WARNING: REVIEW CONTAINS SOME SPOILERS.
Starting on a rather underwhelming conclusion to arguably the most exciting development of the previous episode, you jump into ‘Sons Of Winter’ finding out that Gared has been charged with the murder of Britt – his fellow brother of the wall. For the last episode to include a confrontation scene so memorable and full of tension, it’s a shame to see the whole situation transpire into events that are far less exciting. With Frostfinger playing ignorant to Gared’s claims of being attacked first, and Jon Snow unable to help – Gared is locked away and is set to be executed. Though it is the logical place to begin, the events that unfold here are utterly predictable and as such leave much to be desired when the opening credits begin to roll. The atmosphere is tense, the voice acting is superb as usual, but it’s an utterly forgettable scene that does little to gear you up for the story ahead.
Though the opening segment lacks a significant punch, the rest of the episode plays out with plenty of attitude and delivers on many thrilling scenes that push the story along considerably. One of the real highlights of this episode is the first real appearance of Daenerys Targaryen, voiced by Emilia Clarke from the TV show. Much like Iwan Rheon and Peter Dinklage before, she does a brilliant job of transferring her character to the videogame, with strong voice acting throughout. Delivering on a scene that’s incredibly tense, this particular section of the game stands out from the rest and really explores the threatening side to her character as she exerts power and dominium over her people and accomplices. Bouncing conversation back and forth to Asher, his story makes strides in progress and he appears heavily in this episode, remedying one of the issues that I had with episode three. Delivering on an equal measure of story-driven scenes and all-out action, it’s fair to say that Asher brings some of the biggest spills and thrills within this instalment.
Adding much needed colour to her otherwise beige personality, Mira finds herself becoming quite the manipulator in this episode – freshening up her scenes considerably. For a character that was always the weak link in the chain, it’s relieving to find that she’s finally becoming an interesting character with a surprising amount of depth. Reflecting the development of Sansa Stark, she’s become a far more likeable character as she has shrugged off her naivety and understood more of her situation – it’s just a shame that it took so long for her to reach this stage. With two episodes left before it all comes to an end, its better late than never and there’s certainly a very interesting scenario brewing up if her final scene is anything to go by. It’s just uncertain whether or not her meddling around will not just come back to haunt her, but her family too – and they could really do with a break right about now.
Yes, it’s no surprise that House Forrester has been shat upon for the majority of the series thus far, and though there are still plenty of issues at hand, episode four marks an important turning-point for everybody. Just as their dire situation was starting to really frustrate and reach boiling-point, the house finally gains an opportunity to overthrow the Whitehill enemy forces, and most importantly – remove Gryff from power. Returning once more as a key a villain in this episode, he is as insufferable as ever and continues to make a brilliantly hateable character. After conspiring with some interesting characters (that I will remain anonymous to save on spoilers), Rodrik soon reclaims his power at Ironrath and puts the cogs in motion to attempt to save Ryon. After a truly nerve-wracking confrontation with Lord Whitehill, things take a turn and the player is left with some smart, or not-so smart thinking ahead of them. One particular set of responses actually results in a horrifying massacre that would even make George R R Martin wince, but unfortunately you are then cut to a ‘Game Over’ screen. It’s a shame that the outcome isn’t canon, but the loss is so great that it would wildly change the rest of the series if it were to stick. That said however, it was all so shocking that part of me wanted this to be a real consequence. I had kind of hoped this was going to teach me a huge lesson to stop being so risky when many lives are at stake. Either way, the ‘true’ options that follow are fantastic and the ensuing stand-off will make you clench your arse cheeks like no other – it’s an utterly captivating scene.
Returning the focus back to Gared throughout, his sections are perhaps the weakest, though that’s not to discredit his narrative at all. After finding his way south of the wall, Gared eventually sets off on his journey to find ‘The North Grove’. Spending his screen-time getting involved in fights with Wildlings, Gared’s story lacks the same grand sense of adventure that is so profound in the other narratives included here. The combat sections found here are done much better in the moments with Asher and Beskha, but thankfully the complete change in scenery more than injects an air of freshness into the proceedings. Ending on a very cliché note, Gared’s story fortunately shows much promise as the dangerous possibilities of life behind the wall make themselves abundantly clear.
The biggest criticism I can fire at this instalment of the series is that the curtains are closed far too soon, and as such – the ending falls totally flat. The final chapter hasn’t been written particularly well, and I was very much left wanting more because the whole scene felt underdeveloped – and not because of the cliffhanger ending. The closing moments are certainly suspenseful, but there’s no shock-value or real pay-off there at all. The action is cruelly snatched away and you’ll be left feeling as though there should have been a lot more. Instead of building up to an ever-growing climax, the episode throws something brand new in without any foreshadowing or explanation. This diminishes any sense of excitement for the next episode, and leaves behind a stench of confusion. You will have so many questions as the credits roll because of how clumsily it is pieced together, and it’s pretty damn frustrating to say the least. In regards to the choice of scene however, it’s the perfect place to conclude this episode, and draws further attention back to the Forrester’s who had just started to look strong and mighty once again. It’s incredibly cruel, but ultimately that’s just the world of Game Of Thrones.
Verdict
While not the strongest episode to date, it’s certainly not the weakest either. Delivering on another incredibly dramatic two hour slice of entertainment, ‘Sons Of Winter’ contributes heavily to the development of each central character and goes further to prove why this series is one of Telltale’s finest efforts yet.
Positives:
- All character narratives are well developed.
- Mira has *finally* grown a personality.
- Emilia Clarke’s performance is top-notch.
- Solid voice-work as usual.
Negatives:
- Boring opening scene.
- Clumsy ending scene.
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
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