Lets be honest, to date, there have been two types of Game of Thrones game: 1) Bad, 2) Terrible. However, ever since we heard Telltale had hooked up with HBO and George R.R. Martin to develop an episodic adventure game that would concentrate on a story away from anything Martin has previously written about, we were excited. Anyone who has played Telltale’s Walking Dead games (averaging 9/10 across 12 reviews according to Metacritic) will understand why… the world was both dangerous and curious, you quickly bonded and cared about characters and the story was one that sucked you in and refused to let go… ever.
Well, it’s finally release time: as of December 3rd 2014 you can pick up a copy of Game of Thrones: Episode 1 for the PC or MAC from Telltale’s Online Store, Steam and other digital outlets or you can pick it up for the PS4 on the Playstation Network (curiously the PS3 edition isn’t out until December 9th) and the XBOX Games store is the place to go for the XBOX One/XBOX 360… so, basically – if you’ve a console or computer then you’re all good (well, unless you’ve got a WII:U, in which case I envy you, because I want Sonic Boom).
Bu before you go spending your hard-earned cash, I guess you want to know a little about who the game follows and what it’s all about? Well, rather than being based on the books, it is based on the award-winning HBO television series. It will follow the story of House Forrester – a noble house from the wolfswood in the North; it is sworn to House Glover of Deepwood Motte and Asha Greyjoy thinks of them as a clan. Caught up in the events of The War of the Five Kings, they are placed in a precarious position where members of the household must do everything they can to prevent the house from meeting its doom.
Superfans will recognise the name Forrester as it has been mentioned in the books before, in A Dance With Dragons:
“The army covered twenty-two miles the first day, by the reckoning of the guides Lady Sybell [Glover] had given them, trackers and hunters sworn to Deepwood with clan names like Forrester and Woods, Branch and Bole.”
sha Greyjoy on the Northern scouts in Stannis’s army.
Here’s the trailer:
As we quickly see with the appearance of Margaery Tyrell, who takes us the task of explaining who the Forresters are in the trailer above, many of the show’s cast members will reprise their roles in the game. As far as we know, none of them will be playable, but instead we will take control of five members of House Forrester as we work through the story. Don’t worry though, fans of the other houses will bump into all their favourites, including Tyrion Lannister performed by Peter Dinklage, Cersei Lannister performed by Lena Headey, Margaery Tyrell performed by Natalie Dormer (as we’ve seen), and Ramsay Snow performed by Iwan Rheon. Also, don’t forget that this is episodic and we’ve been promised that additional cast members will appear in later episodes.
In terms of timeline, the events in the game series begin towards the end of Season Three (of the TV series), and end right before the beginning of Season Five (of the TV series). In addition to exploring new, unfamiliar locations such as Ironrath (the home of House Forrester, players will visit familiar locations such as King’s Landing and The Wall (I’m ‘a kill me some White Walkers!).
What we loved about Telltale’s Walking Dead series was that they obviously knew and loved the series and cared a great deal about matching their world up with the world we all know and love. Those used to playing COD, FIFA, FINAL FANTASY, etc might not be overly impressed with the graphics, but that has never been what people look forward to about Telltale’s games. As you can see from the trailer, it is the tense atmosphere, the deep storylines, the incredible characters you get to know and care about and the inability to put the game down until you’ve reached the damned cliffhanger that will have you speculating for months. There seems little doubt the company is trying to do all of this and more with this latest title; the following quote they’ve provided us with certainly makes it seem like they ‘get’ what us GoT fans have been waiting for from an ASoI&F game:
“Playing as five characters not only reflects the epic scope of Game of Thrones, but is also something that the player needs to be mindful of. This is because the actions of one character can ripple out to affect the rest of House Forrester. Multiply the actions of one character by five, and you’re truly playing the Game of Thrones… where you win, or you die.”
We are excited to get gaming and will provide you with a review sometime next week!
For more information on Telltale Games, visit the official website, Facebook for Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series, and follow Telltale Games on twitter @TelltaleGames.
Edit: More details on House Forrester:
House Forrester is a noble house from the Wolfswood in the north of Westeros. Bannermen to House Glover, they have always offered unswerving loyalty to the ruling great house of the North – the Starks. The Forresters are seated at Ironrath, an imposing stronghold surrounded by towering ironwood trees. Built over fifteen hundred years ago by Cedric Forrester and his triplet sons, Ironrath is a testament to the strength and endurance of ironwood. The Forrester house words are ‘Iron from Ice’, which echoes their belief that – like the ironwood itself – the adverse conditions and unforgiving landscape of the North only makes them stronger.
Have you guys ordered it yet? How high or low have you set the bar?
Jennie Ivins
Richard Marpole