The Walking Dead is a story-rich media franchise that, like many others, has been adapted into several video games. It is common for video games based on other media to be of poor quality, unless the developers take full advantage of the source material. While some Walking Dead games, such as The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, were panned by critics, others are widely praised by both gamers and Walking Dead fans.
The Walking Dead is a horror-drama series that takes place in a modern world destroyed by a zombie uprising. The series began as a comic book in 2003, published by Image Comics and written by Robert Kirkman. In 2010, the comic was adapted into The Walking Dead television series for AMC. The TV show became immensely popular and even began a series of successful Walking Dead spin-offs. What makes The Walking Dead stand out among other works in the post-apocalypse genre is its strong character writing and focus on a grounded setting. The series throws viewers into a grim setting with relatable characters, and leaves many viewers to wonder what they themselves would do in such a situation. This is the exact question that became the basis for Telltale Games' Walking Dead video game series.
Released as four main seasons and developed episodically, much like the comic that inspired it, Telltale Games' The Walking Dead was an adventure game series. Telltale's The Walking Dead borrows locations and characters from the comic series, however The Walking Dead games focus on their own original characters so they can be easily be enjoyed by players unfamiliar with the comics.
Walking Dead Has Always Told Personal Stories
The story of the series focuses on a young girl named Clementine as she grows up in a desolate, dangerous, zombie-filled world. Players are put in control of various characters as they form the game's story based on their own choices. Unlike what players may expect from a zombie survival video game, Telltale's The Walking Dead plays like a traditional point and click adventure, with a twist. The series has a strong emphasis on cinematic storytelling, so quick-time action and dynamic player-driven dialogue are the core of the games.
The first season of Telltale's The Walking Dead released in 2012, and was a surprising shift from the studio's usual gameplay formula. Telltale was known for making adventure games based on popular third party properties, but The Walking Dead was their first go at taking their format in a more cinematic direction. In season one, players take control of Lee Everett as he's unexpectedly thrown into the zombie apocalypse. Lee finds 8-year-old Clementine hiding alone at her home, and in The Last of Us fashion, Lee becomes her guardian and tries his best to bring her and himself to safety.
Along the way the two encounter other survivors, and from there it becomes the player's choice to take sides and literally decide who lives and who dies. While the general pacing of the story stays the same for all playthroughs, the game's character relationships are altered drastically by the player's choices. The player's choices stay consistent between each episode and even each season of Telltale's The Walking Dead, which makes a playthrough of the series' four main seasons a truly personalized experience.
Last September The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series collection was released, making it easier than ever for players to experience the entire game series. Telltale's The Walking Dead was made for both fans of the franchise, and unfamiliar players looking for a cinematic adventure. The game series is a long road full of drama, emotion, and zombie guts that any player looking to experience and form their own story will surely enjoy.
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series is available on PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.