Review - The Walking Dead; Season 2 Episode 3 "In Harm's Way"
Reviewed by Paul Fiander
Format reviewed on PC (Steam) |
The episode starts on a tranquil note as Clem is watching a butterfly, it represents one of the tender moments that make give the Walking Dead’s story a narrative impact that other games rarely match. From this moment of calm the story moves into full on horror mode, the trouble is it’s not the walkers causing the terror instead the problems are coming from other people.
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The overall idea of this episode seems to be community, in some ways you have to respect the work that Carver is doing in trying to. The building of a safe and secure refuge for survivors seems like a great idea. However in a brutal world sometimes the most vicious people are able to rise to positions of power. In a game built around making difficult choices it seems that Carver always has the intentions of the group in mind just the man seems to have no compassion. Whether this is a result of the situation or just his nature we do not know but one thing is for sure Michael Madsen is a great voice actor. Personally I feel it is his nature as the man seems like a bully, especially in his treatment of Reggie and the girls. This is a judgement call but there is something about the way he has been created that makes me feel this is just the measure of the man.
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I like the idea of communities within the “Community”; you have the guards the normal population and the outsiders. We also seem to have an even greater community in the walker herd that is an ever present danger throughout the episode. It shows that even the Walkers have a growing pattern of behaviour. The Walking Dead is now based in a whole new world and the game is doing a great job of portraying this.
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Back to the episode the best way to think of this episode in terms of structure is the Great Escape. You are prisoners no matter the way Carver and his team try to spin it and as such you need to do chores and think about escaping. This however is easier said than done and it comes down to Clem to be the risk taker for the group. It’s an odd situation where the youngest of the group is given the biggest responsibility, the game continually reminds you of her stature when you are deciding to risk your life. It makes for some difficult decision making but that is the reason we play Telltale games in the first place.
*Image and Skybound Comic Easter Eggs are a great touch, Ghosted Poster when meeting Luke in a comic book shop. |
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I really need to step back sometimes and think of how young Clementine is, the journey she has been through give you reason to believe she is older than she is. The developers as well have started to change Clem in subtle ways especially in the conversational choices you now have. There is everything from compliance to downright refusal and even the chance to stare people down (on occasion). These are not the behaviour traits of an innocent child instead they represent a stronger character then the one Lee found in a tree house.
I think it’s this growing up of Clem that helps make this season so special and this is by far the best episode to date. The ending as always leaves you in a precarious position but do you expect anything less from The Walking Dead
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Wrap Up
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The Good - True growth of central character, excellent story, difficult choices,
The Bad - Annoying QTE's, some of the lip Synching is off. |
Score - 4.5/5 |
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Images courtesy of Telltale Games
Game - provided by Publisher |
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