My top three are tftbl Ep 5, twd Ep 5 and tew Ep 5 and the first two are a close contest for best. Tftbl ep 5 was just crazy epic and tied up nearly every loose end very nicely, and I still play retrograde every now and then from the intro.
Tales from the Borderlands after taking the best parts of previous Telltale games and unexpectedly becoming the best Telltale game but is still to this day very commonly overlooked as one of the best narrative games of all time and now is stuck with a legacy forever tied to a franchise that does not care at all about how its world or characters are perceived all for Wiso to never finish it
They're lucky it was unofficially cancelled. Can you imagine that stuff coming out after some of the disastrous later seasons of Game of Thrones? Telltale would have closed up shop even earlier than it did.
Ended up looking up some scenes from got with Elaena to refresh my memory and it made me want to replay it again. I might do so sometime soo… moren just to see how it feels all this time later.
Also I rewatched the ending. Honestly I feel like Telltale never truly intended to follow it up. Even though a season 2 was announced and was unofficially canceled I feel like they knew making that last episode it wasn't going to happen. I mean ANF couldn't handle 5 endings that could have easily been condensed into the next game as either Jane or Kenny is with you or no one is. Got has a full on determinant playable character and a million other alterations to the ending that I don't see how they'd handle it in a way that wouldn't feel terrible considering their usual go to was to just cut off any determinant situations as soon as possible.
Tales Episode 5 is a fantastic closer, the only disappointing part is that Shade wasn't one of the options for the Vault Hunter team. Otherwise, no complaints --- it's astonishing that with such a limited team (hence some of the glitches) that it was as good as it was.
Otherwise, I'd say TWD S1 Episode 5, TWAU Episode 3, and BTTF Episode 3 (Citizen Brown is just awesome) are standout episodes.
My top three are tftbl Ep 5, twd Ep 5 and tew Ep 5 and the first two are a close contest for best. Tftbl ep 5 was just crazy epic and tied up nearly every loose end very nicely, and I still play retrograde every now and then from the intro.
I might go against the flow here, but I find TWD S1E05 a bit overrated. Sure, it has a powerful ending, but the rest of the episode is just fine. I guess that goes to show the importance of nailing the ending.
Anyway, aside from the ones you mentioned, I'd also like to nominate the first episode of TWAU. Genuinely the best premiere episode Telltale has ever done imo. (Closely followed by TftB's first episode, that one was epic as well.)
My top three are tftbl Ep 5, twd Ep 5 and tew Ep 5 and the first two are a close contest for best. Tftbl ep 5 was just crazy epic and tied up nearly every loose end very nicely, and I still play retrograde every now and then from the intro.
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building on the overall story that episode 1 sets up. This almost makes episode 1 feel like its purpose is simply to give characters a really long introduction so we get to know them really well before the main story begins which may be why the Tales cast is so good. Although I think Tales probably has the strongest episodes of any Telltale game without any obvious flaws or short episodes.
Wolf episode 1 is also pretty unique. I think a sad thing about Wolf is that it was rushed out at the end which is why episodes got so short the later the season got. This also made the pacing really fast. Episode 1 had a cool vibe and really felt like you were in the city because Bigby and Snow basically walk everywhere or are shown traveling in a taxi together. It felt more interconnected and it gave plenty of slower moments. So I hope Wolf 2 keeps that episode 1 vibe. (I also think one of the coolest things about Wolf is once you notice that it honestly takes place over like 3 days and it actually gives you the times of each day and night which makes it pretty cool to take in if you binge all episodes)
@InGen_Nate_Kenny Episode 3 I also feel is probably up there with episode 1 of Wolf as a standout. This time the fast pacing worked really well because the whole episode is about making you feel like you are running out of time and it does a fantastic job doing so. Also has one of my favorite episode endings because the build up to it is great. Reminiscing on Wolf makes me wish Telltale did something for the 10 year anniversary but it looks like they are never returning to twitter ever again
I might go against the flow here, but I find TWD S1E05 a bit overrated. Sure, it has a powerful ending, but the rest of the episode is just … morefine. I guess that goes to show the importance of nailing the ending.
Anyway, aside from the ones you mentioned, I'd also like to nominate the first episode of TWAU. Genuinely the best premiere episode Telltale has ever done imo. (Closely followed by TftB's first episode, that one was epic as well.)
GoT didn't catch a lot of flak until the final season and Telltale went bankrupt before that, so I don't think it'd change much. It certainly wouldn't have helped though, because I imagine hiring those show actors wasn't exactly cheap.
They're lucky it was unofficially cancelled. Can you imagine that stuff coming out after some of the disastrous later seasons of Game of Thrones? Telltale would have closed up shop even earlier than it did.
Yeah, I wish the rest of the Wolf episodes were more like the first one. But considering they had to do massive rewrites after the first episode, it's kind of a miracle the game came out as solid as it did.
I wasn't the biggest fan of episode 3, because the whole time Bigby was chasing a false lead. Of course, Bigby couldn't have known that, but from storytelling perspective it's such an obvious red herring that I couldn't enjoy myself as much lel. The ending was great though, I'll give you that.
And yeah, it's pretty amusing how Telltale twitter went
after the lay-offs story got out. But I guess that's preferable to just ignoring the issue altogether and carrying on as usual. I'm sure they'll eventually be back. (Unless they go bankrupt again lul)
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building on the o… moreverall story that episode 1 sets up. This almost makes episode 1 feel like its purpose is simply to give characters a really long introduction so we get to know them really well before the main story begins which may be why the Tales cast is so good. Although I think Tales probably has the strongest episodes of any Telltale game without any obvious flaws or short episodes.
Wolf episode 1 is also pretty unique. I think a sad thing about Wolf is that it was rushed out at the end which is why episodes got so short the later the season got. This also made the pacing really fast. Episode 1 had a cool vibe and really felt like you were in the city because Bigby and Snow basically walk everywhere or are shown traveling in a taxi together. It felt more interconnected and it gave plenty of slower moments. So I … [view original content]
Yeah I can agree that in ep 3 having it until the end Snow and Bigby suddenly go "hmm maybe Crane isnt the murder" is a bit silly because I am pretty sure most people could easily assume there was more to it than that from the start of that reveal.
I was joking about how they won't return until they need to talk about Expanse DLC but now I think that is going to be the case lol
Honestly remarks like that almost make me feel not confident at all. Not acknowledging the lay offs until a former employee brings up that they let go a bunch of people after just ending your latest product that definitely did not perform well just to put out a really short statement that says something as vague as market conditions and then running away really does not make me go "Oh yeah, they'll be fine!"
Yeah, I wish the rest of the Wolf episodes were more like the first one. But considering they had to do massive rewrites after the first epi… moresode, it's kind of a miracle the game came out as solid as it did.
I wasn't the biggest fan of episode 3, because the whole time Bigby was chasing a false lead. Of course, Bigby couldn't have known that, but from storytelling perspective it's such an obvious red herring that I couldn't enjoy myself as much lel. The ending was great though, I'll give you that.
And yeah, it's pretty amusing how Telltale twitter went
after the lay-offs story got out. But I guess that's preferable to just ignoring the issue altogether and carrying on as usual. I'm sure they'll eventually be back. (Unless they go bankrupt again lul)
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building
It's such a fantastic premiere, and I think because they flesh out the two protagonists, their goals, and their companions so well, plus taking their sweet, sweet time to get to the REAL inciting event at the end of the episode.
You got Rhys being introduced, showing him being unable to cope with "the real world" away from corporate comfort, Fiona chasing a big scheme, until both of their paths inevitably intersect. Then, they're forced to work together, go through some serious danger, and after both of their plans go up in flames, then the Gortys/Atlas conspiracy plot gets revealed to tie it up!
Throw in a lot of fun 'unreliable narrator' scenes and it's a really fun, and especially long, premiere episode.
Man, I've gotta go through that game again some day... I'm just getting myself hyped up talking about it...
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building on the o… moreverall story that episode 1 sets up. This almost makes episode 1 feel like its purpose is simply to give characters a really long introduction so we get to know them really well before the main story begins which may be why the Tales cast is so good. Although I think Tales probably has the strongest episodes of any Telltale game without any obvious flaws or short episodes.
Wolf episode 1 is also pretty unique. I think a sad thing about Wolf is that it was rushed out at the end which is why episodes got so short the later the season got. This also made the pacing really fast. Episode 1 had a cool vibe and really felt like you were in the city because Bigby and Snow basically walk everywhere or are shown traveling in a taxi together. It felt more interconnected and it gave plenty of slower moments. So I … [view original content]
Man, I've gotta go through that game again some day... I'm just getting myself hyped up talking about it...
Me with my over 100 hours of Tales and way too much knowledge about unused story beats to the point where I actively keep confusing what is and isn't in the game
"Ah yes, maybe another playthrough..."
If I ever get the time I really want to deep dive back into Tales files again. I am actually really upset that I missed a scene that is generally well preserved from episode 3 with Rhys and Fiona from the Fiona intro but haven't really found much else. Maybe I'll randomly upload it someday. Or somehow make the unused Fiona storyline from the eps 1 and 2 scripts more understandable.
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building
… moreIt's such a fantastic premiere, and I think because they flesh out the two protagonists, their goals, and their companions so well, plus taking their sweet, sweet time to get to the REAL inciting event at the end of the episode.
You got Rhys being introduced, showing him being unable to cope with "the real world" away from corporate comfort, Fiona chasing a big scheme, until both of their paths inevitably intersect. Then, they're forced to work together, go through some serious danger, and after both of their plans go up in flames, then the Gortys/Atlas conspiracy plot gets revealed to tie it up!
Throw in a lot of fun 'unreliable narrator' scenes and it's a really fun, and especially long, premiere episode.
Man, I've gotta go through that game again some day... I'm just getting myself hyped up talking about it...
I tried a Mountain Dew Baja Blast for the first time.
Also I found a Mr. Beast chocolate bar in the grocery store and curiosity got the better of me. It is horrifically sweet and has 24.8 grams of sugar in one bar. It's more sugar than chocolate.
Fingers crossed my Spider-Man 2 order has been shipped and they just forgot to notify me about it...
We're a day away and I haven't gotten an email yet that the order has started shipping. I'm worried it'll only ship tomorrow (or even after) once it officially releases...
Fingers crossed my Spider-Man 2 order has been shipped and they just forgot to notify me about it...
We're a day away and I haven't gotte… moren an email yet that the order has started shipping. I'm worried it'll only ship tomorrow (or even after) once it officially releases...
Good analysis Poogers. You're quite right on how self-contained Tales Episode 1 is, and it does a great job of that. You can even pick out the exact moment where the wider story begins - it's when Rhys falls into the Gortys Project bunker. Handsome Jack is introduced, IDK, three minutes later, and we're off on something entirely different. Moreso than the other episodes, they really bought into the unreliable narrator nature of the past story, which is one of its best parts --- honestly, my favorite joke in all of Telltale's game is probably the "Blow his mind" decision in Episode 1, it's bafflingly ridiculous but so freaking funny. I love Episode 1.
Your observations on Wolf Episode 1 are likewise well-said. The pacing points are subtle but important; it was a slow burn, gently guiding you into the pool. I do like that Episode 3 gets more frantic: the stakes are heightened, the very minutes matter. And that ending; hard agree, it is a hell of a mid-storyclimax. Atmospheric. Dramatic. Advances the story. One of the little things I love about it is how Bigby's transformation is interspersed with the lightning flashes - you keep moving forward, get shot, slump a little bit, and then it cuts to a more wolfish Bigby.
Reminiscing on Wolf makes me wish Telltale did something for the 10 year anniversary but it looks like they are never returning to twitter ever again
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building on the o… moreverall story that episode 1 sets up. This almost makes episode 1 feel like its purpose is simply to give characters a really long introduction so we get to know them really well before the main story begins which may be why the Tales cast is so good. Although I think Tales probably has the strongest episodes of any Telltale game without any obvious flaws or short episodes.
Wolf episode 1 is also pretty unique. I think a sad thing about Wolf is that it was rushed out at the end which is why episodes got so short the later the season got. This also made the pacing really fast. Episode 1 had a cool vibe and really felt like you were in the city because Bigby and Snow basically walk everywhere or are shown traveling in a taxi together. It felt more interconnected and it gave plenty of slower moments. So I … [view original content]
It's a fair point. I wonder what they envisioned their Season 2 to be like, because if it was equivalent to one show season, they'd only gotten to about the end of Season 5. I wonder if they thought they'd get a third season too or it would have covered a lot more ground.
GoT didn't catch a lot of flak until the final season and Telltale went bankrupt before that, so I don't think it'd change much. It certainly wouldn't have helped though, because I imagine hiring those show actors wasn't exactly cheap.
I had one of those chocolate bars a few months ago. Like you, I was curious. I was not impressed. Frankly, I don't remember how it tasted just that I didn't care for it much either way. All because it was Mr. Beast's. Kind of embarrassed I fell for the lowest of marketing tools.
I tried a Mountain Dew Baja Blast for the first time.
Also I found a Mr. Beast chocolate bar in the grocery store and curiosity got t… morehe better of me. It is horrifically sweet and has 24.8 grams of sugar in one bar. It's more sugar than chocolate.
Tales ep 1 was also pretty crazy because there was not a lot of faith in the game and then it blew everyone away with how good it was.
Not directly related to Wolf ep 3 but I am happy Wolf 2 is giving that Bigby form a snout. I always thought his face looked kind of goofy and I am glad they changed it.
Also look at all of us actively talking Telltale. I'm proud of us. It is also inspiring me to want to make another silly concept video. One day I'll push through. I actually made another one a while ago but never uploaded it because I hated how it looked. Was focused on dialogue stuff which I really liked but I hated how it looked so much
Good analysis Poogers. You're quite right on how self-contained Tales Episode 1 is, and it does a great job of that. You can even pick out t… morehe exact moment where the wider story begins - it's when Rhys falls into the Gortys Project bunker. Handsome Jack is introduced, IDK, three minutes later, and we're off on something entirely different. Moreso than the other episodes, they really bought into the unreliable narrator nature of the past story, which is one of its best parts --- honestly, my favorite joke in all of Telltale's game is probably the "Blow his mind" decision in Episode 1, it's bafflingly ridiculous but so freaking funny. I love Episode 1.
Your observations on Wolf Episode 1 are likewise well-said. The pacing points are subtle but important; it was a slow burn, gently guiding you into the pool. I do like that Episode 3 gets more frantic: the stakes are heightened, the very minutes matter. And that ending; hard agree, it is a hel… [view original content]
I had one of those chocolate bars a few months ago. Like you, I was curious. I was not impressed. Frankly, I don't remember how it tasted ju… morest that I didn't care for it much either way. All because it was Mr. Beast's. Kind of embarrassed I fell for the lowest of marketing tools.
Another reason why I love the episode is that it has one of my favourite tropes - where the same event is told from different perspectives and you don't get the full picture until you see all of them.
(Specifically the vault key deal - you don't know why Sasha is acting so weird until you play as Fiona.) I feel like whenever there is a TV show episode with this kind of concept, it's always top tier. Shame Tales didn't really use that again past episode 1.
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building
… moreIt's such a fantastic premiere, and I think because they flesh out the two protagonists, their goals, and their companions so well, plus taking their sweet, sweet time to get to the REAL inciting event at the end of the episode.
You got Rhys being introduced, showing him being unable to cope with "the real world" away from corporate comfort, Fiona chasing a big scheme, until both of their paths inevitably intersect. Then, they're forced to work together, go through some serious danger, and after both of their plans go up in flames, then the Gortys/Atlas conspiracy plot gets revealed to tie it up!
Throw in a lot of fun 'unreliable narrator' scenes and it's a really fun, and especially long, premiere episode.
Man, I've gotta go through that game again some day... I'm just getting myself hyped up talking about it...
Also look at all of us actively talking Telltale. I'm proud of us.
And if you think about it, it was that shitty romance in the Clementine book that prompted you to make the tier list which kicked all the discussion off. At least it was good for something, huh.
Also if you make a new video, I'll definitely watch.
Tales ep 1 was also pretty crazy because there was not a lot of faith in the game and then it blew everyone away with how good it was.
No… moret directly related to Wolf ep 3 but I am happy Wolf 2 is giving that Bigby form a snout. I always thought his face looked kind of goofy and I am glad they changed it.
Also look at all of us actively talking Telltale. I'm proud of us. It is also inspiring me to want to make another silly concept video. One day I'll push through. I actually made another one a while ago but never uploaded it because I hated how it looked. Was focused on dialogue stuff which I really liked but I hated how it looked so much
Happy Tales from the Borderlands episode 5 day! What a great episode. Good thing nothing else happened this same day regarding Tales from the Borderlands!
Yeah I wish Tales had more chances to do what you just said. It was really cool seeing what was really happening once we saw Fiona's perspective. I guess they couldn't really do it as much once Rhys and Fiona were on the same team. I don't think they really try it again until episode 5 where the "confusion" happens between the 2 but that will always be the weakest part of Tales. After all the rewriting whatever the original problem Rhys and Fiona would have was obviously long gone and forgotten about.
Rhys and Fiona walking into the "get kidnapped by a mysterious stranger" function in matching outfits (it was a coincidence)
Another reason why I love the episode is that it has one of my favourite tropes - where the same event is told from different perspectives a… morend you don't get the full picture until you see all of them.
(Specifically the vault key deal - you don't know why Sasha is acting so weird until you play as Fiona.) I feel like whenever there is a TV show episode with this kind of concept, it's always top tier. Shame Tales didn't really use that again past episode 1.
Speaking of Borderlands, I just realized.
Am I the only one who can't unsee Vaughn looking way too similar to Sindri from God of war:
Just look at them:
Im suprised that you put Fiona in S tier. I support Rhyiona but even to me her time with Rhys was super duper short. If anything it was basically a Legend of Korra situation, where they had Korra and Asami get together without actually showing any real affection at the last moments the show only because of fan feedback. Pretty much the same thing with Rhys and Fiona except that most people didn't even know that you could romance Fiona as Rhys.
So I got bored and after reading that comic it had me thinking about other Telltale romances and I wanted to make my completely 100% objecti… moreonal tier list based on how well done it is and how invested it can actually make the player. The actual order isn't defined just the tier. There is also 0 bias. Fact.
So something I noticed that I always kind of knew but looking at all the pictures I realized that Luis is honestly the only male romance option. Gabe is there but the romance option isn't truly up to the player.
I have Snow and Sasha at the top because I feel like these 2 characters probably had the most people invested in the relationship and wanting to see them get together. What Snow would think of you for the choices you made was used a lot because of this for example. Fiona is also in S because I am not biased, but realistically probably more A tier because it was a weird ship where Rhys and Fiona was probably not intentional… [view original content]
Im suprised that you put Fiona in S tier. I support Rhyiona but even to me her time with Rhys was super duper short. If anything it was basi… morecally a Legend of Korra situation, where they had Korra and Asami get together without actually showing any real affection at the last moments the show only because of fan feedback. Pretty much the same thing with Rhys and Fiona except that most people didn't even know that you could romance Fiona as Rhys.
Jesus, honestly this feel like the game is gonna be wildly unoptimised on PC. Why on Earth does the game require DLSS to be on in order to run at 60fps? And just medium settings requires an RTX3070?
Happy Tales from the Borderlands episode 5 day! What a great episode. Good thing nothing else happened this same day regarding Tales from the Borderlands!
I don't think they really try it again until episode 5 where the "confusion" happens between the 2 but that will always be the weakest part of Tales.
Yeah, Fiona's reason for being mad is especially dumb if you didn't choose to rule Hyperion lol.
After all the rewriting whatever the original problem Rhys and Fiona would have was obviously long gone and forgotten about.
Tbh I don't think they had a concrete idea about why Rhys and Fiona were mad at each other while writing the first episode. It was probably more in the ballpark of "we'll figure it out later". Same with Stranger - iirc his identity wasn't set in stone until much later.
Yeah I wish Tales had more chances to do what you just said. It was really cool seeing what was really happening once we saw Fiona's perspec… moretive. I guess they couldn't really do it as much once Rhys and Fiona were on the same team. I don't think they really try it again until episode 5 where the "confusion" happens between the 2 but that will always be the weakest part of Tales. After all the rewriting whatever the original problem Rhys and Fiona would have was obviously long gone and forgotten about.
Rhys and Fiona walking into the "get kidnapped by a mysterious stranger" function in matching outfits (it was a coincidence)
My game arrived and the disk has a scratch on it, preventing it to download past 30gb. Just my fucking luck.
EDIT: I got a response from the company that sent me the game and said they will replace the game with zero charges. Awesome!
The original reason they were mad at each other had to do with the crashed Hyperion ship in episode 4. A lot of the stuff in the files suggest this as that location was going to be far more important and originally it seemed the plan was for each location you visit in the future was to be a place you visited in the past. From what I could find it would imply that Rhys and Fiona have some kind of falling out that could have been why the ship crashed. Plus one original opening Rhys basically confirms that episode 5 title screen was more accurate and they did actually try to kill each other. (So good thing they didn't write themselves into that corner lol.) So it seems the idea was the crashed ship location was where this fight would have happened. I also think episode 4 was meant to take place on the massive Hyperion ship rather than Helios.
Kind of impossible to guess what the event would have been because I am pretty sure they all knew it would change. The final intro we ended up getting I remember had a date that was super close to the episode launch so I guess someone decided that the intro gave away way too much information or things they didn't know they wanted to stick with. At one point the Stranger just straight up tells you to fix the Gortys robot and Rhys and Fiona had way more cryptic hints about the future. but I think they ended up avoiding it to not limit themselves. Pretty sure Rhys had some kind of dialogue in episode 2 future segments saying he thought Gortys was annoying for example.
Also forgot to mention but this is just a theory with not much to really back it up but it is possible there was an idea that there was going to be some kind of twist revealing Rhys and Fiona were actually conning the Stranger the whole time. So pretending to be mad purposely being captured, also explained the matching outfits. Although like I said that was something I started thinking about after reading a lot of the unused stuff and how at one point the Stranger was playable, so it made me realize that may have been an idea they floated.
I don't think they really try it again until episode 5 where the "confusion" happens between the 2 but that will always be the weakest part … moreof Tales.
Yeah, Fiona's reason for being mad is especially dumb if you didn't choose to rule Hyperion lol.
After all the rewriting whatever the original problem Rhys and Fiona would have was obviously long gone and forgotten about.
Tbh I don't think they had a concrete idea about why Rhys and Fiona were mad at each other while writing the first episode. It was probably more in the ballpark of "we'll figure it out later". Same with Stranger - iirc his identity wasn't set in stone until much later.
Now that is officially 1 year since New Tales I just wanted to mention that I still really enjoy this video. Pretty glad to see a bigger youtuber who easily understood people's problems with this game and was very aware of even the smaller details. Everything said is pretty much everything I would say.
Now will Gearbox use this resource and improve for next time? The answer is no but it is nice to dream.
Comments
Dw I will
I was going to say no twd s1 ep5 was but after what I've seen I'll shut up about it
My top three are tftbl Ep 5, twd Ep 5 and tew Ep 5 and the first two are a close contest for best. Tftbl ep 5 was just crazy epic and tied up nearly every loose end very nicely, and I still play retrograde every now and then from the intro.
Tales from the Borderlands after taking the best parts of previous Telltale games and unexpectedly becoming the best Telltale game but is still to this day very commonly overlooked as one of the best narrative games of all time and now is stuck with a legacy forever tied to a franchise that does not care at all about how its world or characters are perceived all for Wiso to never finish it
They're lucky it was unofficially cancelled. Can you imagine that stuff coming out after some of the disastrous later seasons of Game of Thrones? Telltale would have closed up shop even earlier than it did.
Tales Episode 5 is a fantastic closer, the only disappointing part is that Shade wasn't one of the options for the Vault Hunter team. Otherwise, no complaints --- it's astonishing that with such a limited team (hence some of the glitches) that it was as good as it was.
Otherwise, I'd say TWD S1 Episode 5, TWAU Episode 3, and BTTF Episode 3 (Citizen Brown is just awesome) are standout episodes.
Holy Shit. The casting for these characters is actually on point.
I might go against the flow here, but I find TWD S1E05 a bit overrated. Sure, it has a powerful ending, but the rest of the episode is just fine. I guess that goes to show the importance of nailing the ending.
Anyway, aside from the ones you mentioned, I'd also like to nominate the first episode of TWAU. Genuinely the best premiere episode Telltale has ever done imo. (Closely followed by TftB's first episode, that one was epic as well.)
Tales episode 1 is really unique because it almost functions as its own story in itself and then episodes 2 through 5 keep building on the overall story that episode 1 sets up. This almost makes episode 1 feel like its purpose is simply to give characters a really long introduction so we get to know them really well before the main story begins which may be why the Tales cast is so good. Although I think Tales probably has the strongest episodes of any Telltale game without any obvious flaws or short episodes.
Wolf episode 1 is also pretty unique. I think a sad thing about Wolf is that it was rushed out at the end which is why episodes got so short the later the season got. This also made the pacing really fast. Episode 1 had a cool vibe and really felt like you were in the city because Bigby and Snow basically walk everywhere or are shown traveling in a taxi together. It felt more interconnected and it gave plenty of slower moments. So I hope Wolf 2 keeps that episode 1 vibe. (I also think one of the coolest things about Wolf is once you notice that it honestly takes place over like 3 days and it actually gives you the times of each day and night which makes it pretty cool to take in if you binge all episodes)
@InGen_Nate_Kenny Episode 3 I also feel is probably up there with episode 1 of Wolf as a standout. This time the fast pacing worked really well because the whole episode is about making you feel like you are running out of time and it does a fantastic job doing so. Also has one of my favorite episode endings because the build up to it is great. Reminiscing on Wolf makes me wish Telltale did something for the 10 year anniversary but it looks like they are never returning to twitter ever again
GoT didn't catch a lot of flak until the final season and Telltale went bankrupt before that, so I don't think it'd change much. It certainly wouldn't have helped though, because I imagine hiring those show actors wasn't exactly cheap.
Yeah, I wish the rest of the Wolf episodes were more like the first one. But considering they had to do massive rewrites after the first episode, it's kind of a miracle the game came out as solid as it did.
I wasn't the biggest fan of episode 3, because the whole time Bigby was chasing a false lead. Of course, Bigby couldn't have known that, but from storytelling perspective it's such an obvious red herring that I couldn't enjoy myself as much lel. The ending was great though, I'll give you that.
And yeah, it's pretty amusing how Telltale twitter went
after the lay-offs story got out. But I guess that's preferable to just ignoring the issue altogether and carrying on as usual. I'm sure they'll eventually be back. (Unless they go bankrupt again lul)
Yeah I can agree that in ep 3 having it until the end Snow and Bigby suddenly go "hmm maybe Crane isnt the murder" is a bit silly because I am pretty sure most people could easily assume there was more to it than that from the start of that reveal.
I was joking about how they won't return until they need to talk about Expanse DLC but now I think that is going to be the case lol
Honestly remarks like that almost make me feel not confident at all. Not acknowledging the lay offs until a former employee brings up that they let go a bunch of people after just ending your latest product that definitely did not perform well just to put out a really short statement that says something as vague as market conditions and then running away really does not make me go "Oh yeah, they'll be fine!"
It's such a fantastic premiere, and I think because they flesh out the two protagonists, their goals, and their companions so well, plus taking their sweet, sweet time to get to the REAL inciting event at the end of the episode.
You got Rhys being introduced, showing him being unable to cope with "the real world" away from corporate comfort, Fiona chasing a big scheme, until both of their paths inevitably intersect. Then, they're forced to work together, go through some serious danger, and after both of their plans go up in flames, then the Gortys/Atlas conspiracy plot gets revealed to tie it up!
Throw in a lot of fun 'unreliable narrator' scenes and it's a really fun, and especially long, premiere episode.
Man, I've gotta go through that game again some day... I'm just getting myself hyped up talking about it...
Me with my over 100 hours of Tales and way too much knowledge about unused story beats to the point where I actively keep confusing what is and isn't in the game
"Ah yes, maybe another playthrough..."
If I ever get the time I really want to deep dive back into Tales files again. I am actually really upset that I missed a scene that is generally well preserved from episode 3 with Rhys and Fiona from the Fiona intro but haven't really found much else. Maybe I'll randomly upload it someday. Or somehow make the unused Fiona storyline from the eps 1 and 2 scripts more understandable.
I tried a Mountain Dew Baja Blast for the first time.
Also I found a Mr. Beast chocolate bar in the grocery store and curiosity got the better of me. It is horrifically sweet and has 24.8 grams of sugar in one bar. It's more sugar than chocolate.
Fingers crossed my Spider-Man 2 order has been shipped and they just forgot to notify me about it...
We're a day away and I haven't gotten an email yet that the order has started shipping. I'm worried it'll only ship tomorrow (or even after) once it officially releases...
My CE shipped today.
Point out Telltale ran way from twitter after the news broke
literal next day Telltale tweets
Good analysis Poogers. You're quite right on how self-contained Tales Episode 1 is, and it does a great job of that. You can even pick out the exact moment where the wider story begins - it's when Rhys falls into the Gortys Project bunker. Handsome Jack is introduced, IDK, three minutes later, and we're off on something entirely different. Moreso than the other episodes, they really bought into the unreliable narrator nature of the past story, which is one of its best parts --- honestly, my favorite joke in all of Telltale's game is probably the "Blow his mind" decision in Episode 1, it's bafflingly ridiculous but so freaking funny. I love Episode 1.
Your observations on Wolf Episode 1 are likewise well-said. The pacing points are subtle but important; it was a slow burn, gently guiding you into the pool. I do like that Episode 3 gets more frantic: the stakes are heightened, the very minutes matter. And that ending; hard agree, it is a hell of a mid-storyclimax. Atmospheric. Dramatic. Advances the story. One of the little things I love about it is how Bigby's transformation is interspersed with the lightning flashes - you keep moving forward, get shot, slump a little bit, and then it cuts to a more wolfish Bigby.
It's a fair point. I wonder what they envisioned their Season 2 to be like, because if it was equivalent to one show season, they'd only gotten to about the end of Season 5. I wonder if they thought they'd get a third season too or it would have covered a lot more ground.
I had one of those chocolate bars a few months ago. Like you, I was curious. I was not impressed. Frankly, I don't remember how it tasted just that I didn't care for it much either way. All because it was Mr. Beast's. Kind of embarrassed I fell for the lowest of marketing tools.
Ah huh...
Tales ep 1 was also pretty crazy because there was not a lot of faith in the game and then it blew everyone away with how good it was.
Not directly related to Wolf ep 3 but I am happy Wolf 2 is giving that Bigby form a snout. I always thought his face looked kind of goofy and I am glad they changed it.
Also look at all of us actively talking Telltale. I'm proud of us. It is also inspiring me to want to make another silly concept video. One day I'll push through. I actually made another one a while ago but never uploaded it because I hated how it looked. Was focused on dialogue stuff which I really liked but I hated how it looked so much
It's really not good. It doesn't taste of anything except for SWEET.
Another reason why I love the episode is that it has one of my favourite tropes - where the same event is told from different perspectives and you don't get the full picture until you see all of them.
(Specifically the vault key deal - you don't know why Sasha is acting so weird until you play as Fiona.) I feel like whenever there is a TV show episode with this kind of concept, it's always top tier. Shame Tales didn't really use that again past episode 1.
And if you think about it, it was that shitty romance in the Clementine book that prompted you to make the tier list which kicked all the discussion off. At least it was good for something, huh.
Also if you make a new video, I'll definitely watch.
Happy Tales from the Borderlands episode 5 day! What a great episode. Good thing nothing else happened this same day regarding Tales from the Borderlands!
Yeah I wish Tales had more chances to do what you just said. It was really cool seeing what was really happening once we saw Fiona's perspective. I guess they couldn't really do it as much once Rhys and Fiona were on the same team. I don't think they really try it again until episode 5 where the "confusion" happens between the 2 but that will always be the weakest part of Tales. After all the rewriting whatever the original problem Rhys and Fiona would have was obviously long gone and forgotten about.
Rhys and Fiona walking into the "get kidnapped by a mysterious stranger" function in matching outfits (it was a coincidence)
Speaking of Borderlands, I just realized.
Am I the only one who can't unsee Vaughn looking way too similar to Sindri from God of war:
Just look at them:
Maybe it's the beards
Im suprised that you put Fiona in S tier. I support Rhyiona but even to me her time with Rhys was super duper short. If anything it was basically a Legend of Korra situation, where they had Korra and Asami get together without actually showing any real affection at the last moments the show only because of fan feedback. Pretty much the same thing with Rhys and Fiona except that most people didn't even know that you could romance Fiona as Rhys.
This is because there is no biased and I am not on copium
Jesus, honestly this feel like the game is gonna be wildly unoptimised on PC. Why on Earth does the game require DLSS to be on in order to run at 60fps? And just medium settings requires an RTX3070?
PAIN
Episode 5 was great despite it being made by a skeleton crew. Shoutout to all those homies 8 years later.
Every choice in Wolf ep 5 be like
I have not received Spider-Man 2 yet... Nor have I received a shipping email...
Damn you Shopville!!
My game arrived and the disk has a scratch on it, preventing it to download past 30gb. Just my fucking luck.
EDIT: I got a response from the company that sent me the game and said they will replace the game with zero charges. Awesome!
Yeah, Fiona's reason for being mad is especially dumb if you didn't choose to rule Hyperion lol.
Tbh I don't think they had a concrete idea about why Rhys and Fiona were mad at each other while writing the first episode. It was probably more in the ballpark of "we'll figure it out later". Same with Stranger - iirc his identity wasn't set in stone until much later.
Damn that sucks. I thought bluray discs were pretty scratch-proof. At least they'll replace it free though, nice!
The original reason they were mad at each other had to do with the crashed Hyperion ship in episode 4. A lot of the stuff in the files suggest this as that location was going to be far more important and originally it seemed the plan was for each location you visit in the future was to be a place you visited in the past. From what I could find it would imply that Rhys and Fiona have some kind of falling out that could have been why the ship crashed. Plus one original opening Rhys basically confirms that episode 5 title screen was more accurate and they did actually try to kill each other. (So good thing they didn't write themselves into that corner lol.) So it seems the idea was the crashed ship location was where this fight would have happened. I also think episode 4 was meant to take place on the massive Hyperion ship rather than Helios.
Kind of impossible to guess what the event would have been because I am pretty sure they all knew it would change. The final intro we ended up getting I remember had a date that was super close to the episode launch so I guess someone decided that the intro gave away way too much information or things they didn't know they wanted to stick with. At one point the Stranger just straight up tells you to fix the Gortys robot and Rhys and Fiona had way more cryptic hints about the future. but I think they ended up avoiding it to not limit themselves. Pretty sure Rhys had some kind of dialogue in episode 2 future segments saying he thought Gortys was annoying for example.
Also forgot to mention but this is just a theory with not much to really back it up but it is possible there was an idea that there was going to be some kind of twist revealing Rhys and Fiona were actually conning the Stranger the whole time. So pretending to be mad purposely being captured, also explained the matching outfits. Although like I said that was something I started thinking about after reading a lot of the unused stuff and how at one point the Stranger was playable, so it made me realize that may have been an idea they floated.
Now that is officially 1 year since New Tales I just wanted to mention that I still really enjoy this video. Pretty glad to see a bigger youtuber who easily understood people's problems with this game and was very aware of even the smaller details. Everything said is pretty much everything I would say.
Now will Gearbox use this resource and improve for next time? The answer is no but it is nice to dream.