The Wolf Among Us

The Wolf Among Us  

Title: The Wolf Among Us  

Production Company: Telltale Games  

Copyright: 2013  

Genre: Comic, Fantasy  

Awards or Honors:None 

Playing Level: Rated M for Mature.  

Plot Summary: The Wolf Among Us follows fable characters from European fable tales, which now live in a section of New York City in the 1980s called Fabletown. These characters include Bigby Wolf, aka the Big Bad Wolf, Snow White, The Woodsman, and Mr. Toad. Bigby Wolf is one of the main characters, and he is the sheriff who must solve the crime of disappearing fairy characters and the murder of a woman. With the help of Snow White, he investigates, getting into fights at a bar and talking to new characters. He begins to suspect the mayor, Crane, after finding out he has been making payments to someone named the Crooked Man. He finds the Crooked Man and his cronies after talking to trolls and fighting. He ends with a fight against the Crooked Man and his sidekick, Bloody Mary. He wins and kills the Crooked Man. Snow White becomes mayor, and Bigby reflects on his excellent work and considers some unsolved pieces left.   

Production Background: Telltale Games is a video game company founded in 2004 that oversees producing The Wolf Among Us Series. The company first produced The Wolf Among Us in 2013 and had plans to release a sequel in 2018. However, the company shut down in 2018 due to financial issues. Its materials and content were bought in 2019 by a group of investors in the video game industry. Telltale Games now has offices in Malibu and Corte Madera (Telltale Staff, 2020).    

The company announced in 2019 they will release a sequel to The Wolf Among Us following the same characters. The company has released a sneak trailer, but no date has been set to release the sequel (Telltale Staff, 2020). The company has produced video games for popular tv shows like Game of Thrones and Batman. Other games from the company include Puzzle Agent, RGX Showdown, and Tales of Monkey Island.   

Critical Evaluation: The Wolf Among Us is based on the Fables Comic Book Series and is a prequel to the comics. The game is gritty and is overall a game with dark themes and twists on the old fable tales. The mystery plot is complex and well put together. The video game design is detailed and is similar in art design to comics, with some of the same drawings. The music theme track is dark and ominous, which fits well into the theme. The user gets to make lots of choices throughout the game, and themes of anger, justice, and inequality are often part of the choices. The game is in an episode format and is designed for computer play. The game is enjoyable, and the user will look forward to future chapters in The Wolf Among Us series.   

Creative Use: I would include this game in our library video game collection and make it available to our older teenagers. Having a video game collection is important as more and more teenagers are playing video games. I think older teens would like the game and would enjoy the plot and the choices you can make throughout the game.    

Speed Talk: Bigby Wolf has a lot on his plate as a legendary magical creature, a bad reputation, and being a sheriff in charge of Fabletown, a gritty enclave in New York City filled with unsavory fable characters and a reputation almost as bad as his. Now he has a problem on his hands. A murder has occurred for the first time in years, and he is responsible for solving the crime. Does he have what it takes to unravel the mystery, or will his reputation and anger issues take him over the edge?  

Potential Challenges: There are no potential challenges at this point. Future challenges would likely be for violence like fighting, swearing, and criminal activity.   

Reason for Inclusion: I included this game because it is a fun and entertaining game popular with young adults and is being continued on as a franchise. The game is from a popular company that has produced lots of other games that teens have liked, including a Game of Thrones video game. The game also involves lots of puzzles and decision-making that make it a gripping story that people will become invested in.   

Telltale Staff. (2020). The New Management Team & Publishing Partner. Telltale Games. Retrieved October 4, 2020, from https://www.telltale.com/press-release/