Big Mouth Season 2 Review

It wasn’t really surprising that this show got picked up for a second season. I gave the first season of this show a 4 out of 5, you can read my review of it here, after binge watching it one weekend last year. I have to say though, the bad thing about binge watching is that you’re more likely to forget about a show or what the show was about by the time the next season comes out and that completely happened with this show. I even forgot that the second season was released. So, I took this season a little slower and finally just recently finished it. Keep reading to see what I thought about the second season.

Picking up right where season 1 left off, Nick, voiced by Nick Kroll, has just started puberty and got his own hormone monster. Unlike his best friend’s hormone monster, Maury, also voiced by Nick Kroll, Nick’s hormone monster is a little bit slower. Nick just wants to be like his best friend Andrew, voiced by John Mulaney, who is steadily going through puberty. Also this season, you’ll see more into the lives of the girls in this show who have their own hormone monster, Connie, voiced by Maya Rudolph. All new obstacles will be thrown into the boys lives as well as the girls as they continue to go through puberty.

While this season was a little bit slower than last season, I did like the edition of the shame monster. The shame monster plays a big part this season as it teachers all of the characters about some of the “shameful” things that they do and makes them start to feel guilty about their sexual acts. This definitely livened the season up a bit because it was kind of going downhill with the same jokes and same storyline as last year which was a bunch of horny teenagers learning their bodies and exploring their sexuality. I don’t know how this is even possible, but I have to say that this season also pushed the limits when it came to each episode and was even more adult-orientated than last season. This isn’t a bad thing if you aren’t easily offended and actually turned out to be both cringe worthy at times as well as laugh out loud funny at other times.

Just like the first season, the second season depends heavily on the cast of actors that voice these characters. They make the characters, make them relatable, make them funny, and make them memorable. Without the voices of Nick Kroll, John Mulaney, Maya Rudolph, Jessli Klein, Jason Mantzoukas, Jenny Slate, Fred Armisen, Jordan Peele, and a bunch of other actors who voice this huge cast of characters, this show would never work.

Overall I give season 2 a 3 out of 5.

While not as great and groundbreaking as the first season, this was still a decent season even if at times it did slow down a bit. The introduction of the shame monster was one that picked up this season which was a little flat to start off with. If you enjoyed the first season, you’ll probably want to see this season and see how the story of these teenagers continue. If you haven’t watched the first season and you were basically waiting for the show to end so that you can binge watch the whole series, that’s not going to happen any time soon since this show was just picked up for season 3 so you can either wait a little longer or start watching now. If you have no interest in watching teenagers go through puberty in a cartoon, then stay away from this one and as last time, keep the kiddies away from this season as well.

GLOW: Season 2 Review

I have to say that I wasn’t even sure I was going to watch the second season of this show after watching the first season. You could read my review of the first season here. Anyway, I decided to give this show a second chance and see what season two had to offer. Would it make improvements to the overall story of the show or would it still be the Ruth and Debbie show? Keep reading to find out.

Picking up where season one left off, the first episode of GLOW was just taped and was picked up by a big TV network. With a lot of promise, there’s also a lot of pressure for the wrestlers as well as the producers of the show. Will they get this show to work or will it just crash and burn. The whole cast returns for the second season along with the addition of a few new characters, but everything basically remained the same character wise. While the overall plot is about getting the first season of GLOW to go off without a hitch so that it can continue past the first season, it’s still basically the Ruth and Debbie show as most of the episodes concentrated on them and their ever going saga of if they can ever be friends again. You’ll see Ruth struggle with past decisions while trying to move forward and you’ll see Debbie enter into a world that’s basically foreign to her as she’s going through a divorce while still trying to be a part of the show. You’ll get some time with the other characters this season, but not enough that anything really comes from it.

I have to say that after the second episode of this season, I was seriously hooked and could not stop watching. Every chance that I had to grab a couple of episodes I took because I had to see where this show was going. Even though it didn’t go in the direction that I wanted it to and fleshed out everyone’s back story, it was still more interesting than the previous season and it kind of left off with a cliffhanger of an ending so hopefully this gets picked up for another season so that it can continue to progress. I will say that even though it was still the Ruth and Debbie story, a few more characters were able to break out from the pack this season and get a little time for themselves and that was an interesting turn of events, but I think if they would have cut out some Ruth and Debbie time this could have been done for a lot more characters. I think that with a little more work this show can really be something great and something truly worth gushing about. Right now it’s on that border and with a push in the right direction it could become a really great show. I want to see more than just Ruth and Debbie out of the ring. I want to see more of Sam and his struggles, like the episodes this season that showed Sam, the forever bachelor, adjusting to have a daughter in his life. I want to see more episodes revolving around Bash and his struggles with coming to terms with his sexuality. I want more of this and less of this Ruth and Debbie thing. It’s obvious they can never be friends with each other again and just seeing Ruth try and Debbie being a bitch is getting a little played out.

This is still an ensemble show that wouldn’t work without the full cast of this show. I bring my point back to Orange is the New Black. If that show was just the Alex and Piper show it wouldn’t work, just like as much as this show wants to concentrate on Ruth and Debbie it’s not going to work. If they continue to go on this route then the shows not going to last that long. There are a whole cast of other characters who are interesting and have stories to tell. They just need to be told! Like I said before, they kind of worked on this aspect of the show this season, but there needs to be more of it next season for the show to actually work.

The acting this time around got a lot better I have to say and everyone felt more comfortable in their roles. This was a good thing because it made the show more interesting. I will say that this time around I was able to pick out a few characters that were interesting unlike last season where I couldn’t find anyone to relate to. This season there were a bunch of characters to be able to relate to and mostly it was, as much as I hate saying this, Ruth. Yes, I can relate to Ruth. If you’ve already watched you were probably thinking that I could relate to Yolana, but just because she’s a lesbian and so am I doesn’t mean that I can relate to her. I can relate to Ruth because Ruth is a people pleaser and she tries her hardest to please everyone even if that means sacrificing her own ambitions to do so. This was relatable to me, and I hate that, but Alison Brie just really pulled that off this season and she was not only this super people pleaser but also still super awkward. Overall the acting really improved this season and it payed off.

Overall I give this season of GLOW a 4 out of 5.

While this show still isn’t for everyone, if you were a fan of the first season of course you’re going to want to watch the second season. If you didn’t watch the first season, but were kind of interested in this show I would say now is the time to start watching. You could easily binge watch both seasons in the matter of two days since there’s only 10 episodes and they’re 30-40 minutes long. While there were some improvements this show is still lacking just a little bit. Hopefully with time this show will continue to grow and continue to get better. So here’s hoping that this show gets picked up for another season.

Minecraft: Story Mode – Season 2 – Episode 5 – Above and Beyond Review (PS4)

Minecraft: Story Mode – Season 2 has finally come to an end with the release of the fifth and final episode. I say that with a little trepidation because last season I thought there were only going to be five episodes to find out that they were adding three DLC episodes. Anyway, moving on from that, let’s talk about episode 5. How did things end for Jessie and her friends? Did this game get some sort of closure just in case it gets canned? Keep reading to find out.

Picking up right where episode 4 left off, you can read my review of episode 4 here, Jessie and her friends have made it back to Beacontown that’s being run by the admin who is disguised as Jessie. Gone is the peaceful Beacontown and in its place a tribute to the founder Jessie. There’s even going to be a big celebration for the fake Jessie, but Jessie and her friends aren’t having any of that as they come up with an Oceans 11 type plan to take down the Admin once and for all.

I have to say that while I was playing this episode I was kind of on the fence about it. It felt just a little rushed and everything happened really quickly. By the end of the episode though I came around and really enjoyed it. This was because it mostly cleared up a lot of things that were left hanging in certain episodes. The rivalry between Stella and Jessie, which was all in Stella’s head, was basically finished. The stuff Petra was going through also came to a close, the fate of Beacongtown and the Admin also had a nice tidy ending making the game end on a really high note. Having the ending that the game had was a real highlight to an episode that was a little on the boring side even with all the action and adventure that was thrown in.

Kudos to Telltale! I usually don’t give out Kudos lightly, but I have to this time around because they kind of won me over by the end of this episode with a Jessie and Petra moment. I won’t spoil it here, but being a Jessie and Petra shipper it was a nice little tame option given to you at the end of the episode and made me just a little giddy.

The playability of this game was a mess at some points. Sure it didn’t stall or take too long to load, but the action sequences were just off. This kind of messed up the game because when it came down to it, this episode was one big boss battle. Quicktime events didn’t seem as neatly calibrated as they were in the past and the action sequences that weren’t Quicktime events were just an absolute pain with the hearts and stamina system. I spent a lot of time dying in these sequences for really stupid reasons. If there’s another season I really hope they fix this mechanism and just switch over to full Quicktime events or improve the stamina system.

The graphics for this game were back on track like last episode as they fit into the whole Minecraft universe. Except for episode 3, the graphics have been spot on and are really a highlight of this game as a whole. I like how they really give you a Minecraft game but with a story so that you’re not running around the woods punching trees.

Finish this episode and you’ll have not only 6 new trophies to brag about but also a new platinum trophy to add to your list. Congratulations to those who played this game and got the platinum trophy for it. Unlike the other Telltale games, I don’t really feel like this was a cheap platinum trophy because some of the episodes felt like a chore to play so it wasn’t all fun and games.

As always, no multiplayer for this game and just the crowd play feature. I was surprised that the crowd play feature wasn’t crammed down my throat this time as when I play recent Telltale games I feel like I’m doing something wrong if I don’t use the crowd play feature.

Overall I give this episode a 4 out of 5.

What’s Great:
+ An Oceans 11 type story for this episode that planned out a major scheme to take down the Admin and save Beacontown.
+ A nice ending that tidied everything up in case there are no more seasons for this game.
+ Graphics that fit in nicely with the whole Minecraft Universe.

What’s Not So Great:
– Quicktime events that weren’t calibrated correctly and action sequences that used the broken stamina system. This made for a lot of non-fun times in a huge boss battle that could have been better.
– Another quick episode that made the ending feel just a little rushed.

Overall this episode was probably the best of the season. It had a nice ending that if they don’t continue with the game you’ll be satisfied with. It wrapped everything up nicely and even put a little bow on it. Thanks Telltale! Anyway, if you haven’t played this game yet, I would say to wait until it was on sale and pick it up so that you can binge play it. This is one of the Telltale games that I feel in my honest opinion that it’s not really worth the $24.99 price tag that goes with it. If you aren’t a Telltale fan or a Minecraft fan, or maybe you’re just burnt out on Telltale games I would say to skip this one then and wait for something better.

Spoilers! Below are the choices that I made for the fifth episode.

Minecraft: Story Mode – Season 2 – Episode 2 – Giant Consequence Review (PS4)

After playing the first episode of the game, which you can watch in its entirety here, I was pretty eager for the second episode to come out. Since I came to this game a little late, it didn’t take long for this episode to come out and I was able to play it fairly quickly. Going into the episode I was a little weary because of last season. Last season the first episode of Minecraft: Story mode really pulled me in while the second episode was a little lackluster. Hoping that this didn’t happen the second time around I jumped into this episode.

Picking up right where the first episode ended, SPOILERS IF YOU DIDN’T PLAY THE FIRST EPISODE, the Admin is threatening Jessie’s town of Beacontown and the citizens that live there. It’ll be an all out battle as you try to save Beacontown while trying to defeat the Admin. It doesn’t stop there though as this is the Admin and everything he does is basically a trick. It’s time for another adventure to try and put a stop to the Admin once and for all. There will be some more tension between Petra and Jessie in this episode along with your new rival Stella. Where the hell did this chick pop out of? Anyway, Stella thinks that she’s your rival no matter how many times you try to tell her that she isn’t. While it doesn’t seem like a problem at first it kind of becomes one at the end depending on how you play the game.

Unfortunately this episode went the way of the second episode in the first season as it was shorter than the first episode, kind of felt like it should have be included in the first episode and felt a little rushed. Saying that, it was an interesting episode that showed sometimes people aren’t really who they say they are and it kind of breaks one character. I won’t spoil it for you here, but it’ll be interesting to see how this part of the story develops. Moral of the episode is that the Admin is evil and because it’s the Admin, he can do whatever he wants to do. There’s also more tension between Jessie and Petra and according to Telltale my story is constantly changing depending on the options that I choose. While the episode was interesting, the way that this season is going, it makes me think that there will be DLC for this game after the original 5 episodes come out which I’m really hoping is not the case.

The game ran smoothly and loading times were reduced this time around, just like the previous episode which is a pretty big win for Telltale. This doesn’t always happen and they’ve had problems with this in the past. But to stress again, the fighting scenes, which are few and far in between, are really annoying when they aren’t quick time events. This is thanks to the new stamina system that ticks down every time you swing your sword or dodge and roll. Other than that the game was bug and glitch free making the playthrough a smooth one.

Boo Telltale, Boo Apparently when I played the servers weren’t working right and by the end of the episode I wasn’t able to compare my stats with other players. While this isn’t a big deal to a lot of people, it is to me. This is mainly because I like to see how other people have played the game. Did the majority of players make the same decisions that I did or did they choose something else? I always like seeing these stats and I wasn’t even able to see them in the settings menu where you can look at your choices. When I went there immediately after playing the game, nothing came up as if I didn’t even play the second episode to begin with. This is not good.

The graphics are the same for this episode as they were for the first episode. When it comes to these episode based games, I never expect them to change from episode to episode because first of all that would be weird and second of all it would just be inconsistent. Anyway, just as with the first episode the graphics fit and it makes the game just a little bit better.

Finish this episode and you’ll get another 6 trophies to add to the list of 31 trophies for this game. Like the episode before all you have to do is play the game in order to get the trophies. By the end of all 5 episodes you’ll have yourself a new platinum trophy.

Just like the episode before there is no multiplayer, just plain old single player. Once again Telltale is really pushing the Crowd Play feature, which I still haven’t tried. Big surprise there. If you’ve tried this, let me know in the comments section your thoughts about it.

Overall I give this episode a 3.5 out of 5.

What’s Great:
+ Picks up right where the first episode left off so there’s no wondering what happened because it will actually play out.
+ Another episode that let’s you play around and build some along with more crafting.
+ Short loading times and a bug and glitch free experience.
+ Graphics that are consistent and work for this series.

What’s Not So Great:
– An overall lackluster episode that felt like it was tacked on and should have been included in the first episode.
– A shorter episode that while had a lot of story could have been just a little bit longer.
– No stats were available at the end of my playthrough, even though this might not be a problem for everyone, it is for me as this is one of the biggest draws for me when it comes to these types of games.

If you’ve already started playing this game, you’re going to want to continue with the second episode. The release schedule looks a little more planned out for the Telltale games lately, unlike the release schedules of the past where it took just about a year for each game to come out, yes I’m looking at you Tales from the Borderlands and Game of Thrones. If you haven’t started playing this game yet, but want to, I would say to hold off until the full game comes out and then you can binge play it all at once. Other than that the little preview at the end of the episode has me eager for episode three which hopefully won’t be a total letdown.

Spoilers! Below are the choices that I made for the second episode.

This Week in Trophies 08-13-2017 – 08-19-2017

Ugh, trophy hunting has not been on my side for the past couple of weeks as I’ve barely been able to get any trophies. I’ve played a ton of games, but the trophies just aren’t able to come as easily as they once were. This kind of sucks in a way as the trophy hunter in me is getting antsy especially since it’s been four weeks since my last platinum. Anyway, here’s a breakdown of my trophies for the week.

Sonic Mania – 9%

Can I say that I am just loving this blast from my past. I have so many fond memories of playing this game on my Sega Genesis and being able to play it again with zones that are basically the same, but redone in certain ways is just absolutely amazing. I seriously can’t get enough of this game and it kind of makes me feel like a kid again as I play. I’m also really happy I spent the extra money and got the collectors edition which game with an awesome statue that actually says “SEGA” when it’s turned on and just looks amazing. Defiantly money well spent.

Minecraft: Story Mode – Season 2 – 40%

The second episode for this game was released this week and even though I played it late in the week, I played it. While I’m not going to say much about it, you’ll have to wait for my full review in a few weeks, you can watch my entire playthrough here.

And that was it for this week. A really sad week with 8 trophies. I’m not really sure how next week is looking because I’ve realized that once you start recording video’s that go along with the games you’re playing, it takes a hell of a lot longer then if you were to just play the game and get it over with. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy doing the video’s but it takes up a lot of my time. Anyway, for next week I plan on playing some more Sonic Mania, which I should have some videos of soon, as well as starting the first episode of Telltale’s Guardians of the Galaxy, which I picked up on sale, and let’s not forget about starting Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. Hopefully next week will be more exciting trophy wise then it was this week.

Minecraft: Story Mode – Season 2 – Episode 1 – Hero in Residence Review (PS4)

I really didn’t want to pick up this game after last season. This is one of Telltale’s mediocre games and I wasn’t happy that after playing the initial 5 episodes that they added DLC to wrap up the story. This also wasn’t the game that I was hoping would be coming out so quickly, since I was hoping for The Wolf Among Us season 2. I know we’re finally getting this game after so long, but I figured it would come before Minecraft: Story Mode. Anyway, I’m a sucker for sequels and second seasons especially if they have the same character so I picked this one up.

Picking up basically right where Season 1 ended, Season 2 starts with Jessie being the big hero that she is and she basically has lost touch with her friends. Moving up in the world, Jessie has her own, town or village, whatever you want to call it, that she runs with her new intern. While everyone seems fine doing their own thing, Lucas is off writing books, Axel and Olivia have their own places to run, it’s Petra that’s having the hardest time with the transition. Petra misses the old adventuring days and asks you to come adventure with her. She has some ulterior motives to why she needs you and will eventually need your help, but not before you find a new and mysterious portal and a glove that just won’t come off your hand. Making some new friends along the way you’ll go on another adventure to get this glove off your hand, making extremely difficult choices as you go, like what to write on a sign. Anyway, by the end of the episode you’ll have a new nemesis and a new threat to your booming town.

I have to say that I found this first episode to be interesting. I liked being able to walk around a town that was my own and interact with the people that chose to live there. Also there was a big festival celebrating Jessie so that was pretty awesome. I also enjoyed the character development between Jessie and Petra and learning about how while everything seemed fine, Petra was actually suffering from the groups new found fame and fortune. I did find the story to be a little on the cliché side though as of course there’s another big bad that you’ll have to fight in order to save the world of Minecraft once again. I know that every game has to have its big bad to fight, but it just seems like, “I guess I have to save the world again.” Other than that I thought it was a pretty solid episode, and a good start to a season that will hopefully be better than the last.

WARNING! This is nothing major, but I just wanted to put it out there that if you’re like me and you beat your games, then delete them, especially if they’re digital, and then transfer over your saved data into the cloud, that the game will not pick up your saved data from the cloud. At least not on the PS4. I had to reinstall the first season, reinstall my data, without the game being installed you can’t reinstall the data, and then start season 2. Not a big deal, but a little hassle that you can avoid.

This game is basically the same thing as the first season, so the mechanics are the same, but there was some more building and some more crafting and I found that to be some of the more interesting things. The first season had some of this, but the second season seems to give you a little more freedom when it comes to this type of thing. I found the fighting scenes to be a little off a times as they mixed up the quick time events with some actual fighting mechanisms. For these types of games, I think the quick time events work a lot better and they should stick to that. This was a bit of a problem last time around and I would have at least though that it would have been fixed and it would have been just quick time events, but it’s not. Other than that the game ran smoothly and there were no bugs or glitches when I played.

The graphics were the same as last season, and just like last season they work because it fits into the whole Minecraft universe. This is a big thing when it comes to the Telltale games. The graphics have to feel like they fit into the genre of game that they’re developing and this is one of the games where it works, and it works well.

Play this episode from beginning to end and you’ll earn yourself 6 trophies. Gone are the trophies from last year that make you do specific things so you can just play how you want and no matter what you’ll get the trophies. At the end of the season you’ll be getting yourself another platinum to add to your growing list of Telltale platinum trophies.

There is no multiplayer for this game, which I am eternally grateful for, but there is crowd play. Being that I’m lazy and still refuse to setup a Telltale account I haven’t tried this feature yet. If you have feel free to tell me how it works down in the comments section below.

Overall I give this episode a 4 out of 5.

What’s Great:
+ Strong start to the season, even though this was the case last season before it went downhill.
+ It’s nice being the big hero that everyone looks up to and as Jessie you kinda get to do this.
+ Bug and glitch free, which is nice since with a Telltale game this can go either way.
+ Graphics match the overall Minecraft feel and really work for the game.

What’s Not So Great:
– The story, while there has to be a bad guy, seems a little cliché and copied and pasted from the last season.

At the moment, I’m excited to see where the story for this season goes and how things will wrap up. I’m hoping that it will wrap up without the edition of DLC. I would say that if you’re a fan of last season that you’ll want to play this season and see how your story continues. If you didn’t play last season, you’ll probably want to play that one first to get a better understanding of what’s going on. I would say that you also need to play the DLC as well since it helps. If you weren’t a fan of last season and basically have no interest in this game you’ll want to skip it.

Spoilers! Below are the choices that I made for the first episode.

Penny Dreadful Season 2 Review

There are some pretty big spoilers coming up from season 1, so if you didn’t watch season 1 I would suggest not reading this blog.

After the events of the first season, it was hard to not start the next season of this show. Eager to see how things would tie together since the first season wrapped up it’s story but then ended on somewhat of a cliff hanger, it made me wonder what this season’s mystery would be and how this group of people would handle whatever was thrown their way.

Picking up where season 1 left off, Ethan wants to flee London after turning into a werewolf and basically ripping apart the little inn, if you could call it that, that he was living in. After the death of Brona he basically has nothing to lose anymore and wants to get out of dodge. He’ll pay one last visit to Vanessa who went through hell last season as her faith was challenged. During this visit they’ll be attacked by this group of witches who work for the devil. They want Vanessa and will stop at nothing to have her. This will propel the events of this season as it’s another fight for Vanessa’s soul as the witches will stop at nothing to bring the devil what he desires most. During this time, Dr. Frankenstein will bring back Brona from the dead and turn her into Lilly. Her sole purpose is as a mate for his first creation, now going by the name of John Clare. Things won’t work out all that well for John and Lilly as the doctor finds himself falling for her, which is weird because he pushes her off as his cousin from the country. Ew. Moving on, Sir Malcom comes into play as a tool this season as the witches see that he’s the only way that they can actually get to Vanessa. They had tried in the past to get to her, but know that she’s vulnerable when it comes to Sir Malcom because of the bond they share. You’ll see more of Dorian this season and see what makes him immortal. While the main story never focuses on Dorian, he still plays an important role and you’ll find out why by the end of the season.

Vanessa Only Episodes I’m really enjoying these episodes that are thrown into each season that concentrate on only Vanessa. She’s a complicated character and is deserving of an episode that delves into her past showing the viewers what made her the way she is and why she is the way she is. These are some of my favorite episodes of each season and this season had a spectacular episode that guest stared Patti LuPone. These episodes have another purpose though that are referenced later on in the season and this episode was a very powerful one that had strong performances from both Eva Green and Patti LuPone.

I really enjoyed this season as it brought Vanessa and Ethan closer together. Even though they’re being hunted, they try to live this semi-normal life and realize that they can’t. Vanessa longs for the normal as she’s been not so normal for her whole life. She knows this can’t be and Ethan hides the secret of being a werewolf from her for most of the season. They’re both dark characters and you really root for them to somehow overcome everything that’s happening to them and be together. I found their relationship and their stories to be the most interesting this season where the other stories were interesting, but not as interesting as these two. Although I have to say that I enjoyed the way that Vanessa and John Clare found each other and interacted with each other through the season. John never seems to get what he wants, but he finds compassion and friendship in Vanessa who doesn’t care that he isn’t normal…or alive. Saying all of that, I have to say that the whole Dr. Frankenstein thing is becoming a little boring now. His naïve ways were once intriguing but have become stale this season and although Dorian is also intriguing, the oh-so charming way of him also become stale. Everyone knows that at this point Dorian moves from person to person, but this time you think that he’s finally found someone when he meets Angelique, a transgender prostitute. The story is a sweet one until it ends.

This cast basically made the show in season 1 and that continues onto season 2. These actors/actress’s really know how to interact with each other and make their relationships with each other seem believable. If the cast was different this show wouldn’t work and it seems like they had the perfect cast as each character is played to perfection. This only enhances the already dynamic show.

Overall I give this season a 5 out of 5.

Once again another stellar season from this show that ends the current story, but also introduces and sets up the next and final season. I’m kind of upset that there’s only 3 seasons to this show, but even now only having only watched 2 I can see why it had to end. Anyway, if you enjoyed season 1 then I would highly recommend watching this season. Why wouldn’t you? You’re probably already hooked anyway. If you’re not sure about continuing with another season, I would say to go for it. The story this season is intriguing and you’ll find it hard to stop watching episode after episode. I do have to say though that once again this is a show that was on Showtime so be prepared for some episodes that are overly gratuitous with the sex scenes. I have to say that I find this as the show’s only downfall because it really doesn’t need it, but that’s what happens with cable shows. Anyway, I really look forward to the third and final season of this show.

The Walking Dead Season 2 Review (PS4)

So this is the very last time I will be playing this game. Seriously. The last time. I have to admit though I really didn’t want to play this game again. I had a horrible time with the Vita version, you can see my review here, and I was just dreading playing it again. I was going to put it in the back of the pile and look at it when I was ready to, but decided that it was probably best to just get it over with. Here’s what I thought about the PS4 version.

For this season you’ll of course play as Clementine. On her own basically since Lee’s departure in the first game, you can’t really count on Christa and Omid to look after her at the beginning of the game. I mean, seriously, who lets a little girl go into a bathroom alone in the first place? Even without a zombie apocalypse, it’s just something that you don’t do. Anyway events that take place leave her even more alone and struggling to make it on her own. She’s really only a little girl, but because of this new world she’s not seen like that.

Throughout the course of the game you’ll be reunited with an old friend, make some new ones, and you’ll sure as hell make some enemies this time around. The characters are the shining stars of this season as each of them will have their own opinion about Clem depending on what she does or doesn’t do. Some will of course hate you at first and then change their minds while others will maybe hate you throughout the whole game. You’ll make some pretty hard choices and then make a few heart breaking choices in the end. How you finish Clementine’s story is completely up to you.

Even though this is the third time I played this game, a third time that I didn’t’ even want to do, I have to say I was pulled back into this Walking Dead universe that Telltale has created. I was bitter at first since I had such a bad experience with the Vita, but soon got over it and was hooked in the story once again. Everything from the course of what happens in these five episodes all the way up to the new characters were things that kept me coming back even though I of course knew how it was going to end. If there’s one thing that Telltale does right every time is they know how to keep it interesting. Unlike the first season there was no dragging episode. Each of them were as interesting as the previous one and had me hooked.

What an improvement with the playability. While the PS3 had its normal issues and the PS Vita was the absolute worst, the PS4 just shined. Everything from slow loading and freezing to slow trophy pops and just weird animations were fixed. I seen absolutely none of these in the PS4 version. I was completely and utterly shocked. I thought that if the PS Vita version felt rushed and just used as a money grab that this would be the same, but it was the complete opposite. This game was completely bug and glitch free which was just shocking and a nice little bonus.

The graphics are the same for this version as they were for the PS3 and PS Vita version. Like the PS4 version of Season 1, they seemed to be a little crisper and gone were the weird shadows from the Vita version along with the little pixels of light peaking in from the buildings. Everything about the graphics was just flawless.

After playing through 5 episodes you’ll get 40 new trophies. Don’t worry about how you play the game and just play because no matter what you’ll get these trophies. No platinum this time around, but I could care less. I didn’t play this game on different consoles and multiple times for a platinum, I played it because I genuinely enjoy this game and want to see how each version differs from each other.

No multiplayer to report on, and I seriously never get tired of writing that. Single player games for the win.

Overall I give this game a 5 out of 5

What’s Great
+ Same great story that made an unforgettable season.
+ New favorite characters and some old friends.
+ Glitch and bug free! No more loading, freezing, or trophy pop issues.
+ 5 Unique endings.

What’s Not So Great:
– I really don’t have any complaints about the PS4 version of this game.

If you haven’t played this game yet, then why the hell not? Seriously, even if you aren’t a Walking Dead fan you should still pick up this game. Not only does it have amazing story telling, but you’ll become immersed in the world that Telltale created for this game. My only recommendation is to play it on the PS4. While the PS3 version was standard, the PS Vita version was awful. If you want the best experience then the PS4 is the place to get it.

SPOILERS! Below are all of the choices that I made throughout the game. I tried to mix things up as much as possible from my previous two playthroughs.

The Walking Dead Season 2 Review (PS Vita)

I like to count The Walking Dead among one of my favorite video game series of all time. This is why I play it on just about every single platform that it’s available for. Already having played Season 2 on the PS3, my next step was to play it on the PS Vita. Here’s what I thought about it.

Just like with the PS3 version, this season revolves around Clementine and her journey through the zombie apocalypse. Lee is dead and after some intense events within the first opening minutes of the game, poor Clem is all by herself. She’s just a little girl, but in this new world she has to be strong and she had to endure. This season she’ll have to meet new people and figure out who she can and can’t trust. As always there were hard heart breaking decisions that change the course of not only the game, but how the people of your new group see you. Not everyone is going to like you and you certainly won’t like some of the people that you’re traveling with. The point is to survive and make the hard decision of how Clem is going to end up.

Just like the first time I played, I was totally into this game. Even though I knew the story, knew what was going to happen, it didn’t matter. The only difference is that I didn’t have to wait this time around for the episodes to be released which was nice. While I played Clementine a little more hardened the first time around, I played her a little bit differently this time. Of course there were some decisions that remained the same but I tried as much as possible to switch things up in order to see how differently the game played out. I really didn’t see much of a difference between my two playthroughs to be honest though. Except for the major decisions that I changed up everything else basically stayed the same.

The playability was a major issue with this game and one of the reasons why I didn’t fully enjoy this game. My first issue occurred right at the very beginning of the game. Season 2 would not import my Season 1 data because I didn’t have the Season 1 game installed on my system. Even though I saved the data using PS+, it wouldn’t take it so my playthrough from Season 1 was just as good as lost since I didn’t have the Season 1 disc. I was given a set of random decisions that aren’t even detailed out for you. This pretty much sucked as I walked into Season 2 blindly. Trying to overlook this, it was even harder to enjoy the game when the options on how to play kept changing back and forth between the controls and the touch screen, not to mention half the time when it changed to the touch screen they didn’t work at all making me have to restart at certain points just to be able to make my decisions. I can assure you 100% that these problems were in the game and not in my Vita which I made sure of. This made playing the game at times feel like a chore. Then there were the constant lag and pausing problems. A lot of the times I would hear what was coming next but the picture on the screen remained frozen and then had to play catch up until the next loading point. Just as with the PS3, the game lagged almost constantly with each loading screen and felt like it was going to freeze each time. I even had this problem right at the beginning of the game each time when pressing the start button. All of these things are seriously not acceptable and made the PS Vita version feel half-assed.

The graphics in this game were the same the first Season as well as the same graphics on the PS3. This was fine, I enjoy the type of graphics for this game and didn’t expect it to change. I did have a couple of issues with the graphics though. First was the placement of shadows. In certain parts of the games people’s faces would develop these weird shadows that made absolutely no sense at all. While it was absent in episode 1-2, episode 3-5 had them like crazy. It was weird and drew away from the actual game. The other thing I had a problem with was the pixels of light that would break through every once in while. This happened when you were inside a building and you would look up at where the ceiling touched the wall. In that seam there would be pixels of light coming through that made the game just seem sloppy and rushed.

The trophies for this game are the standard TellTale trophy set. Play the game and you’ll get the 40 trophies that come with the game. This is one of the games that I really don’t care about the trophies even as a trophy hunter. It’s nice to have them, but even if the game didn’t have them I would play anyway.

As always, no multiplayer for the entire game.

Overall I give this game a 2.5 out of 5

What’s Great:
+ Interesting and intense season that will leave you on the edge of your seat.

What’s Not So Great:
– If you don’t have Season 1 installed on your Vita, then you can’t use your saved data.
– Glitchy controls that don’t even work half of the time.
– Lag and pausing problems throughout the whole game.
– Sloppy graphics and animation.

It was really sad for a game series that I love as much as this one to be as bad as it was on the Vita. While I had none of these problems with Season 1 on the Vita, this one just felt like a sloppy and rushed game that was put out on the Vita because people wanted it and because it was a way to make more money. I have to say that I’m just really disappointed in this game and expected more.

SPOILERS! These are the choices that I made throughout the game my second time around.

Episode 1
• Tried to save Christa
• Killed the dog
• Didn’t accept Nick’s apology
• Gave water to the dying man
• Saved Pete

Episode 2
• Took the blame for Sarah’s photo
• Sat with Kenny at dinner.
• Told Walter the truth about Matthew
• Let Walter make up his mind about Nick

Episode 3
• Helped Sarah with her chores
• Hid Luke from Bonnie
• Tried to admit to stealing the Walkie-Talkie
• Killed the zombie that bit Sarita

Episode 4
• Saved Sarah at the trailer park
• Refused to rob Arvo
• Crawled through the ticket booth
• Did not shoot Rebecca

Episode 5
• Protected the baby
• Tried to help Luke
• Didn’t ask to leave with Mike
• Didn’t shoot Kenny
• Stayed with Kenny

Did They Have To Die?

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WARNING – If you have not played Mass Effect 3 or The Walking Dead: Season 2 then please do not continue to read on. There will be some pretty major spoilers. Consider yourself warned.

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While playing The Walking Dead Season 2 Episode 5 a couple of weeks ago, I had a really tough and just about heart breaking decision to make. That decision was whether or not to kill Kenny. In the end I did, and I’ll get to why I did it later, but it made me wonder, when given the choice should some video game characters die?

The first instance of this occurred to me while playing Mass Effect 3. As Commander Shepard you have to make some pretty tough choices, but none were as tough as deciding the fate of one of my all time favorite characters Mordin. You meet Mordin in Mass Effect 2 and learn that he is one of the scientists that created the genophage. He did something pretty horrible, creating this disease that is causing the Krogan to not reproduce properly making their numbers go down. He did what he thought was right at the time, but as Shepard you can bring out a human side of Mordin. Help him work through his flaws and even show him what he did was wrong. Out of all the characters in the Mass Effect Universe, Mordin is the one who grows the most. The one who learns and the one who wants to redeem himself.

In Mass Effect 3 when you get the chance to actually cure the genophage I was all for it. I wanted to right this wrong and restore life to the Korgan. Everything was going well too, until it came down to the fact that if the genophage was cured it would mean that Mordin had to die. I struggled with this decision. I had no idea what to do. On one hand I wanted to cure the genophage, but on the other I didn’t want Mordin to die.

In the end, I let Mordin go up the tower and cure the genophage. Mordin died doing this, but it was the right choice. It was also the perfect ending for his character. He created the genophage and then he died curing it. I could have kept him alive and not cure the genophage, or I could have even shot him myself, but none of them felt right. Mordin going out the hero was the right thing to do. He had to die in order for his character to come full circle. It was one of the toughest decisions I ever had to make in a video game and when Mordin died, I cried. I cried for the character that I lost and I cried because it was the perfect ending for him and he came out the hero.

“R.I.P Mordin”
Mass Effect 2 – Mass Effect 3

The most recent example of this was while playing the final episode of The Walking Dead Season 2. I once again had to make the decision of whether or not a character had to die. Playing as Clem I had the heart breaking decision to make. Should I shoot and kill Kenny or should I look away and let him kill Jane? Kenny and Clem had been through so much and I was so excited when I seen Kenny make a reappearance in season 2 after thinking that he had died in season 1.

The first thing I did when I seen Kenny was hug him and then that night I sat with him at dinner. I defended his actions to just about everyone, but when it came down to it at the end I shot him. It took me a while to come to this decision. I even paused the game and actually thought about what I was doing. I realized that this wasn’t the same Kenny that I had once known. This was a broken man who had everything taken away from him. Everything. Unlike Clem, his losses didn’t make him stronger. Each death was a reminder of what he didn’t do right and how he couldn’t protect the people that he loved.

Yes, it was extremely shitty what Jane did, but it proved a point. Kenny was no longer the strong leader that he once was. He was unstable, a ticking time bomb. Shooting him was the right thing to do. It was an extremely sad thing to do, but seeing the road he was going down and seeing what his character was becoming was even sadder. I want to make it clear though that I didn’t shoot him because he was sad and broken. This wasn’t Kenny and I wanted him to die with whatever dignity that he had left. This decision hurt and after pressing the square button, I cried. I absolutely hated doing this, but it was the right choice.

“R.I.P Kenny”
The Walking Dead Season 1 – Season 2

Final verdict? When given the choice, should video game characters die? Yes, if it makes sense for the story and if it’s the right thing to do for the character. These two character deaths weren’t taken lightly and I didn’t kill them for the hell of it. The deaths of these two characters happened at the right time and were the proper way to end their stories. Not all characters are meant to survive and not all endings can be happy ones.