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This thread has been linked to the game 'The Walking Dead: Episode 5 - No Time Left'.
The end is here! No, I'm not talking about the zombie apocalypse - from the perspective of the characters in Telltale's The Walking Dead, that even happened a good few months ago. No, today saw the release of the fifth and final episode of the aforementioned episodic game series, Granted, there is a second 'season' planned, but I rather suspect it'll follow a different set of characters entirely.
If you haven't played any of the previous episodes - and I really recommend you start at the beginning - then I'll fill in the gaps. The Walking Dead puts you in control of Lee, a former convict who finds himself suddenly freed when the dead start walking. Lee manages to hook up with a group of other survivors, getting particularly attached to a young girl called Clementine. Unfortunately, the last episode saw her getting kidnapped and so Lee has to head off and rescue her, potentially with the aid of the other survivors.
The Walking Dead has a slightly cell-shaded about it, mirroring the comic universe it's set in, although you don't have to worry about the comic spoiling the game or vice versa. A couple of comic characters popped up in episode but since then the characters you encounter are entirely new creations. Which, as it happens, is a good thing since it means that the characters can and will be killed off. This means there are plenty of emotional moments in the game, especially in this last chapter. It's certainly the case that The Walking Dead is more about story than gameplay. That's not to say the gameplay itself is complete rubbish - it's not. But the puzzles and in-game actions tend to be fairly simplistic and untaxing - you'll usually find the objects you need to solve a puzzle just lying around in the same room.
No, the game's main selling point, apart from the strong storyline, has been the moral decisions the game forces you to make. Even in Episode 5, when things are getting bleaker by the second, you still have to make decisions that have some weight. Each episode carries a notice that your own decisions will affect the storyline. Sounds exciting, eh? Sort of. The game is actually very linear and effectively negates most of the choices you've made to date. For example, you can start the episode accompanied by a few other non player characters or be entirely on your own, depending on the decision you made at the end of the last episode. However, you end up separated from them anyway, leaving you to proceed on your own. Similarly, if one particular character didn't die in the last episode, that character dies in this episode anyway.
' So what's the big deal?', you might think. 'Telltales' other adventure games were just as linear. ' Yes, but they didn't try to offer you any choice. The Walking Dead actually pretends to offer you serious choices and they really don't matter in the end. There's no denying that Episode 5 - No Time Life - is a real emotional rollercoaster, and it is a good game. But what stops it being a great game is the fact that the decisions you've made throughout the whole game have no impact on the final episode's outcome. If you're a Walking Dead fan, or a fan of zombie games in general then the episode - in fact, the whole series - is well worth picking up. If you're not, or if you're after something a little more taxing, try some of Telltales' other games.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Pros:
There are plenty of emotional moments.
It's a fitting end for the series.
Cons:
The decisions you've made don't really matter.
If you haven't played any of the previous episodes - and I really recommend you start at the beginning - then I'll fill in the gaps. The Walking Dead puts you in control of Lee, a former convict who finds himself suddenly freed when the dead start walking. Lee manages to hook up with a group of other survivors, getting particularly attached to a young girl called Clementine. Unfortunately, the last episode saw her getting kidnapped and so Lee has to head off and rescue her, potentially with the aid of the other survivors.
The Walking Dead has a slightly cell-shaded about it, mirroring the comic universe it's set in, although you don't have to worry about the comic spoiling the game or vice versa. A couple of comic characters popped up in episode but since then the characters you encounter are entirely new creations. Which, as it happens, is a good thing since it means that the characters can and will be killed off. This means there are plenty of emotional moments in the game, especially in this last chapter. It's certainly the case that The Walking Dead is more about story than gameplay. That's not to say the gameplay itself is complete rubbish - it's not. But the puzzles and in-game actions tend to be fairly simplistic and untaxing - you'll usually find the objects you need to solve a puzzle just lying around in the same room.
No, the game's main selling point, apart from the strong storyline, has been the moral decisions the game forces you to make. Even in Episode 5, when things are getting bleaker by the second, you still have to make decisions that have some weight. Each episode carries a notice that your own decisions will affect the storyline. Sounds exciting, eh? Sort of. The game is actually very linear and effectively negates most of the choices you've made to date. For example, you can start the episode accompanied by a few other non player characters or be entirely on your own, depending on the decision you made at the end of the last episode. However, you end up separated from them anyway, leaving you to proceed on your own. Similarly, if one particular character didn't die in the last episode, that character dies in this episode anyway.
' So what's the big deal?', you might think. 'Telltales' other adventure games were just as linear. ' Yes, but they didn't try to offer you any choice. The Walking Dead actually pretends to offer you serious choices and they really don't matter in the end. There's no denying that Episode 5 - No Time Life - is a real emotional rollercoaster, and it is a good game. But what stops it being a great game is the fact that the decisions you've made throughout the whole game have no impact on the final episode's outcome. If you're a Walking Dead fan, or a fan of zombie games in general then the episode - in fact, the whole series - is well worth picking up. If you're not, or if you're after something a little more taxing, try some of Telltales' other games.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Pros:
There are plenty of emotional moments.
It's a fitting end for the series.
Cons:
The decisions you've made don't really matter.
It definitely had flaws but mostly I'm satisfied. I'll no doubt have more to say about this later.
The end is here! No, I'm not talking about the zombie apocalypse - from the perspective of the characters in Telltale's The Walking Dead, that even happened a good few months ago. No, today saw the release of the fifth and final episode of the aforementioned episodic game series, Granted, there is a second 'season' planned, but I rather suspect it'll follow a different set of characters entirely.
If you haven't played any of the previous episodes - and I really recommend you start at the beginning - then I'll fill in the gaps. The Walking Dead puts you in control of Lee, a former convict who finds himself suddenly freed when the dead start walking. Lee manages to hook up with a group of other survivors, getting particularly attached to a young girl called Clementine. Unfortunately, the last episode saw her getting kidnapped and so Lee has to head off and rescue her, potentially with the aid of the other survivors.
The Walking Dead has a slightly cell-shaded about it, mirroring the comic universe it's set in, although you don't have to worry about the comic spoiling the game or vice versa. A couple of comic characters popped up in episode but since then the characters you encounter are entirely new creations. Which, as it happens, is a good thing since it means that the characters can and will be killed off. This means there are plenty of emotional moments in the game, especially in this last chapter. It's certainly the case that The Walking Dead is more about story than gameplay. That's not to say the gameplay itself is complete rubbish - it's not. But the puzzles and in-game actions tend to be fairly simplistic and untaxing - you'll usually find the objects you need to solve a puzzle just lying around in the same room.
No, the game's main selling point, apart from the strong storyline, has been the moral decisions the game forces you to make. Even in Episode 5, when things are getting bleaker by the second, you still have to make decisions that have some weight. Each episode carries a notice that your own decisions will affect the storyline. Sounds exciting, eh? Sort of. The game is actually very linear and effectively negates most of the choices you've made to date. For example, you can start the episode accompanied by a few other non player characters or be entirely on your own, depending on the decision you made at the end of the last episode. However, you end up separated from them anyway, leaving you to proceed on your own. Similarly, if one particular character didn't die in the last episode, that character dies in this episode anyway.
' So what's the big deal?', you might think. 'Telltales' other adventure games were just as linear. ' Yes, but they didn't try to offer you any choice. The Walking Dead actually pretends to offer you serious choices and they really don't matter in the end. There's no denying that Episode 5 - No Time Life - is a real emotional rollercoaster, and it is a good game. But what stops it being a great game is the fact that the decisions you've made throughout the whole game have no impact on the final episode's outcome. If you're a Walking Dead fan, or a fan of zombie games in general then the episode - in fact, the whole series - is well worth picking up. If you're not, or if you're after something a little more taxing, try some of Telltales' other games.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Pros:
There are plenty of emotional moments.
It's a fitting end for the series.
Cons:
The decisions you've made don't really matter.
If you haven't played any of the previous episodes - and I really recommend you start at the beginning - then I'll fill in the gaps. The Walking Dead puts you in control of Lee, a former convict who finds himself suddenly freed when the dead start walking. Lee manages to hook up with a group of other survivors, getting particularly attached to a young girl called Clementine. Unfortunately, the last episode saw her getting kidnapped and so Lee has to head off and rescue her, potentially with the aid of the other survivors.
The Walking Dead has a slightly cell-shaded about it, mirroring the comic universe it's set in, although you don't have to worry about the comic spoiling the game or vice versa. A couple of comic characters popped up in episode but since then the characters you encounter are entirely new creations. Which, as it happens, is a good thing since it means that the characters can and will be killed off. This means there are plenty of emotional moments in the game, especially in this last chapter. It's certainly the case that The Walking Dead is more about story than gameplay. That's not to say the gameplay itself is complete rubbish - it's not. But the puzzles and in-game actions tend to be fairly simplistic and untaxing - you'll usually find the objects you need to solve a puzzle just lying around in the same room.
No, the game's main selling point, apart from the strong storyline, has been the moral decisions the game forces you to make. Even in Episode 5, when things are getting bleaker by the second, you still have to make decisions that have some weight. Each episode carries a notice that your own decisions will affect the storyline. Sounds exciting, eh? Sort of. The game is actually very linear and effectively negates most of the choices you've made to date. For example, you can start the episode accompanied by a few other non player characters or be entirely on your own, depending on the decision you made at the end of the last episode. However, you end up separated from them anyway, leaving you to proceed on your own. Similarly, if one particular character didn't die in the last episode, that character dies in this episode anyway.
' So what's the big deal?', you might think. 'Telltales' other adventure games were just as linear. ' Yes, but they didn't try to offer you any choice. The Walking Dead actually pretends to offer you serious choices and they really don't matter in the end. There's no denying that Episode 5 - No Time Life - is a real emotional rollercoaster, and it is a good game. But what stops it being a great game is the fact that the decisions you've made throughout the whole game have no impact on the final episode's outcome. If you're a Walking Dead fan, or a fan of zombie games in general then the episode - in fact, the whole series - is well worth picking up. If you're not, or if you're after something a little more taxing, try some of Telltales' other games.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Pros:
There are plenty of emotional moments.
It's a fitting end for the series.
Cons:
The decisions you've made don't really matter.