Poker Night at the Inventory
- November 22, 2010
- Telltale Games
- 8h median play time
Get on Steam"Poker Night at the Inventory" is a poker video game featuring characters from popular entertainment franchises. Players compete in poker games against characters from "Team Fortress 2," "Sam & Max," "Penny Arcade," and "Homestar Runner" in a mysterious setting called "The Inventory." The game offers various customization options for the poker table and rewards players with special items for use in other games developed by Telltale Studios.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- humor512 mentions
- 99 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The humor in "Poker Night at the Inventory" is widely praised for its clever and entertaining dialogue, featuring iconic characters like Heavy, Max, Strong Bad, and Tycho. Players appreciate the witty banter and quirky interactions, which often lead to laugh-out-loud moments, although some note that the dialogue can become repetitive over time. Overall, the game's charm lies in its blend of poker gameplay with a comedic twist, making it a fun experience for fans of the characters and humor alike.
“But, what this game brings to the table is a world filled with humor and stories.”
“The game also features a hilarious dialogue between the characters, making it even more entertaining.”
“Poker night at the inventory is a very entertaining game of Texas Hold'em with some funny characters and dialogue throughout.”
“To be quite honest, even if you were a fan of the characters, it's not really worth paying much for this game just to hear their voice actors say some stupid crap that is usually absolutely not funny.”
“That's not funny, it's boring and mean.”
“While the second game looks polished and features a good cast, I found this one to look and play a little rough, and all the characters are unfunny and annoying.”
- gameplay107 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay is primarily centered around Texas Hold'em poker, offering a mix of solid mechanics and humorous character interactions. While some players find it enjoyable and easy to learn, others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking depth compared to other poker games. Overall, the game is appreciated for its comedic dialogue and character dynamics, making it a fun experience, especially for fans of the associated items and characters.
“The gameplay is easy to learn for those who have never played poker, the characters are entertaining, and the TF2 loot is totally worth it.”
“The humor is great (some quite a bit unexpected), and the gameplay feels solid and fair.”
“Great for the TF2 items and the poker gameplay.”
“The gameplay is awkward and slow.”
“Horrible gameplay, repetitive voicelines, rude characters, glitchy rules that would make even the most avid poker fans cringe.”
“Replay-ability is pitiful, gameplay is slow and bland, and like I said earlier, the developers stole money from Mac users.”
- graphics57 mentions
- 51 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally well-received, featuring a cartoonish style that complements its poker gameplay and recognizable characters. While some players note that the visuals feel a bit dated and experience occasional performance issues, many appreciate the overall aesthetic and find the graphics enjoyable. Despite mixed opinions on the quality and consistency, the game's visuals contribute positively to the fun atmosphere.
“The graphics are quite nice, with a cartoonish style that fits perfectly with the game.”
“There's amazingly cool graphics and wonderful dialogue to help add to the fun atmosphere.”
“The graphics are awesome, it has well-known opponents and of course unlockable TF2 items.”
“This game can't be purchased anymore but it's not much of an improvement on Telltale Texas Hold'em, using probably the exact same system with a graphical touch-up and some rented charm circa 2010 internet.”
“Turning graphics settings up or down didn't matter.”
“The graphics do have some issues, with chips, cards, and other objects failing to track the players' hands.”
- atmosphere28 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its cozy, prohibition-era pub vibe, enhanced by witty dialogue and engaging character interactions. Players appreciate the relaxing ambiance, often likening it to a jazz-filled environment that complements the poker gameplay. Overall, the game's tone and atmosphere are considered its main attractions, making it enjoyable even for those who may not be avid poker fans.
“The atmosphere of the inventory is like that of a prohibition-era pub, with dim lighting and a classy aesthetic.”
“I really like this game, one of the first I've ever seen that actually allows for proper single player poker gaming against properly animated players with their own character and stories to tell, all against a realistic dimly lit pub atmosphere.”
“The dialogue is not only pure gold, but the music of the inventory is outstanding and really sets the atmosphere for this game.”
“As many of the characters do not normally utilize high resolutions, the atmosphere is more of a whimsical cartoonish feel.”
“Actually, the poker here is secondary to the atmosphere.”
“Whether you like poker a lot or not doesn't matter with this game, its appeal is in its tone and atmosphere.”
- story23 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game is generally well-received, with players appreciating its engaging narrative that combines dark humor and emotional depth, particularly highlighted by poignant character backstories. The plot revolves around an unkindled character's quest to prevent the world's end, while other titles in the reviews showcase clever storytelling through unique formats, such as poker conversations. Overall, the storytelling is considered a strong point, enhancing the gaming experience significantly.
“The third and final entry in the Dark Souls series, the game follows an unkindled character on a quest to prevent the end of the world.”
“The dialogue is pretty fantastic, with all kinds of fun and dark humor (wait until you hear the Heavy's story about the engineer).”
“The storyline behind this game is admittedly well-thought-out.”
“The story (why does there need to be one) is that you are a back alley poker player who finds a neat little underground hang-out called the inventory, a man you can recognize as Mr. Winslow from Tales of Monkey Island guides you to your table and referees the game.”
“I recommend this game but if you end up leaving it for a better poker sim or a more story-based game, no shame in that.”
- music22 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 32 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its smooth, relaxing quality, enhancing the overall atmosphere and immersion. Many players appreciate the remixed themes from popular games, which add a nostalgic touch, while the soundtrack is noted for being both enjoyable and fitting for the poker setting. However, some reviewers feel the music lacks memorability, despite its overall positive reception.
“The sound design is great and the soundtrack is also great.”
“The dialogue is not only pure gold, but the music of the inventory is outstanding and really sets the atmosphere for this game.”
“The toons' constant repetitive talking will get old after a while, but mute it and put on some music.”
“The music completes the setting, with a lot of remixed versions of themes from the games represented, including Sam and Max and Team Fortress 2.”
“The discussion can be turned on and off, as well as the music - however, the sound really adds to the very relaxing but challenging competitive game.”
- replayability22 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players enjoy the varied gameplay and character interactions, many find that the humor and dialogue become repetitive after a few matches, leading to diminished interest once the TF2 items are unlocked. The solid poker mechanics and achievement challenges provide some incentive for replay, but the lack of new content and updates significantly limits long-term engagement. Players who are not particularly fond of poker may find the replay value especially low after the initial novelty wears off.
“The poker play was solid and the NPCs having different play styles combined with the Team Fortress 2 items add some replayability.”
“All this coupled with the fairly difficult achievement set (some of them relying on pure card-dropping luck) give Poker Night a lot of replay value.”
“Great replay value, great characters, great game.”
“You'll probably play 5-10 matches before the dialog starts to repeat, so the replay value here is limited, but the price is fair.”
“Though, this game has little long-term replayability because the repetition of the jokes and lines does get old.”
“However, once you've played it through and heard all the jokes, its replay value suddenly plummets.”
- stability14 mentions
- 7 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 93 % negative mentions
The game's stability is frequently criticized, with users reporting various glitches such as animation issues, model clipping, and random freezes. While some players find the bugs amusing and part of the game's charm, others describe it as a "buggy mess" that detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the game exhibits a mix of entertaining quirks and frustrating technical problems.
“+ no glitches (so far)”
“This game is a buggy mess, and it didn't use to be.”
“For me it freezes then it randomly quits.”
“Cons: buggy engine, laggy transitions, short on lines, lack of multiplayer.”
- grinding11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- -9 % neutral mentions
- 82 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is generally viewed as excessive and tedious, particularly for achievement hunters, with some players reporting over 100 hours of monotonous gameplay to complete all achievements. While grinding is not essential for progression, it can become boring and repetitive, especially due to the lack of options to speed up interactions. Overall, while the game may appeal to poker enthusiasts, the grinding experience detracts from its value for many players.
“Grinding isn't necessary to progress.”
“The grind is rewarding and adds depth to the gameplay.”
“I enjoy the grind because it allows me to fully explore the game's mechanics.”
“Grinding is only for leaderboards or ranks.”
“Too much grinding.”
“Fun while you're going for the TF2 items, but 100%ing this game is tedious.”
- optimization8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game is generally criticized, with users reporting poor performance, unstable framerates, and frequent crashes, even on capable systems. While lowering graphics settings can improve FPS, it does not significantly enhance visual quality, leading to an overall disappointing experience despite some enjoyable elements.
“It's not bad; it could be optimized better, but turning all the settings down doesn't seem to affect graphics at all and fixes FPS.”
“The game also seems to have performance issues, as framerates are relatively unstable (though still within 18 FPS at the very least and 30 at most) on a moderately fast system with a 1366x768 screen and the graphics set to preset number 4.”
“Has some mild optimization problems.”
“The game also seems to have performance issues, as framerates are relatively unstable (though still within 18fps at the very least and 30 at most) on a moderately fast system with a 1366x768 screen and the graphics set to preset number 4.”
“Poor performance and constant crashing; everything about this game is disappointing and Telltale just wasted my money.”
“Some of the dialogue is indeed great, but it gets old after a little while, where 'a little while' is, for the purpose of the game, 'way too soon.' Also ridiculously poorly optimized.”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find the emotional aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while the character interactions are described as heartwarming and engaging, some feel their emotional investment is primarily driven by external rewards, such as in-game items. The game's quirky cast adds a unique charm, but technical issues, like bugs affecting achievements, can detract from the overall emotional engagement.
“Fairly fun, heart-warming character interactions; however, its AI could stand to be a bit smarter.”
“One of the better poker games out there, it's great visually and also really fun gameplay, including the most heartwarming characters in one place.”
- character development3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -100 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is highly praised for its faithful representation of characters from their original games and webcomics, showcasing excellent design and voice acting. Players engage with a mix of online gaming celebrities and original characters, enhancing the immersive experience during gameplay.
“The character designs are almost exactly what they look like in the games and webcomics they're from.”
“Poker Night earns top marks when it comes to character design and voice acting.”
“You get to play with a group of three online gaming celebrities and one gamer who owns a comic with his friend, whose original character design you play against in no-holds-barred Texas Hold'em.”
“The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
“There are minimal changes in character arcs, leaving players wanting more growth and evolution.”
“The interactions between characters are often repetitive and fail to enhance the overall narrative.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy has been criticized as a shameless cash grab, with offers that require additional payments for items that should be free, such as a stout shako in exchange for donations.
“If you can find it in your heart to donate 2 refined to help this dying breed, we will send you a stout shako, free of charge (must pay additional shipping and handling fees; offer good for the duration of this advertisement).”
“Shameless cash grab.”
