Game Club: Back to the Future

[Chris]

Ok, so as we'd announced in episode 40, this year we're going to be experimenting with a game club. We've chosen Back to the Future: The Game (the Telltale one, not the NES one). The idea is that if you've played the game (or want to play it), you follow along with our progress and join the discussion. We're going to discussion each of the games five episodes in short segments each episode, similar to the Gundamn roundups. We want to get your comments in advance and include them as we discuss a particular episode.

This thread will be the central location for all those comments. In our first episode of the year, we'll begin our discussion by covering episode 1, "It's About Time." We want you to only post your comments about this specific episode, not later episodes or the game in general. After each recording, I'll update and ask for comments about the next game episode. Sound cool? Get started, and then make like a tree and get out of here!

[Gundam420]

What a coincidence. I was just playing the game.

I like how the game starts off with a flashback to the first movie where Doc and Marty test the Delorean first time. And while you can choose what to say, it's pretty identical to that famous scene until the Doc realizes something's not write. And that sets the tone for everything. A few things of note:

1. Despite being more docile, Biff still seems to display some of his "douchiness" towards Marty in the scene where we find that Doc's stuff is being sold.

2. One of Kid Tannen's goons is named "Zane".

3. One of the signs has the names Gale and Zemeckis.

Not to mention countless other subtle references in this game alone.

[NastyNate]

Oh my. I got all the games for free with psplus back in the day. They take you for quite a ride. I remember thinking they where lame and I still think the gameplay is. However the story sucks you in and I pulled an all nighter. I have one bad memory of a sceen where doc is being yelled at and you have tg do an experiment. Oh you'll see. And oh my that girl friend...

[Arbiter GUNDAM]

Dang, missed the first episode. Oh well, I'll include my comments about Episode 1 anyway.

Now, BTTF is also one of my all-time favorite movies. So when I heard they were making a game out of it, something that was actually supposed to be good, I was a very happy panda. I'd already had a chance to play Ghostbusters: The Video Game and thoroughly enjoyed it, so I had some hopes for this one.
As I saw some of the previews they released for the game, I grew more excited and I got to tell you, when it was released back in December 2010, that as one of the best Christmas presents EVER.

As far as the first episode was concerned, I liked the way they set things up with it starting out in May 1986 and with Marty's dream. It was a big thrill just to be able to wonder around some classic locales like Doc's garage and I even liked the explanation they came up with to explain why the DeLorean was back.
I liked how they set the first two parts in the 1930s version of Hill Valley as it was different enough to stand out from other time periods they've visited, like 1955. They managed to capture the aesthetic of traveling into the past without imitating it too much.Marty's already had a lot of experience time-traveling, so I liked that they didn't make too big a deal of it.
The ending sequence with flying the bike and trying to free Doc was awesome and ending it with the cliffhanger of Marty vanishing was the icing on the cake.

All in all, it was great to play, but like you said, some of the stuff you had to do was kinda obscure.

In Episode 2, they managed to capture another BTTF aesthetic that ended up being a great little callback to BTTF2: Dodging your past self, thinking you've changed things, go back to the present but it's not really the present, then go back and fix it properly. I especially liked the sequence in the speakeasy. Had you guys begun to have suspicions about Trixie at this point?

[Gundam420]

For Part 2:

I like how this episode not only introduces some new characters like Trixie and Officer Parker, but also adds some more personality to some of Kid's goons. Zane and Cueball seem like they could be real cool guys if they weren't on Kid's side.

The part where you accidentally create an alternate 1986 is not only a nice little call back to the second movie, but it makes me wonder which is worse: Hell Valley, or this.

I like Trixie. She's got spunk, and you gotta love how she tries to stay perky and upbeat, but can't because of how much of a douche Kid is. It's kinda hard to believe that her voice actor is the same one who voiced Clementine in the Walking Dead Games.

I find Danny Parker's easy to switch mood swings amusing. It does make me wonder about a few things about Jennifer and her family.

[Chris]

We're going to be recording our next episode soon, so we need comments for episode 3.

[Gundam420]

It looks like we've found a place worse than Hell Valley: A Hill Valley ruled by Edna Strickland. I love how this game makes you feel the hopelessness/helplessness that Marty does. It's interesting seeing Jennifer's dad whom we never really see even in the first movie even though he was there. It's great to see Claudia Wells playing Jennifer again, though to be honest I don't think she's aged well. Still, cool to see another BTTF alumnus.

George and Lorraine have reverted back to their old selves here, and it's interesting to have to confront their issues directly instead of having to travel back in time to fix their problems.

It was so satisfying beating Leech in a guitar battle, and winning Jennifer's heart back. Especially since it's amusing to see how much of a dork Marty supposedly is in this timeline.

Funny how Doc's appearance here resembles how he looks in real life.

[bertman4]

Haven't played the game but just had to share this YouTube video of BTTF in 60 seconds.
http://youtu.be/yJZx99-lSnc

[Varnis]

I got the game installed but for some reason it won't run when I open it, I'm currently looking at fixes to see how to negate this problem, sorry for having not having any input on this.

[Gundam420]

Time to fill up the segment with more comments. Awesome for me.

It's quite surreal in the beginning seeing some of Doc's stuff being used for Edna's evil intentions like the mind reading helmet, and the amplifiers. Funny how the amplifiers work this time around.

I probably spent alot more time on this episode than any other the first time I played these games mostly for racking my brains trying to figure out how to make Emmet look like a hooligan to break him up with Edna. There's probably alot more going back and forth here between locations in this episode.

This episode probably has some of the most emotionally conflicting moments. Mostly from having Citizen Brown addressing that you're trying to reboot him, and the breaking up of Emmet and Edna being worse than you intended. Speaking of which, at the beginning of the game despite Edna being a horrible person and future dictator I can't help but feel a little bit sympathetic when she gives that look of sadness when Citizen Brown decides to leave to go back to the past.

[Chris]

We're recording in a few hours, so if you have any comments for episode 4, get them in now!

[Chris]

The final segment will be recorded Tuesday night, so if you have any comments for episode 5, get them posted now.

[Gundam420]

Ah yes, time for the last episode.

It's cool seeing another member of the Brown family, namely Emmet's Dad. That whole scene where you're trying to get Emmet and his Dad to reconcile I think does a good job of relating into the theme of the original movie about kids and their parents.

I don't know if this has happened to anyone else, but this is the first and only time I've run into a pretty bad glitch and it's always at the part where Marty has to slide the doors to get to Citizen Brown and Emmet. Different things happened on different playthroughs. Sometimes I'd faze through the floor and end up getting stuck, or for whatever reason I can't slide open the doors. Luckily I was able to get past these.

This episode took me a long time to figure out thanks to the scenes where you have to make Edna remember everything in her past (or is it future?), and of course the final chase scene where you have to attach these devices to the stolen DeLorean.

Is it weird that I find one of the funniest moments in the game is when Trixie is singing this fun, bombastic song, and yet no one seems to be paying attention?

That scene where we find out what has become of Edna at the end of the game raises all sorts of really odd questions about Biff and his family.

It's great that Michael J. Fox came back for this episode. Seems fitting that he'd be playing Marty's great grandfather, not to mention all his alternate future selves. This is made all the more amusing when Marty asks who's the real him. And Doc says "Isn't it obvious?"

I nerdgasmed at the very end of the game in a scene reminiscent of the first movie where the DeLorean flies off, and "Back in Time" starts playing over the credits. It kinda brings a tear to my eye. And with the game ending with a "To Be Continued" it makes me wonder what sort of crazy storylines they'll come up with if this ever does get a sequel.

Anyway, it's been fun replaying this game, and I hope you guys keep up with the Game Club. Seriously people, I can't be the only one commenting all the time.