The season finale of The Walking Dead: Michonne brings the series to an exciting conclusion, but does the prequel do Robert Kirkman's character justice? Read on to find out.
Running in at just about an hour of playtime, the season finale of Michonne's dedicated mini-season is the most polished and enjoyable of all three The Walking Dead: Michonne titles. Telltale Games has done a great job providing the narrative of the season with a conclusive episode, and by the time the credits roll on The Walking Dead: Michonne, gamers will feel much more closure than they did watching latest season finale of the TV series.
Considering the episode's title of 'What We Deserve', fans could probably guess that many characters will get exactly 'what they deserve' in the season finale, outside of those who integral to the comic series. Despite this, Telltale Games forces players to make tough, split-second decisions knowing that the repercussions for them will be coming later on in the same episode.
As the second episode left off, Michonne was in some deep trouble: she had captured Randall, but his protective and dangerous sister had gotten hold of Pete. The previous choices that players made could potentially have turned a bad situation even worse during the season finale, and it's pleasing to see cause-and-effect actually take place and show that some choices do make a difference, even if not to the extent that some gamers wish.
Michonne's maternal struggles are the in the spotlight for the duration of the episode, but relying too much on jumpscares diminishes players' time with Michonne's daughters, who had their names revealed for the first time ever during the last episode. However, Michonne's dialogue with the two Fairbanks boys helps establish the character's role as a guardian, and the climactic choice Michonne is forced to make regarding her own inner demons - which come to a head during a wonderfully constructed scene which flips in and out of the her mind - leaves a satisfying conclusion for her character, and provides plenty of context for her motives in both the comic book and television versions of the franchise.
The familiar Telltale Game quicktime action sequences don't disappoint, with Michonne once again wreaking absolute destruction with her trusty blade. The season finale was always going to be an action-focused episode, which Randall correctly predicted early on. While none of the action sequences are particularly challenging (they rely mostly on directional movements or quickly tapping a single button), they deliver in pure adrenaline as Michonne continues to slaughter her enemies in an excessively gory manner. Chaos is the name of the game in 'What We Deserve', and thankfully, this chaos is done well.
The tense negotiations between Michonne's group and Norma's well-equipped army bring a immense level of intensity to the episode, which will have gamers second-guessing their earlier decisions as they try to walk the line between keeping themselves safe, and getting their friends back from the enemy camp. While some characters, like Randall, never fully realize by the episode's end, the remaining main cast members are given plenty of time to shine, which is all the most impressive when taking in the fact that Michonne only ran for 3 episodes.
The miniseries has the most impressive visuals of any Telltale Games production to date, sporting the familiar cell-shaded look of the first Walking Dead albeit with enhanced detail, a far step up from the studio's attempt at oil-painting styles with Game of Thrones. The environments in Michonne are detailed, and blood-soaked characters fit perfectly within the gritty environment. Unlike a few Telltale titles, we also saw no noticeable lag or rendering issues through our entire playthrough, and importantly, no problems importing previous save choices either.
The season finale of The Walking Dead: Michonne is easily the best episode of the entire miniseries, and Telltale Games has once again delivered a compelling narrative with fully realized characters. 'What We Deserve' delivers wholly-enjoyable adrenaline-filled action, a conclusive and intensive plot, and a polished world that should do comic creator Robert Kirkman proud. Michonne's emotional prequel comes to a satisfying end and served as the perfect appetizer before the third season of The Walking Dead kicks off later this year.
The Walking Dead: Michonne is available now on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, PC, Mac, iOS, and Android devices. Game Rant was provided a PC code for this review.