The fact that these decisions happen automatically also prevents the player from mentally taking the role of a general, making us focus on connecting with the characters rather than strategizing for their survival. This was slightly frustrating, at points, because the protagonist does some really stupid things, but at least it doesn't give us any false illusions about our potential impact on the progressing story. Most major strategic decisions are taken out of the player's hands - the protagonist acts without any dramatic "what do you choose?" moment for the player. In The Walking Dead, on the other hand, the choices feel moral. But instead, it's either a game with an incredibly fatalistic message, or one that really fails to live up to its promise and its potential. This could have been a brilliant moment where the apparently obvious choice led to disaster, and the tiny minority of players who were either super selfish or super savvy could gloat about their skill. But even those rebellious 7% of players who didn't kill the guard experience the exact same storyline, because of rumors that they did it. The game suggested I chose poorly - I killed the guard (like 93% of players, it seems) and I kept the knife, and that was bound to come back to haunt me. This problem is most obvious with Mira, where literally nothing she does makes the slightest bit of difference, as far as I can tell. If none of the choices make any difference to the plot, what was the point in making them at all? The game wants us to believe that we are responsible for House Forrester's fate, so we need to actually be responsible to at least some extent. Players who make one set of decisions should see a different outcome than players who choose another. In this context, we expect our choices to have some impact on the game. Which character gives House Forrester the best chance of survival? Pick them, and send the other off to their fate. It takes the player out of the game, and has the player themselves select who should survive, like a not-so-benevolent god. Unlike in other Telltale games, the game doesn't force you to choose, as a character, who to rescue. Do you swear your loyalty to Joffrey, or to Margaery? Do you keep this document because it could help secure your family's fortune, or do you destroy it because it might incriminate you? Even when forced to choose between two characters - who lives, and who dies - it feels strategic rather than emotional or moral. In Game of Thrones, most choices are strategic. (Note: the post contains mild spoilers for both The Walking Dead S1 and Game of Thrones) In Game of Thrones, we're focussed on the potential result of our choices, while in The Walking Dead, it's the choosing in itself that matters. The difference lies in the kind of choices that the games offer, and in where their difficulty lies. Yet while Game of Thrones' false free will frustrated me, The Walking Dead still managed to feel emotionally resonant, and the choices still felt meaningful. The plot progresses almost exactly the same, no matter what. Choices don't really change things in The Walking Dead either. ![]() It's incredibly frustrating, considering how much the game emphasized that your choices matter.Ĭoincidentally, I also just finished the first season of Telltale's The Walking Dead, a game that affected me so much I took a week-long break between episodes four and five due to despair over what was happening, and cried all the way through the credits and beyond. The same characters live or die, with one exception, and that one is only affected by a single decision in this episode, and not by anything that came before. Players experienced a slightly different path depending on one major choice from episode five, and events happen slightly differently depending on what strategy you choose in this episode. After five episodes of strategy, manipulation and hard choices, players really wanted to see how they personally had affected the fate of House Forrester.īut did the decisions make any difference? Players familiar with other Telltale games won't be surprised to hear that the answer is no. ![]() The game had a lot of expectations to meet - it promises, during every moment of gameplay, that your decisions will affect the story. Yesterday, the final episode of Telltale's Game of Thrones game finally hit Steam.
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