Few properties have gained the powerhouse status of The Walking Dead. While the series has dominated television for the last decade and is soon to step into the motion picture with the Rick Grimes trilogy, the Walking Dead has mostly seen failure in the gaming market. While the series has seen several console games and a copious number of mobile games. Most of the console titles have either focused on the point-and-click genre (courtesy of Telltale Games) as well as two First-Person Shooters and two oncoming VR Games.

“Saints & Sinners”

One genre the series has primarily avoided has been Role-Playing Games. RPG puts the onus on the player to make tough decisions and take an interactive place in the story and the gameplay. The series itself is quite applicable for the genre. Infusing the numerous horror elements for the stressful situations and the tough calls with fast action gameplay should be the series gateway into dominating the gaming market. Such games include Bethesda’s Fallout franchise or CD Project Red’s The Witcher Series and the fantastic Horror and character elements of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us or Capcom’s Resident Evil Series. All this stands as perfect ingredients to the Walking Dead game of many fan’s dreams. 

While the value of the RPG genre for the franchise is certainly applicable, one question that would remain is who could be the main character of such an ambitious title. The series has no shortage of unique and layered characters deserving of further exploration, especially put in a player’s hands. There is one character who appropriately stands out for such a venture that plays up to the wonderful aspects of an RPG and soaks itself in both character development and Horror. A character without any real name but a title, a title that means something, Negan. While many would be eager to see the opportunity given to the television show’s breakout Daryl Dixon, it isn’t the right avenue for such a venture. Survival instinct was such a misguided attempt to tell his story. It needs an opportunity to rest while allowing the more experienced and developed Negan to bear the weight of developing the new age of Walking Dead video game adaptations.