Quote:
Originally Posted by JByrne
I don't know. I feel that thematically, ending the game without any kind of extensive epilogue is probably appropriate.
One of the big themes of the game is about parenthood. Most parent know, or at least hope that their children will outlive them. What happens once their gone is out of their hands. All you can do is prepare them, give them the emotional tools they need to carry on.
That's why the after-credits scene is so note perfect. How it ends on such a huge question-mark. You don't know for certain if the figures are Christa and Omid, friendly or unfriendly, or even for sure if their not walkers (they're probably not, but that's still a 'probably'). For you, Clementine's whole future ends on a question-mark.
All you can hope for is that you did the best you could.
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I agree with pretty much all of this. Here's something I posted elsewhere on the Internet: "I've wanted more stories to not worry about offending its audience, or afraid of being realistic (in tone and themes) and especially in the horror genre, and well...The Walking Dead video game delivers that experience, with situations and events that I've always assumed would have happened in something like Resident Evil or other more fantastical horror games. The ending isn't pretty, and treats me intellectually by having it be a satisfying ending in that its resolution has everything to do with its themes and allusions, survival and horror but by not being a happy ending, and there are no cop-outs, and it is brutal.
I haven't experienced an ending as thought-provoking since reading Richard Matheson's I Am Legend, which was the story that lead me to look at stories in structure and more narratively rather than just looking for something "cool" or some form of false accomplishment. Every decision you make doesn't come to be about simply surviving, but a reflection of people and how they would treat one another in this terrible situation, and as one final part of your experience, you are confronted with your decisions and are forced to reflect and wonder about them, and then you see your results in the one last hope you have left, and even then it uncertain and ambiguous on purpose to really sell the point of you having to interpret the meaning of the ending, and feel the weight of your actions.
Well, those are my ramblings for tonight. I probably put way more thought into this than I should have, but this game defiantly had more care put into it than normal so it deserves it. This game has gotten me even more excited for The Last of Us, which if it follows up on its promises, looks to be a true experience in and of itself."
It's not about changing the ending.
It was always about shaping this little girl's personality. Yeah your choices don't prevent the entire cast from meeting their fate, but it does alter how those people are treated while they are alive and how you perceive the story. It becomes not about a goal of achieving a good or bad outcome...it is about reflecting on those choices you've made.
The Journey is the Destination.