands, rips your fucking guts out, and eats your heart for dessert. And that's even if the zombies never get a hold of you. The game borrows interactive story elements from games like Mass Effect and makes that the entire game, eliminating traditional action gameplay altogether. This game is all about making the tough calls and building relationships with your fellow survivors and it does an amazing job of that. Even though you end up at the same story points regardless of your decisions, those decisions serve to color your story experience and your relationships with the cast in very interesting ways. Friendships forged in the heat of your battle for survival can disintegrate over time as priorities change and sanity frays as the cast is subjected to worse and worse circumstances. This is the first game I've ever played that I would qualify as utterly bleak and depressing. Possibly even more so than the comic, which is one of the darkest things I've ever read.
If playing an interactive story guaranteed to make you gasp in horror, feel literally protective of or downright angry at digital characters, and possibly even cry sounds like a thing you may want to try, this sucker is CHEAP for about 15 hours of storycentric gameplay. It's much more bang for your buck than buying the television seasons on DVD and will likely be a good deal more memorable of an experience than any show you've watched or game you'll have played in the past year (unless you got Mass Effect 3, that is). From the intro sequence of the first episode to the perfect song playing over the ending credits to the post-credits cliffhanger (oh yes, there will be a season 2) this game is a consistently harrowing, surprising, and overall fantastic experience for fans of interactive fiction. That is to say, I recommend you get this. Now. The trailer in no way does it justice.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhL776xz9YU
Brace for review:
All I can say is that if you only get one zombie game ever, this is the one. It has last-gen graphics and voice acting, very little actual gameplay in the traditional sense (it's really more like an interactive tv show), but goddamn if this game does not tell one hell of a story. Better than the show.....maybe even better than the comic at times. Even without the appearances from TWD characters, this game is clearly in the same vein as the comic it is based on and does it absolute justice. It puts all the choices in your hands, rips your fucking guts out, and eats your heart for dessert. And that's even if the zombies never get a hold of you. The game borrows interactive story elements from games like Mass Effect and makes that the entire game, eliminating traditional action gameplay altogether. This game is all about making the tough calls and building relationships with your fellow survivors and it does an amazing job of that. Even though you end up at the same story points regardless of your decisions, those decisions serve to color your story experience and your relationships with the cast in very interesting ways. Friendships forged in the heat of your battle for survival can disintegrate over time as priorities change and sanity frays as the cast is subjected to worse and worse circumstances. This is the first game I've ever played that I would qualify as utterly bleak and depressing. Possibly even more so than the comic, which is one of the darkest things I've ever read.
If playing an interactive story guaranteed to make you gasp in horror, feel literally protective of or downright angry at digital characters, and possibly even cry sounds like a thing you may want to try, this sucker is CHEAP for about 15 hours of storycentric gameplay. It's much more bang for your buck than buying the television seasons on DVD and will likely be a good deal more memorable of an experience than any show you've watched or game you'll have played in the past year (unless you got Mass Effect 3, that is). From the intro sequence of the first episode to the perfect song playing over the ending credits to the post-credits cliffhanger (oh yes, there will be a season 2) this game is a consistently harrowing, surprising, and overall fantastic experience for fans of interactive fiction. That is to say, I recommend you get this. Now. The trailer in no way does it justice.
