Unwinnable

When improvising with fellow musicians, the most beautiful moment of the jam occurs when there’s a miscommunication. Perhaps the drummer fails to telegraph a time signature change, the bassist attempts unsuccessfully to switch keys, or the guitarist commits to a histrionic solo while his bandmates try to slow the pace. The song very nearly unravels, breaks, but one instrument hangs on to a singular string of an idea, allowing the rest of the band to latch on and reconstitute the rhythm and melody from what was, briefly, total chaos.

That is videogame testing. (more…)

The phrase “just like family” exists because of an understanding that blood and sacrament aren’t the only adhesives that make people stick together. In the excellent videogame adaption of The Walking Dead, this truth is explored by putting familial connections through their paces. It, like all zombie stories, is the tale of people struggling to survive. The game’s protagonist, Lee, becomes the adoptive father figure of a small girl named Clementine. At first Lee’s protection comes as a kind of moral obligation. Clementine is on her own, her parents likely dead – no good person would leave a child to die at the hands of zombies – but, as the pair suffer through brushes with death (and worse), their connection becomes something else. (more…)

I looked out my bedroom window and saw a squirrel curled up among the fallen leaves on the sidewalk below. It had none of the twitchy squirrel vigor I expect, especially in the frantic acorn-gathering autumn.  In fact, it was almost perfectly still. (more…)

Point and click zombie action!

Telltale Games is noted for its award-winning excellence in the point and click style of adventure games. If you grew up with Sierra On-Line and LucasArts games this one will bring back fond memories of this style of gaming. The Walking Dead is not a first-person shooter. Instead, Telltale uses a modified version of its standard point and click mechanic. The tension is built through the use of pacing, events, camera angles and the overall dramatic scenario. Death is the final consequence.

Read the rest of my preview of The Walking Dead game, only on Complex.

Let it be known that I love Russian prostitutes and toilet humor. (more…)

The new season of Sam & Max is available for download. If you like humor, go give Tell Tale games some money and you’ll get a snazzy point-and-click adventure to go along with your laughs.