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The Walking Dead: In Harms Way (PC) Review

 
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At a Glance...
 

Formats: PC, Mac, PS3, Xbox 360, IOS, PS Vita
 
Genre:
 
Year:
 
Publisher:
 
Developer:
 
Final Score
9.5
9.5/ 10


User Rating
1 total rating

 

We liked?


  • Uncomprimising look at a brutal world
  • Just the best in class of voice work
  • Action sequences that didn't detract or annoy (woohoo!)
  • As compelling a slice of entertainment you'll get from any episodic medium - TV included

Not so much?


  • Clementine might just be walking a fine line between Supergirl and videogame trope - I have confidence that Telltale can address this but it has at times hampered my ability to suspend disbelief


Final Fiendish Findings?

Episode 3 of The Walking Dead from Telltale has a very apt name – In Harms Way!  In fact perhaps Guts! might have been even more apt.  Not only are a lot spilled and smeared, but also a lot are shown by young Clementine once again. As we transitioned out of episode 2 and in […]

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Posted May 14, 2014 by

 
Full Fiendish Findings...
 
 

Episode 3 of The Walking Dead from Telltale has a very apt name – In Harms Way!  In fact perhaps Guts! might have been even more apt.  Not only are a lot spilled and smeared, but also a lot are shown by young Clementine once again.

As we transitioned out of episode 2 and in to episode 3 Clementine and her group find themselves at the malevolent benevolence of Carver.  A seemingly stern yet group focused man who, through a brief meeting and the stories told by the others in the group, manages to convey a serious air of malice.  His lack of hesitation to pluck a member of Clementine’s group and execute them proved that.

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Similar in scope and message as the prison storyline from the comic books, here our group find themselves cooped up in a dilapidated strip mall.  Makeshift fences and barb wire are there to keep things in as they are out.  Initial thoughts turn to the fact that perhaps these new people might have the right idea.  They have plenty of food, weapons, ammunition, fresh vegetables and small amounts of electricity.  Unlike other episodes where it’s been the fear of the impending zombie hoards, here the fear is one of losing freedom and choice.  A very similar vein in fact to the recent “The Saviours” arc in the comics as well.

You see the group might have all the food, heat and shelter they’re likely to need but it comes at a cost.  That cost is their freedom of speech and movement.  Carver runs things like a prison with lookouts and armed guards on hand to make sure his word is followed to the letter.  The episode quickly establishes just how twisted an individual he truly is.

As with the previous instalment Clementine has broken free of her shackles of being “just another survivor”.  More and more the group looks for her council and actions to get them through.  It makes you invest even more in Clementine’s transition to leader figure – yet the fact that she is, in fact, an 11 year old girl sometimes makes this more than a little hard to swallow.

That said the situations that Clementine and the group find themselves in throughout The Walking Dead, Season 2, Episode 3 (wow that’s such a PITA to type out!) are some of the most dark, harrowing and violent of the entire series so far.  The choices that you make and ultimately witness can be more than a little uncomfortable at times – especially a key decision towards the end of the episode.  If you almost checked-out with the suture scene from Episode 1 then you might have met your match here.

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Technically I’d go so far as to say this is the most glitch free Telltale title for some time, with everything running smoothly throughout.  No hitches, no weird save bugs – it all just worked.  The game naturally still looks great and makes great use of the art style from the comics and the engine Telltale have honed over the years.

A massive issue of pretty much most other Telltale titles has to be the combat/action sequences.  These are normally flaccid affairs that invariably break or cause frustrations in one way or another.  Telltale seems to have finally managed a good balance here in In Harms Way so that the liberal peppering of small action elements never truly get in the way of the story or adventure aspects – not that there really are any traditional adventuring sections.  As ever this is more interactive adventure story than a true adventure “game”.  Although it must be said episode 3 feels more like you, the player, has more control over the onscreen action than in previous iterations.

Voice work is top notch every single episode and this one lives up to that pedigree.  Without the accurate and engrossing voice cast this would be a poorer experience all round.  Their delivery of one of this season’s best scripts is never less than industry benchmark standard.  The musical score once again is an unsung hero as Jared Emerson-Johnson crafts something that compliments the tense action perfectly.  The credits song this time isn’t a patch on the Jared scored rendition on “In the Pines” from last episode though.

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Final Thoughts

Overall this is where Season two really kicks in to high gear.  The scene is set, the players are at their marks and we’re about to get one hell of a show if previous pedigree is anything to judge by.

The transition of the Clementine character has been handled incredibly well up to this point but there is a real fear she is about to turn in to some sort of videogame bad arse trope – hardened and worldly wise she may be, but she’s still only 11 let’s not forget.  I don’t want a Clem superhero.

Everything comes together superbly and over the roughly 90 minutes of play you are kept engaged and entertained.  Beware though this is one of the most violent instalments yet from Telltale.  Not just in blood and guts but in overtones and socially accepted limits.

This all adds up to drive us towards an essential last two episodes that I truly can’t wait to play.


Zeth

 
Zeth is our EU ninja and Editor in Chief. He's been writing about video games since 2008 when he started on BrutalGamer. He's pretty old and has been a gamer since he played Space Invaders as a young boy in the 80's. His genre tastes lean towards platformers, point-and-click adventure, action-adventure and shooters but he'll turn his hand to anything.


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