Both Telltale's Walking Dead and The Walking Dead television show are based on the popular comic book series: The Walking Dead. It is certainly one of the most, if not the most well-known zombie franchise to date.
For video game fans, Telltales Walking Dead took them into the world of the Walking Dead on an emotional roller coaster ride they will never forget. Outside of the gaming world, the TV show is well known. It is still ongoing and has inspired many other zombie series due to its popularity.
However, which one is better? Just because the TV show is more well known does not necessarily mean it is the best. Here are five reasons the game outdoes the TV show and five reasons the show outdoes the game. Beware of spoilers for both the show and game, as some will be discussed.
10 Game Is Better: Characters Are More Interesting
The characters of Telltale's Walking Dead is its strongest trait. Who sounds more interesting? An upstanding sheriff who wakes up to the zombie apocalypse or a convicted felon history teacher who has to protect a little girl he found during the zombie outbreak?
That is only one example out of many. The characters of Telltale's Walking Dead decide to be original and not limited by the old comic book narrative. That was a huge risk, and it paid off amazingly with unforgettable characters and moving relationships between them.
9 Show Is Better: You See More Of The World
The TV show has run far longer than the Telltale game. Due to that, you get to see way more of what the world of The Walking Dead has to offer. You get to see more settlements with more ideas and developments.
Besides places, the world is full of factions. There are so many ways humanity can adapt to the walker outbreak, and the show explores a lot of that.
8 Game Is Better: Less Predictable
Telltale was not afraid to be even more brutal than the TV show. The team proved that when they killed the games' main protagonist in the first season. They also make sure you have the ability to make a lot of choices. When you are the one in control, the narrative is way less predictable than it can be on television.
7 Show Is Better: Has More Comic Book Characters
The show has (mostly) followed the comic books. If you don't read comic books but want to know the story of The Walking Dead, then the show does its job. There are a couple of characters that appear in Telltale's Walking Dead like Glenn but they are very much glanced over since they are not the focus.
If you love the comic books, then chances are you love the show. Though the show has taken more and more liberties with each season to the point where it is sort of becoming its own thing. This is especially due to the fact that Rick is gone and they killed off Carl.
6 Game Is Better: Games Knew When To Stop
This is a major factor. The show is still going and has nowhere near the fans it used to have. A lot have stopped watching for different reasons from their favorite character dying to the show undergoing too much change.
Telltale's Walking Dead ended while it was still strong. Players got to see Clementine grow up, and that was the story. To go any further would be a loss in quality.
5 Show Is Better: Cooler Action Scenes
There is a lot of action in the TV show that you do not get in Telltale's Walking Dead. That's mostly because Telltale did not focus on action.
For action fans, they would prefer the show. The show gets very creative with how to defeat walkers and there are all out wars that happen between the human factions.
4 Game Is Better: More Emotional
Dedicated TV show fans may find this hard to believe, but it is true. The game is a more emotional journey. This is partly due to its medium. In video games, everything is more personal. You can make the decision to protect or kill certain characters. They react and it can feel almost like you are there and suffering with them.
This is not just the medium though. The game excels in its quiet moments, writing, and its soundtrack.
3 Show Is Better: Have More People To Talk To About It
If you are a diehard fan of Telltale's Walking Dead, then you are likely out of luck when it comes to fellow fans. Everyone knows about the show, but only video gamers tend to know about the game. It's just part of life. A lot of people watch TV and only a fraction play video games.
2 Game Is Better: You Get Involved
This has been touched upon in the other points, but video games have more to offer you on a personal level when it comes to narrative. The protagonist is not just Lee or Clementine, it is you helping Lee or Clementine make decisions.
Surely you have experienced wishing you could do so in the TV show?
1 Show Is Better: You Don't Feel Like Anything Is Your Fault
Some people may not actually like the feeling of control, because then every tragedy can feel like it's your fault. Every gamer knows a story about someone who got a certain character killed (or even just angry) and then decided to start over the entire game to avoid that consequence.
You do not have to worry about that in the TV show!