Game of Thrones: Episode Three - The Sword in the Darkness Reviews

Game of Thrones: Episode Three - The Sword in the Darkness is ranked in the 67th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
Mar 29, 2015

The third episode of Telltale's episodic Game of Thrones series marks a triumphant return to form, and makes us wish that episode four was right around the corner.

Read full review

8 / 10.0
Mar 26, 2015

Despite the lack of choices, Game of Thrones: Episode 3 is probably the best episode of the bunch. It gives its main characters more purpose, tightens the overarching plot, and moves at a much faster pace than the last two episodes. Thanks to many truly impassioned moments, Episode 3 will leave you full of anxiety and wanting to jump right into the next episode. If you have enjoyed the first two episodes, you should definitely pick up Game of Thrones: Episode 3 – The Sword in the Darkness.

Read full review

4 / 5.0
Jun 22, 2015

In short, I need a chill pill right about now. On the plus side, it looks like I finally made it to the fourth state of grief — anger — after wallowing in sadness through the first couple of chapters. As I mentioned in my reviews of "Episode 1: Iron From Ice" and "Episode 2: The Lost Lords," Telltale's interpretation of Game of Thrones continues to elicit a strong emotional response with its writing. Even the quick-time combat, which I normally don't like, felt good this time because I was able to relieve some stress by implementing my martial plan on some dudes. Will it bite me in the behind at some point? Who knows? One issue I have with the series so far is that choice feels more like an illusion sometimes. The drama continues to deliver, though, making Episode 3 a solid point-and-click adventure.

Read full review

8 / 10.0
Mar 24, 2015

We're now officially halfway through Telltale's trip through Westeros, and the twists and turns show no signs of stopping.

Read full review

NZGamer
Top Critic
8 / 10.0
Mar 29, 2015

At this point, the only reason I can see for people who enjoy Telltale Games' titles, and the Game of Thrones franchise to not pick this game up is because they're waiting for all six episodes to be available.

Read full review

8 / 10.0
Mar 30, 2015

A very good continuation of the story then, but I hope and suspect that the "holy s**t" moments will come in Episodes 4 and 5.

Read full review

8 / 10.0
Mar 24, 2015

Episode Three fulfills all the promises it needs to for fans of the Game of Thrones TV series, even if it doesn't necessarily give old school adventure game fans much to actually do in terms of interactivity.

Read full review

4 / 5.0
Mar 29, 2015

Even though the episode is quite short, it's quite a powerful release from Telltale Games as you attempt to make the right decisions which you hope will have the least resistance in the future for the Forresters but even the best laid plans of mice and men do go awry. With that said, there's some action scenes in this episode for Garred Tuttle that has a huge consequence for this ex-squire as this series goes into overdrive. All in all, another hit from Telltale Games, especially if you're a fan of HBO's Game of Thrones!

Read full review

Mar 29, 2015

With 'A Sword in the Darkness,' 'Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series' is making great progress. Blasphemous though it may be, I'm beginning to like the series even more than their 'Walking Dead' project, and that is also an excellent franchise. Like any great episodic game, high quality episodes make me wait for the next one even more impatiently.

Read full review

Dan Stapleton
Top Critic
7.7 / 10.0
Mar 24, 2015

Early excitement and newfound purpose puts Telltale's Game of Thrones back on track in Episode 3.

Read full review

Polygon
Top Critic
7.5 / 10.0
Apr 8, 2015

This episode did a great job of quickening the pace of the story while offering the player the sort of hard choices that make Telltale games such terrible fun to play.

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0
Mar 23, 2015

Game of Thrones Episode 3 is a pretty solid entry in the series made by Telltale Games. It takes the overall story to some interesting new areas, but some aspects, such as the Rodrik sequences, tend to feel repetitive and uninspired. The next few episodes are shaping up to bring some even bigger events, so expect to see even more interesting developments in the future.

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0
Mar 25, 2015

Game of Thrones: Episode 3 -The Sword in the Darkness puts the series in a good spot. Asher has a decent amount of action, and his straightforward story is a nice contrast to everyone else's tales. Mira's situation is as tense as ever, and it doesn't look like the game will let up anytime soon. Gared's tale has gotten traction and gone from boring to exciting in one fell swoop. Rodrik's part in the episode still feels like it's spinning its wheels, but if you played things out a certain way, the events at the end signal the beginning of a spark . As long as the pacing of episode releases is right, there's enough here to keep players invested while the TV show rolls on.

Read full review

Mar 24, 2015

The Sword in the Darkness stays the course for Telltale's Game of Thrones series, though it still feels like the story is waiting around for something to finally happen

Read full review

7 / 10.0
Mar 27, 2015

This was another great installment that should please both fans and those new to the series alike.

Read full review

Digitally Downloaded
Nick H.
Top Critic
Mar 26, 2015

[This episode] was my least favourite in the series so far. I assume it will become a very important part of the narrative, but its highlights are few enough and far enough in between with the promise of more to come that it comes away somewhat less than its predecessors.

Read full review

65 / 100
Apr 5, 2015

Telltale can and has done great things for the Game of Thrones fiction. But scope is what propelled this fictional world into the cultural phenomenon it it is today. If the games hope to be considered worthy additions to the phenomenon, they'll need to take advantage of that vast world, and all its opportunities for original storytelling. While also remembering that we'd like to see a bit more than the bottom of a Whitehill's shoe.

Read full review

6 / 10
Mar 26, 2015

Telltale's take on Game of Thrones feels quite low-key compared to some of the goings on in the main series, but this episode begins to move away from that being a problem and starts using it to its advantage, as it shows you different sides of familiar situations. There's still a lot of filler to get through, though, and it's very dialogue heavy with little to offer in terms of unique gameplay. Hopefully, now that we're getting past the halfway point, the next episode will be much more enjoyable.

Read full review

6 / 10
Mar 24, 2015

An episode where plenty goes on, but neither story nor characters are actually advanced a great deal. The Ironrath Forresters are still miserable hostages, Asher still needs an army, and Gared is still doing Nights Watch duties. A few revelations, plus Mira's dynamism, keep things from going stale.

Read full review

6 / 10
Mar 29, 2015

The overall story is still interesting enough to leave us anticipating, but much like how fans wish those damn dragons would cross the sea already, it would be in this game's best interest to hurry things along.

Read full review