The Wolf Among Us: Episode 2 - Smoke and Mirrors Reviews
The Wolf Among Us Episode 2: Smoke and Mirrors is a great second act to Telltale's adventure noir.
Telltale has kept up its quality of writing, atmosphere and mystery, beginning to tie together story threads while heightening anticipation even further. However, there's no question that the relatively slower, methodical pace of this episode will leave less of an impact on some players. Those who favor a slow burn will still welcome the experience, but if Telltale hadn't made audiences wait four months to play this episode, they would have had a much easier time keeping both groups happy.
A great world and an interesting story, but this short second entry lacks the tense decision-making of the first.
Telltale is crafting an engaging story in Bill Willingham's twisted Fables universe, keeping both fans and newcomers hooked to see the next thread
Smoke and Mirrors wants to know how far you'll go to preserve your humanity
The Wolf Among Us: Episode 2 - Smoke and Mirrors is another engrossing chapter in this ongoing saga, though it doesn't blaze as brightly as the introductory episode.
Smoke and Mirrors is a solid continuation for The Wolf Among Us. A lot of seeds were planted in Faith, and while a few have borne fruit, most of this episode's running time is spent tending to them.
Huffs and puffs, but doesn't blow us away.
Figuring things out and uncovering the truth in Fabletown surely isn't easy, but with Episode 2 continuing to prove The Wolf Among Us as another excellent addition to Telltale's roster, playing through the latest chapter of the noir crime saga is not nearly difficult at all.
Episode two puts The Wolf Among Us in an awkward place. Telltale shows enough of its hand to interest players in the rest of the story, but the unevenness of this second episode deflates the enthusiasm that first worked so hard to earn. It's difficult to tell how strong the series will become, but right now, it's tough to accept good when you're used to great.
The biggest accomplishment with the new episode however is the fact that your actions have more consequences on a personal level. Bigby ceases to be a construct of Telltale and starts to become an extension of yourself, causing hesitation on more than one occasion. Having said that, there aren't really any "big, freeze-the-screen" choices throughout this roughly one-hour tale like in Faith -- just a lot of little ones. Not a whole lot of big choices carry over from your previous story either, as the only major connection is tied to whomever you decide to capture at the end of Faith. It remains to be seen if future episodes will employ more connections.Whereas the first episode of Wolf Among Us had me intrigued, Smoke and Mirrors has me hooked. Although it's not nearly as explosive as its own The Walking Dead series, Telltale has managed to craft a world full of interesting characters, and with the fairytale setting -- the sky is the limit. Let's just hope we don't have to wait so long for part three.
Episode Two of The Wolf Among Us is exactly what you want: more of Bigby's journey through an early period from the Fables universe.
The most important thing is that while I wasn't in as much of a shock when I got to the cliffhanger at the end of this episode, I was left wanting more, and if episode three was installed and ready to go, there is no doubt in my mind that I would've happily played on. Nothing else needs to be said.
Telltale's convinced us: The Wolf Among Us is going to be very good. You need to sign up for the ride.
While Smoke and Mirrors is a little on the short side, The Wolf Among Us continues to impress with its story-driven gameplay that adapts to your previous decisions in unexpected ways. The story gets even more sinister and takes us to the darker parts of Fabletown, which is saying something, since episode one opens with The Woodsman beating up a prostitute in a run-down tenement building. Even if you've never heard of Fables before, if you're a fan of noir fiction and like a healthy dose of mysticism, you should be playing The Wolf Among Us.
Smoke and Mirrors simultaneously excelled while falling slightly short. Despite my gripes, I genuinely enjoyed the entire experience, but this episode did not hit the expectations set up by the first episode of The Wolf Among Us. That being said, this it is still a positive addition to what is turning out to be an absolutely fantastic series.
Despite a few missteps, Smoke and Mirrors is an excellent follow-up to Faith. It's a twisted journey through Fabletown's dirty, neon underbelly exploring the darker side of glamour magic and the exploitation of fables. It ends somewhat abruptly, with a terrible revelation, making the wait for the third episode already agonising.
Technical hitches and an early story stumble are not enough to prevent The Wolf Among Us: Episode 2 - Smoke & Mirrors from continuing its series' winning streak.
Episode 2 contains all the elements we've come to expect and deeply admire from a Telltale series, but it's too thinly spread to achieve top marks.
There's a war inside of Bigby, that much is clear. And if the preview for Episode Three is to believed, this story is about to go to some dark places. We can't wait to see what's next.