The Walking Dead: The Game

S2 wasn't terrible until the disaster that was Amid the Ruins - and No Going Back didn't recover from it.

Amid the Ruins was a fucking travesty yeah

Trailer

I liked it. Random vomit of thoughts below.

Thankfully, Telltale seems to have listened to feedback and dropped that atrocious "survival of the fittest" shit the plagued season 2. The characters are more personable and flawed, which makes them more likable. From Kate's immaturity when it comes to dealing with the kids (and her small vice of being a stoner), to Clementine trying to act like a stone-cold survivalist who instead has a I Just Shot Marvin in the Face moment.

Would have liked more flashback scenes for the ending you picked, but while I'm disappointed, I'm not surprised how fast that was swept under the rug (Kenny and Jane's fates in particular were horrible). I also would liked to have seen Prescott kept around; looked like a nice town.

And I hope Kate doesn't die. Or end up as a damsel in a tug of war between Javi and David, though so far I like relationship.

edited 8th Jan '17 8:18:54 PM by SilentColossus

I have a sneaking suspicion that Eleanor isn't as good as she presents herself to be.

Oh hey, Telltale finally remembered how to get a game on Steam during its announced release date.

Anyway, just here for Clem oh wow that was actually genuinely well done nm, this is good.

• Javi is surprisingly good at killing walkers. I guess that anyone who has managed to survive this long since the apocalypse has to be a damn good fighter.
• I choose to light it up with Kate because DUI is a great way to set an example for the kids.
• I chose to leave the junkyard ASAP. I'm amused that Telltale didn't even make a token option to refuse to take the supplies. I guess they figure that after three games where a major conflict is set off by stealing, players would wise up and refuse to take the bait.
• I let the driver go.
• Clem the teenage zombie slayer is great. It's sad to see her kill without remorse and (to a much lesser extent) use the f-word repeatedly.
• Prescott was a cool town. I got locked up covering for Clem. I left town with Eleanor, figuring that the sooner I could make it back to the junkyard the better.
• I had Clem kill Kenny and leave Jane at the end of Season 2. From what I've read of the other flashback scenes, that was probably for the best. Poor Clem's finger.
• I somehow didn't see Mari's death coming. Silly me.
• I stayed with Clem to fight.
• I told David that Kate wanted to leave him.
• I surrendered to save the badass horserider lady. She died anyway because Telltale.
• I took Jesus at his word because he's Garrus fucking Vakarian. Also, dude seems really fucking talented. I haven't read the comics (or watched the show for that matter), but I do like him a lot.
• I killed Conrad. No one threatens Clem. And Gabe I guess.
• Speaking of which, not sure how I feel about the possibility of Gabe x Clem.
• I surrendered to Max to save Kate.
• So I wonder whether David's grief about his people killing Mari will outweigh his anger over Javi sleeping with his wife.

edited 20th Dec '16 1:57:31 PM by lrrose

Speaking of telling David that Kate wants to leave him, that really surprised me. I did not predict Javi would say that to "tell David off." Which is fine, as I doubt most players would pick that if given a heads up. But it felt like a natural, real thing to say, even if it made Javier look like a total jackass.

Well, I did like the first episode. Gotta say though this doesn't really feel like the Walking Dead. I haven't read the comics or watched the show, so maybe this change in tone is just more in keeping with that, but compared to the last two seasons this episode just felt odd. I mean, in the previous seasons you felt like you could never trust anybody, no one in your group(s) got along, civilization was dead, meeting other survivors was a rare and often extremely tense experience. Here, it seems like you're meeting a new survivor every few seconds, everyone seems like a decent person, and there's not one, but two towns, one of which seemed like a decent place to live. And when bad things do happen it feels like it comes out of nowhere, unlike the previous seasons which built up this atmosphere of fear, tension, and danger.

Its just odd, this doesn't really feel like a Walking Dead game to me, not sure how to feel about that...

Conrad tries selling out Clementine and threatens Gabe to do so, and some of the New Frontier shot a ten-year old. Clementine also robs you, and shot a guy (who also tried to kill you). By accident, but she failed basic gun safety.

Would you guys say David counts as a Big Brother Bully?

I've only seen Episode 1 so far, but I don't think he really counts as a Big Brother Bully. He only hit Javi when he was pissed off about him not being there for their dad's death.

Not all bullying is physical. And in episode 2, David acts like an ass to Javi, even if you try to be nice. Granted, Javi is mooching off him, and I wouldn't say it is bullying/abuse just yet. Though I expect he'll be revealed to be one, as he also treats Kate the same way (yelling at her over breaking a glass as opposed to being concerned with the cut). Kate also seems concerned with Gabe growing up into another David

We probably need more information, though.

So I don't think the New Frontier will be villainous. Not completely. David will be, as will his supporters. I'm predicting there will be some kind of revolution, with the New Frontier being split between David's loyalists and people who want change under Javi. But both groups still consider themselves the New Frontier.

So Telltale did some streams of Season 1 and 2 to promote Season 3 and they're gradually uploading the stream archives to their youtube. There's some pretty interesting and insightful commentary by the guests, which include both developers and voice actors.

edited 31st Dec '16 5:51:00 AM by lrrose

Unsurprisingly, the majority of people sided with Clementine at pretty much every opportunity.

I'm calling a "twist" here, just to be on the record: Gabe will get an intiation as TNF.

The fact that she shot a dude in the face is pretty unconscionable. In the end, it's an accident, but I think it shows Lee's lesson faded from her quite a bit. The swearing as well - it'd be a nice touch if she refuses to swear had Lee taught her like so - can anyone confirms if it is or isn't the case? What about on stealing the candy bars? My playthrough's clem didn't rob me.

I regrets the fact that I didn't give Mari the battery nor the candy bars.

I think everyone is going to end up joining, including Javi and Kate if she makes it. Though I do think Gabe will end up siding with David because he views him as a role model. Javi, Kate, Tripp, and Eleanor (and Jesus maybe) will end up rebelling against David, though).

I sided with Clementine, though not only because she is Clem. I'll admit that is part of it, but I also wanted to protect Mari's body and kill the guys who shot her. Also, I like how they got the bloodlust against the New Frontier going but make it so you have to crawl up to them begging.

edited 31st Dec '16 2:11:44 PM by SilentColossus

The third episode's out now.

Something I noticed: almost all major settlements in this series seem to be run by jerks. You'd expect the opposite to be closer to truth (the nicer folk banding together while looters roam around).

I think it's a necessity to keep conflict going without relying on the travelers turning on each other.

I think the single funniest negative review of a game I've ever read was for The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, which compared the game to a sandpaper slip-n-slide with vinegar. https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198077987627/recommended/220050/

It took me a while to get back in the mood for grimdark, but I finished episode 3 today.

I'm still liking it, but it's a slight drop in quality from the previous two episodes.

• I disobeyed David and demanded justice for Mariana's murder, which got me kicked out of Richmond. Though I'm pretty sure that would have happened anyway.
• I injected AJ and said goodbye to him.
• I mashed Badger's skull into a pulp. I'm glad that Tripp and Jesus call Javi out on how fucked up that is. I mean, I know it's a reference to Negan executing Glenn, but yeesh.
• I spared Max.
• No, don't leave me Hippy Garrus. I mean, he'll probably show up for the final battle to kick some ass, but still...
• I chose to leave with Kate. Javi got captured anyway and got taken to David, who was pissed that Javi tried to abandon him.
• I'm noticing a lot of Dramatic Irony about Tripp praising Javi while mourning Conrad. I don't think that Tripp and Javi will come to blows over this, partially because no one who knows how Conrad died would tell Tripp, but mostly because Tripp is probably going to die soon, what with him trying to get back with Eleanor.
• I'm kind of disappointed that Telltale backed away from the Cain and Abel thing for just another generic evil raider.
• Overall, I like the cast, but Darkness-Induced Audience Apathy means that I can't bring myself to get attached to anyone other than Clem and Javi.

Edit: I couldn't help but notice the advertisement for Telltale's Game of Thrones after completing the episode. I wonder if that means if Season 2 is still happening.

edited 12th Apr '17 9:32:25 PM by lrrose

Episode 4 trailer.

Yeah, they're really throwing everything unique about this season away in favor of just another evil settlement that DOES THE HARD THINGS NEEDED TO SURVIVE BECAUSE Humans Are the Real Monsters plot.

Is it bad that I'm starting to hope they kill off Clem so they can't make another season? Because Telltale has clearly run out of ideas for this setting.

They've fallen into the Walking Dead comic and show's Yo Yo Plot Point. It's a rut they probably couldn't escape from because they to sell more seasons tell more stories with down the road. This is the IP that made them a househouse name.

I can't believe the game is already on Episode 4. I thought it was still on Episode 1!

Then again, I've been avoiding gameplay for it, because I want to go into this game blind.

After the trainwreck that was Season 2, I had little hope. Now we're 4 episodes in. Someone give me the details. How godawful did things get?