The Game of Thrones game is an episodic graphic adventure developed and published in 2014 by Telltale Games. The studio is also behind other critically-acclaimed games such as The Walking Dead, The Wolf Among Us, Tales from the Borderlands, or the more recent Batman reinterpretation. All of these games are known for giving players the immersive experience of tailoring the story based on their choices.
Based off the hit HBO series with the same name and George R.R. Martin’s equally famous book franchise A Song of Ice and Fire, the game focuses on House Forrester and the various escapades of its members.
Main Highlights of the ‘Game of Thrones’ Game
Graphic Adventure Gameplay
This Game of Thrones game isn’t an RPG. For the most part, events unfold in the shape of a graphic adventure, giving players the options to intervene with lines of dialogue or actions when needed. The occasional sword-fighting scenes happen too, in which case you will have to grab hold of your mouse or joystick and prepare for some relatively easy quick-time events. There’s also considerably less of an open world exploration aspect in this game as opposed to, say, The Walking Dead or Tales from the Borderlands.
Story Tailoring
Like all Telltale products, the Game of Thrones game offers an interactive gameplay founded on a system of relevant (or sometimes not so much) choices. Sometimes you will end up having to choose between saving the life of a character or running away, for example. Your choices either have immediate effects or pile up and get set aside, “butterfly effect style.” Some could argue that this isn’t Telltale’s finest exhibit of this feature since all of your choices largely lead in the same place. It gets a bit frustrating after a while when you realize that no matter how many times you do something differently, that one character still ends up dying regardless.
Multiple Perspectives
Keeping up with the multi-POV aesthetic of the ASOIAF world, the Game of Thrones game puts players in the shoes of five different characters: four members of House Forrester and a squire turned brother of the Night’s Watch. All of these characters are spread across different locations too – from the beautiful and lonesome Ironrath to the mighty Wall, to King’s Landing, or the exotic plains of Essos. This makes the game enjoyably dynamic and never dull, especially with such a varied roster of personalities.
Main Storyline of the ‘Game of Thrones’ Game
Telltale’s Game of Thrones is deeply rooted in its source material, taking an already existing house, the Forresters, and showing us their escapades and lives during the timeline of early season four of the show. At core, the main conflict is between House Forrester and House Whitehill, allied with the new overlord house in the North, the Boltons. In typical Game of Thrones fashion, there are also smaller side-storylines ramified, including some good old King’s Landing intrigue and Castle Black drama. In the end, it all boils down to the fate of this small but resilient house as it falls from glory.
Technical Details
Compatible Platforms
Telltale made the game available on an impressive number of platforms. Those interested may get it for their Android or iOS devices, for their computers (Windows or Mac), PlayStation (3 and 4), and Xbox (360 and One). PC owners may purchase the game through Steam.
System Requirements (Windows)
- OS: Windows XP Service Pack 3
- Processor: Core 2 Duo 2GHz or equivalent
- Memory: 3 GB RAM
- Graphics: ATI or NVIDIA card w/512 MB RAM
- DirectX: Version 9.0
- Storage: 3 GB available space
- Sound Card: Direct X 9.0c sound device
- Additional Notes: Not Recommended for Intel integrated graphics.
System Requirements (Mac)
- OS: Lion (10.7.X)
- Processor:3 Ghz Intel
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: 512 MB NVidia or ATI graphics card
- Storage: 3 GB available space
- Additional Notes: Not recommended for Intel integrated graphics or Mac Minis or early-generation MacBook.
Final Score and Conclusion
- Game visuals: 4/5
- Gameplay and mechanics: 3/5
- Storyline and lore: 5/5
- Overall level of fun: 4/5
Telltale’s artwork continues to be its own, though it’s nothing stellar or particularly expressive. The gameplay suffers greatly from the lack of real meaningfulness of your choices and the repeated quick-time events. The coherence and depth of the storylines save this Game of Thrones game, backed by Martin’s extensive and detailed world.
In the end, Telltale’s Game of Thrones game is an experience that any ASOIAF lover needs to get their hands on. If not for the brand new perspective for the multiple Easter eggs. Not only will the world will familiar, but so will the faces, with the game featuring appearances from Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion Lannister, Cersei Lannister, and Ramsay Bolton (still Snow at the time).
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