Yay! Bosco is back! I sorely missed Bosco from Night of the Raving Dead, and am so glad he’s been found. However, he’s in a world of hurt and needs Sam and Max to help him in his time of need.

You see, Bosco finally decided to stop hiding from T.H.E.M. He figured out how to contact T.H.E.M., so he could bring the war to T.H.E.M. T.H.E.Y. came when called alright, but on a spaceship. While on the spaceship, Bosco inadvertently found a time-traveling machine disguised as an elevator, and went where no man had gone before: His mom’s life before he was born. Somehow he caused a time anomaly and turned into a Boscow, a cross between a cow and the old Bosco.  

The game really gets fun from here on out. Time travel is the key, and the game is played much like the old Day of the Tentacle, where actions in one time frame affect the events in another.

We will get to see Bosco’s mom, young Sam and Max, old Sam and Max, and young and old versions of several other key characters. And, of course, with a time travel machine and a spaceship, the space jokes are rampant. The different time eras offer up a lot of fodder for humor, as well.

Along with the trademark zany humor, there are some great puzzles. In fact, I would say that the puzzles in this episode are the best overall of Episode One and Episode Two. While not overly difficult, they are thought-provoking, logical and tie in perfectly with each other and with the story. Of course, each puzzle involves fixing Bosco by changing things in the past to affect the future. One different aspect is the non-linear nature of the puzzles and story. Heretofore, most of the puzzles in the past episodes have been constrained by gamepath requirements. There is much more freedom of movement in this chapter.

However, while the humor and puzzles are greatly improved over the last chapter, the crude and sometimes profane language isn’t. We’re back to the first chapter of Episode Two, with a lazy use of language. Sam & Max are too clever to resort to this type of speech for effect.

This chapter really showcases the best of the adventure genre. Great dialogue, thoughtful puzzles, sight gags galore (loved Bosco’s disguises in the bathroom!) I really enjoyed playing Chariots of the Dogs, the title of which is a wordplay on the old book Chariots of the Gods, which presented the notion that many of the angels and miraculous events of the bible were really visitations from more advanced life forms. I hope that the next chapters are as good. 

Gameplay: 8.5
The gameplay is right on target and epitomizes the best of adventure games. The puzzles are fun to solve, and the humor and sight gags are great. The only caveats are the sometimes crude dialogue, and the shortness of the game.

Graphics: 8.0 
I love the cartoon style!

Sound: 8.0
Same as always, wonderful music and sound effects.

Difficulty: Medium
Some puzzles are easy, some are not. There is a hint system, though, and a walkthrough on the Telltale site.

Concept: 8.0 
The concept of traveling back and forth through time for puzzles isn’t new, really, but it is presented exceptionally well.

Overall: 8.5
This chapter is the best so far of Episode Two. It does a great job of bridging the gap between the first several episodes, and the subsequent second half. The setup is wonderful, and hopefully the next chapter will grab the ball and run with it, and not be a letdown.