P R IN T :
Wednesday, Nov. 14,2012
Arts & Culture
Zombie apocalypse alive and well
in “The Walking Dead” game
Lucas Watson
The Clackamas Print -
“This game series adapts to
the choices you make. The story
is tailored by how you play. ”
That’s how it starts: a reminder
thats it’s a game all about choice,
and those choices definitely mat
ter. “The Walking Dead” is an
episodic video game developed
by Telltale Games and is noth
ing short o f a masterpiece. It is
without a doubt the best zombie
video game that doesn’t feature
zombies as its main hook.
W hile it shares the name
with the award winning show
by AMC, it is actually based on
Robert Kirkman’s Eisner-Award
winning comic book series. The
game is considered canonical
to the comic book series and
explains a few key characters’
back stories. If you’re coming in
from the show and not the com
ics, don’t be surprised if some o f
your favorite characters are not
present.
The game starts at the begin
ning o f the zombie apocalypse
near Atlanta. Zom bies exist
but they are still far and few
between; just one zombie pres
ents a huge problem for the char
acters. However, this series isn’t
about the zombies, it is about
the characters. Every episode is
about two hours play time and the
characters are well fleshed out,
become fast friends or enemies.
Characters
are w ell justified
even if they are present for only
a few minutes they always add
unique elements to the story.
The mechanics o f the game
feel a little clunky in the first 10
minutes but you quickly get use
to it. The game is more difficult
than it should be without a UI as
the points you can click on are
not where they naturally should
be. The camera is very cinemat
ic and all the information isn’t
always provided about the area
and caution should be observed.
This makes the game very intense
at times this is beneficial to the
game, because zombies can be
around any comer, or hidden in
any crevice.
“The Walking Dead, Episode
1: A New Day,” released April 24,
sets a good pace for the story and
mechanics for the rest o f the epi
sodes. It may not be as impactful
as the rest o f the episodes, but it is
not short o f unique moral choices
and has an interesting look at the
start o f apocalypse. The moral
choices-that are provided are not
about right and wrong, it’s about a
choice between two terrible things
and how it affects others. Humans
quickly become the greatest enemy,
choosing to trust someone can lead
to the safety o f others or death, and
no one is safe.
Although the first episode takes
place at the start o f the apocalypse,
this is not the case for the rest of
the episode; there is a time jump
o f about three to four months.This
is where “Episode 2: Starved For
Help” released June 27 comes in
with a jolting start. Issues like zom
bies in the first game are now easily
rectified, but other stuff like ration
ing supplies becomes the main
concern. There are a few really
powerful moments at the start of
the second episode that really set
the tone, for what is to come. It is
definitely a unique look at survival,
a constant struggle where small
things like crackers can mean the
difference between life, death, and
loyalty.
“Episode 3: Long Road Ahead,”
released Aug. 29, is the darkest o f
middle chapter 3, but it is also the
best chapter. While a lot o f terrible
things happen, resolution and new
beginnings is what the chapter is
all about. The choices made in
the past two episodes affect the
story more then ever and really
immerses the player in the game
and forces them to reflect one-
their decisions so far. It is a nice
reminder that the apocalypse is riot
all fun and games
“Episode 4: Around Every
Corner,” released Oct. 9 is noth
ing but build up for the finale,
“Episode 5: No Time Left” that
will be released this month.
At this point the characters
are extremely well developed
and protection is'the key; coming
across new people is frightening,
since murder is common place.
Supplies are hard to come across
and are more valuable than gold.
The remaining survivors tend to
be insane and highly aggressive
towards anyone in this new zombie
infested world. All these things
make a fantastic dynamic to have
to dance around when it comes to
the concern o f the group’s safety.
Zombie lovers, preparers for
the apocalypse, horror junkies,
connoisseur o f stories, and gam
ers will all love .“The Walking
Dead.” It is definitely worth the
time, effort, and emotions to play
all the way through.' It has a
reasonable price tag o f $25 for
a season pass which gets you
all five episodes. Alternatively
in December they will release a
retail version for both the Xbox
360 and Playstation 3 for $30. I
did the review for the PC version
o f the game but it is also avail
able on, Xbox Live Marketplace,
Playstation Network, M ac and
iOS w ith an experience that
should not be missed.
A,... _ Ar.
K K K K K
5 OUT OF 5 STABS
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WEDNESDAY-11/14
• Bed Hot Chili
Peppers: Rose
Garden Arena
Portland, 7:30 p.m.
$39.50-$55
THURSMY-11/15
• Undsey Stirling:
Hawthorne Theatre,
Portland 7 p.m. $13
• Barefoot in
the Park: Osterman
Theatre Niemeyer Center,
CCC, Oregon City 7:30
p.m. $10 Adult, $8 stu
dents, youth, seniors
g n o n Ä t-w .
• I Fight
Dragons:
Hawthorne Theatre
Portland 6:30 p.m.,
$12-$14
: S M U R M Y -W
• Pierce the Veil:
Wonder Ballroom,
Portland, 7:15 p.m.
• Soul Vaccina
tion: Jimmy Mak’s,
Portland 8 p.m., $12
SUNDAY11/18
» O re g o n -
Symphony:
Arlene Schnitzer
Concert Hall,
Portland, 6 p.m.,
$13.50-$15
TUESDAY11/20
• Woe, is me:
Hawthorne Theatre,
Portland, 6 p.m.,
$13.50-$15
WEDNESDAY-11/21
• Memphis May
F ire :
Hawthorne
Theatre, Portland 7
p.m., $12.50-$15
J