The Escapists: The Walking Dead

A great tie-in and a solid game in its own right, The Escapists: The Walking Dead is an enjoyable and surprisingly deep head-scratcher.

62%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, stability

57% User Score Based on 746 reviews

Critic Score 64%Based on 13 reviews

Platforms

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About

"The Escapists: The Walking Dead" is a prison escape game set in the world of the popular comic series. You'll control Rick Grimes and his group, building, crafting, and fighting your way through various locations from the comic. The goal is to survive and escape, following the story of the original series while dealing with the constant threat of walkers.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

The Escapists: The Walking Dead screenshot

+16

57%

Audience ScoreBased on 746 reviews

story24 positive mentions

grinding30 negative mentions

The game features charming pixel art and a standout soundtrack that enhances the experience.
It offers a unique blend of The Escapists mechanics with The Walking Dead narrative, appealing to fans of both franchises.
Crafting mechanics are present, allowing players to create various items and weapons.

The gameplay is repetitive and tedious, often feeling like a chore rather than an engaging experience.
Combat mechanics are clunky, making it difficult to effectively fight zombies, leading to frustration.
The game lacks depth and freedom compared to the original Escapists, with a linear path and limited exploration.

story
190 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
75%
12%
The game's story has received mixed to negative feedback, with many players finding it convoluted, poorly constructed, and difficult to follow. While some appreciate its adherence to the original comic storyline, others criticize it for lacking depth and coherence, often feeling like a chore rather than an engaging narrative experience. Overall, the story is seen as a weak point, detracting from the gameplay and leaving players unsatisfied.
- “Man, I love how the developers who worked on this DLC really portrayed the lore, the characters, the backstory, and the general atmosphere and feel of the show as accurately as the writers intended it to be while still keeping the escape out of the jail aspect in. This has to be the best Breaking Bad video game adaptation yet.”
- “This is a clever game that follows the Walking Dead story with a few deviations while still keeping the original spirit of the show alive.”
- “If you like The Escapists and are a huge fan of The Walking Dead, then I recommend this game to you 10/10 because the storyline is based on the original comic book series.”
- “The main problem with the story is that you can't follow the few incomplete lore pieces that they give you.”
- “For these reasons, I unfortunately have to say that the story sucks.”
- “This, hands down, is the worst game I have played, in terms of storyline and gameplay.”
gameplay
158 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
72%
8%
The gameplay of "The Escapists: The Walking Dead" has received mixed to negative feedback, with many players noting that the combination of prison escape mechanics and zombie survival fails to deliver a satisfying experience. Critics highlight the game's linear structure, tedious tasks, and a lack of meaningful adaptation of the original mechanics to the new theme, resulting in a grindy and often frustrating gameplay loop. While some appreciate the pixel art style and soundtrack, the overall consensus is that the game feels like a cash grab that does not live up to the potential of its premise.
- “The gameplay is really good in this!”
- “Great soundtrack, fun gameplay.”
- “In my opinion, this game is a different use of the mechanics and ideas made in the original game as the developers clearly saw extra use of these ideas and delivered in a meaningful way, whilst using a popular license so if you're a fan of the walking dead you will like this game too.”
- “Instead of the open-ended, sandbox-style gameplay where you could plan elaborate escapes, this game forces you down a more linear path with specific objectives that often have only one solution.”
- “The gameplay loop involves a lot of busywork—repeating tasks like gathering supplies, crafting, and adhering to routines—which quickly becomes tiresome.”
- “Everything feels so tedious and the gameplay does not translate well at all; everything feels grindy and the tasks add little to nothing, which just gives you artificial tasks that only serve to slow down gameplay and make the experience unfun.”
graphics
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
70%
9%
The graphics of the game are primarily described as low-resolution pixel art, reminiscent of "The Escapists," with some reviewers noting slight improvements in visual quality. However, many players find the graphics to be unappealing and clunky, detracting from the overall experience. While some appreciate the retro aesthetic, others feel it fails to enhance gameplay, leading to frustration rather than enjoyment.
- “Graphics 6/10: cool looking pixel-based graphics.”
- “The graphics have improved drastically, resulting in smoother and more eye-soothing gameplay.”
- “Nice pixel graphics, a lot like the original Escapists!”
- “Unfortunately, the low resolution pixel graphics are eye-blisteringly bad.”
- “It's a shame to see a good premise ruined by pixel graphics, but that's the state of the indie gaming industry today.”
- “But having tried to play this a whole 2 times, for a total of 9 minutes... I can't get past the bad graphics and clunky controls.”
grinding
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
9%
88%
Players overwhelmingly criticize the grinding aspect of the game, describing it as tedious, repetitive, and unfulfilling. Many feel trapped in a monotonous cycle of tasks that do not enhance gameplay or progress, leading to a frustrating experience that detracts from enjoyment. Combat mechanics further exacerbate the grind, forcing players to engage in endless health grinding or rely on inefficient strategies, making the overall experience feel more like a chore than a game.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “You are constantly trapped in the daily routine cycle, doing tedious work that isn't improving your situation in any way - a core mechanic that prevents you from playing the actual game!”
- “Everything feels so tedious and the gameplay does not translate well at all; everything feels grindy and the tasks add little to nothing, which just gives you artificial tasks that only serve to slow down gameplay and make the experience unfun.”
- “While loosely following the story, this entire game feels awfully constructed, convoluted, and mindbogglingly grindy, as literally almost anything out there is out to kill you and the combat mechanics aren't that great to begin with.”
music
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
35%
13%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising the energetic and well-crafted soundtrack, particularly noting its appeal in creating an engaging atmosphere. However, some players have criticized the music as being subpar, suggesting that while it enhances the experience, it does not compensate for the game's gameplay shortcomings. Overall, the soundtrack is highlighted as a strong point, despite some contrasting opinions on its quality.
- “The amazing soundtrack.”
- “Music is cool, and the 8-bit atmosphere is very well crafted.”
- “Great soundtrack, fun gameplay.”
- “The music is terrible, and so is the gameplay.”
- “More simple than the Escapists soundtrack.”
- “The Escapists: The Walking Dead is a visually charming game with a standout soundtrack, but its gameplay is shallow and repetitive.”
stability
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
5%
89%
The game's stability has received mixed feedback, with many players reporting significant bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay, such as freezing and issues with controller compatibility. While some find the game addictive despite its flaws, others deem it too buggy to enjoy fully. Overall, the stability issues seem to detract from the experience, with players expressing frustration over the inability to load recent saves after errors occur.
- “I found no glitches so far.”
- “Very buggy game and honestly not worth it.”
- “I'm a fan of both The Escapists and The Walking Dead, so I thought I might enjoy this, but it's too buggy to play.”
- “So if you die, make a mistake, or if the game freezes or bugs out, you can't load a recent save.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
50%
17%
The atmosphere in the game is praised for its faithful representation of the source material, particularly in terms of lore and character portrayal, making it a standout adaptation. However, some players feel that certain gameplay mechanics detract from immersion, as they do not align with the game's intended atmosphere, leading to frustration. Overall, while the music and aesthetic elements are well-received, inconsistencies in gameplay can hinder the overall atmospheric experience.
- “Man, I love how the developers who worked on this DLC really portrayed the lore, the characters, the backstory, and the general atmosphere and feel of the show as accurately as the writers intended it to be while still keeping the escape out of the jail aspect in. This has to be the best Breaking Bad video game adaptation yet.”
- “Music is cool, and the 8-bit atmosphere is very well crafted.”
- “This version of the game fails trying to use the gamestyle of te.. it could be great but it fails in very little things (bugs apart) to be immersive.. the works you have to do have nothing to do with the game atmosphere.. you should be worried about keeping your fences fixed.. control the number of walkers nearby or at least had to do some runs for meds and supplies.. instead you finish getting punished for skipping meals and bedtime to kill some freaking zombies!.. if you don't eat or sleep the 'walker alert' goes higher.. wtf?...”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as exploitative, with many users feeling that it prioritizes profit over quality, leading to a perception of the game as a cash grab rather than a well-crafted experience.
- “This feels more like a cash grab rather than an actual well put together game.”
- “I just feel permanently disrespected and cash grabbed; it's such a shame.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely appreciated, particularly for its whimsical portrayal of the escapist world, which resonates well with fans of the show. Players find the comedic elements, especially related to the use of guns, to be a standout feature that enhances the overall experience.
- “It's funny to see everything and everyone in this escapist world, and a delight if you're a fan of the show.”
- “This game has a really good sense of humor with the guns!”

64%Critics’ scoreBased on 13 critic reviews

Buy The Escapists: The Walking Dead

9h Median play time

11h Average play time

7-24h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 8 analyzed playthroughs

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The Escapists: The Walking Dead

Platforms

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