From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For the 2013 game based on The Walking Dead television series, see The Walking Dead (2013 video game).
| The Walking Dead | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Telltale Games |
| Publisher(s) | Telltale Games |
| Designer(s) | Jake Rodkin[1]Sean Vanaman[2] |
| Composer(s) | Jared Emerson-Johnson |
| Engine | Modified Telltale Tool |
| Platform(s) | Mac OS X |
| Release date(s) | Episode 1[show]Episode 2[show]Episode 3[show] |
| Genre(s) | Adventure, role-playing[4] |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) | *ESRB: M
|
| Media/distribution | Download |
The Walking Dead is an episodic role-playing adventure game based on Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comic book series for iOS, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was developed by Telltale Games.[5] The Walking Dead was planned to be released in the last months of 2011[6] but due to the production and development of the project, the game was held back to early 2012. The game will consist of five episodes, with the first episode released in April 2012 across all platforms with the exception of the iOS version.
In addition, some characters from the original comic book series make appearances in-game, including Hershel Greene and Glenn. Players meet them before the plot in the comic book begins to take place.[7]
On July 6, 2012, Telltale announced that a second season will follow the initial five-episode series.[8]
Contents[][hide] *1 Gameplay |
[edit]Gameplay[]
The Walking Dead is a point-and-click adventure game, played from a third-person perspective. The player can examine and interact with characters and items. The player must make use of inventory items and the environment; the player character often has limited time to do so and can die in the process. Quick time events are used for particular action scenes. The game also features role-playing elements,[9][10] including moral decisions, which have consequences in relationship with other characters.
The game is told from the point of view of a new character named Lee Everett.[11] Kirkman has said that, unlike typical zombie games such as Left 4 Dead, it will focus more on characterization and emotion than action.[12]
[edit]Episodes[]
The game will be released in five episodes.[7] Episode 1 was released the week of April 24, 2012, Episode 2 was released the week of June 27, 2012, while Episode 3 was released on August 28, 2012 for PSN, and August 29, 2012 for XBLA, PC and Mac. Shortly after the third episode was released, it was announced that the game would be available in disc format at the end of the season. [13] For the iOS release, the episodes can be pre-ordered and a 25% discount on all episodes combined or they can be purchased individually when they become available for download.[13]
[edit]Characters[]
Numerous characters appear throughout the game. Lee Everett (voiced by Dave Fennoy[14]), the primary protagonist of the series, is a native of Macon and a former university professor convicted for killing a congressman sleeping with his wife.[15] Lee eventually finds and becomes a father figure to Clementine (voiced by Melissa Hutchinson[16]), a young first grader. Lee and Clementine encounter a family from Fort Lauderdale, Florida including Kenny (voiced by Gavin Hammon[17]), a fisherman who prioritizes his family;[18] Katjaa, Kenny's wife of Belgian descent who works as a veterinarian (voiced by Cissy Jones[19]);[20] and Kenny Jr., most commonly known as "Duck", is Kenny and Katjaa's son.[20] The five join a survivor group led by Lilly Caul (voiced by Nicki Rapp[21]), a woman formerly stationed on the Robins Air Force Base, and one of the characters that has also appeared in the comic series.[22] Lilly's group consists of multiple survivors, consisting of: Larry (voiced by Terry McGovern[23]), Lilly's aggressive and judgmental yet well-intentioned father and retired Army commander who knows Lee's past;[24] Carley (voiced by Nicole Vigil[25]) a quick-thinking regional news reporter who is also aware of Lee's crimes;[22] Doug (voiced by Sam Joan[26]), a resourceful and logical information systems technician;[24] and Glenn(voiced by Nick Herman[27]), a former pizza delivery boy who also originates from the comic series.[28] In the second episode, two more survivors join the group: Mark (voiced by Mark Middleton[29]), a survivor who used to work at the Air Force;[30] and Ben Paul (voiced by Trevor Hoffman[31]), a high school student rescued by Lee, Mark and Kenny, who reveals an integral part of the game's story. In Episode 3, "Long Road Ahead," more characters are introduced, Chuck and a married couple named Omid and Christa. Chuck is a level-headed homeless man who lived in a boxcar of the train. He joins the main group.
[edit]Plot[]
The game was separated into five separate episodes that came out after about 2 months.
| Chapter | Release date (for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3) |
|---|---|
| Episode 1 - "A New Day" | April 24, 2012 |
Notes:
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| Episode 2 - "Starved for Help" | June 27, 2012 |
Notes:
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| Episode 3 - "Long Road Ahead" | August 28, 2012 |
Notes:
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| Episode 4 - "Around Every Corner" | October 9, 2012 |
Notes:
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| Episode 5 - "No Time Left" | November 20, 2012 |
Notes:
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[edit]Reception[]
The first episode, A New Day, was met with positive reception. The review aggregator website, Metacritic, calculates the review average of the first episode at 82% for the PC version, 84% for the PS3 version, and 79% for the Xbox 360 version.[34] The game received various accolades including the IGN Editors' Choice Award, PC Gamer Editors' Choice Award, Xbox Editors' Choice Award, and the PlayStation Gold Award. The first episode of The Walking Dead topped the charts for the game most played on Xbox Live Arcade for the week of April 30,[35] and stayed at the top of the Xbox Live Arcade charts for two weeks. It topped the sales charts for both PSN and Steam for a week.[36] The first episode sold one million copies in 20 days, making it Telltale's fastest selling title to date. These sales figures do not include iOS sales.[36]
The second episode was also met with positive reception. Starved for Help, won the GameSpy E3 2012 award for "Best Adventure Game".[37] The review aggregator website, Metacritic, calculates the review average of the second episode at 85% for the PC version, 84% for the PS3 version, and 84% for the Xbox 360 version.[34]
The third episode, "Long Road Ahead", was met with the same positive reception as the first two. IGN gave it a 9 out of 10, saying "It's a disturbing, depressing and entertaining entry in a journey that's been nothing short of excellent so far."[38] GameSpot gave the game an 8.5, saying "The Walking Dead has passed the midway point of its series of five episodes with every indication that the game will keep getting better right through to its inevitably depressing and unsettling conclusion."[39] MTV also gave is a positive review, saying "Telltale has created a series of wrenching, emotional decisions in the middle of a collection of not-too-hard puzzles in a visually-impressive adaptation of the Robert Kirkman comic series (with some nods to the TV show)
The fourth episode was met with, once again, the same critical reception, with its only follies being its technical difficulties (a minus that has been presented as the season's main problem) and for not "giving new characters the spotlight they deserved". It received an 81% on Metacritic. The episode has been cited by various critics as the weakest of the season, yet still managed to pull off a spectacular performance overall.
The fifth and final episode was met with critical acclaim by several critics. It was awarded a 9.5 out of 10 by IGN, being praised for every aspect and singularly criticized on the technical hiccups, a recurring problem in reviews of the series. It was also praised by Dark Station, giving the final episode 10 out of 10, describing the game as, "...the best game of 2012." Gameinformer gave episode 5 an 8.5/10 stating that the story was amazing but that in the end your choices in the story never really mattered and were only added in for more realism.
The Walking Dead was nominated for five awards at the 2012 Spike TV Video Game Awards including "Game of the Year," "Best Downloadable Game," "Best Adapted Video Game," "Best Performance By a Human Female," and "Best Performance By a Human Male." Telltale games was also nominated for best developer.