Reviews

• gamedeal user

  Jan 15, 2015

  (Safe! No spoilers inside!) Note: This review was written by the time episode 1 came out. Only the very end of it has short updates about new episodes. I played through episode one, and I loved it! Having said that, there is criticism about it and I believe it's partly warranted. I don't share that criticism because it relates to something that doesn't personally bother me, but it will bother some people, so can you be disappointed with the purchase? First, I'll describe the game a bit. Most of the gameplay of this game consists of picking dialog options on a timer; all other gameplay is secondary and forgettable. This system works very well by giving you hard choices in tense scenes, whose consequences feel potentially very impactful. There is some action that requires pressing the right buttons quickly, which I believe is the weakest point of the game. Fortunately they're sparse and easy. I find a particular action scene choreographed rather poorly, almost breaking suspension of disbelief. However, the action that matters in this game happens in the form of dialogue, and that's where it truly shines. You play three new characters that are not part of the show. They never meet, but even though in different places, they all move the same story forward, and their actions impact the others. The three characters are all related in their origins. The usual flow of the game consists of a brief introduction of the character/scene in a relaxed pace, followed by a rise of tensions up to a climax, at which point the game changes characters giving the player a calm after the storm. Then it introduces the context of the next character only to ramp up tensions towards the end of the scene again. This pattern repeats, and I must say, every time the character changed, it always felt jarring to me. It was always unwelcome. I wanted to keep playing the other character because I was too immersed in that scene that just ended. However, they won me over every single time, quickly making me care by introducing high stakes to some event as the scene unfolded. There are only a few characters from the show appearing in this episode, but all of them have great performances and behave like you'd expect from any episode from the tv series. I don't think that the game's enjoyment is completely dependent on watching the show, but it will be severely impaired if you haven't. The game's story occurs between two seasons, so if you haven't watched it and plan on watching it, it will contain very heavy spoilers. If you don't plan on watching it, you'll be able to follow the main story line without a problem, but you won't understand many references and, most importantly, you won't feel the same tension on some scenes that you'd feel had you known more about some characters. In some cases, the characters from the show are barely introduced at all. Now, let's get to the meat of the complaints. I said before that these scenes "feel" very impactful due to the potential consequences of your actions, but many people have criticized the game for not changing much "under the hood" according to your choices, claiming that there's no choice, only the illusion of choice. This criticism comes from the fact that the game's marketing, as is usual with other games from the same developer, repeats the mantra that the game will adapt to your choices. I would say right off the bat that the developer's statement is true, although its vagueness is what creates wild expectations on many consumers. You might expect the story to branch out multiple times and have multiple endings, depending on your choices. The truth is that the choices do matter... a bit. Some people will simply have different expectations about the degree with which the game changes. Choices change content, but they change it in a self-contained way so that they can reduce the extra work-load that it creates, and the main event that ends the episode doesn't change. Now, bear in mind that these choices might have an impact on next episodes (in fact, that's very likely the case), but I'm only addressing criticism of outcomes not changing within the first episode. In the end, the main story arc will be the same (meaning that the episode always starts at point A, event B happens, and ends at C), but process will change slightly (meaning which characters are present in a scene and how they act). The problem in expectations also results from the definition of a game. I think there could be much to say about this, but to avoid going on a long tangent here, I'll say that I believe this game (to a lesser extent than others, like Dear Esther) challenges that definition. There are failure states, where you have to restart a scene, but only on more physical action sequences. You know, the ones I said were too sparse, easy to get through, forgettable, etc. The core of the game doesn't really have failure states. It's more of an interactive story where your actions dictate how that story is told, but not whether you win or lose. The outcome is already set in stone. You might ask then, why having interactivity in the first place, and I'd say that, beyond the obvious instances where things do change, I believe that the choice of options on a timer during dire situations are a great use of interactivity as a device in story-telling. To sum it up, I'd say that, with the caveats that 1) I didn't have the expectation of a more ambitious branching story, 2) I knew and loved the tv show, and 3) I was primarily looking for more of the show: the experience was absolutely thrilling and I totally recommend this game. --- Update on episode 2: So, episode 2 left me in a less enthusiastic state. I'd describe it in a word as: fine; and even though fine isn't bad, the contrast with episode one makes me feel slightly disappointed with just fine. To sum it up, there's a lot more of action, and a lot less of psychologically tense scenes or shocking twists. The more action-dependent episode doesn't really mesh well with the franchise nor with the strengths of Telltale's storytelling devices, in my opinion. More quick time events, but less of an impact. Even the appearance of a fan-favorite character of the show seemed lackluster due to the circumstances and the lower stakes presented to the player. But then again, it's fine. I was kept entertained and interested in the story. --- Update on episode 3: I literally just finished it... and it's awesome! I was worried after not feeling it with the second, but this one, I'll dare to say it's the best episode yet. It starts slow, but after it picks up it kept my attention all the way through. It's full of difficult decisions to make and I feel like they made a great job in making all of them feel organic and interconnected. The plot advanced at a fast pace, lots of tension and excitement, the main action sequence towards the end was very well done (one of my problems with the first two), so all in all, five stars. Even though the first episode still has the most shocking twist, I'd rank the 3rd on top for its consistency in its quality. I'm very impressed with it.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 17, 2014

  After playthrough of episode 1 I was thankful that the story is not just a retelling of the TV series, but rather a side story of another house in the north, The Foresters. Having read all the books and watched the TV series both helped and hinderd my appreciation for the game. Helped in the sense that I knew the backstory. I knew what was going during the opening scene at the Twins. Yet hindered because I also knew the characters and have definite opinions about Ramsey Snow. It was fun to be interogated by Queen Cercei, too. I am curious to see if they can generate enough original content that is significant to the story unfolding in Westeros. We will see.
• gamedeal user

  Jan 5, 2015

  As we all know how big the game of thrones world is, to get into such a big story it requires time/understanding of characters which was taken in first two episodes and now everything you’ve been fighting for up to this point is finally in front of you as well as it's shaping up to be a good series. I often found I didn't have enough time to make decisions as the game is completely depend on the decisions you make. I really loved the characters and while there were times I wondered why I had to even walk my character to the window when it was my only choice - it seemed fluid and made me feel like I was that character - not just an observer. I would have loved to see more done with this game in terms of strategic decision making. I've tried various ways only for facing the only one result with very little differences. But still this game is very interesting and has the atmosphere similar to TV-series. And emotionaly rich plot of course. They even made their own intro in style of Game of Thrones HBO series. So if you fan of these books or TV-series, you may buy this game. :) +Original voice actors +Other voice actors do an excellent job as well +Cool visuals +Some difficult choices to be made - Difficult to follow if you haven't seen the TV series. Rating - 9/10
• gamedeal user

  Feb 7, 2015

  So far, so great. Game of Thrones - A Telltale Game Series is a 6 part episodic story where you can choose your path and affect the story as you go. So far, I have to say, this might be my favorite Telltale game yet. The formula that Telltale uses fits so well with Game of Thrones, it feels like your watching an extention of the TV show. But even better, you have influence on it. Great start so far, I can't wait to play the remaining 4 episdoes. Pros: -Nice watercolor asthetic -Actors from the show voice respective characters(Tyrion, Cersei, ect.) -Solid voice acting and dialogue all around -Fun combat sequences, despite being QTE -Quick reaction choices that really make you think -Great story that follows the Forrester family Cons: -Not a whole lot of gameplay, as to be expected with a Telltale game -Occasional Graphic, Animation, and Sound glitches Highly recommended for anyone invested in Game of Thrones. Just make sure you've watched through at least season 3 before you start this.
• gamedeal user

  Jul 22, 2015

  In a nutshell: "How could this situation get any worse?!?!?!" "Oh." Update: Season 2 confirmed. Guard the walls, the shitstorm is coming.
• gamedeal user

  Dec 3, 2014

  I have just finished the first episode and what an episode it was already. I've played mostly all telltale games, and being a massive fan of the game of thrones series I was worried that this game might not deliver; especially with the other games within the brand name being pretty bad. This game so far has delivered, the characters have so much depth to them already and the amount of plot twists I wouldn't have expected. There was some funny parts as well especially when Tyrion Lannister was concerned they seem to have gotten the characters on point. So far I would recommend this game as long as you have watched past season 3 of the T.V series or read the books, because the way it is done is as if you were on the show and its written to perfection in my own personal opinion. If you haven't seen season 3 of the t.v series do not get this game yet. Overall after one episode I cannot wait for the next one. So far the journey has been amazing and MY personal ending was very, very unexpected. *Spoilers in comments*
• gamedeal user

  Oct 26, 2017

  Telltale never fails on amazing me. Their games are always a piece of art and this one is no exception. The game is played in true Telltale style which focuses heavily on story and characters with you making decisions that can result in other characters thinking/feeling differently towards you. You will see brutal events take place, people will die and you will sit in your chair staring at the screen trying to process what you just saw. I give the game a strong 10/10. 8)
• gamedeal user

  Jun 18, 2015

  This is the most terrifying game ever. I have charged screaming and laughing madly into battle in a hundred other games; I've sent innumerable soldiers into a billion different deaths in dozens of RTS; I've fulfilled more legends and destroyed more world-threatening evils in more RPGs than I care to remember... ...yet nothing could prepare me for the greatest horror of them all: being a little handmaiden interrogated by Cersei, in this game... ;-; Go back to your dungeons! Return to raiding and pillaging empires! There is naught but terror and court intrigue for you here! When words become the sword a warrior must wield; he knows his hardest battle has come. 10/10 would rather be mutilated by a thousand dragons than face the Lannister Queen again.
• gamedeal user

  Nov 22, 2015

  [h1]57 / 100[/h1] Disappointment utter disappointment! [b]Game of Thrones (GoT)[/b] has been the most frustrating & dull game I have played from Telltale to date. Starting stronger than it ends [i](?)[/i], it's story across six episodes is cliché, lacking interesting characters other than those already established in the TV series. [b]GoT[/b] brings little that is new to the table. The parallels between the Forrester's story & Stark's story arcs are uncanny, leaving me with a strong sense of déjà vu. After the first couple of episodes the pattern becomes clear, & as such becomes predictable. It lacks the twists or shock value that the TV series/books are renowned for, instead it compensates by using excessive violence & swearing. [b]GoT[/b] world is brutal [i](that was to be expected)[/i], but this is not the brutality surgically used to emphasise the emotional impact of a scene that is done so well in the TV series. The entire game sets you up for failure, regardless of the choices you make. Its one painful scene after another, leaving you feeling bullied & powerless to make a difference. This left me angry throughout most of the experience. In some respects you want a strong emotional response to the antagonists in such a story, but to put it simply the Whitehill's [i](your rival family)[/i] are simply one-dimensional assclowns where every single line of dialog comes off as obnoxious. They lack any charisma needed to be memorable villains. It's almost like the writers said, "ok, what is the most insulting & horrible thing we could say at this point" .. lets write that! None of the subtly or cleverness seen in the scripts that makes the TV Show so compelling. There were also many parts of some of the story arcs that just didn’t seem to have any meaning/motive/link to the overall story. Senseless. Spoiler: [spoiler]The entire Mira line seems to have been put in simply to include existing TV Series characters & could have been cut all together, & Gared story line seems to have no impact what so ever on the characters or events in Ironrath.[/spoiler] Overall quality of the production is sub-par compared to previous Telltale titles, from the animations to the facial expressions. Lips are often out of sync, emotions are not communicated clearly [i](crucial for a game like this)[/i], & often see odd things like character smiling when its a dead serious situation. Character 'popping' is semi-frequent, where they would just disappear, or jump to another location or miss a few animation frames. Texture mapping also left 'holes' in the characters where you could see right through them. Also many of the characters look very similar & in later episodes you can clearly see the same models being reused blatantly. If you fail a scene several times, music &/or some audio elements would stop triggering. It is possible in many situations for you to not even press any button [i](or even mistime a button)[/i] when prompted & still get through the scene. Other times it took me several attempts despite pressing the button quickly/on queue. Felt very hit & miss, no pun intended. One of the most annoying things though was the blurriness from the 'oil painting' effect used, that you simply cannot turn off. In a still screenshot it doesn't look too bad generally, but in motion the edges flicker badly; it is really distracting. It varies from scene to scene too, where some sections actually look pretty good, then others where the entire view looks like I am playing without my prescription glasses on. Other times parts of the screen are impacted & others are not, has such a random feel to it. On top of this there is a blurred 'halo' constantly seen around the characters. Nothing graphically is sharp & frankly looks horrible much of the time - it was a bold design choice from Telltale that regrettable doesn't work for me. Anti-aliasing also doesn't seem to work nor does running the game in 4k using DSR seem to help. Overall, this just diminishes the richness & beauty of the locations & the individual objects created in the world. An option should have been provided to disable this! There is also some good aspects to come out of [b]GoT[/b]. As with previous Telltale episodic adventures, the camera work & direction is great! The actual textures look vivid & detailed, as is the multiple locations which span most of Westeros. The multiple protagonists of the Forrester family are used well, changing often giving the same feeling/flow as the TV Show following several story arcs. There were the occasional scene or one-liner that did give me a good laugh too. The animals & beast animations are fantastic from the horses to the dragons. The voice acting is high quality & actors do their best with the script given, plus it includes the original actors from the TV series which is a bonus for fans. Despite the few positives I can take from this, & my previous issue explained with the story, dialog, choices & technical issues, by far the worst part of [b]GoT[/b] is the ending. There is no closure, & my cynical self simply sees it at an attempt to sell a sequel. It is atrocious to be honest! Unlike [b]Walking Dead[/b] seasons, which do come to a natural conclusion (yet leave it open enough to continue) you are basically left wondering what you have wasted the last 12 hours doing! Lots of death, lots of blood, too many loose ends & a lot of guff. Seems I will need to buy Season 2 to find out what happens... No thanks Telltale, no thanks... I'll stick with the TV series. [url=http://steamcommunity.com/groups/TrueBlueReviews#curation]If you enjoyed reading this review, please follow [u]True Blue Reviews[/u] for more recommendations![/url]
• gamedeal user

  Dec 4, 2014

  I will be honest, Telltale "games" are not much of games but well crafted enjoyable stories. There really is no choice. The illusion of choice is what is most prevelent. There are no two ways a story plays out, only two "choices" and one outcome regardless. So do not expect a telltale game to every REALLY give you choice that can CHANGE the story. That being said, and taking the game for what it really is, here are my further thoughts Would I recommend this game? If you love Game of Thrones yes, absolutely. For 6 episodes 30 dollars is reasonable with the first episode ccoming in at around 2 hours long, if you play slow and do everything possible. I really enjoy the stories characters who are well voice acted and engaging. It helps drive the story and you care for your characters and the people who you are playing and "protecting" I still think Wolf Among Us is the best thing Telltale has done and I hoped that GoT would offer ACTUAL CHOICE. Alas it is just another Telltale Interactive story. It does feel a bit rushed, and honestly Telltale can't get away with the Cell shaded "style" forever. They need to create a better engine that looks better and runs better, no blurring, jaggies or other graphical blemishes. That being said its not about graphics or ACTUAL choice its about a well crafted story that is enjoyable to play and experiance. If you like interactive stories, and well crafted and acted ones at that. Game of Thrones is for you. The series could be one of Telltales best if they start offering more ACTUAL choice and deepen the story which I am sure they will, it can be a fantastic "season" of Game of Thrones.