Since Re: coded was originally developed as a
series of episodic games for Japanese cell phones, the progression through the various worlds is very linear.
No spoilers here on the story, because that is the main
point of these episodic games, and heck if I know what is going to happen in the next few releases!
Over the years, the team at Telltale Games has really made a name for itself through a series
of episodic game releases, including ones based on hot properties like Jurassic Park, Back To the Future, The Walking Dead, The Wolf Among Us, Borderlands and, most recently, HBO's Game of Thrones, which is gaining huge accolades from fans.
Usually we'd say that Telltale Games, famed for The Walking Dead, Minecraft: Story Mode, Wolf Among Us, Batman and other series, was the
king of episodic games, but IO Interactive has very much stolen that crown with its novel take on the Hitman franchise.
The latest avant - garde adventure to come from Suda51's twisted psyche has finally arrived on a modern set of consoles, first being released as a series
of episodic games for mobile in a time before touch screens became prevalent.
This week, Jimmy finally gets to play the
end of an episodic game, Michael and Jennifer are still hooked on simulcasts, and Ebony ponders some Sword Art Online art.
Where the
best of episodic games manage to make each chapter feel fulfilling on its own while still contributing to the overarching story, Bear With Me Episode One feels incomplete.
Telltale Games has been on a roll since introducing the masses to the «Choose Your Own Adventure»
style of episodic game with The Walking Dead: Season One.
While Telltale Games» new Sam & Max is an
example of episodic games that has risen to popularity, Ransom Interactive's The Forgotten is also an example of a failed series that has fallen quickly to obscurity after only the first episode.
It seems the
cadence of episodic game releases on the App Store goes a little something like this: A game that follows a pay - per - episode DLC schedule will be released on the App Store, and it'll cost money.
However, with the ultimate purpose of the elusive Vault of the Traveler still unclear, and an ending that grinds the action to a halt as soon as things begin to get interesting, it's hard know just what to expect from the upcoming fifth and final
entry of this episodic game.
The next
instalment of the episodic game Life is Strange has arrived on the PlayStation 4 that allows players to go inside the world of a teenager in the town of Blackwell as she attempts to find herself as a young adult.
On the downside, some gamers have a negative
viewpoint of episodic games — they've been burned by stuff that never got finished like the Half - Life episodes — and won't buy episodic games until the entire series is done.
To finish things off Telltale is bringing its
stable of episodic games over, whether you like them or not it's great to have narrative driven games for the platform.
Unfortunately, as a
port of an episodic game originally released on 2005 era cell phones, it brings with it a whole different set of issues that keep it from being as captivating as the story really could be.
In a frank discussion about the modern games industry, Phil Spencer discusses the
potential of episodic games and the pros and cons of downloadable content
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier, the third «season»
of episodic games based on the comic book version of the zombie franchise, will begin in November for the Xbox One and other platforms.
Telltale games, the people behind episodic titles such as Sam & Max and Tales of Monkey Island are adapting everyone's favorite time - travelling trilogy into a
series of episodic games, due out later this year on multiple platforms.