Cry Wolf starts out immediately after the fourth episode. Seeing how the last episode didn’t exactly progress the story and only mulled around killing time for the final episode. I couldn’t be more excited to finally get to some action, and see the story wrap up. The action does indeed start immediately and never stops until the credits roll. You never walk around and investigate anything meaningful, and any section where you actually get to walk around last for a couple of minutes at most. A majority of the game is quick time events, decision-making, and watching events unfold. This is not a bad thing by any means due to how engaging all the content is.

From the very beginning you are faced with tough decisions like stating who you think committed the crime and how will you talk your way out of a room surrounded by thugs. You can always fight your way out if you think that’s wise. Then there’s a chase scene that didn’t really get my blood pumping but it is important you don’t mess up. Doing so could cause you to miss some very important conversation that can clear up a lot of what was going on. Not only does that help you understand the story, you will have more to use as evidence later on.

There is one fight scene that I suppose you could call the ‘boss fight’ of the series, but I don’t think calling something a boss fight is accurate for this type of game. I was expecting another simple button masher. It certainly was that, but at the same time, it was so well done I didn’t care. I was enthralled in the fight. It was the first time since the Lumberjack fight in the beginning of episode one that I felt this season gave me a solid fight scene. The enemy was terrifying, it felt like life-and-death, and the way the fight dramatically builds is wonderful. For a button mashing fight filled with quick-time events, it was one of the better one’s I have seen in a Telltalegame.

I liked everything about Cry Wolf up until after that fight scene. The game doesn’t plummet downward into a pit of groans erupting from your mouth, but it doesn’t perform as well as it could have. There are multiple questionable elements that arise making you curious as to why this direction was taken.

You bring the criminal to a “trial” and I put that in quotes because it is just a group of people standing in a basement. The group of people is made up of everyone from the game you previously met and had an encounter with. Clearly, you can see where this is going. Then Bigby and the criminal tell their story and try to win over the crowd. You need to convince everyone that the criminal is guilty, and not let him win the crowd’s favor. Another scenario is killing the criminal before you even get to the “trial” but then you have to defend your actions.

It’s easy to see what Telltale was trying to do here. They wanted all your past decisions to come to light. They wanted that little decision you made back in episode one to come back and bite you. That can certainly happen, and it was a little nerve-racking trying to make sure the crowd was on my side. It felt rewarding when a character stuck up for me because of something nice I did for them. Then there were others that would call for my head because I may have cracked them across the face in a previous episode.

I cannot deny how interesting and downright cool it is to see all your past decisions being brought up at one moment. The problem is how poorly the scene makes sense to the rest of the story. Why does a butcher and a bartender have a say in how a person should be dealt with when the government representative has all the say? Not to mention the crowd flips back and forth constantly. I felt like any development the characters had throughout the story was discarded as their beliefs became whimsical notions to sway to whichever side would cause more tension for me. A character would exclaim an accusation then immediately back off saying they weren’t actually sure.

Besides how out-of-place that scene feels, it still was engaging. So even though I had my problems with it, I still enjoyed it. I like how all your moments come back to haunt you, I simply wish it was done a little bit better than an angry mob. Of course they leave the decision ultimately up to you, which doesn’t make sense when many of them were saying how they don’t like you. It didn’t flow well enough and felt like the scene was trying a little too hard to make your decisions matter.

There are still technical issues that hold the game down, and it even froze my system at one point. During the really important fight the game stuttered for so long that when it finally caught up I was supposed to be mashing the X button. I still managed to fill the meter in time, but this could arguably be the episode with the worst performance so far. Cry Wolf is also only about an hour long, so those looking for a long conclusion won’t find it here. This is more the short but sweet type of conclusion.

I enjoyed this episode. It may not have been long or innovative, but it wrapped up the story enough where I was content. I was interested from the beginning to the end, which is more than I can say for the some of the episodes this season. I had my problems with the episode, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I would have like to see the climactic discussion at the end presented in a little more fitting of a way than people standing in a circle, in a basement, switching sides every couple of seconds. Nevertheless, when it comes right down to it, this was a good episode to end a very good first season. Faults and all, I thoroughly enjoyed The Wolf Among Us, maybe even more than The Walking Dead, and I could not be more excited for the second season.

This review is based off a retail copy of the Playstation 3 version of The Wolf Among Us developed by Telltale games and distributed by Telltale Games.

Risen 3 launches on PC, PlayStation®3 and Xbox 360 August 12.

Sacred 3 will be available on August 5th for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 as well as Windows PC.

• Steam for Mac / PC, the Telltale Online Store, PSN (NA) for PlayStation 3 and PS Vita – July 22nd
• Xbox LIVE for Xbox 360, PSN (EU) for PlayStation 3 and PS Vita – July 23rd
• iOS App Store – July 24th
• Additional platform release dates for tablets, mobile, handheld, and micro-console devices are to be announced

Stay tuned for more announcements and let us know what you think in the comments below. Also check out the new trailer below!

When asked about the potential impact of the layoffs with respect to hardware, Elop said: “With a set of changes already implemented earlier this year in these teams, this means there will be limited change for the Surface, Xbox hardware, PPI/meetings or next generation teams.”

Let’s hope that he is correct and these layoffs will not disrupt Microsoft’s business. Good luck to all those that lost their jobs.

Get Fiquette is a lovingly crafted indie titled on iOS, every inch of it oozes personality, from the tongue-in-cheek blurbs between the loading screens, or the over-the-top character designs, one can just feel the big inside joke this game was between its creators. The graphics are smooth and polished, the music sinister and old fashioned, both reminding this reviewer of the good ol’ days playing Learning Company games on Windows 95 – however this time in glorious HD. While the presentation shines, the gameplay is what takes a game from a disposable to classic, and what Get Fiquette offers is something in-between.

The outline of the game takes the player across 20 big city locations in the USA, and in each the goal is to stop Fiquette by taking down his life bar so the coppers can come and pick him up. If unsuccessful, Fiquette will make it to his hot air balloon and proceed to laugh in your face while he pops champagne and floats off to what one imagines is his evil hideout mansion filled with beautiful stolen works of art and his beautiful thief wife Carmen San Diego.

There’s only one way to slow him down, and that is to tap objects and have them fall right on to his head. The pace of his running hastens and slows throughout the level, which has you adjusting the timing of your frantic tapping. While attempting to stop Fiquette, your other goal is to collect as many coins as possible, which fly out of the anti-hero each time an object hits. These coins can unlock new items in the shop that cause greater damage, which is helpful as Fiquette’s life bar grows in successive levels. Things get pretty hectic, especially after all the levels are cleared and the endless “Insane Mode” is introduced.

It’s a fun and addicting game, but there are still issues that must be discussed. The unlockable items lack variation in their purpose, the cosmetic and density properties change, but essentially it’s all the same: tap object to make it fall. For all the game’s graphical polish, it felt like there should be more surprises in the late game. My ability to influence the outcome depends almost entirely on fast tapping, leaving no room for strategic depth.

Another complaint is all too present in the modern gaming landscape: glitches. Weird stuff like Fiquette running in place or doubling like Mysterio, which at first seemed to me like a new gameplay mechanic, turned out to be nothing more than one of a few glitches. These can be fixed with the ubiquitous “Bug fixes” update, but for now they’re simply frustrating.

In the end, Get Fiquette is $.99. If you’re asking yourself if you should buy this game and add it to your likely overflowing iOS game library: it’s a great title for cheap, so why not? For the price, this unique little game has enough personality to prevail over its shortcomings. Fiquette will have you laughing and shaking your fist in the air as he makes his getaway. Small games like this deserve to get noticed, especially since it’s obvious it’s not a cash grab. There are no advertisements, and micro transactions, as of now, are completely unnecessary. While the gameplay doesn’t stretch above simple fun, it makes you excited for future titles from developer Dimsdale & Kreozot.

This review is based on a review copy of the iOS game Get Fiquette by Dimsdale & Kreozot

The lawsuit was just filed, so this is still a developing story. We’ll release the details one we receive more information.

General Features

We are a gaming site through and through, but there are a few non-gaming features that are worth considering, especially if you are considering purchasing this peripheral as a general, all-purpose device. As you would expect, the Amazon Fire TV is built around Amazon’s proprietary OS and integrates with Amazon Prime seamlessly. If you have a number of digital purchases via Amazon, they will all be accessible via the Fire TV. You can also stream Netflix, Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime TV offerings without any issues at all. They are still missing some of the other steaming services you may use like Vudu or HBO Go, but those may come in time.

One of the newest features, and arguably one of the best, is the ability to search via voice commands. Simply press a button and speak into the remote and you’re forwarded to a search menu with whatever you requested waiting for you. The voice recognition is quite good and it alleviates the need to type via directional pad. This search function only works with Amazon and it can’t be used in 3rd party apps like Netflix or Hulu Plus. While it would have been great to have this functionality outside of the OS, it is still a great feature if you are an Amazon Prime member.

It’s All About the Games

Let’s face it, you are here because you love games so let’s just cut right to the chase. The Amazon Fire TV has a dedicated gaming section right from the home menu. There you will be able to get access to all the Android offerings from the gaming menu. Most of those games are free and many have a demo that you can play to see how it is. You can simply choose a game that looks good to you or if you know what you want, you can use the handy voice search option. Once a game is selected you can play right away if you downloaded it, or you can either download the game (if it is free) or pay for the app all via the menu. Finding and playing games is very easy and convenient since it is part of the core OS.

From a performance perspective, the Fire TV has plenty of power to run the latest Android-based games. Everything from Dead Trigger to Rayman can be run without any performance issues to speak of. As far as the Fire TV being a capable console is concerned, you won’t have to worry about whether the Fire TV can handle the load. While the experiences on the Fire TV are more in line with devices like the Ouya, Amazon has much more invested in this area and should prove to be quite the challenge for Ouya and Android gaming in general.

The controller itself feels great and gives gamers a console-like feel for a fraction of the price. It connects via Bluetooth so you don’t have to worry about line-of-sight or having the controller in front of the console at all times. It features a button layout that is similar to the Xbox 360, so those that are Microsoft gamers will feel right at home. While we would have liked to see this bundled with the console itself, a $40 additional purchase isn’t much compared to the value the console brings on its own.

Software Galore

At this point in time, there is only one Amazon Fire TV exclusive title called Sev Zero. It is a third person, tower defense game similar to the Orcs Must Die franchise. It looks great and plays just like you would expect. It is a really nice launch title and it sales for $6.99 off the Amazon.com webpage or right off the Fire TV. Unfortunately, that is the only Fire TV exclusive title, but rest assured that Amazon Game Studios are hard at work producing more quality titles for the console. Just make sure you own a controller before you purchase the game, otherwise it won’t run.

Aside from the console exclusives, there is a very large library of quality console titles for you to choose from including games like Minecraft and Rayman to Dead Trigger 2 and more. The Android platform has hundreds of games ready to play right now and the Fire TV is ready to give you access to them all. You won’t have a hard time finding the games you love or suggesting new ones to play.

Gaming Conclusions

If you are already locked into using Amazon devices like the Kindle and the Smartphone Marketplace, then picking up a Fire TV is a no-brainer. This device will sync-up with your purchases and give you access to pretty much all of your digital purchases. Granted, this is not going to take the place of your PlayStation or Xbox, but it offers a great option for those that want more than an Ouya or even glorified tablet / mobile gamers. The interface is smooth and responsive, the hardware is fast and capable and the gaming library is extensive. Once the Amazon Gaming Studios get rolling, this device will surely be on your must own list. Especially when you consider you get all this for less than half the price of a major tablet or gaming console, this is a great deal  and one of our highly recommended devices.