The Wolf Among Us is a 2013 episodic interactive mystery drama graphic adventure video game developed and published by Telltale Games, based on Bill Willingham’s Fables comic book series.  The game was released for the Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, iOS, OS X, Android, and Microsoft Windows. and the plot follows Bigby Wolf, the sheriff of Fabletown, as he along with Snow White investigate a murder, but stumbles upon a conspiracy involving the mysterious Crooked Man.

Positives:

• Great, well-written characters
• Well-written, richly developed story
• Great voice performances
• Terrific soundtrack
• Good visuals

Negatives:

• Game freezes during loading screens
• Long loading screens
• Occasional graphical glitches

Campaign:  The story is well-written and does a great job of gradually revealing the conspiracy involving the Crooked Man and his hold on Fabletown.  The story does move at a slow pace but this time is used to focus on the character of Bigby as well as the introduction of the other characters and their relationship to Bigby. Also there is the gradual rise of suspense as many events begin to unravel.  The game features likable, well-written characters.  Bigby is the main protagonist and sheriff of Fabletown.  Although he comes off as a bit of a douchebag to the other characters, he has a deep personality and cares for others.  He is assisted by Fabletown’s director of operations, Snow White, who is a good contrast to Bigby, not only in terms of personality but also when it comes to relations with the other characters. (4 out of 5)

Gameplay: The gameplay is good and allow for great gaming experience.  The settings are a bit linear so exploration is limited but the branching storylines do compensate for this.  These branching storylines also keep the level of replayability high.  There are quicktime events but they do allow for immersive entertainment.  Some of the downsides to the gameplay mechanics are the long loading screen times and the game glitches (unsynced voice overs, slight delay, etc.). (3 out of 5)

Graphics: The graphics are to be commended, combining the neo-noir comic art style with the traditional Telltale Game graphical format.  The character and environment design look great.  Unfortunately some of the worst aspects of the graphics were the glitches, that either froze or skips. (3 out of 5)

Score: The score is beautiful, and definitely sets a dark theme for the overall game.  The voice performances are just terrific.  Great soundtrack that cast a dark tone to the setting. Adam Harrington completely kills as Bigby.  (4 out of 5)

Replay Value: Like all games like this players who appreciate the story and characters will take advantage of the dialogue choices and branching pathways that keep the level of replayability high. There are some moments where despite the different choice made that it got the same result. (3 out of 5)

The Verdict:  In the end, The Wolf Among Us is a terrific game and a great adaptation of the Fables comics.  Despite the loading times and the occasional glitches, the gameplay is solid, great suspenseful story, great characters, great voice performances, a great soundtrack, and visually appealing.  The Wolf Among Us gets 3 out of 5.