Robert Murphy
Open world gaming is perhaps the most sought after genre of the past decade, players no longer want a linear story and want a vast world to explore and do what they wish with it. Minecraft is probably the purest among this genre of games where you literally start in a world with nothing but the materials to build whatever you wish so there has never been a need for a story nor a real concept of one, until now.
The story revolves around Jesse (voiced Patton Oswalt) or Catherine (voiced by Catherine Taber), depending on your gender selection, who is an aspiring builder and sort of the leader of his group of friends who are trying to become the next big name in building. While it isn't flat out said what being a prestigious builder means, you are in Minecraft so building literally is everything. In order to prove yourself, you and your friends head off to the local Endercon which is where local builders set out to show their creation in order to be crowned champion. You guys however are frankly known as the local loser in this category but this doesn't stop you from entering in once again for fame and glory.
The situation turns dire for your friends (and your pet pig) though when a world ending scheme begins to unravel before your eyes. The local legends known as The Order of the Stone have a rich history and their tale is one that has been passed down throughout the world for years but their is more to the story than what everyone knows. There is a powerful lie hiding from the world and now a terrifying evil is being unleashed that threatens to destroy the world, block by block. Heavy stuff, right? While the story is mostly full of laughs and makes use of excellent material from the Minecraft universe, there is a degree of life threatening danger to the story but it's played all in good fun. There also heavy conflict choices that you are faced with among your friends and former enemies players will face along the way which made the story all the richer.
While the main story is jam packed with characters that will be joining you on your quest, very few of them actually prove to make an impact with you. Jesse/Catherine are greatly explored main protagonists and I had a blast playing along with them but as for the rest of your friends there is little to be invested in. Axel (voiced by Brian Posehn) and Olivia (voiced by Martha Plimpton) are with you since the beginning but only recieve the basic of character backgrounds, Axel is loyal and strong and Olivia is smart and assertive, that's about it. This can be said for all the other characters you meet as well, Petra (voiced by Ashley Johnson) is strong and Lukas (voiced by Scott Porter) is your enemy turned friend. It leaves little to be invested in when the action starts to kick in and I was left to reflect on the one real connection I had with any character Reuben, my pet pig.
Now, one of my biggest gripes with Telltale over the years has been that while the story choices you make in each of their games can be very impactful to what you're playing, things never truly felt that different if you went back for another playthrough. In Order of the Stone however, players can experience a variety of different circumstances depending on their choices, in the very first episode no less. Twice the story had given me a choice that I barely thought anything about as they were happening, I acted on instinct and what I thought would truly happen if I went one way or the other. Later I came to find out that I could have gone through a whole other ordeal by going on a rescue mission for one of the characters. These were the biggest by far but there were other small choice that I went back a second time just to test out just because my curiosity was so strong and all of it leading to a finale where you could essentially decide what adventure you will be going on in episode two.
Even though our story features little in the way of free roaming and actually collecting of materials to build massive in-game structures, there was more of the Minecraft charm to go around with The Order of the Stone. Players will be able to build, to the themes of an 80's style montage I might add, as well as craft items and enter a world where some of the most iconic and ridiculous things Minecraft players have ever built are brought to life. The drama and choices were also an excellent direction choice that fit the overall story perfectly, even if I wasn't entirely invested in the characters I was involved with. Whatever the case, I am wrapped up in the story and I cannot wait to find out what mysterys lie in wait with the legendary members of The Order of the Stone.
Good:
- Plenty of laughs
- A great story filled with mystery and intrigue
- Excellent decision making problems and actual effects to them
Bad:
- Characters are mostly generic
Scully Rating: 8.0 out of 10
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