The Walking Dead

Rate it

Keep Clementine alive through the zombie apocalypse, one hard choice at a time.

Platforms: PC, Mac, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, iPhone, Android
Stores: Steam
Price: Paid
Rated: Overwhelmingly Positive on Steam (97% of 80,933 reviews); Metacritic 82 (PC, Episode 1); 4.75 on the PlayStation Store, 4.3 on Google Play and 4.2 on the App Store
Length: about 12 hours for the five episodes
Players: 1
Made by: Telltale Games
Released: 2012

Get it on Steam PlayStation Store (The Complete First Season)Xbox (Episode 1 free, episodes 2 to 5 as add-ons)Nintendo Switch (The Complete First Season)App Store (Episode 1 free, the rest in the app)Google Play (Episode 1 free, the rest in the app)

What frightens Lee Everett, a convicted man, tries to keep a young orphan, Clementine, alive as the dead rise: walkers break through doors and windows, people you have come to know are bitten or killed, and you often have seconds to choose who to save.
Content: gore, violence, strong language, drug references, sexual themes, children in danger.

The Walking Dead is Telltale Games' five-part adventure horror series set in the world of Robert Kirkman's comic books. As Lee Everett, a convicted criminal given a second chance as the dead rise, you protect an orphaned girl named Clementine, and the choices you make, often in seconds, shape who lives and how the story plays out.

About The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is an episodic adventure game by Telltale Games, now published by Skybound Games. Its first episode came out on PC in April 2012, and the season runs over five episodes. It is set in the same world as Robert Kirkman's comic book series, with its own characters, though fans of the comics will meet a few familiar faces. On PlayStation 4 (since October 2014) and Switch (since August 2018) it is sold as The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season, and the Switch version also has the extra episode 400 Days. On Xbox, iPhone and Android the first episode is free and the other four are bought as add-ons. It is voiced in English, with subtitles in French, Italian, German and Spanish.

You play Lee Everett, a former university lecturer riding in a police car on his way to prison for murder when the world falls apart around him. Corpses are coming back to life, and the living will do anything to stay safe. Protecting Clementine, an eight-year-old girl left on her own, may offer him redemption, and keeping her alive becomes the thread that runs through every episode.

It is played through conversation, exploration of small scenes and quick actions. You talk to the other survivors, pick what Lee says, look around for useful things and react when walkers come at you. Many decisions come on a timer, so there is no time to think while the dead pound on the door. What you choose and do carries over from episode to episode: who trusts Lee, who stays with the group and how the story plays out. Players report around two to three hours an episode, so the whole season takes about 12 hours.

The horror here is less about jump scares than about loss. Quiet scenes are broken by sudden violence, walkers are gory up close, and what stays with you is the people you cannot save and the choices you have to live with. Some stretches move slowly between its strongest scenes, and it rests on one bond, between Lee and Clementine, more than on a cast of victims. It suits players who want a story-driven zombie game with characters to care about, and readers of the comics or fans of cinematic horror games where choices decide who lives.

How to play The Walking Dead

Buy The Walking Dead on Steam, or The Complete First Season on PlayStation or Switch; on Xbox, iPhone and Android, Episode 1 is free and the other episodes are bought there.
Start Episode 1 and play the episodes in order; your choices carry over.
Walk Lee around each scene and look at or use what you find.
Pick Lee's replies in conversations before the timer runs out, or stay silent.
React to the prompts when walkers attack, to fight them off or get away.

Screenshots

The Walking Dead screenshot: a red-haired walker girl crawls across a bloodstained kitchen floor toward Lee

The Walking Dead screenshot: Lee and a man in a cap shove a wooden door shut as a walker pushes its rotting arm through the gap

The Walking Dead screenshot: walkers shamble through tall grass toward a farmhouse and red barn under a hazy sky

The Walking Dead screenshot: Lee raises a fire axe and a young survivor in a cap aims a pistol as walkers crowd in under a motel balcony

The Walking Dead screenshot: a bloodstained Lee holds back a snarling walker against a grimy wall and raises a spike to strike

The Walking Dead screenshot: Lee stands guard at night outside the Travellers Motel while Clementine clings to his side

Tips

Do not reload to change a choice; the game is built around living with what you decided.
Talk to everyone at quiet moments; it shows you who the group are before hard choices come.
Watch the screen during calm scenes too; walkers can appear at any time.
Play with headphones and the lights low if you want the full weight of the bad moments.
On PC, 400 Days is a separate add-on that follows other survivors; play it after the five episodes.

Questions

Is The Walking Dead a horror game?

Its makers call it an adventure horror series. It is a story game about surviving a zombie apocalypse, with gore, sudden walker attacks and choices about who lives.

Do my choices matter in The Walking Dead?

Yes. The store says your actions and choices affect how the story plays out across the whole season.

How many episodes are there?

Five, in one season.

Do I need to read the comics or watch the show?

No. It is set in the comics' world but follows its own characters, Lee and Clementine.

Which platforms can I play it on?

Windows and Mac on Steam; PlayStation 4 and Switch as The Complete First Season; Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S; and iPhone and Android. On Xbox and phones the first episode is free and the rest are bought in the store or the app.

How long is The Walking Dead?

Players report about two to three hours an episode, so the five episodes take around 12 hours. The extra episode 400 Days is sold separately on Steam and Xbox and comes with the Switch version.

Is it scary?

It is more harrowing than jumpy. Walkers attack without warning and the violence is gory, but the hardest parts are the losses and the choices about who to help. It is rated M by the ESRB and PEGI 18.