To start, I thought I'd have a talk about the most recent addition to the Telltale roster, Minecraft Story Mode. I have played through the first two episodes in recent days and can say that though they may not be anything radical or unique for a Telltale game, they are still very enjoyable non-the-less, sporting the usual emphasis on plot and characters.
I went into the first episode of the game expecting the sort of thing that we always do when we play a game by the Telltale franchise, a very in depth and well fleshed out story, world and characters. In those departments the first two episodes haven't disappointed, with characters which have qualities and quirks making them people you really do care about. Being a game in collaboration with Minecraft, the world the game takes place in is fairly easily sorted, so in that department Telltale didn't really need to add too much aside from the Minecraft world we all know. It has the look that we all know of Minecraft as well which I think has been executed very well here, having that distinctive look of the game while still looking modern and fresh.
Of course, being a Telltale game if you are looking for a title with constant action and freedom for the player to do whatever they want then this game isn't really for you. The only real interaction the player has is with quick time events that occur throughout the storyline, with occasional small areas popping up where the player can move around to interact with objects and talk to other characters. For some players that may well switch them off the game entirely, but I think the fantastic plots and characters which are in the narrative make up for the lack of traditional player movement allowed in the game.
I do however think the story in this title (so far anyway) is not quite as strong as in other Telltale titles such as The Walking Dead and The Wolf Among Us. After the fantastic first episode that established the story and began the chaos which the character you play is trying to resolve, the second episode felt a bit less spectacular and meaningful to me. It was still a fun experience I felt, but for me it lacked the impact that was shown throughout the first episode. This wasn't helped by one of the decisions that was made by the player during the first episode being made essentially meaningless in the second, as either decision lead to the other being fulfilled anyway.
Despite this I still think the game is worth playing for those who like games with a heavy emphasis on a deep and involving plot and well fleshed out character development. Although the way it is played may be different from most games and the story so far may not be the best that Telltale has developed, it still has a story that is as well fleshed out and told as you would expect from the Telltale stable.
With another three episodes to still be released there is a lot of this series to play out and I expect Telltale to deliver the usual narrative prowess that we come to expect of them.
I hope you guys enjoyed this review of sorts of the first two episodes in the Minecraft Story Mode series. Until next time, TKH out.
