So, now we get to the meat and potatoes: Telltale's first adventure game, Bone: Out From Boneville. Unlike my first few playthroughs, I now have the advantage of having read the entire Bone comic collection. So, I know how well the game stands up to the comic. And, the answer is: remarkably well.
There are some hiccups though, so I'll do this like my last write-up. The bad:
Some of the audio problems present in Telltale Texas Hold'Em are still here in Out From Boneville. I didn't notice the crackling of the speech this time, thankfully, but some lines still did seem to cut off prematurely. It was a much rarer occurance this time though. The only obvious one was one of Fone Bone's lines in an optional selection in a dialog tree. And even then, the sentence was still spoken fully, the last word just cut off unnaturally.
Like Telltale Texas Hold'Em, it shows it's age graphically with "jaggies" around character's features that are supposed to be rounded. And, also like Telltale Texas Hold'Em, I don't mind personally. It captures the look of the comic it's based on wonderfully. That's all that really matters to me.
Some of the puzzles require you to do something exactly as the programmers wrote it, and what seems to be a natural solution to a puzzle won't work. The most obvious puzzle where this happens is
the puzzle where you have to put a corn husk in a hole in a bucket. You can't use the corn cob on the bucket, you have to click the bucket. Also, you can't even select the corn as an object unless you selected gather water as a chore or tell Grandma Ben that you are done chopping firewood. This doesn't happen often, and it's Telltale's first adventure game so it's understandable, but I did have to take a half a point of the score on my blog for it.
It's a little desolate in some areas. It fits with the comic perfectly, but a little more Fone Bone dialog (and some extra puzzles) in the scenes when he's alone wouldn't have hurt at all.
It is too short, and too lacking in puzzles (
as is wonderfully commented upon tongue-in-cheek style in the opening line of Bone: The Great Cow Race). It also has an action scene that is the exact same thing twice in the game, and I'm not a fan of repeated sequences.
Now, on to the good:
The game is extremely faithful to the original source material. The most memorable lines are all there, either by default, or through the optional dialog trees.
The game captured the look of the characters wonderfully. They also managed to capture the more cartoony moments of the book well (
like the hearts floating over Fone Bone's head when he stares at Thorne).
You can see Telltale's ambitions to be cinematic with their games already. The scene near the beginning of the game with
Fone Bone in the mountains was very cinematic, with the camera wrapping around him as he went along the path, and then the sun setting up as he reached the peak. I remember Jeff Smith saying that he loved the way Telltale handled this scene, and I have to agree.
I also really liked the voices. I know they have their detractors, but the voices all fit the characters personalities. And I especially have to give credit to Andrew Chaikin as Phoney Bone. He captures the character so well, I'll have a hard time watching Phoney Bone in the feature film adaptation if he's not in it (or at the very least someone who sounds remarkably like him).
Jared Emerson-Johnson and Bay Area Sound! The music is one of the best parts of Telltale's games, and this is Jared's first time composing the music for a Telltale game. The music in the Bone games are still among my favorites of those that Jared has done for Telltale.
The director's cut additions really did a lot to help the flow of the games. I played it before the additions, and after playing them with them, I have to say the game is much better for it. The new opening really helps to set the mood of the games (and really makes me wish Telltale had been able to complete their take on the series). I also didn't mind Thorne's original model and actress, but I can see why Telltale went with the new ones. Thorne does look more like she does in the comic, and the voice actress does a good job capturing the spirit of the character.
I also have to say I really miss the right click to look option in Telltale's games. There was a lot of extra dialog to be had from looking at objects multiple times, and it's a shame Telltale can't put that to use nowadays. I'd love to see the funny lines today's Telltale would come up with when you look at stuff you can normally only interact with.
I enjoyed this game despite the technical hiccups and the desolate feeling in the beginning. Once the game gets to the second act, the game becomes quite enjoyable. It's just a shame the game ends so soon. Thankfully, the length and the sparseness of the surroundings were addressed in the second game, and the price has since been lowered since it's original release. There is a bundle pack available for both games that definitely makes this relatively simple game much more worth it for the price.
I gave it a 3 out of 5
on my blog, but on a 10 point scoring system, I'd give it a 6.5 out of 10.
Quote:
Originally Posted by coolsome
I'm replaying Hector. I love Hector! I hope Straandlooper and TTG (or just Straandlooper) make more Hector games.
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Me too. I really liked how the episodes got better as the series went on.
Quote:
Originally Posted by der_ketzer
I never liked TTTH. I just generally didn't like the poker games by telltale.
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Understandable. It's a really solitary experience, and the game's main selling point was the humor. Even people who like Poker might not like the fact that it's a one player only game.
I'm off for bed now. When I wake up: CSI: 3 Dimensions of Murder!
