Review: The Walking Dead Episode 1

Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead just came out this week on various platforms. I played the PC version of the game using Steam. I have been a fan of Telltale Games for some time and would not miss their interpretation of a game for a favorite comic series. You can buy the game episodically (5 episodes to the game) or just plunk down the money for the entire game and wait. Either way, you’re going to spend $25 for the experience. I finished the first episode, titled “A New Day,” in a little over two hours. For five dollars, not a bad use of my time.

The game follows Lee Everett, a man on his way to prison before the zombie apocalypse we all know is coming. He eventually finds a small girl named Clementine who he decides to protect in this new world. I am not spoiling anything here, most of this has already been revealed by Telltale. Also you might as well know that these events happen before Rick Grimes wakes up in the comic book series, or TV show if you are so inclined. Knowing that, you get to run into a few people that will play important roles in the comic book series. The characters showcased excellently. Glenn is still the hero we know he tries to be, Hershel is as straight forward as we respect him to be.

The game follows a lot of the adventure game tropes that Telltale is known for, but they decide to throw in some action with the zombies. Simply; you find items and used them to aid you in the world (try figuring out how to use a pillow in the zombie apocalypse). Then Telltale throws some interesting loopholes: decision-making. Most dialogues will have options to pick from, the kicker though is that these options are timed and can decide how others perceive you. Then there are a half-dozen big decisions to make, obvious one would be who to save during a zombie attack. To throw more tension into fighting, the game has some quick time events not to mention forcing you to align head shots during point-and-click sections. These moments can cause you to die! I know, I have died (yes, I am a terrible player to die in an adventure game).

Either way, this is a good buy. The game is fun and exciting with an interesting story. You do not have to be a fan of adventure games to enjoy this one.

Rating : 4/5