After replaying both episodes I will say...they're not so bad - A "Not So Much Of A" Critique on S3
Hey there!
So like many of you, I immediately jumped on Season Three and decided to get playing, two-parts of an episode so large that it had to be split? An impressive 'extended look'? We get 42 starting points and new features like Build-A-Clem which seems pretty great? Telltale's PR for one of their biggest titles was good and I appreciate it, and truly I think they are some very creative and interesting people who show us that those "non QTE-styled games" can be a lot of fun, and have a very deep message behind them?
Unfortunately, having two episodes which are both two hours, and quick flashbacks where the endings are rendered pointless was pouring salt into the already open wound of Season 2 (which I liked as well).
But if you look at everything with Javier...it's all...good, great in fact. The characters make an impact and seem fleshed out, the details are all there, and the graphics...Well I'm not gonna lie, but they look fantastic. You can really see they improved a lot of the animations, a lot more walker designs are there, details like the walkers being more degraded and thus easier to stomp on to kill, as well as many of them missing limbs and jaws giving them this really much more scary effect.
Even details like a crowbar being stuck in one's jaw, or one wearing a prisoner outfit/jumpsuit of some kind is really interesting - like they have a story behind them and it really helps add to the atmosphere of this world. As well as this, the art and general graphics look awesome - details such as the shaky camera (which isn't done too much or too wildly) help scenes flow a lot better than a static camera at times and brings this sense of uneasiness and constant movement. Look at this image and tell me it doesn't just look great, the lighting and detail like a taxi in this caved-in exit of the tunnels is really something:
Not only that but a lot of the ideas such as using tear gas when unleashing walkers, flash bangs, and general shocking moments (like Mariana's death) were pretty great. I love the conflict in the family, the dynamic going on and how that's clearly going to effect the story at hand. The world is a different place now, with towns, people openly trading, horses, everyone is more or less a seasoned survivor.
But let's talk stop talking so much so about the good, as we get onto the ugly,
There are glitches in visuals here and there, audio cuts out/repeats when I can clearly see the subtitles have the person say something else, lagging between scenes, characters glitching in animations, yada, yada, yada. As long as Telltale updates their engine or just make a new one (yes I know, it's expensive and takes a long time and yada...yada...yada...), they should be fine and they're not too immersion breaking for me at this point. Sometimes I notice odd visual glitches, like the light in the grandfather's room never turns on despite the extended look having the lights turning on and clearly showing his shadow, or the fact that Javier bashes his father over the head yet there's no blood whatsoever. As well as this, some faces like Kenny, Jane's and Edith's are just...not too good, not as ugly or repulsive as some people claim to be, but something just seems distorted especially with Jane/Edith whose faces look almost too big.
But after dealing with the ugly, which isn't too ugly to begin with, let's go over the bad...or at least the validly bad.
Yeah so the flashbacks, though not necessarily sucking all have good ideas but little to no buildup, besides 'Alone' which was a simple enough idea. Clementine gets attacked whilst with AJ and loses a finger, horrifying, painful, and saddening and just as long as it needs to be.
However, the others aren't.
I'm not asking for a whole episode of flashback, but after dealing with Javier's family - it should have cut to Clementine. We should have had a playable section dealing with her in the different time periods, and build up to what happens.
For example, instead of showing us Howe's Hardware which is clearly just an image and not a model which is blurred into the background, why not show us Jane preparing to leave Howe's after what the family did - bringing them in means they steal our food or not bringing them in means they attacked us and that kid ended up shot.
Have the car crash and surrounded by walkers, but don't have Kenny paralysed, just have him hurt and they have to get away from it all, rushing with AJ.
Instead of Edith getting shot in the head, she's shot in the arm and drops AJ, Clementine picks AJ up and the two of them rush away as Clementine is grazed on the cheek.
I wouldn't even mind if there were multiple flashbacks or if the entirety of Part One was dedicated to just Clementine, if it was a sequence where it builds up to things getting so desperate that Jane dies (maybe when giving birth - as does the baby), or Kenny is killed or Edith dies, but all in different conditions. Instead of a flashback with this "Ava" girl, why not have it be a rival group of the New Frontier that results in Jane/Kenny/Edith dying. Thus New Frontier "protects" Clementine and AJ, and she gets taken in. I mean, would we really blame her?
Perhaps just having the "Ava" flashback be used if Clementine is 'Alone' and you don't get a choice, you just join New Frontier anyway due to the fact that you're starving and alone.
But that's the past, let's focus on what can still be fixed:
- The endings can still matter. Show us how each ending affected Clementine. For example during the Conrad confrontation, if you're with Kenny/Wellington - Clementine should understand that family is important and reluctantly offer herself up if it helps get Kate medical help. If she's with Jane, she cares for her survival and then is more aggressive, and as for Edith/Alone, well maybe she's more scared than anything.
Have these endings and people who influenced Clementine change her attitude.
Give Clementine an 'Innocence' arc. We've seen her become a survivor. We've seen her develop as a survivor. Now it's time for her to learn how to adapt to the new world. Clementine, so far, has been edgy, sometimes almost ruthless, and really just disregarding other people's feelings, which makes a lot of sense. But Clementine, by the end of the Season, needs to confront her demons/fears of losing everyone she loves and trust people again, to realise the importance of community and not be the "sole loner" type she's got going on. Her behaviour has already caused some pretty bad consequences.
Longer episodes? Look just make them like, 90 minutes long (I remember when people were complaining these were short) at the very least. Don't tell us you're going to be splitting an episode that's "so big it has to be in two parts", in order to sell us two episodes, both an hour long. Honestly, kind of disgusting but whatever.
Aside from that, things seem to be okay. I like the situations they've been in, the walker scenes are a lot more tense, music is great, art, voice acting - all of it is fine. Just work on the story and gameplay, and it should be set.
(With much reluctance), thanks Telltale!
Comments
Yup. Once you get over the Kenny and Jane bullshit, the episodes and story line is really great.
I thought Javi's solo parts were really good, but I honestly thought it would do better if it was able to stand on its own without the connections to Clem's story and the comics.
I still think there is something missing. I think the main thing is that the pace is off. In season 1, but also partly in season 2 it was all sectioned off between the faster paced cutscenes and the hubs. In this game all hubs besides the first one are extremely short, you don't get to have a breather, at least not as much as in the other seasons.
Furthermore, in these hubs we have almost nothing to talk to people about, it's especailly apparent in the tow truck hub, obviously you are in a bit of a hurry to press on with Kate, but you only get to have one small conversation with everyone.
It just feels to fast paced in comparison.
I also don't think the storyline is that great, good sure, but it's not really super amazing. You are with your family who for some reason have been doing fine for 4 years, then suddenly shit hits the fan and for some reason the bad guys keep coming back and messing shit up. Mari is killed for cheap drama, Prescott is obliterated before we grow to like the community, it barely bothers to introduce anyone besides Tripp and Eleanor. No one gave a damn about Morgan Freeman even though he appeared nice enough, he's still written in to blame Javi regardless of your choice to give yourself up for example, so when he threatens Clementine and Gabriel it's not much of a choice to shoot him or not.
The best part I think, is Javiers relationship to Kate and Gabe. I also think he contrasts Clementine quite nicely, I was afraid that they wouldn't work well together but I think they have chemistry, helped by their voice actors.
I really hope we can get to know Tripp and Eleanor better. The way we come to care for these characters is to get to know who they were before, how they view the apocalypse and how they have changed from what they were. We don't get that, just flashes of Javier's family and Clementine's "origins."
I still feel like I need to grow some connections, and that is not a good thing when epside 3, supposedly the dramatic peak of the story, is supposed to happen.
I hope this doesn't seem too rant-y, I don't hate the season so far, but it lacks too many things for it to be amazing, or even just great for me.
I know right? This doesn't feel like Clementine's story, this feels like a Walking Dead miniseries or something that would lead up to Season 3 and is providing background.
Honestly, I hope Telltale gives Clementine a reasonably happy or at the very least bittersweet ending and leave her there. I think her character is done, and her arc is near-finishing. She doesn't need to be killed off, I'd hate that, and I still love the character but she needs to have her ending and have Telltale focus on making another TWD series with someone else.
Extremely fair review of A New Frontier, loved it. Truly, there should have been an extra episode wrapping up Season 2, either the first episode or an additional one, there should've been more time dedicated to it. It could also have explained the excuse "too big to fit in one episode" line instead of just trying to establish hype.
Absolutely. Clementine and Jesus also add some disconnect to the tension I feel, like, I'm not afraid anything horrible will happen while they are close to Javier.
Awesome Hamilton profile, first of all.
And thank you, and I agree! Honestly...I think there shouldn't be a Season 3.
What I think is that, instead of the Michonne miniseries, it is a bonus episode similar to 400 Days which is purchasable or free for those with the Season Pass/5 episodes before it was released (anyone buying it after pays), which would explore what happens to Clementine after her endings. I mean the Michonne miniseries was 3 90 minute episodes, imagine all the resources used for that dedicated to one 90 minute episode of 5 endings. It'd make more sense and generate hype for Season 3 if she meets Javier (with the shotgun) at the end.
Then Season 3 picks up and it's from Javier's perspective to the point he meets Clementine.
Thank you! Hamilton really inspires me.
For the rest of it, yes I agree, it probably would've been better for them over all. Sadly, we got to roll with what we have and overall, I'm pretty satisfied so far.
I still personally feel that ANF could have just been Telltales next Walking Dead series. Clem's story could have been over in season 2. She still feels weirdly out of place, she is kinda just there. The flashbacks were pretty disrespectful for older players too. Basically, so far in the story it seems like Clem could have been completely removed and the story wouldn't suffer, infact it may have even improved.
Not sure how to feel about comic tie-ins yet either, so far we have Jesus, but even he feels out of place. He is just there, and we're kinda just like "lmao welcome to the group."
Yeah, I feel like Clementine could be replaced with an entirely different character - maybe someone from the series like Christa or Lilly that we recognise, but this feels like its own series.
I agree whole-heartedly with you. You perfectly describe how I feel about Season 3/ANF/Whatever-you-want-to-call-it. Because I'm one of the few people who are fine with what they have given us so far (minus the flashbacks, of course).
I did enjoy episode 1 after the initial disappointment wore off, enough so that I'm willing to see how they handle the dynamic between Javier and Clementine. I still would have preferred a dual protagonist style, but if they handle it right it could work well in this and future installments. I don't think there's nothing left to do with Clem, this is the walking dead, people who started watching it in highschool are college aged now lol. There's always different dynamics to explore and different stories to tell. With that, I also don't think every season needs to end with the deaths of everyone, or almost everyone. It would require writing more consistent characters, but that's nothing new in games.
While I did enjoy Clementines moments in episode 1, she's overshadowing Javier because of who she is. If they really wanted to make a new character the focal point of the series, they should have done a satisfactory wrap up with Clem and moved on. I understand why they didn't, I obviously can't speak for everyone but I probably wouldn't be the only customer that left, and they're trying to appeal to as many as possible. But this looks to be, so far, the wrong way to go about it with their fans. But there's still 3 more episodes left to see where they take it, they might be able to hit a good compromise.
I wouldn't go as far as to say that Clementine's character is completed, or even that her arc is almost over, but this doesn't feel like her story at all. If you ask me, Clementine doesn't need to have an ending, or at least she doesn't need to have an ending yet. That's almost like saying that Rick (in the television show) needs to have an ending.
Well, no it really isn't.
Rick has the ability to not be limited to his arc, through comic and television show, it can go on as long as possible whereas Clementine has been limited to having an arc - more likely two, in 10 episodes - 5 episodes split down the middle, all of varying lengths.
The only two arcs I can see Clementine going through (not ending in death) is an 'Innocence' arc, like I mentioned before or a 'Recovery' arc which is essentially similar. Aside from that, where else can her character go? How long will it be? 3 Seasons? 4? 5?
I think another improvement would be:
It's almost like saying that. But that's just where we differ in opinions.
Any character has the ability to not be limited to his or her arc. To think otherwise is to limit their potential for growth within the allotted time given. If a character is limited by their arc, then the problem that surfaces may not be in the characters themselves, but in the writers of said characters. Besides, Clementine could very well be introduced into the comic book series and extend her longevity in the universe of The Walking Dead, as far as arc goes if you would consider that to be an issue, which I would venture to say that it's not a problem.
But that's mere speculation for right now, in regards to what arcs you see Clementine going through. And that's also only what you see. If I have learned anything from playing Telltale Games' games, is that the writers have something entirely different in mind more often than not. Clementine's story could go a different route than we originally expected, which would make her arc of little importance. Meaning that, the length of episodes in a season doesn't make a difference in being able to develop Clementine as a character even more. Where else can Clementine go? How long will her travels be? How many seasons will it last? Well, I just don't know. But what I do know is that there's more to Clementine than we have previously seen.
That would have been pretty cool, actually. I think it might have even gone a long way for the no compromise Clem fans as far as their reception of Javiers character, watching him do something like that himself.
You're goddamn right. I enjoyed replaying those episodes and I already like Season 3 better than the previous seasons.
I 100% agree. I just got over the bad-written flashbacks and I love this season so far.