The Wolf Among Us: Episode 5 - Cry Wolf
Score: 98% Publisher: Telltale Games Developer: Telltale Games Media: Download/1 Players: 1 Genre: Adventure
Previously on: The Wolf Among Us: The Wolf Among Us: Episode 5 - Cry Wolf wraps up what has been a bit of a rollercoaster in plot twists and reveals. Starting off with the murder of a fairly unknown Fable, Sheriff Bigby had to delve into some of the seedier areas of Fabletown, only to discover that the Deputy Mayor, Ichabod Crane, appears to have been behind at least one of the victims in the case. It became apparent rather quickly though that Crane wasn’t the true criminal, and that he worked for someone much worse, The Crooked Man. Where Episode 4 left off, Bigby followed the clues to learn that The Crooked Man had actually set up an extortion ring around Fabletown that puts many of its citizens in his pocket. With the help of some intense interrogation methods, Bigby learned how to get to The Crooked Man’s lair. Where Cry Wolf starts is with our hero standing in a room surrounded by The Crooked Man’s cronies apparently about to finish this investigation once and for all.
Revelations: Of course, if The Wolf Among Us: Episode 5 - Cry Wolf was just about that one confrontation, it would be a rather short concluding episode to a great series. Instead, even though The Crooked Man tells Bigby who the actual killer was (a misinterpretation of his desires, he claims), what follows is a fight and chase through the streets where you are forced to try and follow either the actual killer, or the man pulling that Fable’s strings. Without trying to reveal too much, suffice it to say that confronting the killer reveals much deeper motivations and a more complicated plot than previously suspected. The Crooked Man’s knowledge of how to manipulate those under his influence becomes readily apparent as the killer explains how everything happened. Unfortunately, the fight at The Crooked Man’s lair leaves the confession of the dying Fable something that only Bigby hears, but it is enough for him to find The Crooked Man’s next hiding place and confront the master manipulator again.
Justice: The Wolf Among Us: Episode 5 - Cry Wolf doesn’t stop by simply revealing who is behind the murders that were cropping up around Fabletown. As players learned in the previous episodes, the murder mystery is only the tip of the iceberg and Bigby is bent on taking down The Crooked Man himself. While getting to the kingpin is hard work, the toughest part is deciding what to do with the man when you get your claws on him. As with the rest of the series, you have choices ahead of you, and in a manner very fitting the game and the characters, Bigby can choose to either take justice into his own hands immediately, or bring him to the Business Office and let him stand trial. Needless to say, that decision drastically changes the final chapters of the episode, but either way, you find yourself confronted by many of the characters you met throughout the game trying to convince them what the right course of action is (or was).
The Complete Package: The Wolf Among Us: Episode 5 - Cry Wolf wraps up what has been a stellar adventure game. Not only does the series portray an interesting set of characters, but it manages to put you in some interesting situations where the choices you make can have serious impacts on how you are viewed and accepted by the other Fables. Of course, this is just the type of gameplay that Telltale games pioneered with The Walking Dead, but this game shows that you don’t have to create a whole new character to really sell the feel. Unlike The Walking Dead’s Lee and Clementine, Bigby is an existing character outside of this game and even sticking with that character’s personality traits, your choices can be be numerous and varied. If you’ve been waiting to see if the experience as a whole was worth the purchase, then I can say that it is. Unfortunately, if you’ve read our reviews of the past The Wolf Among Us episode reviews, than many of the twists and turns in the game’s story have been revealed - but trust me, it is still worth the journey.
-J.R. Nip, GameVortex Communications AKA Chris Meyer
Related Links: The Wolf Among Us Home Page Buy The Wolf Among Us on Steam Game Vortex’s The Wolf Among Us Coverage Vertigo Home Page
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