Why Telltale was Revolutionary to the Gaming Industry — (And More About The Walking Dead)
The Telltale gaming company used to be top-dogs in the video game market, but in recent years the public interest has plummeted drastically, knocking them down to the bottom-cats. Telltale has a certain style — with series after series of storytelling games, and with episodes and seasons to each one. What differentiates Telltale games from a TV series is the control the player has over the story. When it comes to dialogue, every other 3 sentences or so the player is able to choose what is said. This, of course, gives the player a lot of power. They are able to choose what happens, with who does it happen with, and when it happens. The games were in multiple settings, with their main games being The Wolf Among Us, Tales from the Borderlands, Batman, Minecraft, Game of Thrones, and finally, The Walking Dead.
Back in the day, this was a huge new concept. The company was founded in October of 2004. Many were used to shooting RPG’s and video games that had a sole objective with no sway on the story line. But Telltale succeeded in making it seem like the game was your game. A game based on your choices, your beliefs, and your morals.
Despite the leg way Telltale made, the public didn’t age well with the gaming company. Being officially classified as defunct in on October 11, 2018, the company sought to finish up what they started. They pulled the plug do to “poor sales” , laying off at least 225 employees and having 25 employees remaining to deal with “existing obligations.”
This resulted in the final season of The Walking Dead Telltale Series being released.
The Walking Dead Telltale version follows a young girl — Clementine- as she grows up in this apocalyptic world filled with tyrants, drama, survival, and most importantly — zombies. The games switch perspectives, going every other season with Clementines POV.
The first game, “The Walking Dead; A Telltale Series Game” follows Lee Everette, a convicted felon. He finds young Clementine hiding in a treehouse after the zombie outbreak, and they work together (with others) to fight all the obstacles facing them. He raises her, and leaves a very touching influence on her as she grows up in this “eat or get eaten” new world. The very first season broke many barriers, winning VGX Game of The Year, VGX Award for Studio of the Year, BAFTA Games Award for Story, and at least 5 other awards.
*Spoilers Ahead
The very first game, from the beginning, got me hooked. I fell in love with Clementine, greatly relating to her. I fell in love with the storyline, always secretly wanting a zombie apocalypse. And being able to control people and outcomes made me even more invested than I have ever been. I gasped, I teared up, and I paused the video game on multiple accounts to pace around my room in thought about the next up incoming choice. Nothing prepared me for the end of the season, however. After raising Clementine, sticking with her through thick and thin, Lee got bit by a zombie. I immediately teared up. I got even more teared up, when I had Lee order Clementine to shoot him before he turned into a zombie. The wound is still raw, after three years, and I still get emotional typing about it.
But no worries, cause I had the next season lined up and ready to go.
I ate up each season. So did the rest of the public at this point, with most game review sites only rating 7/10 as the minimum. Season two had me just as invested, but as Telltale got increasingly slammed with bad sales, the more season three suffered. It was noticeable, and did not help them in the slightest. Telltale, while great in concept and style, was becoming “plagued by mismanagement and a toxic, workaholic culture.” Season three showed Telltale leaving its prime, and entering a declining slope they would inevitably fall victim to.
Now that the 25 employees are wrapping up the final season of The Walking Dead, I avoiding the last episode like the bubonic plague was outside my door in the middle ages. I grew up with Clementine (who is now raising a child she saved from a friend just like Lee), and to see her story end would be like seeing a part of me end. Telltale has mastered the art of allowing people to feel that its their story makes their closing even more devastating. Personally, I can’t even look at the last “Download last episode” button without my heart jumping and me getting teary eyed.
However, despite Telltale having the official title of “defunct”, their mark can still be seen across video game platforms. For example-
The Assassins Creed franchise adopted a new form of choose-your-own-story like gameplay with the 2018 release of Assassins Creed Odyssey. Your assassin ‘s— you can choose the gender- ending is based on who you decided to kill, who you decide to lie to, and who you decide to love (much like a Telltale game)
The Stanley Parable is another game that rely on your choices. This game is ranked at the same level as The Walking Dead games, but there is no doubt that they were not at least somewhat influences by The Walking Dead’s success.
Bethesda has similar RPG games that , despite being open world, are heavily influenced by the control the player has and the choices said player makes.
While the shutdown of the Telltales studio is extremely upsetting, I have strong faith that the company made enough of an impression to lead into the future of gaming. As the video game world evolves into more realistic graphics, quicker animations, more complex concepts and ideas, and even more intricate virtual reality settings, I am almost positive that the mark Telltales has made will be prevalent and evident. And on the positive side, maybe in a decade or two a brand new company will arise, with a whole new concept, and revolutionize the gaming industry like Telltale did.
SOURCES:
“Remembering Telltale Games.” The Verge. N. p., 2018. Web. 16 Apr. 2019 https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/24/17896012/telltale-games-the-walking-dead-storytelling-gaming
Ghoshal, Abhimanyu. “Celebrated Studio Telltale Games Shuts Down In The Messiest Way Possible.” The Next Web. N. p., 2018. Web. 16 Apr. 2019 https://thenextweb.com/gaming/2018/09/24/celebrated-studio-telltale-games-shuts-down-in-the-messiest-way-possible/
