Which version to gift?

Sméagol

Hi, so I bought The Walking Dead some time ago, and absolutely loved it. Now I though a friend of mine would love it too, despite not being a gamer. Now I’m wondering which version to get her, I was hoping to get some suggestions.

Personally I bought the standalone PC version directly from this site. I love Steam, but I don’t necessarily need every game on there, and I assume it’s a better option to support the creators. Again, I loved the game, but techically the game has a bunch of problems. It took me an half hour to get this game to work after I installed it, I had the “missing login screen” problem. I never fixed it, I found a way to circumvent it. Anyway, I prefer not to trouble my friend, who’s less technically apt than I am, with installation problems and bugs. Then again, I hear some people had no problems with the PC version whatsoever, so maybe she could get lucky.

But I was thinking if I should get her the Ipad version, which I believe doesn’t have any technical difficulties. The problem on Itunes is though.. I can’t actually gift it to her directly. Episode 1 is free at the moment, and therefore doesn’t have gifting options, and apparently you can’t gift in-app purchases. I’d have to get her an Itunes card, and tell her to download the stuff herself, but this is obviously less than ideal. Then is the fact that the controls are different, and I wonder how this changes the game. You can’t “hover” your cursor over things, and how do you move? Tap to move like P&C games, or an on-screen d-pad? She won’t know any better, but I’d like to give her the “full experience”, and I’m not a fan of touch-only controls.

Then there is the Steam option. Technically this shouldn’t be any different from my version, but I have the feeling games on Steam generally behave better in general. Maybe there’s someone who has experience with both PC versions? In any case, gifting would be the far easiest with this option, as would be installing the game for her.

So I guess it mainly boils down to potential technical difficulties.. Has it improved in the meantime? I’m not aware of any recent patches..

If it were me I wouldn’t even consider an Ipad version, but she’s not a gamer, and I think the Ipad would be easier for her, although the actual gifting would be less than ideal.

Anyway, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.

Dildor

In my opinion, playing on Steam really is ideal. The iPad version isn't bad at all, but it's a little less interactive at some parts like when you walk around the car at the beginning, etc. At least, that's what I gathered when I played the first episode on iPad. A lot of people had issues with the touch controls too, but the PC version can lead to even bigger problems as you've seen. The game's fully out, she shouldn't have any problems with it.

With steam you can gift the game, give her the better version of the game imo, not hassle with gift cards, and also watch her progress through achievements which also make steam more fun. That and the fact that it's been $12.50 on steam lately makes it a good dealio.

Zeruis

Does your friend have an Xbox 360 or a PS3? It'd be nice just to have the game in one nice retail box. Anyways, I have the iPad version of the game, and it's great. There are hardly any bugs, and the controls can be picked up easily.

Martindn

Depends whats comfortable for her if shes not a big gamer. A couch or a chair for pc, hell could be played on a laptop too so could be both, can get cramp easier with a gamepad in my experience if played for too long.

As far as technical difficulties i have not experience any save or game breaking glitches on steam, but i have heard of others having the problem for the pc, seems sporadic on consoles but that might just be release day hitches - may not appear with the full season.

Jaded X Gamer

If you're friend isn't a gamer than the iPad version might be better for them. The simplified controls are usually pretty easy to grasp and the game pinch hits certain actions to keep things simple. It's good for people just interested in experiencing the story. The iPad version also has a border that pops up during cut-scenes to make it clear when you are and aren't in control of things.

I played the first Episode on the iPad and it seemed fine. The only thing I noticed was the blur effect for when Lee falls during the Sandra fight/Bathroom Walker was missing. Not sure if that was a deliberate decision or just a limitation of the iPad. Still I only played one episode so I don't know if there's any issues in later episodes. I heard the tractor sequence in Episode 2 is a pain on the iPad for some reason.

Sméagol

Since I was late already, I decided to simply ask her if she had any preference. So I bought her an Itunes giftcard. What’s left of her credit, she can spend on something else. I’ve no idea how gameplay will be different for her, or if it matters at all, but I can’t wait to find out if she actually enjoys the game, and if she does, what decisions she’ll make.

Phil_TWD

If she's a sensitive girl it might've been the best choice just to buy her an iTunes Gift Card instead, the game is quite shocking and the decisions are tough to make.