One could say that, in videogames, this was the year for the survivor. 2K’s Spec Ops: The Line showed a protagonist barely hanging onto his humanity in the midst of a chaotic war and natural disaster. EA’s Mass Effect 3 had Commander Shepard fighting against insurmountable odds from an ancient threat that could annihilate entire galaxies. Yet, somehow, it was a young girl name Clementine that affected the staff here at The Married Gamers the most. This year we yearned and ached, quivered and feared, for her survival in Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead.
Based on the popular Robert Kirkman comic book and AMC television show, The Walking Dead is set in an apocalyptic universe in which the undead walk the Earth and the living slowly lose their humanity in order to simply survive. It is in this world that young Clementine, the heart of this small, yet thrilling story, finds herself in. She is cared for by her guardian, Lee Everett, a convict who stumbles upon Clementine after narrowly escaping with his life. Lee and Clementine find themselves a part of a ragtag bunch of fellow survivors in which the gamer (as Lee Everett) must navigate the social waters of being both leader and protector of this thrown-together tribe of scared and shell-shocked subsisters.
While many games based on a movie or TV show often become shallow regurgitation of the breadwinner’s stories, Telltale’s The Walking Dead crafts a story that is its own person. Told in five episodes, the plot is one of survival and escape, but like the chaos that surrounds them, it too takes many twists and turns; each one fraught with nightmarish terror. Nearly all the characters are new to this borrowed universe, and each feel whole and real with their own goals, dreams (what’s left of them), and fears. Even the gameplay adds to the tension of the game whether it’s quickly deciding what dialogue Lee says (which impacts how the group feels about him throughout the game) or lining up killing blows to an incoming walker (TWD’s version of the zombie). The spine-tingling story, the affected and absorbing characters and the terrible world that they inhabit makes The Walking Dead our favorite game this year.
The Walking Dead is The Married Gamers Staff Pick for Game of the Year.
This game was incredible. I’m so glad you guys picked this one as GOTY, it is definitely mine!