The Walking Dead: Last Survivors

The Walking Dead: Last Survivors is a sequel to The Walking Dead: Divided Home. The game is set seven months following the events of Divided Home's special episode. Last Survivors focuses on a new small group of characters as they travel alone through the barren wastes of the Mojave Desert in an attempt to reach a possible safe community at the Vegas Strip.

The atmosphere is more desolated than the previous game, emphasizing on how alone the characters are in the world. Isolation is the driving theme of the story and as such, the setting has a much more bleaker tone. Environments from the previous game which housed large factions of survivors, such as the Wellton Community and the Church, have now been reduced to nothing more than ravaged ghost towns. The game's driving question is, "Are we truly alone in the world?"

Last Survivors also uses the Telltale Tool engine but with new features. New gameplay mechanics includes a hunger/dehydration system. The longer a character goes without food or water, the higher the meter goes. When a meter reaches its peak, the character dies. However the story adapts and continues on so the player doesn't have to restart, unless it's the main character that dies. Another major new feature is the camp system. This mechanic allows for the player to determine where the group will spend the night and cook food at the fire. It is possible for evil players to eat other people. However, this action will lead to massive influence loss among the other group members. A heat system is also included and keeps track of how heated a character is. Like the other meters, reaching the peak results in death. Heat can be lowered by staying indoors.

Like the previous game, there are five main episodes and an extra episode. The main story arc is concluded in Sanctuary and a new mini arc follows up on it in Home.

Synopsis
Players take control of Sarita Tecla, a former secretary and assistant of Clyde Dover. She originally started as a survivor in his group but left when friction started to form shortly before Clyde's exile. From that point on, she traveled on the road alone for a whole year. Recently, Sarita was nearly killed by marauders but was saved by a mysterious stranger, who took Sarita back to her place. The game picks up a day afterward.

Now the player must travel through the dangerous and deserted lands of the west to find a new community without the aid of a large group, a place to get shelter, and with little food and water. The player's actions will determine how Sarita's life on the road will transform her and her fellow allies; for good or bad.

Gameplay
The core game mechanics are introduced in the first episode. In the remaining episodes they must make decisions that will either lose or gain influence with the other group members. The game's plot branches off into different directions depending if group members die, leave, or all stick around to the end. However it is only a matter of time before someone within the group dies and it is the player's actions that will determine who it will be. The main story arc concludes in various endings depending on specific conditions. The special episode contains even more endings that will determine the character's ultimate fate.

At various points throughout the game the group may become ambushed by assassins or walker herds at random. Defeating assassins gives the options to finish them or eat them for food. However cannibalism does result in large amounts of influence loss with the exception of Kathy who maybe persuaded into following the player's actions. When dealing with walker herds the group may either fight or ignore them.

Sarita's combat style relies on speed and being crafty. She is a fast mover and can very easily evade walkers. She also makes heavy use of the environment and improvising to help aid her in a struggle against the living or dead.

Features, both big and minor, from the previous game such as Non-liner combat, bigger areas, Book of the Dead, and the Black & White Filter all make a return.

Desolation
The story begins with Sarita Tecla awaking from a comma in a mysterious suburban house in Phoenix, Arizona. Shortly after waking, she discovers a note that reads, "Food and drinks in fridge. Stay inside.". Sarita collects the food and water and meets a woman who identifies herself as Kathy. Kathy reveals she saved her a day ago and has been in a comma since then. Sarita looks outside and sees a mega herd approaching. Sarita and the Kathy barely escape from the herd and they spend the rest of the day alone at another neighborhood. During the night Sarita begins to suspect someone is following them.

The next day Sarita meets a couple who were holding out at a nearby home, Father Nicholson and Minister Natalie. They admit they were spying on her and the stranger to see if they were with a group. The two then offer to travel with them and they reluctantly accept.

A couple of days pass until they locate the remains of the Wellton Community, Esther Mansion, and the Church. Father Nicholson and Minister Natalie mention they used to be in a group at the church but the group was separated following an attack. It is unknown if there are any other survivors from the disbanded group. After all locations have been visited the player must choose which location to spend the night at.

Another few days pass when the group arrives at Mohave County where they come across a street surrounded by the dead. Sarita decides to walk around the herd by going through the desert. Unfortunately they come across a sandstorm. They quickly take shelter in a shack where two other survivors are held up, two African brothers named, Bobby and Lenny. There is brief tension but it subdues when the two are identified to be friendly. The episode ends when Sarita notices the working radio. Outside a few Assassins, hidden in caves, watch the shack. One Assassin turns on his radio and states, "We've found survivors."

Trek
The group hears about a possible sanctuary in Vegas and begins a long journey towards there. As they travel through the desert, they are Unknowingly being watched by a another group. Durin their trip they encounter a wild pack of coyotes.

Grave
The group comes across the abandoned Goodsprings village. While exploring the ghost town Sarita finds the body of a couple who shot themselves. Examining the woman revealed she was pregnant when she killed herself. Close to the bodies is a note that reads, "God forgive us". Sarita may either leave the bodies, toss them out, or bury them in the cemetery behind the town. In the distance, The Assassins watch the group with binoculars.

Later during the night, Sarita gets a bad feeling and explores the eerie town after waking the others. Suddenly walkers come out of nowhere and corner the survivors, leading to everyone getting separated into different buildings. Sarita has a tense hand-to-hand struggle against a giant walker that nearly gets her. The rest of the group barely survive the sudden ambush however, depending on who the player doesn't save, either Bobby or Lenny is bitten in the back of the neck and must be put down.

The group buries their fallen teammate at the same cemetery where they buried the couple and move on further into the Mojave Desert, seeing the Vegas strip in the far distance.

Together
Seven miles north of Goodsprings, the group enters Jean, Nevada. Like the other places they came across, Jean is also an empty ghost place. The group is still dealing with the death of their latest member and to boost morale, Sarita gives a speech about them not being alone and that they have each other as family. At the end of the episode the group finally arrives at the Vegas town and begin to approach the gates.

Sanctuary
The group finally arrives at Vegas and at first appears to be yet another ravaged abandoned town. However Sarita senses something wrong. Suddenly snipers from the roof begin shooting at them. The group attempts to fight back but more Assassins arrive. Outnumbered, the group is forced to run as fast as they can. During the chase some of the group members end up separated while the others are captured. Eventually the chase ends with Sarita by herself and surrounded. An Assassin walks up to her and knocks her out.

Sarita is brought to meet the Assassin leader, Olivia. Olivia explains they are capturing and hunting survivors. Some survivors they encounter are either given the choice to become their slaves or be executed. Olivia then shows her an example where one of their battered prisoners has their heads cut off with an axe. Sarita is then given the choice to become their slave or have her head become a souvenir.

If Sarita rejected she is thrown into the prison where she meets the Vegas communities original citizens. They explain the backstory to Sarita while Kathy, who was able to evade the Assassins, works with Minister Natalie to rescue Sarita and the other captured hostages. Sarita also meets the sister of the prisoner who had just been executed.

Sarita and the others are rescued and while an intense final battle plays out between the Assassins and the hostages, Sarita confronts Olivia. During the confrontation she notices the heads of all those who were executed and uses them as a tool in her fight. Afterward Sarita may put down the remaining heads, including the head of the recently killed prisoner, or simply leave.

By the end Olivia, the Assassins, and possibly Kathy or Minister Natalie are killed. Sarita meets up with the wounded member and tries to treat their injuries but ends up being useless. The member shortly dies of their wounds and Sarita puts her down.

Meanwhile the sound of the earlier firefight causes a mega herd to approach the town from all directions, causing all of the gates to fall. The main arc concludes on a cliffhanger with the group separated at different spots in the town and are stuck there as the herd begins to overrun the town.

In the post-credit scene a mysterious group of characters arrive at the Vegas Strip from Hoover Dam. They watch the overrun strip from a distance and gear up for the coming fight.

Home
A possible home may be found. But now the question remains, at this point, after everything they have experienced, is the group too far gone?

Characters

 * Bobby
 * Clyde Dover (flashback)
 * Father Nicholson
 * Kathy
 * Lenny
 * Minister Natalie
 * Olivia
 * Sarita Tecla
 * The Assassins

Music
Like the previous game, Last Survivors utilizes a dark western soundtrack. However the music is even more ominous, representing the barren lands of the game setting.

Trivia
In the special episode, Home, one of Sarita's dialogue options is that they have become the walking dead. Mirroring an iconic quote from the comics.

With most of humanity almost extinct at this point, walkers in the game, like the main characters, are beginning to starve and becoming more aggressive. It is hinted the walkers will eventually start to eat each other when they completely run out of live prey.

The only characters returning from the previous game is Father Nicholson and Minister Natalie, two supporting characters from the Church Survivors. Clyde Dover returns only in the special episode in flashbacks.

Radiated walkers previously appeared in Divided Home but they more prominent in The Last Survivors since they're more common and active.

The beginning and ending of Episode 3 features the song A Kiss to Build a Dream On by Louis Armstrong. The song was also featured in the game ''Fallout 2. '' In the context of this game it represents the married couple that killed themselves.