After a considerably shorter wait, we have the opportunity to find out more about the grim goings on of Fabletown in the latest installment of Telltale’s adventure game, The Wolf Among Us: Episode 3 – A Crooked Mile.

Following on from the shocking revelation that occurs at the end of EPISODE 2 – SMOKE & MIRRORS (which I will not spoil), Bigby and Snow are certain they know who the killer is and are hot on his trail. However, nothing is simple in Fabletown, and what at first seemed like a sexually-driven series of decapitations might be much more than anybody first thought. Ironically, it feels as if Bigby is the one surrounded by wolves.

There doesn’t seem to be a single character in Fabletown who doesn’t have some form of dirt on their hands, and as the story progresses, more and more Fables get dragged in to Bigby’s investigations. The villainous Tweedle Dum & Tweedle Dee are neck deep in whatever conspiracy is afoot, that much is obvious, but can anybody really be trusted?

The Wolf Among Us continues to be an unpredictable combination of twists and deceptive characters. Just when you think you know the killer, new information is revealed and your mind is filled with doubts. For example, who is name-dropped ‘Crooked Man’, and how is he involved in the murders? Each revelation leads Bigby and Snow further into the gritty and depressing underbelly of Fabletown.

After the slightly slow-paced second episode, A Crooked Mile really turns up the heat, developing the story from a plodding investigation to a pressing battle of wits between a fleeing suspect and a pair of determined heroes.

With each episode that passes, I find myself more enamored with the protagonist. Bigby (or at least MY Bigby) is a man/wolf who desperately wants to help people. He desperately wants to be one of the heroes’ that he became infamous for fighting against.

However, the weight of his past is like a concrete block tied to his leg, and the other characters still expect him to destroy and bully. It’s so satisfying to defy their expectations, and it’s heartbreaking when, despite his best efforts, things still go up in flames for poor Bigby.

For the first time in the burgeoning The Wolf Among Us, it feels like Bigby might have bitten off more than he can chew.With more malevolent and powerful forces at play than was first apparent, there’s a distinct tone of doom hanging over the episode. I feel as if Bigby will either have to give in to the reckless beast inside of him, or perish at the forces of evil in Fabletown.

Fans of The Walking Dead might be disappointing by Telltale’s latest series. Much of the zombie-based adventure game was simple puzzle solving and slow but intriguing character development, but the episodes really burst into life when, usually out of nowhere, the player was forced to make incredibly difficult decisions within a punishingly short period of time.

Like the second episode, A Crooked Mile completely fails on this front. The decisions never feel like they’re of any consequence, and usually involved choosing to go down one of several paths that all lead to the same destinations. As a result, The Wolf Among Us never feels even close to the intensity of The Walking Dead.

However, I personally feel that The Wolf Among Us is far more intriguing than The Walking Dead, and A Crooked Mile expands on that intrigue. Instead of tying up any loose ends, by the end of the episode we are left with more than ever before. It has left me biting my nails at the prospect of the fourth episode, so in that sense it’s a complete success. I’m looking forward to seeing the inevitable depiction of Humpty Dumpty as a crack-addicted hobo.

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