And here we are again.
All That Remains isn’t a
beginning, but a continuation, and it expects that you have played
Season 1. If you have, you will be at home; if you haven’t, you really
shouldn’t be here.
It isn’t a straight
continuation, as Season 1 definitely ended (as opposed to stopped), but
it hinted at more to come. Which is what we now have, several months
later and with a few assumptions being made about how we got here.
It does though begin some new
things, and in that respect is very much an Episode 1. A set-up for the
next four episodes, with some new plot lines and people to introduce and
settle down. This is reflected in the pacing, the violent punctuations
notwithstanding.
Lest you had forgotten what sort
of a world this now is, you are very quickly reminded that it is mean
and arbitrary and self-interested. You can make it less so through some
of the choices you make about what the characters should do, or you can
do something else. Some choices are obvious, some less so, and I
continue to try to do what I think I might do in the particular
situation. Which can be downright mean and completely self-centred.
Not. Bitten. Yet.
One of the things that remains
is Clementine, and she is both the playable character and the fulcrum
for the story. She is what you would expect a 10 year old survivor of
the first season to be – hardened yet vulnerable, grown up before her
time but still a little girl. We have learnt not to get too attached to
anyone in this game, but here’s hoping Clementine hangs in there.
New characters are prominent,
although as yet they remain unknown. Inklings of their back story pepper
the events, but by and large we know their names but not who they are.
One whose name we know remains unseen, and there are hints at something
being not quite right about him/her.
Everything else is as it was in
Season 1 – the look, the gameplay, the way your choices influence how
things play out. Saves happen automatically (and frequently), so wait
for a save to have occurred if you want to exit without replaying a
portion of the game.
Death also occurs, or perhaps
not if you are quick to respond to the on screen cues as to how to avoid
it. It might take a little getting used to, but if you have played
before you know what to expect. I did however fail to read the on screen
instructions when it came to using the lighter, so pay attention or
prepare to be frustrated.
“This is gonna suck”
There is, as you would expect,
violence, as well as language and a squeamish moment or two. Four
actually, which is how many times I had to push the needle through the
skin.
All That Remains is very much
about the story. Some might say, especially given the pacing, that is
only about the story and that gameplay is so straightforward that its
more an interactive novel than a game. Certainly the puzzling in this
episode is almost non-existent, but I don’t actually care. Stories told
with as much class and pathos as these stand on their own, and too much
traditional puzzling would undermine the “realism” that has been
created.
In my recent review of Fables, I
mentioned I didn’t care yet. There is none of that here, having been
established in the first season and continued through Clementine. How
many of the new characters I come to care about remains to be seen, but
I did feel sorry for one of them even as I chose to end its life.
All That Remains tantalisingly
sets the table for what is to come. There is nothing here to suggest
that fans will be disappointed by what is still to be served.
I played on:
OS: Windows 7
Processor: Intel i7-3820 4GHz
RAM: 12GB Ripjaw DDR3 2133 Mhz
Video card: AMD Radeon HD 7800 2048MB
