The Wolf Among Us
PlayStation 3
I've been a pretty big fan of almost everything that Telltale Games has put out there. The Walking Dead Games were fantastic. Game of Thrones, from what I have played, is really good. Even the much maligned Jurassic Park I had a great time with. Back to the Future, I could give or take.
I had heard great things about the Wolf Among Us. That coupled with the fact that I've really enjoyed this type of game recently raised my expectations.... perhaps a little too high.
We'll start off with the plot line. I have never read any of the Fables graphic novels, nor do I really know anything about its characters. The characters themselves are modern day versions of classic fairy tale characters. You've got the Big Bad Wolf, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, Blackbeard, Ichabod Crane, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, etc etc. There are also some other minor characters floating around in the game like talking pigs, trolls, frogs and that sort of thing.
These people all live in a small section of New York called Fabletown. They use glamour to conceal themselves from the normal people and blend in like nothing is wrong. The Big Bad Wolf, or Bigby as he is called here, has reformed his image and is the sheriff of the town. He keeps the law amongst the fables - investigating crimes and making sure everyone is using their glamour properly to keep themselves hidden.
The story of the game centers around the search for a killer who is beheading his victims. Expect a dark, gritty, noir based adventure. At first, I thought the game was really cool. Noir isn't really my thing. I kind of hate it actually. But I was willing to give it a shot.
Unfortunately, the game just really couldn't hold my attention. The characters are all despicable, and I did not care for any of them. I have no problem with the F bomb, but so many of the conversations in this game involve people shouting it at one another. The whole game actually has a very trashy, low class feel to it. I didn't know if I was playing a video game or watching a bunch of washed up fairy tale characters on Jerry Springer.
The story itself wasn't that interesting. Aside from a few rare moments, the game is mainly devoid of action and is based fully on picking conversation choices. Again, I would have no issue with this if the story was actually interesting, or if I cared about the characters. But I didn't.
I quickly became bored with the game and kinda stopped paying attention to what was going on about the middle of the way through the second chapter. I stopped caring and I just started going through the motions so I could beat it and be done with it. Oftentimes I would set the controller down and play Candy Crush or something on my phone and just let Bigby give everyone the silent treatment. Even though I beat the game, I still have no idea what really happened in the story.
For a game that is 100% story based, you HAVE to deliver on an actual good story. And I think the makers of this game failed spectacularly. I am pretty easy to entertain, especially when it comes to video games. But I was not amused by this at all. I was quite bored as a matter of fact.
Aside from all the long, exceedingly dull conversations and occasional quick time action scenes, the game occasionally offers you the ability to walk around and look at things. Oooooh, exciting! A comb. A potted plant! I know sarcasm doesn't translate well to the internet, but I am hoping you get the point here.
The game does do some things right. The look of the game is fantastic. I like the dark, atmospheric setting. The neon lights and all that. The music is cool. The characters are very sharp and nicely animated. I think the look of the game blows the Walking Dead away.
Also, the choices in this game really affect the way the game plays out. In some other Telltale games, you could make different choices on different play throughs but things still wind up pretty much the same in the end. Not here. On mopping up the trophies for this game so I could get platinum, I was awed at how the different choices you make change the game. It is like a completely different game at points when you are playing through it again. You can see new areas, meet new characters. There all multiple endings. Very well done.
But back to the negative we go. The game is glitchy. Like, REAL glitchy. I lost count of how many times the game froze up when I was playing through it. I wasn't that big a fan of the game to begin with, so this only angered me even more. And then on trophy mop up duty, the game completely deleted my save information not only once, but twice. Twice! What should have been an hour long thing turned into me basically having to play the entire game over again. I was not happy, to say the least. I almost said fuck it. But I wanted the platinum damn it.
I left the game feeling frustrated because of all the glitches, bored by the pedantic gameplay, and completely uninterested in anything the game's story line had going for it. Maybe if I had come in as a fan of the Fables graphic novels - I would have liked it more. Like I said the game does do some things right. And I am sure that there are people out there who really like this game. In fact, I know some of them. But I was not feeling it. At all.
In fact, I kinda want my money back.
Overall:
D-
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