Batman : The Telltale Series – Episode 3: New World Order Review

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I was a little skeptical when I first heard about Telltale taking on the Batman franchise but I soon realised that this new series has some interesting ideas and characters. The series started off on a high and so far the game has looked at both sides of Bruce Wayne and also his relationship with the people around him and the impact his decisions have on Gotham.

The game continues off shortly after the events of episode 2, where you had to make some interesting choices. The game has some very interesting character driven storylines that intertwine and its also clear that Telltale haven’t been afraid to mix up things a bit and have their own take on the Batman characters. The game has a unique style that works well and I loved the character design. Telltale once again use the power of storytelling and interesting plot twists to keep the player engaged throughout. The series works well as a whole but you’re missing out by playing only one episode as they link up and the whole point is to see the narrative develop and see how relationships unfold.

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The series has had some fairly weighty choices to make and it’s still a major part of the gameplay in this episode. The narrative moves forward well with a good pace and the dialogue is engaging, making the story more enjoyable and worth your time. The choices you make really do effect the outcomes within your story and I especially like the fact that you can play as the Batman you want to be.

Episode 3 starts right where we were at the end episode 2. Gotham is starting to descend into chaos as The Children of Arkham have just attacked the city by killing Mayor Hill. The game has already seen so exciting moments and feels like it’s ramping up to a big climax. This is the most exciting episode in terms of plot twists but I have to say that I preferred the actual gameplay in the previous installments. This episode also feels like it has the most dialogue but that’s ok as it manages to develop the story and setup events for future episodes. Ultimately this episode feels like it has a much slower pace to it.

Even though Telltale have improved the games quality there are still moments where the game freezes, stutters and feels awkward. For a game that tries to immerse you in its world and story I couldn’t help but feel taken out of the experience when these moments occurred. For me the story was enough to keep me engaged but I can certainly see some players getting frustrated with how the game runs.

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The gameplay in this Batman series is by far the best out of any of the Telltale series, as it offers a wider variety of styles and manages to mix things up throughout, whether you’re doing detective work, engaging in conversation or getting in fast paced action sequences. The voice acting is once again spot on and also helps to make the world and story more immersive. This episode has some heavy moments and emotional scenes that really show off the voice actors skills. Each of the characters offer something different, both in terms of personality and emotion. The most interesting is Bruce’s internal conflicts, but the others are just as interesting at times. The presentation is again very impressive, despite the poor framerate and technical issues. I love the Telltale style and the cel-shaded effect fits perfectly with the Batman franchise as it adds to the comic book feel. The music is also spot on and manages to alleviate and enhance to atmosphere from scene to scene.

Overall Batman: The Telltale Series – Episode 3 “New World Order” is another strong episode that offers plenty of story driven moments, but in my opinion doesn’t quite have the gameplay we saw in the previous two episodes. The technical issues are once again a problem and at this point now after so many installments from Telltale it’s becoming a bit of an issue for me. This episode certainly sets up what’s to come with a cliffhanger ending but I would have liked to have seen a bit more action or excitement throughout the entirety of the episode.

Rating 7

REVIEW CODE: A complimentary Sony Playstation 4 code was provided to Brash Games for this review. Please send all review code enquiries to editor@brashgames.co.uk.

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