The violence in this introduction stands out as a way to overcompensate for The Wolf Among Us inherent silliness, to convince us that its brutal and dark. The overwhelmingly grisly murder that sets the game in motion only reinforces that idea.
Adventure games usually handle cop stories well: You talk to people, gather clues, and make connections. Bigby does those things in The Wolf Among Us, too, but they dont culminate in some solved puzzle as much as they change the tone and texture of Bigbys relationships with other characters.
In other words, this is a narrative experience, and the games whodunit is a plot device, not a game mechanic. Collecting evidence may unlock new dialog options, but its main purpose is to deepen the games mystery and to force Bigby to make decisions. That said, the choices players make over the course of The Wolf Among Ussome small, some largeform the games backbone, and every interaction seems to tie into Telltales narrative Rubiks Cube.
Unfortunately, performance problems on older devices like the iPad 2 crop up with regularity. Stuttering frame rates and delayed inputs make for shambolic action scenes and disrupted cinematics, and The Wolf Among Us suffers from general instability and locks up often. These technical problems are a black spot on an otherwise gorgeous game, especially since it depends on smart camera work and pacing to sustain its story.
Like in Telltales previous series, The Wolf Among Us remembers certain choices and uses them to shape the story to come. This is an increasingly common narrative trick, but Im skeptical of games that notify the player so obviously when it happens. Granted, Faith is only the first of five episodes, so its hard to see if and how Bigbys kindness toward, say, Bufkin will play out. Whats clearer already is that Bigbys character, his relationships, and Faiths plot points are highly malleable.The Wolf Among Us surveillance seems like it would extend to the quick-time events that govern its fights. Bigbys potential for ultraviolence rears its head more than once in Faith, and his restraintor lack thereofshould have narrative repercussions. It doesnt.
Heres the rub: its not always clear what a given QTE will do, or which ones can be skipped without losing the fight. This has an unfortunate chilling effect on roleplaying. In one early fight, Bigby steals an axe while a QTE prompt hovers near his opponents neck. Thinking his next move would be to decapitate someone, I skipped it and failed the fight. I was punished for playing Bigby less violently than Telltale intended.Turns out, Bigby merely breaks the guys jaw, but thats beside the point. When Bigby talks to people, Telltale encourages us to roleplay, to make decisions that have lasting consequences; when hes fighting someone, we get bottlenecked along a narrow path.
You wont get another crack at the body, even if there are other clues to gather, and the implication is clear: moving the story forward is more important than investigating. Its frustrating that Smoke curtails a chance to do something both the character and mechanics are ostensibly suited for, especially since the investigation in Toads apartment worked so well in Faith.
That same pressure to move quickly exerts itself through the timed dialogue system that Telltale has been using since The Walking Dead. This design makes sense in the context of a zombie apocalypse, but this episode never earns the sense of urgency imposed onto it.
By episode three, The Wolf Among Us has settled into a familiar rhythm: Bigby talks to people, makes choices, conducts investigations, and occasionally gets stabbed, pummeled, or shot. The games design is well established, and episode three displays the best and the worst of what The Wolf Among Us has to offer.
Meanwhile, Snows assertive, authoritarian streak that began in Aunty Greenleafs apartment continues during a showdown with Colin. After being proverbially stuffed into a fridge in the first episode, its nice to see Snow come into her own and exert some agency, even if I dont necessarily care for her new hardline politics. Her change from a white outfit into dark grey isnt just a matter of fashion, either. (I do wish she hadnt accused me-as-Bigby of excessive violence, thoughI havent dismembered or killed anybody yet!)
Later, Bigby asks the un-glamoured Toad why its so hard to just follow the rules, and the answer is that Bluebeard and Crane have rigged the game against him. Its getting hard to tell the difference between the Business Office and Fables like the Crooked Man, Toad replies, cutting to the heart of the matter.
Bigby, of course, is at the center of these rising tensions, and his moral authority as a dispenser of justice and keeper of the peace is slipping. This is especially clear at the end of the episode, when Tim points out that Bigby, in his role as Sheriff, is complicit in creating a situation in Fabletown that allowed a criminal like the Crooked Man to become so powerful in the first place.
That makes for tense, terse writing as it is, but Telltales games live and die by forcing players to make interesting decisions. Nothing in A Sheeps Clothing comes to a head, but its clear that Bigby will soon have to choose between Snow and Colin, between doing whats right and doing what he can, between enforcing the law and trying to make Fabletown a better place.
In short, the writing in In Sheeps Clothing serves the games most interesting decisions, and The Wolf Among Us mechanics illuminate and inform this episodes themes and dynamics. Despite being a relatively straightforward episodetheres one standard fight scene, one minor branching path, and lots of expositionthe link between the writing, the mechanics, and Bigbys last decision make In Sheeps Clothing the richest episode to date. Reivew From http://www.gamesfriend.net/review/the-wolf-among-us
Adventure games usually handle cop stories well: You talk to people, gather clues, and make connections. Bigby does those things in The Wolf Among Us, too, but they dont culminate in some solved puzzle as much as they change the tone and texture of Bigbys relationships with other characters.
In other words, this is a narrative experience, and the games whodunit is a plot device, not a game mechanic. Collecting evidence may unlock new dialog options, but its main purpose is to deepen the games mystery and to force Bigby to make decisions. That said, the choices players make over the course of The Wolf Among Ussome small, some largeform the games backbone, and every interaction seems to tie into Telltales narrative Rubiks Cube.
Unfortunately, performance problems on older devices like the iPad 2 crop up with regularity. Stuttering frame rates and delayed inputs make for shambolic action scenes and disrupted cinematics, and The Wolf Among Us suffers from general instability and locks up often. These technical problems are a black spot on an otherwise gorgeous game, especially since it depends on smart camera work and pacing to sustain its story.
Like in Telltales previous series, The Wolf Among Us remembers certain choices and uses them to shape the story to come. This is an increasingly common narrative trick, but Im skeptical of games that notify the player so obviously when it happens. Granted, Faith is only the first of five episodes, so its hard to see if and how Bigbys kindness toward, say, Bufkin will play out. Whats clearer already is that Bigbys character, his relationships, and Faiths plot points are highly malleable.The Wolf Among Us surveillance seems like it would extend to the quick-time events that govern its fights. Bigbys potential for ultraviolence rears its head more than once in Faith, and his restraintor lack thereofshould have narrative repercussions. It doesnt.
Heres the rub: its not always clear what a given QTE will do, or which ones can be skipped without losing the fight. This has an unfortunate chilling effect on roleplaying. In one early fight, Bigby steals an axe while a QTE prompt hovers near his opponents neck. Thinking his next move would be to decapitate someone, I skipped it and failed the fight. I was punished for playing Bigby less violently than Telltale intended.Turns out, Bigby merely breaks the guys jaw, but thats beside the point. When Bigby talks to people, Telltale encourages us to roleplay, to make decisions that have lasting consequences; when hes fighting someone, we get bottlenecked along a narrow path.
You wont get another crack at the body, even if there are other clues to gather, and the implication is clear: moving the story forward is more important than investigating. Its frustrating that Smoke curtails a chance to do something both the character and mechanics are ostensibly suited for, especially since the investigation in Toads apartment worked so well in Faith.
That same pressure to move quickly exerts itself through the timed dialogue system that Telltale has been using since The Walking Dead. This design makes sense in the context of a zombie apocalypse, but this episode never earns the sense of urgency imposed onto it.
By episode three, The Wolf Among Us has settled into a familiar rhythm: Bigby talks to people, makes choices, conducts investigations, and occasionally gets stabbed, pummeled, or shot. The games design is well established, and episode three displays the best and the worst of what The Wolf Among Us has to offer.
Meanwhile, Snows assertive, authoritarian streak that began in Aunty Greenleafs apartment continues during a showdown with Colin. After being proverbially stuffed into a fridge in the first episode, its nice to see Snow come into her own and exert some agency, even if I dont necessarily care for her new hardline politics. Her change from a white outfit into dark grey isnt just a matter of fashion, either. (I do wish she hadnt accused me-as-Bigby of excessive violence, thoughI havent dismembered or killed anybody yet!)
Later, Bigby asks the un-glamoured Toad why its so hard to just follow the rules, and the answer is that Bluebeard and Crane have rigged the game against him. Its getting hard to tell the difference between the Business Office and Fables like the Crooked Man, Toad replies, cutting to the heart of the matter.
Bigby, of course, is at the center of these rising tensions, and his moral authority as a dispenser of justice and keeper of the peace is slipping. This is especially clear at the end of the episode, when Tim points out that Bigby, in his role as Sheriff, is complicit in creating a situation in Fabletown that allowed a criminal like the Crooked Man to become so powerful in the first place.
That makes for tense, terse writing as it is, but Telltales games live and die by forcing players to make interesting decisions. Nothing in A Sheeps Clothing comes to a head, but its clear that Bigby will soon have to choose between Snow and Colin, between doing whats right and doing what he can, between enforcing the law and trying to make Fabletown a better place.
In short, the writing in In Sheeps Clothing serves the games most interesting decisions, and The Wolf Among Us mechanics illuminate and inform this episodes themes and dynamics. Despite being a relatively straightforward episodetheres one standard fight scene, one minor branching path, and lots of expositionthe link between the writing, the mechanics, and Bigbys last decision make In Sheeps Clothing the richest episode to date. Reivew From http://www.gamesfriend.net/review/the-wolf-among-us
