14 DAY TRIAL // Innovation in the video game industry is a risky thing, especially this late into the console cycle, as most developers and publishers prefer to play it safe and counter-balance any sort of innovative feature with lots of tried and true mechanics that can't possibly fail or result in bad sales.
One game that went against this trend is The Walking Dead, the special adventure title from Telltale Games, that's based on the popular comic book written by Robert Kirkman.
The game could have easily followed the same standard plot as the comic books or the TV series, but Telltale decided to take a few risks and tell a sort of prequel story.
It focuses on another character, Lee, and the various people he meets throughout his survival story, ranging from the loveable Clementine, a young girl that's been separated from her parents, to the Kenny family, and many other unique characters.
In terms of actual gameplay, you'll be dealing with plenty of classic point and click adventure games, as you explore environments looking for things that will help you in your struggle for survival.
Of course, seeing as how you're dealing with the zombie apocalypse, feelings are on edge and you'll have a hard time deciding which characters to support and which to ignore. You'll go through all sorts of situations and practically everything you say or do will be noticed by one character or another.
This is where The Walking Dead shines, as the book, the TV show, and the game paint a grim picture filled with tough choices and extremely messy results.
The game in particular encourages you to play through its short episodes and make different choices in order to see how things can progress. One of the most powerful tools through which it does this is the statistics screen that appears at the end of each episode, showing the biggest choices and how you did in regards to the other players.
In case you've had enough of traditional games and are looking for an innovative experience, try out The Walking Dead game.