So, The Walking Dead is fast becoming a cross-media phenomenon, spawned from a comic series, there is now also a TV series and thanks to the cruel geniuses at Telltale Games, a game, broken into 5 episodes.
This review may contain a few spoilers, so stop here if you really don’t want it ruined. For those stopping now, all you need to know is that it’s worth every penny and you NEED to play it… RIGHT NOW!
The game puts you in the shoes (and handcuffs) of Lee, on his way to prison for a crime of passion, he’s not a bad bloke (at least in my opinion). After an inconsiderate zombie – referred to as walkers – causes the police car to crash, you stumble across an abandoned house, closer inspection begins to let on that a child has been left here with a babysitter and from the sounds of the increasingly frantic answer phone messages, the parents aren’t doing so great either.
Enter Clementine, a sweet, caring, soft-spoken eight-year-old who just wants to find her parents.
Now, the way the rest of the game plays out is down to you, the choices you make will impact the way people perceive you, and how major events in the plot play out.
Telltale Games have basically set this game up to test your humanity. There are multiple occasions where, under pressure, you have to make HORRIBLE decisions, who to save? Who to allow to stay in the group? Whether or not to kill your friend’s bitten son so he won’t have to…
Graphics are far from real, but don’t let that put you off, it’s a cartoon-ish style that calls to the series comic book roots, not that you’ll really be paying attention to the way the game looks once you get into the story.
One really interesting aspect of The Walking Dead is that at the end of each chapter, you are shown a summary of how your choices compared to everyone else’s. It’s almost like a humanity self-assessment. It’s as if the game is saying “You thought you made the moral choice there? Only 20% of the other players agree”
This game is a true triumph, Telltale repeatedly ripped my heart out and stomped on it, but it doesn’t matter, because I did it all……for Clementine…
Platform: Microsoft Windows, Mac, PlayStation 3 (tested), Xbox 360, iPhone/iPad
Developer: Telltale Games
Rated: ESRB M17+
Release Date: OUT NOW