I loved Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead, but after the first season, I couldn’t handle it emotionally anymore. I was tired of the nightmares, tired of sobbing when kids were killed, and tired of playing a game that kept me constantly on edge. I’ve missed out on the second season, but I still wanted another amazing experience like it. Telltale seems to be the master of storytelling with its episodic point-and-click adventures, so I was always intrigued by The Wolf Among Us. I’d heard it was good, but I also wanted to wait until it was complete, as I know I have very little patience for waiting. I binge on almost all forms of media lately, from comics to TV shows, and now episodic video games.
Fortunately for me, that’s exactly how Action Trip wanted me to roll with my review–play it all at once and write up the review on that experience.
And holy cow what an experience it was.
I best describe the gameplay as a cross between the point-and-click gameplay of The Walking Dead and the exploration and mystery-solving of Murdered: Soul Suspect. The story, however, is like nothing I’ve ever experienced before, and I can’t emphasize its greatness enough. I need that second season like now. Here’s a snippet from my review:
As expected with a point-and-click title, the story its best overall facet, but the game mechanics are sound enough to not blemish or take away from any part of Bigby’s tales. In many ways, the gameplay reminded me of a mix between Murdered: Soul Suspect and the point-and-click style of The Walking Dead. Whereas The Walking Dead had a few somewhat complex puzzles and intense action scenes, The Wolf Among Us has a stronger focus on exploration and piecing together clues. Occasionally Bigby will have to rough up suspects or chase them down, which throws the player into a few QTEs, much like The Walking Dead. However, I never once felt as stressed or on the edge of death if I made one mistake as I did with The Walking Dead. Since The Walking Dead, is about survival and The Wolf Among Us is about solving a mystery, shifting the style of gameplay around a bit not only fits the game’s tone, story, and mood, it separates it from simply being a clone of The Walking Dead.
Simply put, if you’ve been putting off The Wolf Among Us for whatever reason or haven’t considered playing before, stop what you’re doing and download the game now. Of course, if you hate point-and-click adventures, feel free to walk away. But the rest of you, especially you story gamers out there, you need this in your life.
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