It looks like this game is really going to change the way we look at Back to the Future forever. It will be interesting to put these characters do as the original Doc Brown quote "Your future is whatever you make it."
The trying to fix the timeline is straight out of Back to the Future Part II and III. Sadly I always felt they were the weakest in the trilogy so I must say the current story arch is particularly weak when it comes to Back to the Future series. It will take a lot to really make this a great Back to the Future story. Cause through four episodes we have piled more and more questions that have yet to be answered aside from how does Marty get out of that predicament.
I know one thing no way will the fifth episode feel this short. Cause honestly aside from trying to "fix" what's been done while answering all these unanswered questions will require a lot of narration compared to what has been.
Wondering what FCB whispered to Edna, I thought it was 'I know you did the arson' but that doesn't seem to quite fit. She treats him too nice for it to be about that in my opinion.
Also, sounds like young Emmett just invented hover technology for flying cars......about 80 years ahead of schedule. Interesting to see if that goes anywhere.
Not enough Jennifer. Felt like it could have gone on for longer. I don't understand why Citizen Brown still existed after Doc + Edna's relationship was destroyed.
Sadly unlike the movies the time shifts and changes are way more screwed up to the point they are not double checking their story before creating it.
Unlike the one issue in the original trilogy with Einstein and Jennifer issue. This one goes all over the place. This just being the latest. That is why I am a bit weary about the ending of this game. I just do not know how one could actually continue the story of the trilogy. I did not consider the cartoon series canon and it looks like I won't consider this one canon as well it may seem. However I am enjoying the story.
Finally beat it. And that episode was just... Not worth the wait. Its a little bland and boring. And there are so many sound errors and glitches. And Yoman, I can't believe you fell for that guys post.
Make it 3. I think they're on to a huge payoff, as far as this particular Back to the Future story. I'm now wondering how the hell Marty can possibly even fix this and restore the timeline. I did feel bad for Edna at the end of this episode, something I didn't expect considering she was the epitome of evil for most of the episode.
""Originally Posted by PrivateJoker
Not enough Jennifer. Felt like it could have gone on for longer. I don't understand why Citizen Brown still existed after Doc + Edna's relationship was destroyed. "
Sadly unlike the movies the time shifts and changes are way more screwed up to the point they are not double checking their story before creating it.
Unlike the one issue in the original trilogy with Einstein and Jennifer issue. This one goes all over the place. This just being the latest. That is why I am a bit weary about the ending of this game. I just do not know how one could actually continue the story of the trilogy. I did not consider the cartoon series canon and it looks like I won't consider this one canon as well it may seem. However I am enjoying the story. "
Hi,
First Citizen Brown's hasn't changed or vanished because until he moves to a point of no return, that is the future of whatever past he travelled from with the events set in place, his outcome is still a possibility (however slight it is). This is what happened to original Doc when the delorean travelled to FCB1986 (and what happened to Biff eventually when he travelled to 2015) even though events are shaping and altering around them (Doc in the delorean watching the stub fade away) the future can still be changed by some other event.
Why FCB is still here ?
Because as explained in eps 5 trailer, Edna will end up trying again with Emmett.
Emmett will be too much focused on science to resist her and thus they will be a couple again.
That's why FCB says the problem is not Edna, It's Science.
Actually, here's a question...what was the point to the algae cakes? I was actually confused by their turning teeth green into thinking for awhile that that was how you were supposed to turn the chronometric indicator green.
The algae cakes give Emmett a negative reaction, in case you get your hands on the algae cakes before you've solved the Mental Alignment puzzle.
Since you'll probably solve that puzzle first, though (not to mention you can get a negative reaction out of him just fine without the algae cakes), they're kind of pointless.
Wondering what FCB whispered to Edna, I thought it was 'I know you did the arson' but that doesn't seem to quite fit. She treats him too nice for it to be about that in my opinion.
I think I heard him say "I know what you're up to" but I'm not sure.
For me there is one major problem with this episode.
At the end where you are talking to Doc about Edna's future and you are then asked whether there is a third option, you are not given the opportunity to say yes. Sure, given the way the story is panning out this lack of choice makes sense from a narrative point of view, but why still have it as a player choice if in fact there is no choice. I mean, just make the line part of Marty's scripted dialogue. This may not sound like much but up until that point in the conversation I'd been honest with Doc and told him that Edna's future wasn't going to be that great. However, when the crunch came to it and I wasn't allowed to make some other choice I felt thoroughly disenfranchised and distanced from the character of Marty.
Overall I must say that I've loved the episodes to date and have been very impressed with the way the Telltale guys have spun their story threads, but don't give a player the illusion of choice if there is really none to be had - you'll just end up breaking the investment they've built up in the games character's (to be honest I now can't help but see Marty as being more than a bit of a douche and am heavily routing for Doc at this point, which I don't think is the intention of the developers and will inevitably effect my opinion of the characters going into the final episode).
For me there is one major problem with this episode.
At the end where you are talking to Doc about Edna's future and you are then asked whether there is a third option, you are not given the opportunity to say yes. Sure, given the way the story is panning out this lack of choice makes sense from a narrative point of view, but why still have it as a player choice if in fact there is no choice. I mean, just make the line part of Marty's scripted dialogue. This may not sound like much but up until that point in the conversation I'd been honest with Doc and told him that Edna's future wasn't going to be that great. However, when the crunch came to it and I wasn't allowed to make some other choice I felt thoroughly disenfranchised and distanced from the character of Marty.
Telltale seems to like this sort of thing, where you're given various dialogue options but they say the same thing no matter which one you pick. It happened a lot in Tales of Monkey Island too. I'm not sure why they do it. Maybe it's to be funny (though since it was being used in serious scenes in this episode, maybe not), maybe it's to give an element of "gameplay" in what would otherwise be a lengthy conversation, or maybe it's to show how the player character is their own character and not just a simple pawn for the player's actions. Whatever it is, though, it gets pretty annoying.
For me there is one major problem with this episode.
At the end where you are talking to Doc about Edna's future and you are then asked whether there is a third option, you are not given the opportunity to say yes. Sure, given the way the story is panning out this lack of choice makes sense from a narrative point of view, but why still have it as a player choice if in fact there is no choice. I mean, just make the line part of Marty's scripted dialogue. This may not sound like much but up until that point in the conversation I'd been honest with Doc and told him that Edna's future wasn't going to be that great. However, when the crunch came to it and I wasn't allowed to make some other choice I felt thoroughly disenfranchised and distanced from the character of Marty.
The problem with episodic games is just that; it is linear and when all is said and done, you really don't have the freedom of choice.
If it had been a full-length game in non-episodic format, you would likely have more versatility: Puzzles across different time-periods (the need to travel back and forth through time), choices you make would have an effect in later parts of the game and there would be the opportunity to make subtle changes to the characters and the environment as a result of how/when you solved the puzzles.
So yes, there is a very apparent lack of choice but there really isn't much to work with either. The designers are limited by the length of the individual episodes and the whole story is played in segments, and then each episode again is played in segments.
You don't have a choice of what to do at any given time really; it's linear and much more like a collection of cut scenes you merely click your way through than an actual computer game.
A choice in dialogues would definitely not have been a bad thing, I agree with you there. It's not hard to make it work, your conversation choices affect the later branches of the dialogue tree which in turn affect character perceptions and subsequent conversations, be they big or small.
That said, it would have been a big improvement if the dialogue "puzzles" were a bit more than "Just pick the right thing to say and you progress in the game".
In particular I'm thinking about when Edna tries to prevent you from talking with young Emmet in his lab. You just pick the correct dialogue option and she leaves. Very badly thought out, and completely pointless.
@caeska; don't get me wrong, I know it's a linear game and that there is no _real_ choice. However I do think that by giving the player the illusion of choice at that critical story point and then not following it up by providing the option the player (at least in my case) expects to be able to take there is a real danger of them loosing sympathy with the character they are playing as. In an episodic franchise like BttF I'd say this is rather more important because the developers need people to feel on a par with the player characters motives in order to keep them coming back for subsequent chapters. As RAnthonyMahan mentions Telltale games often feature a bunch of alternate responses that don't necessarily change the course of the dialogue but add that bit more colour to proceedings, and in general this is great and works very well. In this case though I think it was a bad idea given the key point in the story and the nature of the change in the main characters relationship. For myself it meant that by the end of the game I was no longer aligned with Marty's actions and given that this is the guy I have to play through the next (final) episode the experience ended up being that bit less fulfilling for me.
Let's be four, then I completely subscribe Datadog pros and cons list.
I didnt know what to expect about episode 4, but the result gave me somehting finally unexpected by far!... I love the idea of Doc becoming some sort of villain.
Im starting to think FCB is really Doc. He didn't disappear when Edna broke up with young emmet. I think he has something planned in that brain of his.
This episode sets up all of the crap that will happen in OUTATIME. The episode can get intense at times, the puzzles are harder this time (one took me almost an hour to figure out), and is well directed (Dave Grossman directs). The glitches are almost extinguished, which is nice. Can't wait until the finale in June!:D:D
Still not very engaging puzzles, but well engaging story, I liked it
One thing in particular:
I really would have liked Marty to play an actual rock song to snap out Jennifer instead of just some meddling.
^ Agreed. Something definitely on the 'to do' list when this season is no doubt inevitably edited into a fan Back to the Future IV. Perhaps something like Van Halen, since it would echo BTTF 1 where he used it to snap out George.
I like little touches like Doc
not being able to hear Marty while hanging from the clock...reminiscent of him not being able to hear Marty back in BTTF. And Marty skitching behind the cars in 1931 and having a skateboard again.
They have done a great job the whole series with throwing in little echoes to the original trilogy...not always big signature ones. Another was in Episode 3 where Biff loomed above Marty like Griff did in BTTF2 in the Cafe 80s,
Oh and the echo of Sam and Max's jukebox in Stinky's with the record player with "I Don't Care" on... I'm surprised with all this time travelling meddling that it didn't turn into a jukebox halfway through that puzzle haha
Really liked the episode - now it's time to work on Predictions 5's script with Mathman But it's going to be a bit of a change... consider the best saved for last
First Citizen Brown's hasn't changed or vanished because until he moves to a point of no return, that is the future of whatever past he travelled from with the events set in place, his outcome is still a possibility (however slight it is). This is what happened to original Doc when the delorean travelled to FCB1986 (and what happened to Biff eventually when he travelled to 2015) even though events are shaping and altering around them (Doc in the delorean watching the stub fade away) the future can still be changed by some other event.
Exactly. The game actually provides a good explanation for this too. FCB at one point specifically mentions that Young Emmett is moving faster than expected and that originally, he didn't propose to Edna until after the Expo had passed when they took a trip to the lake.
Just like Marty didn't cease to exist immediately after he stopped his parents from meeting, with the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance being his own point of no return, that date at the lake where FCB first proposed to Edna was his point of no return, and till that event passed, the 1986B timeline was still a possibility.
However, there IS a slight issue that hasn't been brought up, though mostly because we actually haven't seen what can happen yet. Given that the time traveler in question tends to have a ripple effect proof memory, doesn't that mean that First Citizen Brown would retain his memories of his timeline if he were to stick around with Marty in 1931 and change the timeline?
Personnally, I thought Episode Four: Double Visions, had a lot of things going for it that could have made it the best episode yet, but there were also a few bad things that should have essentially been there.
Pros:
New areas (the Citizen brown Court house, which had many different sections-- Marty's room, jennifer's room, the control panel, Biff's room, Edna's room..... Emmett's labratory, which had changed from the last time we were there.... The top of the clock tower, which was very fun to experience...... the Expo, during the morning, and in the afternoon - in the afternoon, you could see the exhibit)
AND previously visited areas (Outside 1986 Citizen Brown Courthouse, Outside the Courthouse in 1931, and the movie theatre, which was briefly in Episode 2)
Puzzle design was better than ever - still easy, but this time there were more puzzles, and they were fun and you felt like you had more than one going on at the same time. The puzzle with the positive/ negative reactions was the most challenging puzzle in the whole series by far, and that's a good thing.
Character development - this had pros and cons. I felt Marty had some minor character development, in the right direction. I liked when he had to tell Citizen Brown the truth about Edna's real future. Citizen Brown had major charactor development. At the beginning I thought it was going too fast, that he did not hesitate to leave his 1986 and everything he knew, but by the time Marty's plan was all coming together and he did not want to go through with it, it got to a more realistic point. It will be interesting to see how evil he becomes in the next episode. Edna's character is turning out to be very evil and freaky too. She had some development, and it felt very real to be honest. Biff and Officer Parker had a short cameo, but not much to do here. That's okay, because Edna's a more evil villain. Young Emmett had the best development of all, I thought.
Gameplay - this episode definitely had better gameplay than the rest. Shorter load times and better camera angles. Other than that it was the same.
Voice acting as always is so good. Everyone says how terrific Christopher Lloyd and the guy who voices Marty are, and they are fantastic, but what about the guy who voices Young Emmett? I find him to be really good.
CONS
Humour. The story took a darker turn, and for some thats okay. But I thought there was definitely a lack of humour. Where there was, it was very funny, but it should have had more.
Time Travel - It's not that it's terrible we only travelled in time once, but we barely saw the Delorian get to 88! There should have been a more cinimatic time travel element like usual. Sure we did get it, but it didn't feel as good as it was in the first episode. I loved how in the first they let Kid Tannen get away from Parker in the first few seconds of being in 1931.
And when Citizen Brown was using it, we couldn't come with him because... we shouldn't know about the problems with the delorian and cause a paradox? seems pretty silly compared to what paradoxes Marty's risked in the past. I felt that I should have done something instead of wait for him to come back. Plus Citizen Brown and Marty both didn't seem too upset about the problems with the delorian.
It would have been interesting, I think, to go back in time to when Marty came in the first and second episode, and he would want to warn real Doc Brown about what he is doing. And Citizen Brown would see Doc Brown and Young Emmett Brown all at the same time, and be jealous of what Doc Brown has become, because he would see that he is much happier and more similar to Young Emmett Brown.
I would honestly say that this was the best episode so far. Episode 3 was a big set up for the last three episodes and this one was the middle ground with all the development. Completely agree with everyone when I say that the character development of First Citizen Brown was the best. The conversation between FCB and Marty concerning Edna in the present seems more of a tribute to the 3rd movie giving more complexity to the character. Plus the way they end it will seem like he will be a villain for the beginning.
The Mind Map Puzzle was actually the hardest puzzle for me to figure out and I applaud them for that.
The story for this was the best of all of them too. They developed Edna to make her seem more sympathetic now. I loved the clock tower sequence and as a thing in BTTF History repeats itself.
I'm going to add my voice to the group who felt that this was the best episode so far.
The sequence in the Citizen Plus training facility was fantastic
and the moment when Marty lept down in triumph with his guitar, only to have the whole thing backfire was one of the funniest moments in the series.
What really sold me, though, was that this episode added a brand new flavour to the franchise: For the first time, it addressed the ethics of time travel. After all, what right does Marty have to meddle in people's pasts and change their futures to suit himself. In the movie, for example, why does he get to ruin Biff's life just to improve his parents'? Why is that his decision to make? Does access to advanced technology give someone the right to muck about in other people's lives? It seems to me that this question informs a lot of international politics of today.
Citizen Brown's urging to use technology to benefit everyone, rather than just our friends made me stop and think about the series so far (the movies too) and reflect on them in a new light. Plus, his feelings for Edna were truly touching. I hope the final episode takes this question further.
The question of when-does-science-go-too-far is, of course, part of Frankenstein as wel. The in-game references clearly aren't accidental.
That being said, the bit where you had to wait for the green light in the Delorean was lame. Given that (1) I have an item to turn things green in my inventory and (2) there are at least two green light bulbs in Emmett's lab, I thought that I would have to mock up the green light in some way. But no, I simply had to wait! I spent a good chunk of time trying to "solve" this, when it turned out to be not a problem at all. Grrr . . .
I really would have liked Marty to play an actual rock song to snap out Jennifer instead of just some meddling.
Me too. I love the Johnny B. Goode Scene from the movie.
Probably has something to do with copyright or their animation system being unable to handle the awesomeness of MJF's guitar face.
Also, who at Telltale thought that Manitoba had trees and moose? It's a completely flat prairie land with no trees for miles! lol I should know, I live there.
You silly Americans....
Still trying to figure out why the title 'Double Visions' is appropriate. I thought we were going to somehow see 2 1986 Doc Browns or something...
Are you serious? Manitoba has lots of trees and moose. I don't think they meant in Winnipeg itself or Brandon or what have you. Also Winnipeg is one of the largest urban forests in the world.
What I would like to know is who is responsible for the many Manitoba references in telltale games. Got to say they put a smile on my face every time.
I normally don't post here, but I'd like to throw in my two cents for this episode since I really liked this one.
I personally think there's way too few puzzles and they're far too easy. I guess that's the direction they've chosen for the game, and I can live with it. I thought the puzzles were loads better in this episode than 2 or 3, though. They were still very, very easy, but as someone else pointed out, they were pretty creative and blended in fairly well with the story, making them pretty enjoyable. Props for that.
I really liked the story. I like the perspective it puts on everything, I liked the darker tone near the end, and I was happy about the way they executed it. I would say more, but I'm afraid of spoiling something and I believe the pros of the story have already been mentioned by some of the other people who liked it, so it's all good.
The cliffhanger was even better this time. Looking forward to the conclusion, make it count, Telltale.
I definitely thought this was the best episode so far, but I didn't really like the direction they took Trixie in this episode. When we got Trixie to turn on Tannen, it seemed like a great thing since she was stubborn and worried but you got her to get her to turn on Tannen because of her beliefs.
This episode made it seem like she would turn on anyone the way she turned on Edna. Sure she was upset that she was fired, but it was the law's fault, not Edna. I mean, I liked the way they handled it, I just thought it was not a good step for Trixie's character development. I didn't like it.
I definitely thought this was the best episode so far, but I didn't really like the direction they took Trixie in this episode. When we got Trixie to turn on Tannen, it seemed like a great thing since she was stubborn and worried but you got her to get her to turn on Tannen because of her beliefs.
This episode made it seem like she would turn on anyone the way she turned on Edna. Sure she was upset that she was fired, but it was the law's fault, not Edna. I mean, I liked the way they handled it, I just thought it was not a good step for Trixie's character development. I didn't like it.
Does anyone else agree?
As long as Marty gets Trixie pregnant, all will be good. (Then you find out her daughter is Jennifer's mom....OMG).
As long as Marty gets Trixie pregnant, all will be good. (Then you find out her daughter is Jennifer's mom....OMG).
So Marty dates... his granddaughter? Hmmm
Doc, personnally, even the Doc in episode 1 and 2, is not at all personality wise like the Doc from the end of the third movie, who is more like a Family man wise carefree Doc. The Doc in Episode 1 and 2 is the Doc from the beginning of the first movie.
I thought was great, a good way to spend 3 hours. I feel that the storyline is building up fantastically and that's the main reason I'm playing this series so I'm happy.
I feel that the storyline is building up fantastically and that's the main reason I'm playing this series so I'm happy.
Same here. The plot and characters really are what keep me. There are some groan-able textures and background, such as when Marty is leaving Emmetts house, the door opens to reveal emptiness except for some sky and far away hills. Marty walks out onto air. No joke.
I felt this episode was longer than the rest. There were definitely less cutscenes, or at least much shorter ones. The pacing was handled much better than previously, more gameplay less talking.
Comments
The trying to fix the timeline is straight out of Back to the Future Part II and III. Sadly I always felt they were the weakest in the trilogy so I must say the current story arch is particularly weak when it comes to Back to the Future series. It will take a lot to really make this a great Back to the Future story. Cause through four episodes we have piled more and more questions that have yet to be answered aside from how does Marty get out of that predicament.
I know one thing no way will the fifth episode feel this short. Cause honestly aside from trying to "fix" what's been done while answering all these unanswered questions will require a lot of narration compared to what has been.
This!
Sadly unlike the movies the time shifts and changes are way more screwed up to the point they are not double checking their story before creating it.
Unlike the one issue in the original trilogy with Einstein and Jennifer issue. This one goes all over the place. This just being the latest. That is why I am a bit weary about the ending of this game. I just do not know how one could actually continue the story of the trilogy. I did not consider the cartoon series canon and it looks like I won't consider this one canon as well it may seem. However I am enjoying the story.
i didnt fall for it i was joking...
Make it 3. I think they're on to a huge payoff, as far as this particular Back to the Future story. I'm now wondering how the hell Marty can possibly even fix this and restore the timeline. I did feel bad for Edna at the end of this episode, something I didn't expect considering she was the epitome of evil for most of the episode.
Not enough Jennifer. Felt like it could have gone on for longer. I don't understand why Citizen Brown still existed after Doc + Edna's relationship was destroyed. "
Sadly unlike the movies the time shifts and changes are way more screwed up to the point they are not double checking their story before creating it.
Unlike the one issue in the original trilogy with Einstein and Jennifer issue. This one goes all over the place. This just being the latest. That is why I am a bit weary about the ending of this game. I just do not know how one could actually continue the story of the trilogy. I did not consider the cartoon series canon and it looks like I won't consider this one canon as well it may seem. However I am enjoying the story. "
Hi,
First Citizen Brown's hasn't changed or vanished because until he moves to a point of no return, that is the future of whatever past he travelled from with the events set in place, his outcome is still a possibility (however slight it is). This is what happened to original Doc when the delorean travelled to FCB1986 (and what happened to Biff eventually when he travelled to 2015) even though events are shaping and altering around them (Doc in the delorean watching the stub fade away) the future can still be changed by some other event.
Because as explained in eps 5 trailer, Edna will end up trying again with Emmett.
Emmett will be too much focused on science to resist her and thus they will be a couple again.
That's why FCB says the problem is not Edna, It's Science.
The algae cakes give Emmett a negative reaction, in case you get your hands on the algae cakes before you've solved the Mental Alignment puzzle.
Since you'll probably solve that puzzle first, though (not to mention you can get a negative reaction out of him just fine without the algae cakes), they're kind of pointless.
At the end where you are talking to Doc about Edna's future and you are then asked whether there is a third option, you are not given the opportunity to say yes. Sure, given the way the story is panning out this lack of choice makes sense from a narrative point of view, but why still have it as a player choice if in fact there is no choice. I mean, just make the line part of Marty's scripted dialogue. This may not sound like much but up until that point in the conversation I'd been honest with Doc and told him that Edna's future wasn't going to be that great. However, when the crunch came to it and I wasn't allowed to make some other choice I felt thoroughly disenfranchised and distanced from the character of Marty.
Overall I must say that I've loved the episodes to date and have been very impressed with the way the Telltale guys have spun their story threads, but don't give a player the illusion of choice if there is really none to be had - you'll just end up breaking the investment they've built up in the games character's (to be honest I now can't help but see Marty as being more than a bit of a douche and am heavily routing for Doc at this point, which I don't think is the intention of the developers and will inevitably effect my opinion of the characters going into the final episode).
Telltale seems to like this sort of thing, where you're given various dialogue options but they say the same thing no matter which one you pick. It happened a lot in Tales of Monkey Island too. I'm not sure why they do it. Maybe it's to be funny (though since it was being used in serious scenes in this episode, maybe not), maybe it's to give an element of "gameplay" in what would otherwise be a lengthy conversation, or maybe it's to show how the player character is their own character and not just a simple pawn for the player's actions. Whatever it is, though, it gets pretty annoying.
The problem with episodic games is just that; it is linear and when all is said and done, you really don't have the freedom of choice.
If it had been a full-length game in non-episodic format, you would likely have more versatility: Puzzles across different time-periods (the need to travel back and forth through time), choices you make would have an effect in later parts of the game and there would be the opportunity to make subtle changes to the characters and the environment as a result of how/when you solved the puzzles.
So yes, there is a very apparent lack of choice but there really isn't much to work with either. The designers are limited by the length of the individual episodes and the whole story is played in segments, and then each episode again is played in segments.
You don't have a choice of what to do at any given time really; it's linear and much more like a collection of cut scenes you merely click your way through than an actual computer game.
A choice in dialogues would definitely not have been a bad thing, I agree with you there. It's not hard to make it work, your conversation choices affect the later branches of the dialogue tree which in turn affect character perceptions and subsequent conversations, be they big or small.
That said, it would have been a big improvement if the dialogue "puzzles" were a bit more than "Just pick the right thing to say and you progress in the game".
In particular I'm thinking about when Edna tries to prevent you from talking with young Emmet in his lab. You just pick the correct dialogue option and she leaves. Very badly thought out, and completely pointless.
Let's be four, then
I didnt know what to expect about episode 4, but the result gave me somehting finally unexpected by far!... I love the idea of Doc becoming some sort of villain.
One thing in particular:
I like little touches like Doc
They have done a great job the whole series with throwing in little echoes to the original trilogy...not always big signature ones. Another was in Episode 3 where Biff loomed above Marty like Griff did in BTTF2 in the Cafe 80s,
Oh and the echo of Sam and Max's jukebox in Stinky's with the record player with "I Don't Care" on... I'm surprised with all this time travelling meddling that it didn't turn into a jukebox halfway through that puzzle
Really liked the episode - now it's time to work on Predictions 5's script with Mathman
Exactly. The game actually provides a good explanation for this too. FCB at one point specifically mentions that Young Emmett is moving faster than expected and that originally, he didn't propose to Edna until after the Expo had passed when they took a trip to the lake.
Just like Marty didn't cease to exist immediately after he stopped his parents from meeting, with the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance being his own point of no return, that date at the lake where FCB first proposed to Edna was his point of no return, and till that event passed, the 1986B timeline was still a possibility.
However, there IS a slight issue that hasn't been brought up, though mostly because we actually haven't seen what can happen yet. Given that the time traveler in question tends to have a ripple effect proof memory, doesn't that mean that First Citizen Brown would retain his memories of his timeline if he were to stick around with Marty in 1931 and change the timeline?
Pros:
New areas (the Citizen brown Court house, which had many different sections-- Marty's room, jennifer's room, the control panel, Biff's room, Edna's room..... Emmett's labratory, which had changed from the last time we were there.... The top of the clock tower, which was very fun to experience...... the Expo, during the morning, and in the afternoon - in the afternoon, you could see the exhibit)
AND previously visited areas (Outside 1986 Citizen Brown Courthouse, Outside the Courthouse in 1931, and the movie theatre, which was briefly in Episode 2)
Puzzle design was better than ever - still easy, but this time there were more puzzles, and they were fun and you felt like you had more than one going on at the same time. The puzzle with the positive/ negative reactions was the most challenging puzzle in the whole series by far, and that's a good thing.
Character development - this had pros and cons. I felt Marty had some minor character development, in the right direction. I liked when he had to tell Citizen Brown the truth about Edna's real future. Citizen Brown had major charactor development. At the beginning I thought it was going too fast, that he did not hesitate to leave his 1986 and everything he knew, but by the time Marty's plan was all coming together and he did not want to go through with it, it got to a more realistic point. It will be interesting to see how evil he becomes in the next episode. Edna's character is turning out to be very evil and freaky too. She had some development, and it felt very real to be honest. Biff and Officer Parker had a short cameo, but not much to do here. That's okay, because Edna's a more evil villain. Young Emmett had the best development of all, I thought.
Gameplay - this episode definitely had better gameplay than the rest. Shorter load times and better camera angles. Other than that it was the same.
Voice acting as always is so good. Everyone says how terrific Christopher Lloyd and the guy who voices Marty are, and they are fantastic, but what about the guy who voices Young Emmett? I find him to be really good.
CONS
Humour. The story took a darker turn, and for some thats okay. But I thought there was definitely a lack of humour. Where there was, it was very funny, but it should have had more.
Time Travel - It's not that it's terrible we only travelled in time once, but we barely saw the Delorian get to 88! There should have been a more cinimatic time travel element like usual. Sure we did get it, but it didn't feel as good as it was in the first episode. I loved how in the first they let Kid Tannen get away from Parker in the first few seconds of being in 1931.
And when Citizen Brown was using it, we couldn't come with him because... we shouldn't know about the problems with the delorian and cause a paradox? seems pretty silly compared to what paradoxes Marty's risked in the past. I felt that I should have done something instead of wait for him to come back. Plus Citizen Brown and Marty both didn't seem too upset about the problems with the delorian.
It would have been interesting, I think, to go back in time to when Marty came in the first and second episode, and he would want to warn real Doc Brown about what he is doing. And Citizen Brown would see Doc Brown and Young Emmett Brown all at the same time, and be jealous of what Doc Brown has become, because he would see that he is much happier and more similar to Young Emmett Brown.
The Mind Map Puzzle was actually the hardest puzzle for me to figure out and I applaud them for that.
The story for this was the best of all of them too. They developed Edna to make her seem more sympathetic now. I loved the clock tower sequence and as a thing in BTTF History repeats itself.
Overall, great episode.
The sequence in the Citizen Plus training facility was fantastic
What really sold me, though, was that this episode added a brand new flavour to the franchise: For the first time, it addressed the ethics of time travel. After all, what right does Marty have to meddle in people's pasts and change their futures to suit himself. In the movie, for example, why does he get to ruin Biff's life just to improve his parents'? Why is that his decision to make? Does access to advanced technology give someone the right to muck about in other people's lives? It seems to me that this question informs a lot of international politics of today.
Citizen Brown's urging to use technology to benefit everyone, rather than just our friends made me stop and think about the series so far (the movies too) and reflect on them in a new light. Plus, his feelings for Edna were truly touching. I hope the final episode takes this question further.
The question of when-does-science-go-too-far is, of course, part of Frankenstein as wel. The in-game references clearly aren't accidental.
That being said, the bit where you had to wait for the green light in the Delorean was lame. Given that (1) I have an item to turn things green in my inventory and (2) there are at least two green light bulbs in Emmett's lab, I thought that I would have to mock up the green light in some way. But no, I simply had to wait! I spent a good chunk of time trying to "solve" this, when it turned out to be not a problem at all. Grrr . . .
Me too. I love the Johnny B. Goode Scene from the movie.
Probably has something to do with copyright or their animation system being unable to handle the awesomeness of MJF's guitar face.
Rock your heart out Marty!
Are you serious? Manitoba has lots of trees and moose. I don't think they meant in Winnipeg itself or Brandon or what have you. Also Winnipeg is one of the largest urban forests in the world.
What I would like to know is who is responsible for the many Manitoba references in telltale games. Got to say they put a smile on my face every time.
I personally think there's way too few puzzles and they're far too easy. I guess that's the direction they've chosen for the game, and I can live with it. I thought the puzzles were loads better in this episode than 2 or 3, though. They were still very, very easy, but as someone else pointed out, they were pretty creative and blended in fairly well with the story, making them pretty enjoyable. Props for that.
I really liked the story. I like the perspective it puts on everything, I liked the darker tone near the end, and I was happy about the way they executed it. I would say more, but I'm afraid of spoiling something and I believe the pros of the story have already been mentioned by some of the other people who liked it, so it's all good.
The cliffhanger was even better this time. Looking forward to the conclusion, make it count, Telltale.
This episode made it seem like she would turn on anyone the way she turned on Edna. Sure she was upset that she was fired, but it was the law's fault, not Edna. I mean, I liked the way they handled it, I just thought it was not a good step for Trixie's character development. I didn't like it.
Does anyone else agree?
As long as Marty gets Trixie pregnant, all will be good. (Then you find out her daughter is Jennifer's mom....OMG).
How does he get Artie pregnant?!11??!
Then an army of giant brains will make everyone on Earth except for Marty stupid!
So Marty dates... his granddaughter? Hmmm
Doc, personnally, even the Doc in episode 1 and 2, is not at all personality wise like the Doc from the end of the third movie, who is more like a Family man wise carefree Doc. The Doc in Episode 1 and 2 is the Doc from the beginning of the first movie.
Same here. The plot and characters really are what keep me. There are some groan-able textures and background, such as when Marty is leaving Emmetts house, the door opens to reveal emptiness except for some sky and far away hills. Marty walks out onto air. No joke.
I felt this episode was longer than the rest. There were definitely less cutscenes, or at least much shorter ones. The pacing was handled much better than previously, more gameplay less talking.