With the bar set so high by its predecessor, it was hard to keep our expectations in check for Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward. Upon diving into the game's fascinating world, however, any doubts we had were immediately dispelled. VLR presents a mind-bending tale of murder and betrayal that verges on science fiction, but remains chillingly grounded in reality. Head-spinning questions arise at every turn: What is the purpose of the Nonary Game? Who is Zero? Who is
anyone, really? VLR is never content to sit on a single mystery; rather, the player is left guessing about myriad plot threads until the very end, and even then, not every detail is spelled out implicitly. In fact, we guarantee that right now, impassioned analysis and debate are taking place on gaming message boards across the web. Virtue's Last Reward encourages interpretation, and in an era of excessive hand-holding, we welcome its bold, complex narrative.
Some of the year's most un-Hollywood writing comes from The Walking Dead. Telltale's future classic takes so many twists that they almost become predictable, but the characters, with all their hidden agendas, mysterious thoughts, and unknown histories, ensure you see the story to its end. Eschewing Hollywood standards of storytelling, not every love interest lives, not every character redeems himself, and no one is safe from savagery.
