THE WALKING DEAD: A NEW FRONTIER
Telltale’s course correction proves there’s life in the old zombs yet
Despite the ubiquity of Robert Kirkman’s post-apocalyptic franchise, and Telltale’s brand of point-and-click adventuring threatening to become tiresome, this latest season staves off fatigue. With improved visuals, a fascinating new cast, and confident set pieces, there’s an urgency and care that’s been missing in far too many of the developer’s other offerings. Oh, and it also helps that Clementine is now Mad Max. Don’t worry, she hasn’t suddenly turned into a grizzled Aussie or got her hands on a souped-up pair of wheels to cruise on through the desolate streets, but she is a teen of action instead of words. However, she’s not the central character in the story she’s invariably the star of. Instead, this season focuses on new lead Javier Garcia.
Javier’s the head of a small family, and his only goal is to keep them alive. That might sound dull, but the script does a good job of giving him depth and offering you impactful choices that carry immediate weight. Characters’ fates rest in your hands early and often, with heavier consequences than just a different face popping up instead of the one you could have saved. I won’t venture into spoiler territory, but the focus on family leads to some arresting decisions.
Obviously these decisions wouldn’t be as affecting if the cast wasn’t interesting and, for the most part, Telltale succeeds in ensuring you give a damn about more than just Javi and Clementine. Whether it’s a blossoming relationship or uneasy alliances, these are characters you want to get to know. But I can’t pretend Clem isn’t still the series’ MVP. She’s the beating heart of the plot, embodying the conflict between doing the right thing and survival. It’s refreshing to see Telltale take a different approach to telling her story by showing Clem’s actions through other people’s eyes.
BUMPY RIDE
This isn’t the most even of seasons. The pace begins to trundle around the midsection when you make it to the fortress of Richmond. In what feels like a reaction to its predecessors’ churn through locations, episodes 3 and 4 chart an uneasy course between patient character-building and plodding exposition that attempts to flesh out the community you’re in. While they’re not particularly bad, they’re transparently moving narrative pieces into place that you know will be getting knocked over in the finale. You might care about the central cast of characters, but there are a fair few peripheral faces who you’ll struggle to remember. And character animations are still stiffer than a recently turned zombie.
Yet all the problems are less of an issue when you play the series over a few evenings rather than waiting a month between episodes. Like the TV shows, bingeing gives this entertaining season drive, and helps paper over minor flaws.
VERDICT
This won’t change your opinion on Telltale’s style, but it’s a strong season that manages to tell a gripping story and offers plenty of dangling threads to keep you invested. Ben Tyrer