Earlier this year, the gaming community entered a debate regarding quality versus quantity of content. Briefly, would you rather play a longer game made mediocre for the sake of length or a shorter, tighter game without padding? Episode 5 distinctly encapsulates this debate as it’s not only the shortest installment in the Game of Thrones series, but also arguably contains the most substantive bits yet.
Although the episode can be completed in around one and a half hours, the pacing remains fast with little downtime. Each character is met with significant decisions and how each character impacts the rest of the family is now starting to show fruition. Nonplayable characters lay out setbacks in a regrettably expository fashion, but the clarity in how choices have altered the story may offset this questionable writing decision. Clearly, Episode 6 will indicate the culmination of all we have set in motion from Episode 1 onward.
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, though. Episode 5 wraps up some loose ends and offers satisfying direction for the future of the Forresters; truly, their fate is in our hands. I’ve enjoyed discussing with friends how my choices differ from theirs — and how they (slightly) altered the trajectory of the plot. Telltale also wrote in appropriate consequences for my intended actions in Episode 4 without any tricks or deus ex machina in order to shoehorn in one outcome. Put simply, my decisions felt like they mattered, and that’s all I need to enjoy my initial playthrough.
I’ve reviewed most of Telltale’s recent adventure titles. How the developers time dialogue options has been concerning, at first. Since then, they have gotten the timings right, but for whatever reason the dialogue options flew by this time around, forcing me to reload my game. Without a skip function, this frustrated me as I had to replicate all of my previous decisions. Eventually, I learned to press pause during dialogue options with notably speedy timers out of sheer necessity. The idea behind the timer is essential to authentic choices, but when I don’t even have time to read all three dialogue choices while the other character is still talking and I’m trying to listen is when problems begin. This took me out of the experience of what is almost definitely the most enjoyable episode so far. Shame. Ring ring, ring ring.
I figured by this time in the series I’d get used to the graphics, as my initial woes may have been a reaction to a stark change in style. However, the uncanny valley still weirds me out as characters with wax hair and expressionless faces strangely look astonishingly like the actors. I suppose it at least makes Ramsay creepier. The voice acting and controls are excellent and crisp, otherwise.
Episode 5 is part conclusion, part setting up for the climax. Like the show, as we learn about the characters and become enveloped in their ambitions and plight we eagerly root for them. The difference here is that I’m personally invested because I have taken hold of key family members. My choices have altered their fate. I am not merely sitting, leaning forward with elbows on knees with my clenched fists pressed to my face watching. The outcome of this family I now eagerly root for is entirely reliant on me. Mistakes have been made, but perhaps they’re fewer than my successes… I hope.
