The Council - Episode 1: The Mad Ones Reviews

The Council - Episode 1: The Mad Ones is ranked in the 63rd percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
9 / 10.0
Mar 12, 2018

The Council gets off to an excellent start thanks to its brilliant characters, clever gameplay, unique RPG elements and the threat of long-lasting consequences, which ensured that I was captivated from start to finish. Twice.

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9 / 10.0
Mar 12, 2018

The Council offers gamers a tension filled journey purely fueled by character interactions and mysterious circumstances. Best of all is the evolved gameplay mechanics from what we're used to for an episodic endeavor. I truly felt that I had control of every situation from an ability standpoint and a cleverness one. Wrap up an amazing RPG progression mechanic into a great looking voyage on a mysterious island and you have an incredible start to a game. The seeds of a secret society's leader gone missing have been expertly laid and I can't wait until Episode 2 comes about. Here's hoping this first one isn't the end of where the title shines.

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ACG
Top Critic
Wait for Sale
Mar 13, 2018
The Council - Episode 1: The Mad Ones Review "Buy, Wait for Sale, Rent, Never Touch?" video thumbnail
85 / 100
Mar 13, 2018

The Council – Episode 1: The Mad Ones sets up this story nicely, providing a solid edifice of characters, lore, and finally a multiple conclusion that have me interested in the next episode.

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Unscored
Mar 13, 2018

The Mad Ones' episode lays the foundation of a potentially intriguing mystery narrative, part An Inspector Calls, part Murder on the Orient Express. The Social Influence system, if implemented well through the rest of the episodes, really could be a game changer for narrative adventures, evolving a genre that has needed fresh ideas for a while.

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GameSpew
Top Critic
80%
Mar 13, 2018

The Mad Ones raises a lot of questions and leaves us on a heck of a cliffhanger, but even without that, it sets up an exciting enough premise to leave me on tenterhooks for the next episode. I can't wait to see what else Big Bad Wolf has up its sleeve.

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Wccftech
Top Critic
8.1 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

While missing some of the polish other games might have, The Council feels like it could be the next step in the genre thanks to branching narratives that feel much weightier than before and a mystery you can't help but be drawn into.

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6 / 10
Mar 13, 2018

The Council has impressive ambitions – even if its execution is not up to scratch. You'll already know whether its alternate history backdrop appeals to you, but it's the RPG elements that threaten to disrupt the narrative genre. We already like what this series is doing, but the writing and voice acting leaves a little to be desired. That said, this is a solid start, even if it is a bit too early to come to any conclusions about the overall story just yet.

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8.5 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

The Council Episode One is a thunderously promising start for this fresh, sophisticated and intelligent take on the narrative adventure.

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6 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

The opening episode isn't exactly the most gripping of affairs, as this slow burning, political drama takes a while to get going and isn't helped by poor presentation and dull puzzles. But there is potential here for an interesting story to be told in future episodes.

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7 / 10
Mar 13, 2018

This first episode takes its time to introduce the plot of the Council as well as the RPG mechanics. They suit very well to the narrative genre, allowing the player to follow its own path through the choices of the game.

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Mar 13, 2018

Despite its promising new mechanics that make conversation a game of strategy, the interaction between its characters lets The Council episode one down.

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Mar 13, 2018

I was able to get into this game in a way I've been unable to with adventure games for the last few years. It was a treat to play, and I can't wait for the remaining four episodes.

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8 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

The Council's first episode is a promising start. The Mad Ones builds the framework for what can be a wild narrative ride, but it's not clear yet how far this game will go in terms of its branching paths, or if the narrative will remain interesting throughout. I'm excited to learn more about the deceptive world of The Council and what Louis will uncover in upcoming episodes.

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Mar 13, 2018

Though rough around the edges overall due to some performance issues, the first episode of The Council has laid a strong foundation for this intriguing story and fun gameplay to continue down the line.

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8 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

Occasionally rough around the edges, The Council's first episode is a surprisingly entertaining combination of Telltale's episodic adventure games and tabletop RPG elements.

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8.5 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

The first episode of The Council presents a promising world and perhaps some very dynamic experiences.

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Mar 13, 2018

If they can deliver a worthwhile story over the remaining four episodes, The Council may go down as the new benchmark for narrative adventure games.

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8 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2018

The Council, just going by the first episode, is a very good attempt to evolve the choose-your-own adventure game style, going far beyond what Telltale have attempted.

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9 / 10
Mar 13, 2018

The Council is the next evolution of episodic storytelling and you will struggle to look at its competitors the same way after it.

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