Xbox Game Pass’s hefty library is ever-changing, meaning games come and go, and the next ones to go include the first two seasons of Telltale’s The Walking Dead. The Walking Dead: Season 1 and The Walking Dead: Season 2 will be leaving the PC side of Xbox’s Game Pass platform on October 1st, which leaves plenty of time for players to take advantage of the first half of this critically acclaimed series. The rest of the series has no end date in sight, giving players ample time to enjoy the full story through Game Pass.

The Walking Dead series includes four seasons, as well as a standalone Michonne series that is more directed toward those who wish to learn about an absence during the comic series. Otherwise, Telltale’s Walking Dead follows a linear story centered on Clementine, as she learns and grows from the start of the zombie apocalypse and years on. The series is emotional and compelling, and with Game Pass offering the entire series at the moment, taking advantage of the first two before they are gone is an opportunity players won’t want to miss.

Telltale’s Walking Dead is an Unforgettable Experience

The Walking Dead: Season 1 introduces players to Lee Everett and Clementine, the beginning of a journey that earned the title the consideration of being one of the greatest games ever made. Players get to experience the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, the world falling apart, survivors banding together, and the toll survival takes on them. The journey of Season 1 leaves players emotionally drained, but Clementine’s story is far from over.

Loveable and hateable characters are what make The Walking Dead such an involved experience. The fear of zombies and survival takes a backseat as players worry about upsetting Clementine or choosing between the survival of one character between another. Playing as Lee allows players to leave Clementine with words and lessons that will follow her throughout the rest of the series – each game taking the save from the previous into account.

The Walking Dead: Season 2 sees Clementine just a bit older, a bit tougher, and a bit wiser. Instead of playing as Lee, players now control Clementine, as she continues to navigate the horrors of this deadly world. New and old characters show their faces, and players find themselves invested all over again. Survival is paramount, and every choice counts.

Taking on the role of Clementine for the first time in Season 2 is a special experience, seeing how she’s changed and grown. The consensus among fans is that Walking Dead Season 1 will always take the helm of the best in the Telltale series, but Season 2 isn’t far behind. Season 2 is where players get to see who Clementine is and will continue to be as she attempts to survive this apocalypse and learn just how special a character she is.

The Walking Dead Helped Popularize Choice-Driven Narratives

Before The Walking Dead, choice-driven narratives weren’t a well-known genre like they are today. Players could influence stories through dialogue, such as in Mass Effect, but gameplay was rarely the sole action of making choices. The Walking Dead puts morally-driven choices in the hands of the players, raising the stakes, and forcing them to face the consequences. The player feels directly responsible for these characters that they come to know and love.

The Walking Dead helped to pave the way for critically acclaimed story-driven games like Life is Strange – the latter of which also leans closer to the idea of gameplay simply being choices. There’s minimal combat and it’s entirely assisted – the game cares most about players interacting with the world around them, the details of items helping to flesh out the story, and the choices they’ll make that shape that story. Since The Walking Dead, choice-driven narratives have become a popular favorite, with many having tried to capture that lightning in a bottle the way it had.

The Walking Dead: Season 1

The Walking Dead: Season 2
Metacritic: 80

The Walking Dead: Season 1 saw its release in 2012, and yet the series still finds new fans all the time. Its presence on Xbox Game Pass across Micrisoft’s home console and PC has been a great way to give players easy access to an unforgettable gaming experience. It can even introduce them to choice-driven narratives if it’s their first time around. Even with seven days left on the PC side of the Xbox Game Pass library, players will find they have plenty of time to get through the first two seasons of this unforgettable journey.

Despite the success and influence of The Walking Dead, Telltale saw its closure in 2018, leaving The Walking Dead: The Final Season incomplete. Luckily, Skybound Games swooped in and completed the final installment, bringing Clementine’s story to a close. Players can find a Definitive Edition of the entire series released by Skybound, but for those subscribed to Xbox’s Game Pass service through PC, now would be the time to take advantage of a less costly version of this genre-defining series.