2. Player Participation
Video games have a distinct advantage over other mediums in that they are active forms of entertainment. Player participation is inherent to their very core, and thus video games have the potential to engage audiences in ways others can't. Telltale does this incredibly well with The Walking Dead, deftly combining traditional narrative storytelling with player participation and decision making. On the surface the game may seem overly simplistic, with gameplay consisting of a basic point and click formula. I would not disagree that the game is very simple, but simple doesn't necessarily mean bad. I don't play The Walking Dead to engage in complex gameplay or puzzle solving. This game is first and foremost an interactive story, and as such, you are supposed to play it for that, not for strictly gameplay. What makes The Walking Dead a great experience is playing as Lee, and the decision making that goes along with it. The real enjoyment comes from the tough situations you are placed in, as weird as that may sound. These tough situations allow you to explore your own morality in a safe, virtual environment. These types of games, which include greats like Mass Effect and The Witcher 2, are enjoyable partly because of this. Believe it or not, but each and every one of us wants to explore ourselves in such a way. It is why The Walking Dead franchise is so popular in the first place. In fact, the entire zombie genre is popular for this reason. End of the world scenarios remain fascinating to us because they allow us to explore humanity outside of the confines of modern society, and Telltale's series does this. As pretentious as it may sound, I feel like I learn a bit about myself when playing. It is even possible to learn about others as well, thanks to Telltale's tracking of the various decisions throughout the game. At the end of each episode, you are presented with a graph representing the decisions made by other players. This allows you to compare what you chose to do with others, and the results can be quite interesting. For example, at a point in episode two, the group comes across a seemingly abandoned car filled with supplies. You have to decide whether to take the supplies at the risk of dooming others, or taking the moral high ground and leaving, potentially dooming your own group. The end graph revealed that players were split on what to do, with around half taking the supplies and the other half leaving it. Quite an interesting revelation. Despite all that though, what makes The Walking Dead worth playing is that it's just a damn good story with great characters and compelling storytelling. The interactive elements enhance it and make it feel more intimate and personal. Choices and the way you treat people transfer over to the next episode, allowing for subtle variations between playthroughs. By allowing the player to actively participate in the experience instead of merely watching it, the subtext of the series shines even brighter, the results of which are an experience this gamer won't soon forget.