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Disclosure: Game only review played on a PS3
If you're thinking about getting this game, you're probably thinking some things like: Uh oh...a game based on a book/TV show?....That usually doesn't work. Or maybe you're thinking: Point and click?...Check please! Or maybe you're not too excited about the month to month episode thing? Or maybe you didn't like some of Telltale's past titles?
And you know what, some of your concerns may even be valid; it really depends on your expectations for this awesome release, so let me try to set some of those expectations. First of all, The Walking Dead game is for and will be loved by--and loved by is a guarantee, graphic novel readers--any true fan of Robert Kirkman's source material. Anyone looking to run and gun down zombies will not get that out of this game. You certainly don't have to have read the book or seen the show to enjoy this game; just be sure that you are planning to get into and be part of a story-rich experience.
The Walking Dead game is no Burn Zombie Burn or some other bash as many zombies' brains in as possible game. This game is a lot more of an RPG than a shooter.
You start the game the day the zombie apocalypse begins concurrently from the start of the comic book series. You play as Lee, and just as in the book (and in the TV show) where the main character Rick was initially thrown into a chaotic journey by himself to find other survivors...that's you as Lee in The Walking Dead game.
There are plenty of action sequences, but your time in this game is mostly spent literally being a part of the story making some tough (and some not so tough) decisions. It's the tough decisions that will affect how the rest of the game unfolds for you, and you'll have to live with the consequences of every option you choose.
The game does give you the option of "rewinding" back to a specific checkpoint, and you can go forward from there and choose a different option that overwrites your original decision if that's your style. But I won't do that until I complete the entire series. I tried to make the main character call "the right move" when presented with choice; but there is a time limit when decision time comes, and sometimes you may regret a hasty decision. For example, you'll have to choose one life over another twice during just the first episode, and I'm not sure that I made the "right" choice in one of those moments. But I will live with my decision until after playing through the entire series just to "keep it real." The game sure does get an A for replay value.
Just as in the graphic novel (and the TV show), the story is much less about zombies and more about what happens to society, its morals, laws and standards when government is lost and the planet becomes mostly uninhabitable. But this time you don't just watch it unfold on paper or on your TV screen; in this game you're part of the story...you control your integrity, your morality and ultimately your destiny. And there's real, heartfelt emotion in The Walking Dead game combined with very believable scenarios. Color me a sissy, but I actually got a little misty over one of the decisions that "I had to" make.
The Walking Dead game is excellent...especially for just a point and click. It's as gritty and graphic as the comic book, and it's very story-rich. If you read the comic as I do...you'll love it. The graphics are appropriately very comic-bookesque. I really do feel like I'm part of a different story arc in the freakin' book! Best 20 bucks I've spent all year...so far. Plus anyone clamoring for a Platinum Trophy (or whatever the top achievement for getting all in-game achievements is on your platform) could get an easy one here; all the trophies are unmissable simply by finishing all the chapters in every episode.
The Walking Dead game is a deep, personal and emotional adventure.
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The Walking Dead Episode 1: A New DayI picked up The Walking Dead a few days ago on the PC through Steam and just finished Episode 1: A New Day today. A New Day is the only episode out right now with four others coming out one at a time later on in the year. Telltale Games is well known for their adventure games and that's exactly what The Walking Dead is... and an amazing one at that.
During the course of the first episode you are given several different choices, most of which determine whether who lives and who dies. The game promises to roll these choices over in the next episodes, giving your play through a chance to differ than others playing it. Upon completion of the episode stats are shown at the end as far as where you stand with others who have played through it and the choices you made.
Graphically the game has a sort of cell shaded feel to it. Some of the textures are kind of muddy, but the overall feel of the game really goes well with the atmosphere. I've never read the comics of the same name before, but it definitely gives off a comic book feel. The Walking Dead is pretty brutal and bloody, but because of how the graphics is it really doesn't seem as bad as it probably should. Nonetheless, you still get the horror zombie feel that you know and love.
Controls are simple, mostly consisting of you either controlling the main character Lee or by controlling an on-screen cursor in order to find things in the environment to interact with... like smashing a zombie's head in or handing a little girl an energy bar because she's hungry.
The grunts and moans of the zombies sound great and the soundtrack really adds a spooky ambiance to each situation that arises whether it be an intense fight with a walker or a moody conversation about someone that has just been killed.
The first episode of The Walking Dead is a homerun in my opinion. If you love zombies and adventure games you really should pick this up. I just hope the great story telling and all the choices made in the first episode really transition well throughout the rest of the episodes.
9.0 out of 10
Transcendental Formulations
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Do you like bleak and terrible scenarios where s*** gets real on a regular basis? Do you enjoy moral quandaries where a common theme leads to inevitable mistakes that, while making you sympathetic to the characters, still piss you off when everything goes to hell? The Walking Dead is like Grey's Anatomy for boys: sans romance, add zombies, but still frustrating, depressing, random, gory, exciting, and with well written characters (for the most part.)If you're expecting a shoot-em-up style game then this isn't for you. It's basically an animated Choose Your Own Adventure, and yes, just like a CYOA, you get railroaded into certain outcomes (which really sucks.) But more about that later.
First, the pros.
The writing is not bad, but it is very bleak. Don't get attached to the people you meet, they're most likely not going to make it--this is the zombie apocalypse, after all. I appreciated that characters are not simply written as good or bad people. Quite often, people you hate will redeem themselves and I was almost always sympathetic to their objectionable actions (didn't stop me from killing them, though.) There are plenty of moral quandaries and I advise you to reflect on them whenever you have a break between calamities because, in the heat of the moment, you will likely be forced to make life or death decisions based on their actions.
You can influence what people choose to an extent, but their choices are largely driven by their personalities. It is very important that you remember their individual quirks because they will come back to haunt you again and again. With some I found it irritating, because you feel like just when you've settled a matter it comes back up like last night's taco dinner, but you have to remember their priorities are not your own, except in a very general sense (survival.) In this way, people who are alone are the most agreeable. I think this is very realistic.
That doesn't mean people can't waver or won't overcome their (sometimes significant) personality flaws. Like I said, almost all choices by the characters are sympathetic, including your own, which makes it interesting.
Now the cons.
Despite having such a complex and intriguing cast and dialog options, some outcomes are set in stone. This completely blows! When you agonize over all your choices and the consequences are so dire, you really don't want to find out after the fact that it doesn't really matter. I restarted some chapters 3 or 4 times to try to save certain people or build different relationships only to change nothing. There is no re-playability in this game.
There are also some internal rules to this universe that never seem to change. I can't really explain without spoilers, but the game will urge you into certain actions as if they're universally acceptable to all people in all situations. This is stupid. Sometimes, the wrong thing is the right thing, depending on when or the people involved. The other characters seem blind to this fact and act like you've p*ssed in their cereal whenever you violate this absolute. They can be very childlike and irritating in this way. And some characters have some kind of omniscient hindsight into whenever you're lying, even when you're just being ambiguous. Seeing as you start out as a player with a criminal past, I'm not sure what they expect. Should I show off my prison tats before or after we shake and promise not to shoot one another outright?
Some minor issues are the bugs. I saw one of the characters turn invisible for an entire cutscene. Other than that, the gameplay is atrocious, but I think it's intentional. The mouse acceleration is completely bizarre and when you're not fumbling around trying to click on something, you're frantically mashing the Q button. I think this is supposed to engender a feeling of panic within the player, it's clumsy on purpose because you're not a superhero, you're just some dude. Sometimes the camera angles are idiotic as well.
Finally, the combat doesn't always make sense. Sometimes you'll get an aiming receptacle, other times not (also on purpose, but stupidly introduced, I think.) You'll also be goaded into performing useless actions when the game decides to trick you. You'll mash Q only to realize that you can never mash Q enough and so you've got to just let go. Or you'll be lured into punching a zombie when the only way to escape is to NOT punch the zombie. I did not find this aspect fun, but thankfully they don't pull this you often.
Overall, I'd recommend it, on sale, for those who like a story as long as they know that there's only one story to be told here.
Honest reviews on The Walking Dead
WARNING: IF YOU WANT TO RIDE AROUND ON A MOTORCYCLE WITH CHAINSAWS ATTACHED KILLING ZOMBIES, THIS ISN'T THE GAME FOR YOU.This game has definitely given me one of the most interactive, realistic experiences I could ever ask for in a simulated zombie apocalypse.
The game is so much better by the fact that every little thing you do, say, and learn will effect the outcome of the game. This game isn't about killing zombies, it's about surviving. That's what we'd be trying to do for real if every boy's secret wish(zombie apocalypse) came true right?
This game is definitely a lot more humbling than L4D or the other popular zombie games.
I recommend this to anyone willing to try a realistic, that really puts you "in the character's shoes".
Not to mention that the graphics are really like out of the comics.
I'm just sad that I have to wait a little while for episode 2 to come out.
Note: I have nothing against other zombie apocalypse games out there.
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First off, I'd like to address some of the comments left by other users.-The graphics are NOT supposed to look realistic. This is because the game is based off of the comics, not the show. In fact, the writer/artist for the comics actually worked with the developers to give the game a very similar look and feel to the style used in the comics. Imagine this game as a mix of zombies and borderlands. Yes, it s 2012, but again, the game is meant to have a comic-look like Borderlands and a few of the various super hero MMO's. While the graphics aren't as "stunning" or "breathtaking" as the first Crysis game, or Skyrim, or Kingdoms of Amalur, they are fantastic by comic standards. Don't think of this game as a real world game, but rather an interactive comic book.
-Just like the graphics, the story is NOT related at all to the show. The game is meant to tell a separate story from that of the show and comics. Why? If it followed the show it would have had to been from the first two seasons, otherwise season 3 (or later) would have been spoiled. The same works for basing it off the comic.
-I played this on a high end gaming computer, not a system, so I can't attest to the camera angles or "shoddy" controls. However, I did use an xBox 360 controller, and it played pretty fantastically.
This game is pretty fantastic. Although, I did kind of dislike the short time for responses when talking to other characters. But, I'm able to over look that one issue, because it adds a bit of a real world feel to it.
I definitely recommend at least finding the first chapter online and giving it a try. If you like it, than buy it. If you don't like it, than don't buy it, and post your own feedback to better help others decide whether or not to buy it.
Keep in mind, the game is separated into 5 chapters, that are released in 1 month intervals. While individually the chapters are fairly short, they will build into a fairly long game, with the added feature of being able to replay and make little decisions that can completely change the end of each chapter as well as how the preceding chapter(s) will play out.
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