Season finale Episode 4 Review – Never go alone

After seven years and little uncertainty, the final chapter of Clementine's journey has arrived. Last year, Telltale Games closed unexpectedly and canceled all projects, including the last two episodes of The Walking Dead: The Final Season. Fortunately, Skybound Games, a new studio founded by Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, stepped in to save the season with a team of developers largely made up of former Telltale employees.

The Walking Dead: The Final Season The episode 1 has started in a spectacular and memorable way, episode 2 is a bit bogged down in the plot, episode 3 has been a solid comeback after the troubles of Telltale, and now, episode 4, titled "Take Us Back," has come in. Is this latest episode an appropriate conclusion for any of the video game characters the more memorable of the last decade? Or do Clementine fans have to keep walking?

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Warning: This review contains reviews for The Walking Dead: The Final Season Episodes 1 to 3.

Previously in The Walking Dead: The Final Season, Clementine, now around 16 years old, and her adopted son AJ were rescued and welcomed by a group of teenagers who had settled in an abandoned boarding school. Unfortunately, the head of the children, Marlon, secretly traded group members against a group of raiders led by Lilly, an unpleasant character last seen during season 1. When one of the other children has confronted Marlon about it, he lambasted him, killing her accidentally. Marlon tried to put her on Clem, but AJ solved the problem by putting a bullet in Marlon's head.

Shortly after, Lilly and his looters attacked the school and kidnapped three students for use as child soldiers. Clem, AJ, the remaining students and the famous former Whisperer James have quickly come up with a plot to rescue their friends and blow up the hiding of pirate's riverboats. The plan runs smoothly until they meet Minnie, one of the children previously traded to the Raiders by Marlon. Clem and his company are captured when Minnie betrays them and Lilly, seeing that AJ is becoming a good young psychopath, tries to recruit him for his cause. Of course, Clem escapes, a violent confrontation with Lilly then … then the bombs put by the children on the boat leave. Thanks! And now, let's move on to the exciting episode of this week.

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Episode 4 begins with Clem and AJ trying to escape the boat that collapses quickly. They come out through the skin of the teeth, but all the action has stoked a thick herd of walkers. The group of children is divided. Clem, AJ and one or two others (depending on the choices you made) take refuge in a cave with no way to go back to school security. I described the first episode of The Final Season as a "post-apocalyptic parenting simulation" and, after moving slightly away from the latter, episode 4 is again laser centered on the mother-son relationship from Clem and AJ. In particular, this episode speaks of something that legitimately terrifies all parents – at the moment your child realizes that all of this is bullshit. You've always invented that, and you have to decide to double or let them go their own way.

This is the decision that Clem will have to face after the ship's almost catastrophic exit, when AJ will declare that he will no longer be held back and that he will do everything in his power, including the murder, to protect his relatives. The whole season has been set up, teasing many times that AJ may have been seriously distorted by what he's seen, and yet, almost every time Clem tries to hold him back, something bad happens. product. This is a moral dilemma – the deepest and most touching ever imagined by Telltale.

Without spoiling the ultimate fate of anyone, I will simply say that The Final Season Episode 4 really does justice to both Clementine and AJ. In some respects, this last chapter actually redeems some earlier elements, especially the fragile third season. I must admit that I choked several times – not because this episode is loaded in melodrama, although there is a bit of it. No, it's the little moments that got me. This episode presents some perfect lines representing an arrow in the heart, especially for those with children. Get ready, this one is a bit of a roller coaster.

Unfortunately, despite the quality of the writing of episode 4, some problems arise in the gameplay. In particular, there is far too much action. While the past episodes have relatively little touched on the fast-paced events, this last chapter is essentially a long action scene mingled with brief moments of characters. I realize that the developers wanted to maintain the voltage, but the voltage starts to run out. To the credit of Skybound, they have a little optimized this action: button presses are more responsive and shooting sections have been simplified / improved. In fact, episode 4 is usually a nice technical breakthrough (it's about the first ep that Skybound has mostly developed on its own). The performances are improved, there are fewer problems, and it is certainly the best episode of The Final Season.

Like most of Telltale's episodes, this one lasts about 2 to 3 hours, though I have the impression that a lot of fans will want to tackle the season again to tinker with their decisions . Heck, some may want to start early in Season 1. Like the last chapter of a good book, The Final Season Episode 4 will follow you long after you finish it.

This review is based on a PC copy of The Walking Dead: The Final Season, episode 4, provided by the Skybound Games publisher. You can purchase the full season for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 or Nintendo Switch via Amazon.