Poker Night 2

Telltale Games' Poker Night 2 is the sequel to their 2010 poker release featuring a cast of colorful characters from video games, animation and more. Combining these personalities with the widely popular card game of poker might seem like the perfect combination, yet it proved otherwise with Poker at the Inventory. Whilst it wasn't a bad game of poker, it most certainly wasn't one of the best. Those with poker knowledge picked at it's flaws in regards with A.I and a great deal more. So can Telltale's second attempt smooth out the deck of cards and give poker fans the game they've always wanted.

Four new familiar characters make an appearance for Poker Night 2, those being Sam (from Sam and Max), Ash Williams(from the Evil Dead series), Brock Samson (from Venture Bros.) and that chatty robot Claptrap (from the Borderlands franchise), oh and we mustn't forget Portal 2's GLaDOS as the dealer. Generally speaking it's an interesting cast who, with the help of some solid writing provide a reasonable amount of amusing dialogue scattered throughout the rounds of poker you'll play. Speaking of poker, the game features both Texas Hold'em and Omaha variations for you to enjoy. I'm not a poker expert (I'm more of an absolute newbie) so I can't speak technically for how well Poker Night 2 handles the more in depth areas of the game, yet from my perspective I found the poker to be less enjoyable than some previous experiences of virtual poker I'd played.

While poker might have been side activities in the likes of Red Dead Redemption, I'd argue that Rockstar Games did a better job of explaining the game of poker in a more structured way. There is a slideshow styled tutorial that attempts to explain the basics of the game, but I found this lacking. From my point of view, the view of someone new to the game I was disappointed with the teaching tools available. After all, not everyone knows the game of poker inside and out. Of course eventually you get an understanding of the hands and the rules at play, but if you don't exactly know what you're doing then you'll have a more difficult time of it at first. Even with an understanding however, I wouldn't say Poker Night 2 provides a particularly great game of poker as it's clear even for me that the A.I still remains unnaturally inconsistent and flawed.

From a presentation point of view, Telltale Games have done a solid job in giving the game personality. Chatter between the characters is often witty, humorous and filled with references that fans will get a kick out of it, there's particularly moments that provided a chuckle. However it's inevitable that this chatter would repeat itself and it starts repeating itself a little too often, causing frustration as I waited for Claptrap to make the same card jokes for the thirtieth time. Thankfully you can skip some of the bigger stories the characters have to tell, but it's a shame you can't skip more of the dialogue entirely. It's nice to have this cast to face off against, but when they start to get in the way of the actual game you have to wonder how useful their additions are.

There are a range of unlockables both in-game and within both Gearbox Software's Borderlands 2 and Valve's Team Fortress 2 for you to earn. It's a nice touch and an added reason to attempt the tougher objectives thrown at you as you look to earn another opportunity to win one of the four character specific prizes, which is where you'll earn those extra goodies. Of course there's unlockable decks, felts and chips to purchase with tokens so there's certainly a reason for you to invest some time playing poker with Brock, Sam, Claptrap and Ash. Well, that is if you're somehow invested in Team Fortress 2 and or Borderlands 2.

So I'm left somewhat flattened and disappointed in Poker Night 2. It doesn't exactly play an offensively poor game of poker, it's just not particularly fun or challenging and that's coming from somehow new to the game. When it does offer a challenge it feels somewhat unfair, leaving you angry rather than more determined to become a better player. I'll admit my experiences with virtual poker is limited, yet even I can see flaws in Telltale Games design here. There's a great deal of personality and moments to like as the cast interact with you and each other, but even that loses it's spark a few hours in once you heard the same joke for the fiftieth time. With better forms of virtual poker out there, I'd argue that you might be better served enjoying a few rounds in the wilds of Red Dead Redemption or even the jungles of Far Cry 3, because while they might be side activities, they make poker both approachable and fun.