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We’re two episodes into the first season of Game of Thrones: A Telltale Game Series, and I’m hooked.

This second entry in the six-part story follows the continuing struggles of the Forresters. It’s up to you to guide a handful of playable characters in this beleaguered house as they deal with the fallout of the events of the first episode as well as the ruthless rival family the Whitehills. If Episode One set the stage, this installment shows every character what’s at stake.

It makes for another thrilling gaming experience that I feel lucky to get play more of every few weeks.

What you’ll like

Strong characters and writing

I am on board with House Forrester. I was from the beginning, and I am even more so after Telltale’s story introduced two new playable characters. One we met before briefly, and the other is Asher, who fled to the south after causing trouble with the Whitehills. Both are big strong guys thrust into a position where they must lead, and I’m looking forward to how their relationship plays out.

The writing is also still very compelling, and it shines its brightest in the King’s Landing scenes with Mira Forrester, who is a handmaiden to Margaery Tyrell. Great dialog often comes down to subtext that hides both characters’ secret desires in a conversation. Mira assumes that she lacks the strength to do anything but talk, which means that you feel so much riding on every conversation choice you make with her. The writers in this game realize that, and they put you into several one-on-one conversations with her where you can see how things could quickly get out of hand if you say the wrong thing.

Of course, Mira is stronger than she realizes, which culminates in one of the episode’s defining moments.

I said it for Episode One, and I’ll probably say it again: If you’re starving for more of HBO’s Game of Thrones, Telltale is serving up a feast for you.

The value

As I was playing through Episode Two, I had an epiphany. For $5, you can get an episode of Game of Thrones that features full voice acting, an original musical score, and animated characters. Not to mention the interactivity. Telltale also delivers a new one of these experiences about once every month. That’s almost exactly the same as a comic book, which only has the writing and the static art — and new comics also sell for $5.

Telltale is establishing something kind of magical. I would maybe read a Game of Thrones comic if someone told me it is amazing. But I couldn’t imagine missing an episode of Game of Thrones: A Telltale Game Series.

What you won’t like

Small glitches

During my two or so hours with Episode Two, I encountered a few audio bugs and visual hitches on Xbox One. The visual glitches were easy to ignore, but the audio glitches occasionally took me out of the experience.

Conclusion

I really like Game of Thrones on HBO, but I’m enamored with this game. Something about having ownership of character decisions in a fantasy story that lives up to the legend of George R.R. Martin is incredible. Once again, I find myself dying to see what happens next. April may bring the next season of the TV show, but if it brings the end of the game, it’ll be bittersweet.

Score: 92/100

Telltale provided GamesBeat with a code for Xbox One for the purposes of this review. It is due out this week on PlayStation and Xbox consoles as well as PC and smartphones.