Knights of the Cardboard Castle

400 Days is the DLC for The Walking Dead that is supposed to act as a preview for next year’s Season 2. Unfortunately, it’s pretty bad. So bad that even at its low, low price while on sale, I consider it a total rip off.

• It’s really short, much shorter than any of the individual episodes from the main game. Due to the way it’s split up into a section for each of the five main characters, plus an ending section, you spend very little time with each character, so it feels even shorter than that.
• Character models seem recycled from the main game. I swear that one guy looks exactly like one of the cannibal brothers from the main game. One of the main characters looks reminiscent of the game’s in-game model for Glen. It’s just so sloppy and lazy work. What’s worse is that some characters really are the same people that previously appeared, so you spend all your time wondering if everyone who looks familiar are supposed to be the same characters. It distracts from the story and is extremely annoying.
• Although the original game was actually extremely linear and offered few real gameplay choices, it did successfully evoke an illusion of choice. This DLC doesn’t even try. You’re railroaded from one conversation to the next, with almost no opportunity to just walk around to explore the environment and look at stuff.
• One recurring theme in this DLC is that all conflict is human vs. human. The zombies are barely in the picture at all. I mean in the final section, the recruiter walks around blithely with zombies in the background. She just doesn’t seem to see her as a threat and the zombies all just ignore her. It’s bizarre. Maybe since the next season is supposed to be set 400 days after infection, everyone who is still alive at that point really is so badass that zombies are an insignificant threat. But it’s a jarring design decision if true.

I could be wrong. Maybe the next season could have a really good story with really interesting characters. But 400 Days isn’t selling it to me at all. It feels cheap, rushed and completely bland. I really can’t believe they are charging money for this instead of offering it for free.