In the television world, the finale is perhaps the most important episode of the season. It needs to be exciting and emotional. It needs to provide closure, while at the same time end on a cliffhanger and leave unanswered questions. How else could we remain interested in the show during that excruciating, seven-month wait until the next season? This rings true for the current season of The Walking Dead TV series. Rick and the gang are once again in a dire situation, and we don’t know what’s going to happen next. What happened to Beth? What do the residents of Terminus want? Will we riot if Daryl dies? See, now I’m getting anxious just talking about it. OK, back on track.
In order for the season finale to pack a punch, you need the prior episode to provide a good set up – which usually means a duller entry. This is not bad; it just slows down the momentum a bit. But it is necessary in order to make the finale that much stronger. A calm before the storm, if you will. Ergo, Season 2 of the The Walking Dead video game is no different from its television counterpart. As we draw ever closer to the conclusion of the season, we need to have the penultimate preparation episode – as we get ready for the end. Episode 4 follows this same mantra, giving us a notably slower episode, but still enjoyable in its own right.
Platforms: iOS, PC, PS3, Vita, Xbox 360 (Version Played)
Publisher: Telltale Games
Developer: Telltale Games
Genre: Choose Your Own Adventure… With Zombies
Release Date: July 22, 2014
ESRB Rating: Mature
Episode 4 begins in classic, “same bat-time, same bat-channel” fashion. Clementine and her group find themselves in the midst of a zombie horde, trying to make their way to a safe point. The actions you made at the end of Episode 3 show their equal and opposite reactions when Kenny sees what you did (or didn’t do) to Sarita during her tussle with a walker. The survivors now need to find a new safe house, as Rebecca’s due date quickly approaches. I won’t go into any further plot details, but you can expect zombies, conversations, and pointing and clicking.
As is the norm with the penultimate episode, there is less splat and more chat. Again, in order to get us ready for the finale, we need that one last episode to get as emotionally involved in the characters as possible. But that’s not to say the episode is all dialogue. There are some very tense moments where you need to avoid or fight off walkers. One part in particular tasks you with creating a distraction by using corpses. Even though I was sure they were dead, I wasn’t positive if they were, you know, dead dead. These sequences left me pretty edgy – which was great – and then the game went back to dialogue, and I was allowed to calm down.
The benefit of having an episode that places a great deal of emphasis on development is that you really get a good feel of the theme. This was evident in Amid the Ruins, as after the episode ended I sat in silence, thinking about what happened in particular to one of the characters. Throughout the episode, I slowly realized two things: some people can’t be helped if they don’t want to help themselves, and we have to learn to let go. As you may know by now – spoiler alert – Kenny is a big part of this season, as well as this theme. It’s clear that Kenny had it the worst of the bunch. He lost his family, and just when things started looking up, they got worse again. I got attached to him over the two seasons, and tried for three episodes to bring him back from the dark place he was in. Every time it looked like he took a step forward, he took two back. Now, I’m starting to feel there’s no hope. I felt like no matter what I did, things only got worse. But I suppose this is what it must feel like to be stuck in the middle of a zombie apocalypse.
By the end of the episode, I, like Clem, felt all my hard work was in vain, especially with another one of the characters. Again, I tried throughout the season to help this character understand and prepare themselves for the world around them, and it didn’t seem like it did any good. At that time, I realized that despite my best intentions, the events that transpired were completely out of my control. This was indeed a gut-punching episode, and I can only imagine what the finale will bring.
One thing that I loved about this episode is that after it ended, there was no preview. I wasn’t forced to sit through another “next time, on The Walking Dead” clip fest, which could possibly contain spoilers about the next episode. This one ended immediately, and jumped straight into the credits. That’s how you do it, Telltale. Leave me bewildered and cursing the days until the next episode airs without a single inkling of what is going to happen. Now, just end every episode like that for Season 3 – please.
The writing is again amazing, but this should be expected by now. There is a great use of dialogue and, as always, characters are relatable and have a human quality – which makes it that much more heartbreaking when one of them is lost. There are some humorous moments thrown in as well, which provide a temporary break. Amid the Ruins is definitely a depressing episode, but one that is also realistic. This is how real people would act in the same situations. Amid the Ruins also drives home the fact that the choices we make shape the experience as opposed to the outcome. During my playthrough, I really felt like there was nothing I could do at some points, that fate had the wheel. But like any good adventure, it’s not about the destination. It’s about the journey.
With the season finale still ahead (for me), nothing is guaranteed. Everyone is a potential victim. Nobody is safe, and everyone’s fate hangs in the balance – even Clementine’s. I don’t know what will happen next, and I don’t know if I’m adequately prepared. Season 2 took us down a long, dark road, and the way things have been going, I’m not sure I’ll be happy when that road ends. But despite its bumps, this is one of the best roads I’ve had the privilege to walk on.
Review Disclosure: A review copy of The Walking Dead Season 2: Amid the Ruins was provided by Telltale Games for the purposes of this review.
