Pre-Review: Sam and Max Episode 4: Abe Lincoln Must Die (PC)

Geoff’s Take

Ok, this almost seems a bit unfair. The previous 3 additions to the Sam and Max franchise have been nothing if not consistent, and I don’t really see that changing here. I’ll go out on a limb:

On the plus side, the presentation remains excellent. People have begun to get over Max sounding a little off, and the strong comedic writing and colorful graphics have won over a lot of fans who didn’t think that the sequel could match the original’s attitude. The new characters will be strong points as well, with one standout that nearly steals the show.

On the downside, there still won’t be much game there. I predict that Episode 4 will be slightly longer than the last couple of episodes - but not by very much. The gameplay itself will be short on real puzzles, with no real challenge to the adventure gamers nostalgic for S&M Hit the Road. And there still won’t be much plot connection with previous episodes, rendering this a short stand-alone game more than an episodic continuation of the series; few characters will recur in a way that really advances their roles.

In general, Episode 4 will do what Episodes 1-3 did: deliver a funny, well-written story that plays better as an interactive movie than a PC adventure game. My estimate: 7.3.

Jeff’s Take:

I don’t have too much to add to Geoff’s pre-review. Based on the past reviews and the rate at which the episodes have been sliding in Game Rankings, I’m thinking the next one may even be slightly worse than Geoff’s assessment. My guess based on Geoff’s same concerns, as well as the past scores and the way they’re trending: 7.1.