The Walking Dead Creator Names Biggest Video Game Blunder That Disappointed Fans

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Summary

  • The Walking Dead suffered a quality decline post-key character losses like Rick, leading to an anticlimactic finale.
  • Several spin-offs were produced, with varying success, such as the high-rated The Ones Who Live, but a lackluster video game.
  • The video game, Survival Instinct, failed due to poor graphics, broken mechanics, and rushed production, disappointing fans and critics alike.

For more than a decade, AMC’s hit series “The Walking Dead” was one of the world’s top TV shows, garnering wide acclaim. Yet, as with many long-lasting productions, the later seasons didn’t meet expectations for many fans, particularly its final episode, which has frequently been criticized for being underwhelming. After significant characters like Rick left the show, “The Walking Dead” seemed to lose some of its quality, leaving its conclusion feeling less climactic and unsatisfying to its devoted audience.

Despite my reservations, a flurry of spin-offs emerged from the original series that have proven to be quite profitable for the franchise. From “Fear the Walking Dead,” “Tales of the Walking Dead,” and “The Walking Dead: World Beyond” to “The Walking Dead: Dead City,” “The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live,” and “The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon,” characters who resonated deeply with audiences found their own unique spaces within these series. While some spin-offs have been more successful than others, Rick and Michonne’s “The Ones Who Live” has garnered the highest ratings. However, when venturing into the realm of video games, one title failed to impress Robert Kirkman, the creator of The Walking Dead, as he felt it fell short of the exceptional quality established by the rest of the franchise.

The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct Video Game Was a Letdown for Robert Kirkman

According to ScreenRant, Robert Kirkman from The Walking Dead expressed his belief that the 2013 first-person shooter game Survival Instinct, developed by Terminal Reality and published by Activision, didn’t live up to its full potential. In a letter within The Walking Dead Deluxe #111 comic book, a reader inquired about the game’s quality, prompting Kirkman to respond that while he saw promise in it, he was ultimately unsatisfied with how it turned out.

While I found the plot device focusing on Daryl’s survival instinct intriguing, given his popularity from the TV series, I must acknowledge that it ultimately didn’t quite live up to its potential.

Kirkman felt that die-hard Daryl fans would appreciate having more backstories for the tough character, but he personally thought the game was hollow and lacked refinement – aspects gamers wouldn’t have sought in a final product from a video game perspective. Another fan of “The Walking Dead” queried Kirkman about the reasoning behind releasing “Survival Instinct,” considering its poor initial reception. Kirkman responded that AMC had overseen the production process, and it was hastily developed due to their limited experience in the gaming industry. At the time, Skybound was heavily engaged with the successful “Telltale Walking Dead” series, so they weren’t primarily responsible for the project.

Many people, including Kirkman himself, believed that the game “Survival Instinct” was not successful. Critics pointed out several issues such as faulty game mechanics, subpar graphics, and uninteresting environments. They also noted a lack of depth in its storyline. The game was generally poorly received by critics on review sites like Metacritic, with some calling it visually unattractive and mechanically dull. This just goes to show that even popular franchises can fail if the team working on their spin-offs isn’t dedicated and committed to making them excellent.

Speaking of other spin-offs from The Walking Dead franchise, “The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2 is scheduled for release on May 4, 2025. Meanwhile, we can expect Daryl Dixon’s third season to debut sometime in the fall of this very year.

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2025-04-25 14:25