Game of Thrones: Episode Five - A Nest of Vipers Reviews
The technical problems of episodes past — the variable frame rate, incessant hitching, visual glitches, etc — persist here, but at this point, we're so used to them that it hardly feels worthy of a callout here. Mostly it's just a bummer that A Nest of Vipers doesn't continue the steady uptick in quality we saw over the previous two episodes, but Episode Five nonetheless proves itself a necessary step in the lead-up to the season's conclusion next episode.
The penultimate episode of Game of Thrones is a bit of a mess. While there's a lot of meat in this instalment, it still ends up tasting a bit bland. Between oddly behaving characters, technical issues, and poor plotting, this feels like Telltale's least inspired release in some time.
The penultimate episode of Telltale's Game of Thrones may be A Nest of Vipers, but, though it's consistently well-performed and presented throughout, this is looking like another series where the implied player agency lacks any real bite.
The Starks are dead, both as a concept and a narrative arc. Throughout the early seasons and books, they served as the "good guys," allowing readers to pin their traditional fantasy hopes on a happy ending where everyone gets what they deserve. Their graphic and seemingly untimely deaths were a message from George R. R. Martin, spelled out in blood: this is not that kind of story. Either Telltale didn't get the message, or they're choosing to go over it again in case the mutilated corpses of everyone's favorite HBO actors didn't do the job.
Still, this is once again a second-to-last episode that ends up being the weakest episode. No matter how accomplished I feel, I know that I'm not actually doing anything. I know nothing is changing. I know next episode I'm going to feel powerless again, and everything I did in this previous episode will barely be addressed. I have to admit, Game of Thrones has been hard to get through. So much horrible tragedy befell my characters and I was powerless to do anything about it. I wanted to quit. I still want to quit. But there's one episode left, and coming this far means I absolutely have to ride the story of house Forrester to the end. Just don't expect this episode to feel rewarding. Look at it as something you have to do for the inevitable finale.
Game of Thrones: Episode Five - A Nest of Vipers is possibly the weakest episode thus far. Although there are some fantastic moments, it suffers at points where it feels some of the progression of the story from previous episodes took a step backwards. This, in combination with the limited gameplay segments, makes for a disappointing entry in the series.
Either way, it's really unfortunate how formulaic these episodes continue to play out; you interact with a famous character who you can never win over, you engage in a bloody QTE action sequence, you get jerked around some more by other characters, and you top things off with a dramatic cliffhanger that makes you want to take the lumps all over again. With one more episode to go, it remains to be seen if it was all worth it, but if Telltale fails to stick the landing and also fail to innovate for their next games, then they may have to deal with being on the receiving end from angry fans crying out for freedom (to make more meaningful choices).
Episode Six is going to have to pull out all the stops to regain the ground lost here. I'm hoping it does.
A disappointing chapter in an otherwise outstanding series
Game of Thrones Episode 5 takes a turn south with some out-of-character portrayals and lack of forward momentum.
Episode 5 arrives with such promise, yet withers a little when the game is forced to try and weave a conducive storyline out of your choices. Inevitably, as a player, you lose out on what could have been a satisfyingly unique experience.
That might not prove to be the case, but I don't believe there is any chance of reaching a fully satisfactory closure in one more episode running two more hours, give or take. Regardless of that, the stage is set for a spectacular final episode that promises enough political intrigue and bloodshed to keep fans of the books and show satisfied.
Despite an increase in action, Game of Thrones continues to disappoint with a sidenote storyline.
A Nest of Vipers has some shortcomings but is an overall solid episode, leaving behind a good amount of potential for what should be a climactic ending.
I'm still hopeful for a fulfilling closure to the emotional roller coaster that the game has subjected players to so far. I just hope that it involves giving a dish to the Whitehills that's best served cold. Perhaps with a frozen cherry on top. Hey, Iron from Ice, man.
With an increase in action, Game of Thrones: Episode 5 - A Nest of Vipers exists as an improvement over the series' recent episodes, and sets up a potentially grand finale with a shocking ending.
Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series Episode 5 - A Nest of Vipers isn't the best episode of the flawed, but engaging series, but it is still up there with the best of them. A couple of issues persist, such as show characters causing narrative confusion, and one or two stories not really progressing all that much, but overall fans should find themselves happy with the direction the series is going.
It's strange. Detailing all of A Nest of Vipers' parts makes it sound about average, if not even a little disappointing compared to the previous episode. But this one ends up working well as a cohesive unit, even if some pieces fall flat. This episode has its highs and its lows, but it still leaves an unforgettable impression.
'A Nest of Vipers' prioritizes the story over your choices
Game of Thrones: Episode 5 - A Nest of Vipers reinforces the idea that happiness doesn't last. All of your victories in the previous episode — and the much smaller ones here — are easily reversed, and you get the feeling that the final episode will end in a Pyrrhic victory. With this being a shorter episode, one hopes that the end comes soon with something to make this all worthwhile.