How To Play The Walking Dead Survival Instinct On Pc
Salvatore Grijalva
Shambling, incoherent, messy, boring, lifeless, limp, smelly, decayed, all these words can be used to describe Zombies, but also Walking Dead: Survival Instinct. A game so poor, that if I were locked in a room surrounded by the undead with only this to play, I would open the door and open my arms to the sweet mercy of death.
FPSs are one of my favourite genres and I have ploughed my way through more than my fair share of middling to poor experiences. Even the poorest of FPSs can get some of the shooting mechanics right and become a mindless slice of entertainment. Walking Dead: SI, cannot even get the mindless entertainment part of the game right, it is almost torture in the guise of gaming.
Perhaps there are other areas in the game that alleviate the frustration of dying so often? Not really. The graphics are uninspiring, whilst in other areas the game is just plain bad. As touched upon earlier, the level design is bland and becomes very repetitive. The core story levels are varied enough, but in between these you will be subjected to walking through boxy building after boxy building in the hope of finding some fuel.
A bonus with the game should be that the voice acting is from the stars of the TV show. Perhaps someone forgot to tell Norman Reedus in particular what his motivation was in each scene, as he sounds about as interested in being there as someone at the Paint Watching Con 2013.
Occasionally, the game clicks into place. You are on an interesting mission with a decent amount of ammo in your gun. All of a sudden you are playing a very uninspiring FPS that could count as passable entertainment. However, this is not the norm. The majority of my playthrough was spent hiding in corners with no ammo and being killed anyway, only for me to respawn about twenty minutes earlier and have to do the section again. Games are meant to be fun, Walking Dead: Survival Instinct = Anti Fun.
I'm not sure if this is the right place to discuss this particular Walking Dead game, since it wasn't made by Telltale, but we've had threads on the comics and TV series, so I figured why not make a thread for Survival Instinct, where you play as Daryl Dixon, to see what other members made of it, and how they might change it.
As for myself, I've played it through twice so far, yet I only got it a week ago. I know a lot of people disliked and still dislike this game, but I'd been looking forward to playing it for a long time I can say I enjoyed it for what it was. My biggest gripe is not being able to take every survivor you meet/rescue, probably because I'm a bit of a softie.
P.S. I'm not sure if there is a fanfiction/creative writing forum, but I came up with a small outline for a fanfiction I based on this game, crossed over with another franchise. Bottom line, I'm not sure where to talk about it, especially since what it crosses over with may not be everyone's cup of tea.
At the first town, Sedalia, there are two survivors who you can help - Jimmy Blake, the town's last standing police officer, quiet, dedicated, and a crack shot with both pistols and rifles who, if you bring him some batteries, provides you some covering fire as you escape the town, and Warren Bedford, a shy, earnest, stealthy yet weak pharmacist and college graduate who prefers blunt weapons, suffers from debilitating asthma and helps Daryl get the fuel he needs for his truck. You can help both of them, but the vehicle you have at the time only has room for one. Of the two, based on their skills and actions, who would you save and why? Personally, I can't decide. Blake is more useful/combat-ready, but Warren seems more resourceful.
In the second-to-last location, there are also two survivors - Terry Harrison, a middle-aged, half-deaf retired banker, implied in-game to be the father of Amy and Andrea, who prefers rifles, and Jane Carroll, a pregnant public accountant whose husband, Aiden, is in charge of signalling the last of the evacuation helicopters. This choice is more similar to the Doug/Carley choice from the Telltale game, as you can only save one. Who would you save and why? Personally, I would save Jane and her unborn child, and in most runs of my game, I have, because of her pregnancy and, at the time, the possibility of reuniting her with her husband.
At the end of the game, Merle stops Daryl from getting on the last helicopter out of Atlanta, then tells Daryl it was because the pilot had been bitten and looked half-turned. We personally never see the pilot, so we aren't sure if Merle was telling the truth, but do people reckon he was or lying in order to keep his brother with him?
Ah I gotcha. I think I would choose the police officer but I only recruited Warren on my first playthrough. But considering what happens on the helicopter, perhaps it is better for him to be left on that rooftop.
Well, truth be told, much of what you learn about the characters can be found on the wiki. I just have a vivid imagination (partly via roleplaying when I play games), and part of that imagination is the basic storyline of Survival Instinct crossed over with one or two characters from another franchise.
It was....okay. THe melee was clunky and the storyline was bleh. Some mechancics didn't make sense. Like when you're in a horde instead of getting swarmed you get grabbed by one walker. If you kill him, you get grabbed by another. Like wut?
This game was good for what it is but it gets hate because of terrible walker AI, the fact that you cannot amputate walkers and their heads is the only thing that kills them, clunky fighting mechanics and short story campaign. This game scared me so hard, the scariest part was the hospital level (Is it the same hospital where Rick was in coma before everything started going to shit?). I loved the side characters and the dark atmosphere, this game had a lot of potential to be a great horror game but of course, Activision had to be retarded to release it unfinished.
The game was not bad but it was not good either. I did enjoy the concept of Daryl and Merle trying to survive however, one problem was at the end when Daryl and Merle get the tank/turret. It ruined the whole keep quiet to avoid getting overrun by walkers. Also survivor mechanic of having them get food, fuel, or ammo was cool but did nothing and felt like a mobile game and by that I mean that while you played the game, the game would randomly choose how much ammo, fuel, or supplies you gain. The plot was ok at best and felt like some of the other levels were fillers (not like the show has enough of those). I really tried my best to enjoy this game and I did but it got so repetitive that it was putting me to sleep after the first few levels. I think this game deserves a 5/10 only because the story had a handful of exciting moments but the ending was terrible.
For some reason....for some fucking reason this game was the most stressful game I have ever played...the chase after getting your objective was horrific...never in my life I'll understand people's hatred for this game.A true horrer experience indeed.
I had done a versus thread awhile back that got no attention comparing the two games and a few comments mentioned how New Frontier was still a better story than survival instinct. I think they were bout equal and it's sad that season three had been brought down to such a low enough standard to be compared to survival instinct when it had much more potential to be something great.
I guess I may as well bring up the other survivors you can find in-game, in the order in which they can be found/encountered, as there are a few discussion points I'd like to bring up about them. Warning, spoilers for those who haven't played or completed the game.
Warren Bedford: "Warren grew up in a large, close family. Thanks to the kindness - and sponsorship - of his Uncle Lester, Warren is the first Sedalia Bedford to graduate from college. Warren is shy and earnest, due primarily to debilitating asthma he has endured since he was very young."
Occupation: Pharmacist
Age: 25
Traits: Stealthy, prefers blunt weapons, weak.
Jimmy Blake: "Officer Blake recently transferred to Sedalia from his native Gainesville, and had barely been introduced to the Department or town before were destroyed. Blake is dedicated, quiet and a crack shot. He has not yet resigned himself to the fate of his family, who hadn't moved yet from Florida."
Occupation: Police Officer
Age: 28
Traits: Prefers pistols and rifles
Sarah Bell: "Ambitious and determined to eventually open her own salon, Sarah was cutting a client's hair during a busy day at Madame Q's when walkers burst through the window. She stabbed her way out with shears and made it to temporary safety. Sarah is friendly, but will take drastic steps to survive."
Occupation: Stylist
Age: 32
Traits: Tough.
Mia Park: "An experienced flight nurse, Mia and her husband, Steve, adopted their son, Frank, two years ago. She doesn't know their current whereabouts. Despite her high-pressure career, Mia is not especially courageous, and can be neurotic. Scout's group rescued her from a bad situation at a rural airport."
Occupation: Flight Nurse
Age: 25
Traits: Prefers shotguns, reckless.
Ahmad Farran: "Ahmad has lived and worked in Savannah, GA, since he earned his Master's degree. He rescued and sheltered 23 survivors in a makeshift bunker during the initial outbreak. All were subsequently lost when travelling in a convoy toward Birmingham while Ahmad was foraging in the woods for food."
Occupation: Civil Engineer
Age: 40
Traits: Stealthy, weak.
Holly Gaines: "Holly is an accomplished, even celebrated, sculptor. In Atlanta to mount a show at the prestigious Sacrament 5 Gallery, she had taken a few days off to roam through the Georgia backcountry for inspiration when the world ended. Holly is a fighter and a survivor, but is very awkward socially."
Occupation: Artist
Age: 60
Traits: Prefers bladed weapons, weak.