This review contains spoilers
I feel like making a game starring a major character in Walking Dead media is a good idea on paper, but it's messy when this is supposed to be canon to the comics. I know TellTale's TWD games are supposed to be in the same universe as the comics, but I think this game would have benefitted from being its own continuity. This is a very specific point in the comics (which I haven't read, maybe eventually), and it doesn't feel like there's much room to fit a character-changing story in it, so Michonne's development is pretty minimal. At the beginning, she's a hardened, badass survivor who is plagued by her past failings in relation to her kids. By the end of the game, she's a hardened, badass survivor who is plagued by her past failings in relation to her kids. You can force her to "step away" from her kids, but the game still ends with her seeing hallucinations of them. How unfulfilling.
But the characters here are great. With the choices I made, Michonne is a caring person who will do whatever it takes to keep innocent people safe. The family she helps is tattered, but stronger than before, and I enjoyed all of its members; Paige is a friend of the Fairbanks family who learns that she can be a devoted member of the family and not just an outsider; Sam cares deeply for her family and wants to fight like hell for them, while also wanting to make a stand against some shitty people; her two youngest brothers don't have much going on, but I always enjoy when kid characters learn to find their own strength. Pete believes in people so much and is a great liaison and friend to Michonne. Also liked the villains Norma and Randall. Normally (pun intended), the villains show up late in these games, but here, they're a threat right away and working around them was a good time.
Ultimately, though, this game just doesn't feel super... necessary. Not like spin-offs are really "necessary" in general, but this game is kind of trapped by its own concept, and I came out of it liking the story and characters, but not feeling like it needed to happen.
This is definitely the weakest "season" of TellTale's TWD, but that's not really surprising. Unless the episodes were just top tier (they weren't), they're notably shorter than the main seasons' episodes, and there's only three of them.
If you have the definitive collection of TWD, then sure, play it. But I wouldn't recommend sniffing it out specifically.
But the characters here are great. With the choices I made, Michonne is a caring person who will do whatever it takes to keep innocent people safe. The family she helps is tattered, but stronger than before, and I enjoyed all of its members; Paige is a friend of the Fairbanks family who learns that she can be a devoted member of the family and not just an outsider; Sam cares deeply for her family and wants to fight like hell for them, while also wanting to make a stand against some shitty people; her two youngest brothers don't have much going on, but I always enjoy when kid characters learn to find their own strength. Pete believes in people so much and is a great liaison and friend to Michonne. Also liked the villains Norma and Randall. Normally (pun intended), the villains show up late in these games, but here, they're a threat right away and working around them was a good time.
Ultimately, though, this game just doesn't feel super... necessary. Not like spin-offs are really "necessary" in general, but this game is kind of trapped by its own concept, and I came out of it liking the story and characters, but not feeling like it needed to happen.
This is definitely the weakest "season" of TellTale's TWD, but that's not really surprising. Unless the episodes were just top tier (they weren't), they're notably shorter than the main seasons' episodes, and there's only three of them.
If you have the definitive collection of TWD, then sure, play it. But I wouldn't recommend sniffing it out specifically.