Showing posts with label Episodic. Show all posts
| 4/13/14 1:30PM |
Wolf on the trail
A Crooked Mile features Bigby and Snow White searching for the suspected killer after Bigby discovers some daunting evidence. The episode's pacing starts out fairly high and kept increasing until the end, making it feel like a finale rather than the third act of this series. It's incredibly jam-packed for only lasting a few hours, and one that I may go through once again before the fourth episode arrives.
Between this and The Walking Dead, Telltale have given adventure gamers high quality experiences on a fairly frequent level and appears to have no intention of slowing down.
What I enjoyed about this episode of the Wolf Among Us is how quickly it moves, although it never feels rushed in any way. Key choices that you'll get to make appear often in the episode, which really encourages re-playability more than the previous two episodes did in my opinion.
I'd often make a choice and instantly become curious as to what would happen if I'd chosen another option, which you could say for most of the episodes of Telltale games, but it happened more for me during a Crooked Mile.
During the ending parts of the episode, new characters are introduced that only add to the great roster and each of them offers up new questions as players attempt to solve the crimes that have occurred so far.
It's always a bit difficult for me to review episodes of Telltale games as the story is the main component for each of them, and something that I definitely don't want to ruin for new players. What I can say though is that the story and narrative are very strong in this episode, with new conflicts arising just as old ones get solved.
Once you've reached the end of A Crooked Mile, you'll definitely see this pattern unfold as things are set-up for the penultimate episode.
Once you've reached the end of A Crooked Mile, you'll definitely see this pattern unfold as things are set-up for the penultimate episode.
Presentation for the episode is essentially the same as the first two episodes, and includes several new locations to explore as well. Even when you have to visit older locations, there are new parts to most of them, so there's always something new to view.
The season pass issue from episode two has been resolved, so if you're a pass holder all you've got to do is download episode three from the menu.
Recent Reviews
There's only two episodes left, but I hope more Wolf Among Us content will be made afterward because what we've been given so far is incredible. From the atmosphere, characters, choices and pace, this episode shows why adventures games are back in a big way.
+ Incredible episode with lots to absorb
+ Great actions moments when they occur
+ New characters to interact with
- Technical issues with the game and Season Pass
Reviews on the thebuttonpresser.com are based out of a '1-5 controller' Scoring system. Purchased games by the reviewer contain no annotation, but review copies are always known to the reader via a review disclaimer.
Publishers- Telltale Games
Release Date- April 9th, 2014
Price- $4.99 MSRP
Review Platform- Xbox Live Arcade
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| 2/15/13 12:30PM |
Dangerous Reflections
Smoke and Mirrors continues where episode one left off from the Wolf Among Us, which if you've finished the first episode, was the discovery of another fable affected by the mysterious killer. The bulk of this second episode centers around that situation, as well as introducing new characters who bring with them new conflicts to solve during the two hour episode which has Bigby chasing down new and surprising leads in the hunt for a Fable killer.
Generally speaking, Smoke and Mirrors is a nice followup to Faith, although the 360 version still suffers from constant gameplay lags which hinders the overall experience a bit when playing on Microsoft's last-gen console.
This episode features more investigative gameplay than combat segments in comparison to the first episode, which gives you more sequences that put choice and consequences solely in your hands. The methods that you choose to utilize regarding getting characters to talk will either make things easier or more difficult for Bigby, who must also deal with the fallout from those who frown upon his actions from the first episode.
It all plays out quite nicely, and I was interested in going through it again just to see how different things would turn out if I made different choices, but you can generally say that about each episode of a Telltale game in all honesty.
Most Telltale titles usually give you two distinct ways to accomplish a goal, so re-playability at least one more time is recommended in Smoke and Mirrors, and since The Wolf Among Us has collectible journals, a third play-through may be required if you want the extra achievements the game offers up for finding them all.
While there is a set of new characters to interact with, you'll also have to speak with Fables that you dealt with in episode one. Based on how things ended last time will reflect on these encounters, which was nice to see with some segments and a bit awkward with others.
No matter what happened though, these scenes really show that your past decisions really do affect what happens next and how characters take note of the moves you made when you first met up.
The presentation for the episode is very similar to episode one, which is of course great and attractive. New locations to visit such as the Witching Well, Dancing club, and Shady hotel fit right in with the past locations, while also showing off a bit more detail although there are less points of interest to investigate.
Unfortunately the same gamplay issues that show up in episode one and the Walking Dead appear in Smoke and Mirrors as well, so at least on 360, this will always be a bit of a drag when playing Telltale titles.
Season Pass holders may also be frustrated as well, since the second episode must be purchased even if you dropped $15 for the pass, although Microsoft has temporary remedied this situation by giving pass holders a code for episode two. Let's hope that this issue is fixed by the time episode three is ready for release.
Recent Reviews
The wait for episode two was quite long in comparison to the Walking Dead, but it still shows that Telltale is among the best with supplying interactive segments for their games that keep you entertained while you await the next piece in the story.
I only hope next time the wait will be much shorter!
I only hope next time the wait will be much shorter!
+ Another great addition to The Wolf Among Us
+ Great job of reflecting on past choices from Episode One
+ New characters to interact with
- Technical issues with the game and Season Pass
Reviews on the thebuttonpresser.com are based out of a '1-5 controller' Scoring system. Purchased games by the reviewer contain no annotation, but review copies are always known to the reader via a review disclaimer.
Publishers- Telltale Games
Release Date- February 5th, 2014
Price- $4.99 MSRP
Review Platform- Xbox Live Arcade
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| 10/22/13 4:30PM |
Faith in Fables
The Wolf Among Us is the next episodic series from Telltale Games, who are riding high off the success of the first season of the Walking Dead game and preparing for season two of that award winning series. As much as I can't wait to play season two, I'm completely focused on checking out how things will unfold in the world of Fabletown as Sheriff Bigby Wolf.
Taking what worked extremely well with the Walking Dead, the Wolf Among Us has you investigating incidents in the corner of New York where fairy tale creatures roam as the former Big Bad Wolf Bigby keeps them in line. Or at least tries to.
Titled 'Faith', the first episode in this new series does a wonderful job of setting up the plot and gives about two hours of immersive gameplay that left me wanting more and fully anticipating where the next episode will take things with the engaging plot.
As with the Walking Dead, the Wolf Among Us uses material from another comic source to fuel its world and characters. The game serves as a prequel to the comic series titled 'Fables', where a more dark and mature take on fairy tales is presented as the tales and creatures mix in with the regular mundane human society, or mundies for short.
The creatures must blend into their new surrounding and thanks to a spell called Glamour, most are able to pass off as humans despite what their true form is when they don't have the spell to use. The main issue with Glamour is that it is a very expensive item to acquire, and those who can't afford it or choose not to use must live at the farm, a slum-like place made just for creatures until they can get access to Glamour.
That's about as much of the story I can really go into as I don't want to spoil the events of the game, but rest assured that its a very engaging story with many characters that you'll recognize from fairy tale lore. Another great thing about the game is that due to its maturity, you're able to see these characters in a new and realistic albeit dark light. Things aren't happily ever after in this world.
Gameplay wise, The Wolf Among Us is very similar to The Walking Dead. Anyone who played last year's Game of the Year will feel right at home with the controls as well. Combat sequences do show up a few times in this first episode, and these sequences require quick button prompts and use of the analog sticks to use objects in the environment to your advantage.
Outside of these intense moments, you'll be choosing dialogue options for Bigby as he hopes to solve some events that could harm Fabletown and its various inhabitants.
The presentation for the episode is top notch as well. From the visual style, to the dialogue and music, everything comes together in an amazing way. For the two hours that the episode lasts, you will be in for a treat, but be prepared for some technical issues.
Whenever the game would load, the beginning sections afterward would slow down quite dramatically, which put some dialogue and animation out of sync for me.
This was something that was apparent in The Walking Dead game as well, so it may just be an engine issue, but it's not enough to take away from the experience. This is my only issue with the episode. Well that and I just wanted more to play because I loved every minute I was in the world as Bigby.
Recent Reviews
If you've played the Walking Dead series from Telltale and want something new to check out, The Wolf Among Us is that game. I'm gonna try and pick up the season pass for it, which you can get now for $14.99, so I can get all of the episodes at a discount and continue the story. This episode does a great job of setting up the story, and I can't wait for when the next one arrives in a month or so.
+ Great beginning Episode to a new Telltale series
+ Wonderful visuals and audio through the two-hour experience
+ Taking what worked great about the Walking Dead and expanding upon it
- Technical issues when the game was loading sequences
Reviews on the thebuttonpresser.com are based out of a '1-5 controller' Scoring system. Purchased games by the reviewer contain no annotation, but review copies are always known to the reader via a review disclaimer.
Publishers- Telltale Games
Release Date- October 11th, 2013
Price- $4.99 MSRP
Review Platform- Xbox Live Arcade
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