Telltale is back with another season of your two favorite freelance police, Sam and Max. I was actually really excited for this season even though I have not played all of season 1 or any of season 2, I still really enjoy these point and click adventure games and will probably play more after this experience. In fact I want to complete Sam and Max Season 1 and 2 before I play the next episode because I enjoyed this one so much. Anyways, onto the review.
I really enjoy a good point and click (ex. Monkey Island series, Ace Attorney series, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (may cinq RIP)), so Sam and Max truly is my forte. For those of you who know Sam and Max you know that it is basically a quarky story and puzzle based point and click adventure game where the main characters, Sam (a dog) and Max (a hyperkinetic rabbit thingy) go around solving mysteries as freelance police. The games usually require some actual thought and paying attention to the story, all voice acted by the way which makes it a lot better. I think it is obvious to say that this game stays traditional to the series values, I can not say for sure how much this has changed from the previous experiences only having played Season 1 Episode 1, but I can say it is the same basic formula with a few upgrades. Basically, Max is now playable using his psychic powers. The psychic powers are actually quite interesting and add to the puzzle solving. For instance when using future goggles you can see a future event and then the problem is how to get to that event. It really helps with progression while not really giving anything away. While this might seem to add to easiness, it really does not as the player will be confused until the very end what all the future visions mean.
So lets talk about the heart of the game, the story. I must say I really enjoyed the story. It was always twisting around and keeping things interesting even though you thought you knew what was going to happen. The game basically opens in medias res of Sam and Max trapped on a ship having to figure out how to get off, it ends up just being a future vision and then the rest of the game is basically trying to get back to that point. The game keeps you guessing of what is going to happen and really does keep turning. I would go into more detail but the game is essentially the story and I do not want to ruin that.
The graphics of the game are basic 3d models. It looks nice and cartoon like which fits the style but is truly nothing astounding. Telltale usually strives towards their games being compatible with most computers, and I would say they did a good job with graphics. The graphics looks as if they will run on most computers, but do not look totally putrid.
The sound in the game has good music all the way through. Sam and Max really does have some good themes, and while it may not instigate a soundtrack download, it is still nice in the game and fits to it. In terms of voice acting it is spot on. Voice acting is always a plus especially in a game like this. So the voice acting really does add to the overall experience. Sound is very nice overall in the game.
Gameplay I briefly covered, basically Sam and Max wander around different maps of the city and talk to people, which is pretty standard. They use clues they find to piece things together and initiate events which eventually leads to new things to do. Some seemingly new components are Max’s psychic powers which lead to some interesting puzzles and the crime-scan which is basically a logic system to figure out where to go next. The gameplay overall is fairly difficult even for the first installment. While some of the actions are obvious, I did get stuck a few times in my run through. Knowing how Telltale works in their episodic content I am looking forward to the difficulty in the further games (I did play with my hint system turned off which I recommend).
So overall Sam and Max Episode 301 is a great game. It is a must buy for fans of the series and I would say that is a good game overall. I am not sure if anyone should really start here in the series since it is continued off of the previous games but I can definitely say that this proves that Sam and Max does have continuity and is a good series for someone to invest their time in. With that I will be giving Sam and Max: The Devil’s Playhouse Episode 1: The Penal Zone an 8.5/10. Can’t wait for episode 2!
This game came out on Thursday, April 15th for the Mac, PC, and Playstation 3 platforms. It is currently available for only $34.95 for the complete season. This came can also be purchased for $10.00 on the iPad.
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