You've been logged out of GDC Vault since the maximum users allowed for this account has been reached. To access Members Only content on GDC Vault, please log out of GDC Vault from the computer which last accessed this account.

Click here to find out about GDC Vault Membership options for more users.

close

The Number One Educational Resource for the Game Industry

Session Name: Saving Doug: Empathy, Character, and Choice in The Walking Dead
Speaker(s): Jake Rodkin, Sean Vanaman
Company Name(s): Telltale Games, Telltale Games
Track / Format: Design

Did you know free users get access to 30% of content from the last 2 years?


Get your team full access to the most up to date GDC content

Overview: Telltale's The Walking Dead should be, by most historical measures, a failure as an apocalyptic zombie video game. It has no dedicated combat button, the main character has no exceptional skills or abilities, and it explores issues of race and gender under a mechanical and thematic milieu of "choice." By focusing completely on characters and "designing with empathy," we were able to create a story-driven game experience that has become both a commercial and critical success. Join designers Sean Vanaman and Jake Rodkin for a discussion of The Walking Dead's characters, its world, its moral choice moments, and where the player fits in to it all.

GDC 2013

Jake Rodkin

Telltale Games

Sean Vanaman

Telltale Games

free content

Design

Design