The Walking Dead: A New Frontier - Episode 4 - Thicker Than Water Reviews
Although Episode 4: Thicker Than Water once again deprives players of all agency, it's actually handled relatively well in-universe, making for a second-to-last episode that actively marches towards the finale. Characters are finally reaching a point where they feel fully developed, the story has found a suitable emotional centre, and the stakes have been raised high enough where Javi and Clem will naturally find themselves challenged in Episode 5. It isn't as strong as it could have been - in large part due to A New Frontier's overall structure - but Thicker Than Water stands out as the strongest chapter in season three thus far.
This series has been disappointing so far. This episode is probably the best yet but the glitches and just general lack of improvement in the writing mean that it is still substandard. The last episode would have to be incredible to draw everything together into a meaningful arc which lives up to its predecessors.
The fourth chapter looks like a regular episode from the AMC series: a few zombies, a lot of dialogues, characters who act stupidly. Still, the ending is well-structured, and delivers some good moments and decisions. Not as good as the second episode, way better than the third.
Review in Italian | Read full review
“Thicker Than Water” has its moments of enjoyment and incredulity, but the slow build-up and the meandering nature of the episode as a whole turns it into a frustrating chunk of a mostly consistent season. Players who stick through it will be well-rewarded with an intriguing finale setup that will hopefully pay off, but individually, the episode feels more like an obstacle than a continuation.
A lot of this outing of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier feels like treading water, as Telltale takes their time building to episode 5. Ending on a cliffhanger, the instalment does its job of upping the stakes for next time. Whether or not the developer can deliver a satisfying finale, however, is still up in the air.
This fourth episode succeeds by taking its time to tell us more about characters we didn't know much about and by litterally exploding at its end, letting us in great need for what's next.
Review in French | Read full review
The Walking Dead and Telltale are both suffering from increasing fatigue, but this season's penultimate episode helps this particular story soldier on towards a potentially satisfying, if predictable, conclusion.
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series - A New Frontier Episode 4: Thicker Than Water leaves a number of unanswered questions, flashing plot gaps and too prolonged foreplay, but a quick and emotional ending gives us hope for a really bright and memorable finale.
Review in Russian | Read full review
Storylines finally converge satisfyingly in Thicker Than Water, the penultimate chapter of the New Frontier.
An amazing emotional experience that trips and stumbles, but shows what Telltale is capable off.
Telltale has noticeably struggled in the past with the episodes leading into their season finales in previous titles, though by-and-large Episode 4 of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier manages to deliver some deep character moments and development while anchored by a tense conclusion that sets up its last episode for a big finish. Though some aspects of the episode may leave fans wanting a bit more, "Thicker Than Water" shows that family is just as much the root of some problems as much as it is the answer for them. Of course, the bigger question is how many of the Garcia clan makes it to the end remains to be seen, but the answers will be devastating either way.
Many of the season's problems remain in episode four – Thicker Than Water, but this installment does improve on many of its storytelling segments. There are still problems regarding relationships that you might not want, but the choices that you do get to make feel more important than they have in a while. While devoid of puzzles, the incredible ending has me eagerly waiting for the final episode.
Thicker Than Water serves as an excellent prelude to the carnage that is sure to come in the Season finale.
The latest episode in Telltale’s The Walking Dead seemingly came out of left field, and it boasts an ending that really makes you second guess the decisions you made up to this point.
Ignoring the graphical issues and the crashing, this is almost a return to form. The story gets back on track and is truly engaging, character development continues to excel, and the choices remain difficult. This is topped off with another superb cliff-hanger that delivers a sequence that will make players want to immediately go back and see the fallout from the other branching option, not to mention eager to get their hands on that final episode. If only it could be bug free...
With a high-throttle ending leading to a satisfying conclusion for Thicker Than Water, The Walking Dead: A New Frontier finally heads back on track when it comes to finishing up the job. While another cliff-hanger, it's one that feels like it'll actually lead somewhere instead of predictability lingering at the forefront. Things are set up beautifully for the finale, and players will see if all the risks going into this season end up being worth it.
Telltale has seriously upped the ante with more action and tougher decisions to make, and Thicker Than Water has definitely been my favourite of the series so far.
Managing to avoid the slower pace and lack of events the last episode presented, Thicker than Water continues the The Walking Dead: A New Frontier with a solid episode leading up to an interesting finale.
To say Thicker Than Water is the season's worst episode is both true and deeply misleading. It does take a step back from the extreme highs of the first three episodes, but this is still a story well worth seeing through to the end. Hopefully enough of the Garcia clan survive this season because they're worth another of their own. Some gripes with dialogue aside, the thematic elements remain strong, the characters are some of the best the studio has born, and this episode contributes to the still very high expectations for the season finale.
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier Episode 4, Thicker than Water, sees a return to the twists and turns, conflicts, and high drama the series is known for.