Review

Back to The Future Episode 2: Get Tannen!

Marty and the crew are back for another episode. The events leading up to this episode shouldn’t come as a surprise if you’re a fan of the series (even if you didn’t play the first one). It seems that while rescuing Doc from the past, Marty has inadvertently changed the present in horrible ways. Marty’s dad, who is wheel chair bound, is being bullied by Biff and the Tannen gang from the first episode. Over time this makeshift mafia was able to gain so much power that it took over Marty’s hometown. Of course, we have to go back and fix what happened in the past before it’s too late. Cue the theme song!

This episode is actually better than the first one. I didn’t think that was possible seeing as how it’s really one game broken into multiple parts. Then again, Telltale has been doing this sort of thing for a long time. One aspect that makes this episode better is that, even though we are going back to the same places as episode one, they are distinctly different this time around. Time has gone by and the character’s lives have progressed since the last time we saw them. This new yet familiar world will have gamers sneaking into a speakeasy, helping a drunkard cop get sober, and freeing a damsel in distress all while fixing the past.

In normal adventure fashion, gamers are again tasked with finding objects to solve puzzles. This time around though, just like the places we get to visit, things are different. There are some puzzles that require good listening skills to solve while others require items found in the first episode. The ones that require you to listen must be approached in a different manner. Even the tips that you’re given to solve them won’t work unless you’re paying attention to what’s going on around you. These types of things help pull gamers into the story by making you feel clever when solving such puzzles. You really feel like your Marty here to save the day…or yesterday. Not only that, the fact that you have items from a previous inventory makes this episode feel like its part of a grand scheme and it should. There are other episodic games that make the gamer start from scratch at the start of each episode. The story might have developed, but the player’s character hasn’t. Developers do this so that gamers starting in the middle won’t feel left out. Telltale does a good job of getting new comers up to speed while at the same time, keeping things as cohesive as possible for current players. This allows them to create a mood and mechanics that are different in this episode while holding on to the great things from the first. Another cool aspect that is also found in the films is the younger versions of present characters. Just like in the first episode, gamers with need the help of the much younger Doc Brown. The only problem is getting to talk to him while avoiding your self. That’s right; gamers will have to avoid their past self that went back in time in the first episode. I can’t stress how cool this is!

This episode moves a lot faster than the first for obvious reasons. Throwing aside the fact that we don’t have to learn the mechanics over again, things move faster because the story moves faster. There seems to be much more going on this time around, which in turn gives the player more to do. At the same time, being one out of a five episode game, it is a short affair. Then again, assuming you didn’t buy just this episode, it does build anticipation for the next chapter. Again, for fans of the films this is a no brainer. For everyone else, I would try episode one first seeing as how it’s free. Just note that the series seems to be getting better with time!