The Wolf Among Us Video Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

Well as we inch closer  and closer towards summer we start trying to clear out our backlog of games for review. I had high hopes from this game as its from a studio I came to know and love for their epic work on their The Walking Dead game. This time around we will see if the people over at Telltale Games can recreate the same success they found with Clementine and The Walking Dead. So lets go find out all about The Wolf Among Us...

The Wolf Among Us is an ongoing episodic graphic adventure video game based on Bill Willingham's Fables comic book series. The Wolf Among Us is a point-and-click adventure game, where the player, in control of the protagonist Bigby Wolf, can move about the environment and examine and interact with other characters or objects. It is similar to Telltale's previous game, The Walking Dead, in that the player may make choices in their actions or through conversation trees that will influence future events in the story, including events in future episodes. These include major decisions, such as deciding which of two culprits to chase after while allowing the other to go free. Some scenes are more action-oriented, requiring the player to respond to a series of quick time events. Failure to do these correctly may end the scene with the death of Bigby or another character, but the game will restart at a checkpoint just before that scene to allow the player to try again.

What’s Good:

Replay value: Many variables to examine and paths to take and potential relationships to form so one or even two breakthroughs wont be enough to explore all possible avenues.

Soundtrack: Wonderful ambiance, voice acting and overall sound quality. All characters are represented and depicted well and translate well into their modern gritty roles.

Graphics: The game itself seems to have a more refined and crisp look to it than The Walking Dead. I definitely like the art style utilized in this as it feels more real and less cartoon-like.

Story-line: Very interesting story-line; started out a bit confusing but slowly started making more and more sense as time went on. Considering the game is based on a comic book series that is already well fleshed out i have high hopes for the progression of this series.

What Should Have Been Added:

Only thing I can think of is a better save/level system so the player can readily reload key-points in the story to choose different options and see how they play out.

Final Thoughts:

Even though it felt a bit shorter than anticipated a enjoyable and worthwhile experience that I have grown to look forward to. I am very much looking forward to playing through this series from start to finish just as we did with The Walking Dead.

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The Walking Dead Season 2 Episode 2 Video Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

Alrighty then, ladies and gentlemen we back back all up in this bitch. Full recovered from our near death experience we are back to business as usual. Taking it slow and getting back into the swing of things this week we get our grubby little hands on episode two of Telltale Games wonderful game The Walking Dead. Episode one really hit things off with a bang last time and left us on the edge of our seat. Will episode 2 follow suit and deliver on the high level quality we have come to expect from The Walking Dead Series?

The Walking Dead: Season Two is an ongoing episodic graphic adventure based on Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comic book series and developed by Telltale Games. It is the sequel to The Walking Dead, with the first episode released digitally in December 2013, and a retail collector's DVD edition planned at the conclusion of the season. The game employs the same narrative structure as the first season, where player choice in one episode will have a permanent impact on future story elements. The player choices recorded in save files from the first season and the additional episode 400 Days carry over into the second season. Clementine, who was the player's companion during the first season, is the player-character in Season Two. If you haven't already feel free to check out our game-play videos of Season 1, 400 Days DLC, and the start of Season 2 on our YouTube channel.

What’s Good:

Replay value: So many options but so little time.

Soundtrack: Wonderful ambiance, voice acting and overall sound quality.

Graphics: The game itself seems to have less graphical options to tweak so I take that to mean there were default improvements made behind the scenes.

Story-line: Oh my god!! I don't want to spoil it but a character from Season 1 makes an appearance in this episode. I nearly lost it when I discovered it, you definitely gotta play the game or watch my play through to see who the mystery character is.

What Should Have Been Added:

Maybe a flashback portion of the episode to help give some explanation as to how that character from Season 1 survived and what they experienced to get to where they are now. 

Final Thoughts:

Even though it felt a bit shorter than anticipated a enjoyable and worthwhile experience as always. I'm starting to wonder if I even need to review this series anymore since honestly I cant see Telltale Games messing up this excellent franchise they have created.

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The Walking Dead: Season Two Game Review

Final Verdict - Definitely Worth Playing

*starts Daniel Bryan chants* YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! I finally got my hands on time and a copy of The Walking Dead: Season 2. I know i'm way late in playing this but I just now clearing out some of my back logged games since my machine had died on my and I was M.I.A. for about three months. If you have been following my coverage of this game you know just how much I am invested and a fan of the series. It connects you to the characters on such a level that I haven't seen from a game in a while, the closet game that comes to mind would probably be the new Tomb Raider game that we reviewed last year. Well enough of this recap let go catch up with Clementine, Omid, and Christa.

The Walking Dead: Season Two is an ongoing episodic graphic adventure based on Robert Kirkman's The Walking Dead comic book series and developed by Telltale Games. It is the sequel to The Walking Dead, with the first episode released digitally in December 2013, and a retail collector's DVD edition planned at the conclusion of the season. The game employs the same narrative structure as the first season, where player choice in one episode will have a permanent impact on future story elements. The player choices recorded in save files from the first season and the additional episode 400 Days carry over into the second season. Clementine, who was the player's companion during the first season, is the player-character in Season Two. If you haven't already feel free to check out our game-play videos of Season 1 and the 400 Days DLC on our YouTube channel.

What’s Good:

Replay value: With this being the first episode of Season 2 one would think there is not much to do but its quite the opposite. Before my play-through I actually went back to replay Season 1

Soundtrack: Wonderful ambiance, voice acting and overall sound quality. It is truly an immersible experience embarking with Clementine as she enters all the situations and environments she encounters.

Graphics: Graphic quality seems to have taken an inherent step up in this iteration of the game while still retaining the classic comic book cell shaded style that the series has embraced. The game itself seems to have less graphical options to tweak so I take that to mean there were default improvements made behind the scenes.

Story-line: Excellent story progression and character progression helps keep you focused and on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next. Playing through there are many moments that have you clueless as to the angle the story is developing from but still manages to make sense underneath it all.

Game Mechanics: Improved HUD and UI make this almost like a whole new game. I was pleasantly surprised when playing to notice the little nuances about the interactivity of the game that they had changed. Another pleasant addition to the game I liked is the increased level of quick time events (QTE) included as it keeps you alert and in sync with the immediate plight of Clementine.

What’s Bad:

The unrelenting hard decisions that Telltale Games forces on the player are no joke. As you become invested in the game and Clementine you truly see that the developers at Telltale Games are some evil people. Just kidding; the game is excellent and I simply cannot wait to get my hands on the next episode.

What Should Have Been Added:

I wish instead of the way they transitioned between time lapses they gave more back-story development for us to connect deeper with the struggles Clementine had to overcome. All she has learnt to cope with the cruel world she is in and struggles she has overcome are of utmost importance to her character development.

Final Thoughts:

This game is on a roll and continues to meet  if not exceed expectations in each episode. I cannot wait to see what Telltale games throws our way next. Clementines growth over the span of the two seasons is really impressive and maintains the bond the player has developed with her over the course of the seasons.

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Unadulterated Fun Is The Order Of The Day

Game Mechanics - 2/2

Story-line - 2/2

Graphics - 2/2

Soundtrack - 2/2

Replay Value - 2/2

 Total Score - 10/10

Why do you play games? Some people play games for achievements, others for the challenge  some play for the storyline, and others for the competition. Me I like to play games mostly for the storyline and overall fun of the game. Saints Row delivers this in unbelievable amounts; strap in for the rollercoaster ride of excitement you have been waiting for. Today we review Saints Row IV in all its unadulterated glory...

Saints Row IV is an action-adventure video game set in an open world environment. It is developed by Volition, Inc. and published by Deep Silver after THQ sold the intellectual Property due to bankruptcy.  It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It is the fourth installment in the Saints Row series, after the release of Saints Row: The Third in 2011. As other games of the series, the player controls the leader of the Third Street Saints, who in this iteration has become the president of the United States. Don’t ask how just play the game and find out your epic rise or should I say fall (hint hint) into the most powerful role in the world. Saints Row IV still shares most of its gameplay aspects with the previous installment, being primarily played from a third person perspective in an open world map scattered with campaign quests, secondary objectives, and various collectibles. The player can steal, drive, purchase and customize vehicles, among other things such as clothing, plastic surgery, weapons, etc. In an element new to the series, the player can now purchase and upgrade various "powers" that offer superhuman abilities.

Key characters from earlier games in the franchise make a return in Saints Row IV. Most of them hold positions of power in your presidential party, from long standing friends to old enemies. My favorite character from the previous game Kinzie Kensington returns as the socially awkward FBI hacker we all know and love to become the White House's press secretary. Often tasked with clearing up the mess left behind by the President's verbal missteps she somehow manages to keep the president and his antics under control. Benjamin King from the original Saints Row, becomes the President's Chief of Staff, while Pierce Washington gets appointed the Communications Director with Shaundi as Director of the Secret Service. Matt Miller, having abandoned the Deckers presumably returned to the United Kingdom and became employed by MI-6. Shortly after the events of Saints Row: The Third, Pierce, Shaundi and the Boss are called upon to assist MI-6 agent Asha Odekar and her contact, former Deckers leader Matt Miller, in infiltrating a Middle Eastern compound to assassinate Cyrus Temple, the former leader of STAG who has since gone insane and obsessed with killing the Saints, and plans on destroying Washington D.C. using a nuclear missile.

What’s Good:

Game Mechanics - There is so much to do in this game it is ridiculous. With so much to do and so many varying aspects of game-play to get right in surprised that Volition did such a great job with the game mechanics. From the controls to the interaction to the fluidity of getting around the city of Steelport; it all meshes so seamlessly together. From hacking stores to gain access, to insurance fraud, to clearing flashpoints it all ties together perfectly. 

Story-line - Only Saints Row could deliver a story so epic and way out there but still have it make complete and total sense and immensely fun to participate in. Everything in the game is just so overpowered and ridiculously broken and over the top that you almost find yourself having a god complex because you feel so almighty and powerful. At least until you run into other super powered beings as well and quickly realize it's not just fun and mindless destruction. You have to strategize and plan accordingly the best course of progression throughout the storyline and side quests.

Graphics - Everything is a step up from Saints Row 3 graphically. From the weapons and the damage they output to the character model diversity and customization options. They really went all out to make this game surpass its predecessor that was already an awesomely fun game. The most beautiful thing you will ever see in this game is the Dubstep gun and all the chaos that ensues.

Soundtrack - I can't even begin to tell you the diverse soundtrack present on this game. The game has 109 songs spread over 7 radio stations; you can also place your own music to be played in game. GenX 89, KRhyme 95.4, K12 97.6, The Mix 107.77, Mad Decent 106.9, Four 20 103.6, Klassic 102.4, and Mixtape which is a custom playlist you make yourself. Personal favorite of mine is Four 20 103.6.

Replay Value - There is dare I say almost too much content in this game. With not only a huge map to take control of but also co-operative play and upcoming DLC; Saints Row IV is poised to be played by many for quite a while. This game is truly a game you can be in no rush to beat because there's so much to do and have fun with you will not want it to end regardless if you are playing by yourself or with a friend.

What’s Bad:

Nothing; this is the pinnacle of the Saints Row saga in all its epic grandeur. 

What Should Have Been Added:

I can comfortably say there is nothing I would add to this game. Solid game length, content, customization options and room for growth with upcoming DLC support.

Final Thoughts:

Everyone should be playing this game; I dare you to spend just an hour playing it and you not enjoy yourself. Granted this game is being touted as a place filler until Grand Theft Auto 5 is released I still maintain that it is just as good and deserves the same if not similar accolades as it's more serious older brother in the genre of open world sandbox games. I know I for one will be playing this long after I beat GTA V. If you can't get to enjoy the wonders of the game for yourself feel free to check out my bit of gameplay with commentary to see how fun it is...

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