The conclusion to the gripping zombie tale that is The Walking Dead: The Game has finally come to a close with the release of Episode 5 – No Time Left. We have been with Lee from the very beginning and have shaped our version of him and had to live with the decisions we have made. What we get from all of this is an emotional roller coaster ride filled with twists and turns that leaves you blown away by its astounding narrative.
Telltale Games has finally brought the first season of this series to a close after 7 long months of waiting. Does the conclusion live up to the excellent storytelling we have seen from the series so far? Here are the Hots and Nots of No Time Left.
HOT
An Amazing Conclusion To An Amazing Story
Before kicking off this section, I should mention that the gameplay and controls haven’t changed since the first episode. This isn’t a bad thing by far seeing as this gameplay type and control scheme work well for the game and have since the beginning. That aside, it is time to dive into the narrative for Episode 5.
Anyone who has been playing the game up to this point will know that The Walking Dead is not a happy story. It is a fight for survival filled with tragedy and death. No Time Left isn’t any different and those who remember the ending of the previous episode will know that there can’t be much of a happy ending in store for Lee. No Time Left picks up immediately after the previous episode. Lee is in a predicament and Clementine has been kidnapped by the man on the walkie talkie. The number of members in the group has dwindled (depending on your decisions) and walkers have flooded the streets leaving you with very few options for escape. It all leads up to an epic conclusion that throws a twist your way and has you reflecting on the choices you have made throughout your journey.
Voice Acting Is Excellent
The voice acting in No Time Left is the best of all the episodes by far. The voice work of Lee and Clementine really draws you into the story and brings out a wide range of emotions from the viewer. From sadness, to fear and even anger you will feel a wide range of emotions by the time the credits roll. By the end, I found myself close to tears. Excellent work Telltale.
The sound work in this episode is also really well done. The distant sound of the undead moaning brings a haunting chill to your bones and the creepy voice over the walkie talkie doesn’t help that much either. The sickening crunches of a meat cleaver connecting with undead skulls is unsettling and the sound of disemboweling a walker then smearing the guts on someone almost makes you sick to your stomach.
I cried at the end, very few games have done this to me, so few that I can count them on my hand. Probably Red Dead and this. However, this had much more of a toll on me than Red Dead (probably because the ending was spoiled for me).
The character development was phenomenal. I crave games with great plot and character development, this is why Left 4 Dead was never for me. I just got hooked, the wait in between each episode was more and more unbearable.
I’m extremely satisfied with this game, as of now I’m not impatient for next season, (due to discipline on waiting between episodes), but I’m left with two important questions:
1.) Is that Omid and Christa? (Def not a mirage) Side note; Why did they leave city?
2.) Kenny is still alive? I hope he doesn’t become evil and we meet in Season 2.