“Winter is coming.” Yeah, well, it’s kind of here. When last we left the Forresters, we were set upon by a balmy summer in July. The soft hum of the A/C buzzed on while I sat in silent agony at a cruel, yet necessary choice. Telltale’s take on Game of Thrones has matched the show and books in several regards. The treachery, murder, plotting, and fantastical mythos pervade the dense atmosphere of the game. Martin’s source is not only respected, but built upon as the series closes on potential spoilers. The commonalities are not all praiseworthy, though. The delay between episodes bears an unfortunate resemblance to the lag between seasons on HBO and, even worse, the books. In those circumstances, however, we can understand the delay.
I have to offer a disclaimer to this review. Telltale has long been criticized for the months of delay between episodes in their titles these past few years. Fans have tolerated the lag for quite some time, but with a source like Game of Thrones, this is egregious. The other Telltale storylines have been relatively simple, even if emotionally jarring, so the impact of any delays has been a matter of patience and dissatisfaction in having to wait. With the complexity and uncertainty inherent in Game of Thrones, however, the blow to tension caused by the slow release schedule is exponentially worsened. I will earnestly endeavor to review this final episode as objectively as I can for those looking to play the series in its entirety, but Telltale, this cannot go on. Whatever your reasoning for these delays, it’s not worth jeopardizing the enjoyment of fans who buy the season at the outset or episode-by-episode.
Game of Thrones maintains its chunked visits to each Forrester’s microcosm. This method of storytelling continues to keep each arc fresh and tense. Even at the finale when I just wanted to know what happened to each and every one of them, I enthusiastically welcomed the “leave the audience wanting more” take on spacing out each story. This created some confusion with regard to the timeline, however. For some reason, I wasn’t clear on when each event occurred, which left me wondering how I should make decisions in each family member’s path. However, I’m not entirely sure how Telltale could cleanly spruce this up without neglecting certain characters for long periods of time.
I have to applaud the writers: characters I did not initially care for have seamlessly become my favorites. Each story matters, and not just for the ostensible cause of preserving House Forrester. What began as a story whose sole purpose was saving a family has become entrenched in so much more for most of the characters. Short-term decisions and long-term outcomes have to be weighed carefully. The challenge for those on the development team to create this balancing act while simultaneously trying to offer a unique experience given certain choices must be daunting.
Here, I feel as though the choices matter more than in any other series Telltale has taken on. The choices initially seemed like character swaps and slight dialogue shifts, but after concluding the episode, I feel as though Telltale has committed to a path wherein they need to cater to several different outcomes. Although the choices seem heavier than ever before, I can’t help but feel as though they’re feathers compared to what I could have experienced if I had only played the series in its entirety all at once.
Instead, I am left with this: “I know I hate him and he’s a bad dude, but I just don’t feel it.” And while a heady story is part of Game of Thrones’ charm, emotions are a huge draw of any well-woven tale. Similarly, lies, deceit, betrayal, sacrifices, kills, and deaths all attempt to pierce my inner core, but time has kept the smithy pounding away at my armor, blunting each poke at my steely shell. I know it all hurts, but my heart remains intact.
For those who’ve invested in the series since last December, you know that Game of Thrones was made for the sadistic decision making style of Telltale’s games. Rest assured, Episode 6 serves as an apt representation of what we can expect from a Game of Thrones choose-your-own-adventure. The famed adventure developers have also heightened the expectations of gameplay with Game of Thrones and Tales from the Borderlands. Here in Episode 6, what seems like teaching us mundane, arbitrary mechanics to enhance our immersion through mediocrity quickly becomes an exercise in cruelty as Telltale forces us to click our way through horrific acts.
Some have suggested that Telltale delays each episode in order to enhance the following installment, a process which somehow takes months. Unfortunately, I haven’t observed any improvements to the controls, because I still have had difficulty clicking on the right dialogue option as my cursor doesn’t highlight the text it’s hovering over. This is especially problematic given the absurd dialogue timer with critical decision-making. I not only have to read what the options are while I listen to the NPCs speak and decide which choice I want to make, but now I have to think about how far I need to move my mouse so that the right dialogue option is selected. With the simple design requirements of these adventure titles, this level of difficulty with dialogue selection is mind-boggling, especially when other Telltale titles don’t have this issue.
However, while controls can be modified across episodes, changing the art style or animations of characters is a more challenging feat. For those who’ve followed my reviews thus far, you’re likely sick of hearing me talk about the uncanny valley, but – you know – there’s totally uncanny valley. Conversely, the voice acting remains top-notch. One other note regarding the sound, though: the opening music complements the mood of the series phenomenally. It is simply gorgeous, though this is where the music basically ends.
I’ve attempted to score and critique Episode 6 in isolation of the delay between episodes, but as objective as I attempt to be, I have to admit that my love of the story and outcomes of each arc are likely affected beyond my realization due to this delay. If I had experienced all six episodes within a month or two, I might be an awful, miserable mess right now – but beautifully so. However, that is not the world I’ve lived in, and while I intellectually understand that this is a well-crafted tale with a gripping narrative and excellent dialogue, I just haven’t felt it. If Telltale pursues a second season, my hope is that they do away with this release schedule. I want to love it.
