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A small "Bogey Man" review

ElandrilElandril
edited August 2009 in Wallace & Gromit
I have just finished "The Bogey Man" and unfortunately have to conclude that this last episode was a real let down for the series. :( So I'd like to give a few comments on why I come to this conclusion.

First of all, let's have a look at the technical aspects. The Bogey Man suffers from a lot of non-critical but very annoying bugs, e.g. the crack lines in the characters, the unsmooth changes between playable and cinematic parts, ...

Secondly the mentioned cutscenes really lack not only the smooth transitions in the technical way, but also in the way of story telling. To give you an example of what I mean with that, I have put it into a spoiler box:
After Fellicity sees Wallace wearing the golf club branded pullover, there should be a scene showing her fainting or something like this, not just a "oh my" and then a loveless, harsh cut to the initiation scene in the club.

Overall while playing I always had a feeling of incompleteness and often the riddles seemes awfully rushed. So I think that the release might have needed a few more days (or even 1-2 weeks) of polishing, fleshing out and fine tuning. I would really like to know if any of you also have similar feeling or opinions about this episode!

Comments

  • Bruno83Bruno83
    edited July 2009
    exept for the bugs, I clearly disagree.
    It was a very nice season final. with typical aardman humor.
    It's also been the first episode where I got stuck a bit and had to turn the hints on.
    I liked this episode.
    Some bug fixes in the DVD release would be highly appreciated!
  • MolokovMolokov
    edited August 2009
    I actually loved it! Much more challenging puzzles than the first two episodes, I think it's definitely on par (excuse the golf pun) with Muzzled!. A good finish to the series.
  • Masta23Masta23
    edited August 2009
    I didn't really notice those technical problems you mentioned.. guess I was enjoying the game too much to notice.
  • MolokovMolokov
    edited August 2009
    I noticed crack lines in the character's faces (most noticeably in PC Dibbins facial close-up) but it was a minor graphical issue and I did have everything turned up to 9 :)
  • Pantagruel's FriendPantagruel's Friend
    edited August 2009
    I found the graphical glitches a bit surprising (appearing in Ep4), but otherwise, except for one small detail (
    the way the 17th and the 18th hole were made sequential left me feeling a bit cheated
    ), I found the game impeccable. It was 4 hours of stellar entertainment, a worthy finale to an excellent series.
  • Angel SummonerAngel Summoner
    edited August 2009
    I got the impression that this episode was rushed slightly, or not given proper attention, as there were a few glitches and silly errors in it, but the actual adventure itself was pretty good. Once again the characters were all interesting to talk to, and the story was suitably bonkers, with a fitting final scene for W&G.
  • NimeniNimeni
    edited August 2009
    Yeah, I was kind of bothered by the crack lines, but the game playing was a lot of fun. I was highly amused by trying to get out of the accidental proposal, and much enjoyed the increased challenge on the puzzles. It was much more engaging for me than some of the others. Although I still love LR for the whole Agatha Christie feel to it.
  • Rather DashingRather Dashing
    edited August 2009
    The content was AMAZING, and I'd put it up there with the better Sam and Max episodes. Not quite "Chariots of the Dogs", but definitely a great conclusion. The facial cracks were fairly annoying, but also not game-breaking, I guess.

    I found the puzzles to be fun, creative, and surprisingly difficult for a Telltale game. It was simply excellent, and I loved the whole experience. If they'd all been like Bogey Man, I wouldn't have minded the 4 episode structure.
  • wallacegromitfan66wallacegromitfan66
    edited August 2009
    I've only seen the walkthrough on Youtube & the sand trap puzzle was the coolest part.
  • MegalomanMegaloman
    edited August 2009
    The sand trap was brilliant, although I couldn't help but wonder why they put it in the end of the last part. It clearly shows all of the characters relations and made me actually appreciate them more than I had previously, when they didn't interact with each other that much. I didn't find the puzzles any harder than the rest of the season, but maybe that's because I'm now used to how the games logic works.

    Still, Last Resort is the best episode to me and Muzzled is probably the worst.
  • Pantagruel's FriendPantagruel's Friend
    edited August 2009
    Megaloman wrote: »
    The sand trap was brilliant, although I couldn't help but wonder why they put it in the end of the last part. It clearly shows all of the characters relations and made me actually appreciate them more than I had previously, when they didn't interact with each other that much.

    I think it was meant to guide the player towards the conclusion, a step towards resolving every thread character's thread.
    And, I found it well placed because it was a little logic game with lots of funny dialog before the action at the end :)
  • MegalomanMegaloman
    edited August 2009
    Pantagruel's Friend wrote: »
    I think it was meant to guide the player towards the conclusion, a step towards resolving every thread character's thread.
    And, I found it well placed because it was a little logic game with lots of funny dialog before the action at the end :)

    Yeah, I guess that's the way it's supposed to be viewed. Still, it would have been interesting with similar character based puzzles earlier on!
  • Pantagruel's FriendPantagruel's Friend
    edited August 2009
    Megaloman wrote: »
    Yeah, I guess that's the way it's supposed to be viewed. Still, it would have been interesting with similar character based puzzles earlier on!

    OK, I get your point now. Simple as this: agreed! :)
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