The Walking Dead Season Two, Episode 2 - reviews of hit game

What you need to know

A new episode of the hit zombie apocalypse video game The Walking Dead has been released in the UK. Episode 2 of The Walking Dead: Season Two, titled A House Divided, continues Telltale Games' episodic graphic adventure series, in which the choices players make in each chapter permanently affect the direction of the ongoing story.

World-weary 11-year old, Clementine, who was the player's companion during the first season, becomes the central player-character in Season Two. As Clementine, the player joins a group of survivors forced to flee into the woods to escape a villain called Carver (voiced by Michael Madsen), while Clementine also meets someone from her past.

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What the critics like

Episode 2 of The Walking Dead: Season Two is "better than ever", says Mitch Dyer on IGN. It's big, full of great dialogue, devastating consequences, memorable and fun action scenes, and places a smart, scary plot at centre stage.

"If the last episode was an adrenaline-packed intro to Clementine's status quo in the new season, Episode 2 is the pause to catch our breath," says Philip Kollar on Polygon.

And it's so much better off for that breathing room, providing space to develop new characters and ratcheting up the tension to a stupendous climax.

"A House Divided is a meaty chapter," says Rob Hearn on Pocket Gamer. It establishes the identity of the series, sets some intriguing narrative cogs in motion, and contains just enough random shocking violence to leave you anxious, depressed, and eager to play the next one.

What they don't like

It has the usual excellent dialogue and subtle moral decisions, but as with Episode 1, much of it feels like "plot set-up", says Roger Hargreaves in Metro. The overarching story still lacks direction and you've too little control over your actions, with many of the big decisions taken for you.