Each hardback assortment of The Walking Dead comics has the strapline ‘a continuing story of survival horror’, pointing to the truth that Robert Kirkman’s zombie apocalypse is rarely ending. The ceaseless distress of the comics, now of their 15th yr of publication, seems like it is going to by no means conclude, and that’s the purpose. As such, Telltale’s fourth season of The Walking Dead is breaking new floor: billed as The Final Season, it’s bringing a whole storyline to a detailed for the primary time within the franchise’s historical past.
That storyline is Clementine’s, who we first met as a baby in season one. During the zombie an infection’s preliminary outbreak she was little greater than a terrified eight-year-old woman, protected and mentored by unique protagonist Lee. Nine in-game years later and her story has come full circle: The Final Season’s opening episode, Done Running, depicts a hardened 17-year-old Clem figuring out methods to maintain five-year-old AJ not solely alive, however educate him methods to be human in a world the place humanity has virtually slipped away completely.
The episode is completely targeted on youngsters. Clem and AJ rapidly discover themselves on the stays of a boarding faculty that’s run by a gang of youngsters. While by no means spelling it out, the setup is a harrowing reminder that, in such a dire state of affairs, adults rapidly die and go away their prices to fend for themselves. Clem isn’t a singular case examine of this situation; her story is the norm for therefore many, and Done Running acts as a gathering level for others with comparable backgrounds.
The Walking Dead’s harsh world has taught youngsters to be ruthless to outlive, however they lack the diplomatic data of the outdated world’s adults. As such, it’s unsurprising to see Done Running lean into the themes explored by William Golding’s The Lord of the Flies. Clementine’s new allies, suffocating in a brew of secrecy, concern, and hormones, descend into violence, and it’s as much as you to determine how Clem’s actions will steer the destiny of this group.
top-of-the-line horror sequences I’ve ever performed
That’s no straightforward activity, not least since you’re accompanied by an unpredictable pre-schooler birthed right into a world the place everybody carries a revolver. While your selections have but to completely develop by the top of episode one, it’s clear that each determination will mould AJ’s future. The classes you educate him – drawn both from the methods of the outdated world or the cruel realities of the brand new one – dictate whether or not he’ll mature right into a compassionate or ruthless survivor.
The setup for this four-episode story is powerful, then, though that’s hardly stunning given the largely constant degree of high quality of Telltale’s complete collection. What is stunning is the extent of presentation on present. Telltale has by no means made a game that appears and feels this good. For this last season, the developer has opted for an over-the-shoulder digicam, making environments really feel extra claustrophobic and unsettling than ever, which in turns brings the game nearer to Resident Evil.
That nearer digicam additionally permits for higher inspection of the game’s character and setting fashions, that are gorgeous in all their filthy particulars. This pushes the Telltale Tool engine to its very limits, which makes for quite a few body fee drops, and so the developer’s determination to leap ship to Unity for future initiatives has come simply in time.
Shuffle on out
Telltale has issued a launch schedule for The Walking Dead: The Final Season. That means we all know the discharge dates of every of the 4 episodes — count on the conclusion to reach in December.
Furthermore, Telltale’s artists needs to be counseled for his or her new draw distance expertise, which renders far-off gadgets in a monochrome, scratchy model similar to that of the comedian e book’s illustrator, Charlie Adlard. These distant gadgets steadily shift to Telltale’s extra detailed model the nearer you get to them. It’s a putting transition that ties either side of the universe collectively.
The improved artwork is accompanied by refreshed course relating to the game’s set-pieces, which have by no means felt so cineliterate. An early section sees Clem and AJ heading off walkers as they try to crawl their means right into a shifting automotive. The total section is ‘shot’ in a single take, with the digicam shifting easily between viewpoints in a way that evokes Alfonso Cuaron’s directorial model, particularly in his 2006 dystopian thriller Children of Men. It’s top-of-the-line horror sequences I’ve ever performed.
Done Running works as each a promise and a supply on that promise. It units up a special approach for The Walking Dead and a last ethical mountain for gamers to climb, and proves that it’s obtained the mechanical, stylistic, and scripting capabilities to ship on it. With any luck, the remaining three episodes will provide the identical degree of high quality, too.
But even with out the slick course and lovely artwork, Clem’s story has at all times been sufficient to hold The Walking Dead, extra so than any of the broader universes’ different characters. And now she’s on the run it’ll little doubt be heartbreaking to witness the place she stops to make her last stand. The ending is bound to be constructed on a basis of tears, however it’ll be comforting to know that Telltale is sending off considered one of fashionable gaming’s finest characters with an amazing swansong.
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