The Walking Dead The Complete First Season (Retail Edition) Review

This is the game that put Telltale – once a company known for niche adventure games – right up alongside the big triple A developers, putting them to shame with brilliantly realised stories in established universes. It’s just been released on next gen – so if by some strange chance you’ve managed to miss out, here’s a recap.

First off, a dialogue heavy, quick time event splattered narrative experience is definitely not the route many expected a Walking Dead tie in to take (however, it certainly fared better than the Merle n’ Derle survival shooter), but when people started to flock to what would become one of modern gaming’s biggest phenomenons, it rapidly earned accolades and was widely regarded game of the year.

The story isn’t a spin off or a cash in – it takes place alongside the original outbreak, just with a different set of survivors (many of which are pretty much just analogues for the TV show). The core dynamic is much more interesting, though. Lee Everett, a man who’s on his way to prison for murder when the shit hits the fan, is your protagonist, and a big part of your dilemma as you meet other survivors and create new alliances. Just how much do you want the people watching your back to know about your past?

Then, of course, there’s Clementine. Shortly after Lee makes an accidental escape from his police escort, he comes across a little girl dodging walkers by hiding in her treehouse. With her parents missing and her babysitter infected, Lee turns out to be her only hope. Clementine is easily what makes the entirety of The Walking Dead so compelling. Lee’s actions not only shape the course of the story, but how Clem grows and learns to deal with what survival forces her to do. As the game so often tells you, Clem remembers. You are directly responsible for how the little girl in your care grows up, and it has an impact on the way you play – I’m usually an aggressive, reckless player but having Clementine’s wellbeing hanging there in plain sight made me more cautious – and certainly much more wary of strangers.

Along the way you’ll be making some horrendous decisions that will burn themselves in your brain forever. The brief moments of peace, the tiny things the survivors find joy in, are all too quickly overshadowed by horrors. Much like the TV show, the walkers aren’t the main focus – they’re incidental, and a backdrop for the human survival drama. Escaping the undead horde is never quite as thrilling as navigating one of the particularly sticky moral quandaries or confronting an act of treachery within your own group. The episodes go from strength to strength, and in my opinion far exceed the quality of storytelling offered in the show. Maybe it’s to do with the extra layer of interactivity. Maybe it’s just because we don’t have to listen to Rick Grimes shout about Coral all day. Either way – it’s a much more honest translation of the atmosphere and storytelling of the comics than the show – and definitely a better game than the piss poor FPS tie in Survival Instinct (though that isn’t much of a tall order).

If you’ve already played The Walking Dead on PC, smartphone, tablet, console or whatever – you may be wondering why it’s worth revisiting it. The next gen version comes with all the improved performance that you would have had playing it on PC, but the game itself is such an important part of gaming history that owning it again could only possibly benefit you.

Telltale’s first take on The Walking Dead is simply incredible, carrying an exceptional narrative, tense, gory gameplay and the infinite promise of more to come. Of course, all that is threaded with a series of ugly deaths, human greed, and impossible choices, but what’s life without a little bit of soul crushing anguish?

They’re teaching the gaming industry that adaptations of big franchises don’t have to be cookie cutter shooters or copy paste platforming games. That they can be so much more, with a bit of real effort. There’s love in these games, not just a desperate attempt to catch in, and that’s an attitude more studios could take when dealing with beloved franchises.

The Walking Dead is a work of art and one you should definitely revisit – make some different choices, see where they lead – or just experience it all over again. Hardcore gamer or casual – this is an essential piece of storytelling.

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.