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Sam & Max Episode 3: The Mole, the Mob and the Meatball

EMAIL PRINT pc

8.3 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 30 critic reviews
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Based on 9 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Telltale Games

Developer: Telltale Games

Genre(s): Adventure

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)

Release Date: January 25, 2007

Summary

The commissioner is looking into an underground operation at the Ted E. Bear Mafia-Free Playland and Casino, but the mole he sent in has suddenly gone quiet. To find the mole, Sam & Max must infiltrate the operation and become members of the Toy Mafia themselves. [Telltale Games]

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: Sam & Max Episode 1: Culture Shock Sam & Max Episode 2: Situation: Comedy Sam & Max Episode 4: Abe Lincoln Must Die! Sam & Max Episode 5: Reality 2.0 Sam & Max Episode 6: Bright Side of the Moon

Cheat Codes & Hints: GameSpot Hints & Cheats

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

eToychest

The focus is clearly comedy, and though the game is easier and shorter than the average graphic adventure, the quality of the script, voice-acting, and even the end-credit song is worth the price of admission. Let’s hope they keep it up.

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Digital Entertainment News

A damn fine episode of a damn fine series.

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Armchair Empire

If you’ve enjoyed the first two episodes of Sam and Max’s capers, then Sam & Max: The Mole, the Mob and the Meatball will be just as pleasurable to play, although be forewarned this is the shortest of the three so far.

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Gamer 2.0

If they can find enough substance for the continuing chapters we’ll continue to advocate their creations. Valve and Ritual, follow Telltale’s lead.

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Just Adventure

Consistently good B to B+ material and an excellent excuse to subscribe to GameTap.

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GameBrink

It's good for a few laughs, and it actually seems slightly better animated than the last two (at least to me, maybe Sam and Max made me crazy). If you liked the first two episodes, you'll love this one, i can assure you of that.

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ActionTrip

With Episode 3 it seems like each location involves a more comedy goodness than before, allowing you to have even more fun with the dialogue and some of the scenes.

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Pelit (Finland)

The funniest Sam & Max episode yet. The humour is witty and absurd. On the minus side, problem-solving is still a little too easy and the episode could last longer. It would have been nice to have some new minigames, too. [Mar 2007]

G4 TV

All told, Sam & Max fans have plenty to celebrate with three top notch (albeit brief) episodes.

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PC Gamer

The third episode maintains the series' excellent standard for laugh-out-loud writing and voice-over work, and the puzzles, while tilting toward the easy side, are enjoyable and witty. [Apr 2007, p.54]

Eurogamer

So few games display such effortless charm, and even fewer are rammed with as much warm humour.

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GameDaily

Unlike previous episodes, this one doesn't have as many pointed one-liners or gags, but it remains amusing nonetheless, much like a mid-season television show.

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Games Radar (in-house)

It's a little too short and a little too easy, but its tale of freaky mobsters, crooked gamblers and evil teddy bears is still a good time while it lasts.

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GamerNode

Great continuation, hilarious dialogue, pleasing music and easy puzzles make this another solid chapter.

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Gaming Nexus

This newest Sam & Max adventure may not reach the same heights as the past games, but it's still worth checking out due to its sense of humor and memorable characters.

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GameZone

I wish I could give a higher rating, but this particular episode is just too short and easy.

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Strategy Informer

Satisfying if a bit on the short side.

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Jolt Online Gaming UK

While some of the set ups and situations are undoubtedly quirky and amusing, there’s nothing this time around to compare to the idiosyncratic psychoanalysis dream-sequence or the sitcom filming from the first and second instalments respectively. And in a game so straightforward, this is a problem.

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GameSpot

Sam & Max's third episode feels shorter than the previous two, and at least part of that is due to so many of the environments being recycled from previous episodes.

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PC Zone UK

It's the shortest and easiest yet, with the episodic formula's skeleton (office/street intro, on-location puzzle, three-pronged task, conclusion) showing more obviously through the tighter, more linear flesh.

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GameSpy

While the script is the best so far of any of the episodes, Episode 3's abbreviated length makes it less of a bargain than the earlier installments. That being said, the entire Sam & Max experiment is shaping up quite well.

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Quandary

Fun to play, despite its brevity, enlivened as always by the snappy repartee between the loquacious canine Sam and his manic white rabbit sidekick Max, who seems to get the best lines. The humour and silly situations guarantee that you will play with a constant smile on your face.

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Adventure Gamers

So far Season One is not particularly epic or memorable, but still a very good-looking and extremely fun diversion, and faithful to its franchise. But we're all hoping for a bit longer game next time.

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Gamers' Temple

Not a bad game, but not up to the usual Sam & Max standards.

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1UP

Exploration and variety take a backseat to the constant stream of jokes (an unavoidable trade-off, given the series' episodic nature). Everything else is unmitigated and unapologetic fluff -- the joy is in Sam and Max's wit, after all -- and seasoned adventure gamers might find the game too simple to really sink their teeth into.

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2404.org

I don’t need to play the same game three times.

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IGN

While the humor is a bit better, this is definitely the weakest episode in the series owing to its uncomplicated puzzles and short length.

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Computer Games Magazine

The only problem is that each episode is getting easier. The episode is still worth $8, though barely so. [Apr 2007, p.68]

PC Gamer UK

Far too little new content for your very few bucks. Ho hum. [Apr 2007, p.89]

PC Gameworld

This episode has the shortest playtime and smallest laughs-per-dollar-spent ratio, and it cribs many elements from the previous episodes. Only worth playing if the following episodes improve greatly.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 9 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

L L. gave it an8:
This was hilarious, the puzzles were simpler than Ep2s (harder than Ep1s) but the setting, characters and jokes were fantastic... Plus the MUSIC! AHHA!

Kat O. gave it a10:
Episode 3 is, in my opinion, by far the best episode of all. It may be slightly short with somewhat simpler puzzles, but it makes up for it all very well with the golden shiny humor it radiates. Buying this has a higher priority than bying food for your children.

K Dep gave it a4:
I liked the first two episodes far better than this one. There's a very small new area to interact with, the rest is the same as the first two. It's also quite a lot shorter than the first two.

Rygo S. gave it a7:
You have to give Telltale points for trying. You can see the effort, and you can feel the giddiness behind the stuff. They are fans of the stuff and they are not ashamed to show it, you just know it. But still. There's an aftertaste. There's the lingering feeling after you finish each chapter that it could've been much more. More so if you've played the original 1993 game, "Sam & Max Hit the Road". In these new games, or episodes as they were, you always get the feeling everything is a wee-bit forced: The quips are not quite Purcell's characteristic wit. The contrived-metaphor-spewing-fedora-wearing-Desoto-driving-anthropomorphic-dog, Sam, and even the lovable hyper kinetic lagomorph, Max, feel somewhat diluted from their original essence. And the puzzles, those fun hurdles that make any adventure game worth playing, almost seem condescending, as if they were pandering to a playing crowd that has never interacted with a Guybrush or a Laffer before. Nonetheless, it would be terribly unfair of me to chastise this game and not highlight the several positive attributes it has. After all, much of my criticism comes from my love of the characters, and maybe, even, from a bit of nostalgia of the golden adventure gaming days. A new audience, free of any concepts of the adventure genre or the Sam & Max franchise, will certainly find a great, albeit simple, game. The humour is still fantastic, with very memorable situations and, as always, bizarre scenarios to explore. And, when you get down to it, it really works great as an introduction not only of the anthropomorphic duo, but, also, of adventure gaming to a new generation. So, basically: Yeah. It's a flawed series of games, and, yeah, there is the pungent feeling they are trying in strides not to be overshadowed by the original, classic, 1993 game. But it's also a really approachable game for anyone, fan of the genre or not, and considering the fact that it's episodic, at least we get a lot more to experience, and Telltale gets a lot more time to tool around with the game and regale us with brand new adventures. And, hey. After it's all said and done. And at the end of the day? It's still is a Sam & Max game. And that's always a girlish "tee-hee!" in my book.

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Sam & Max Episode 3: The Mole, the Mob and the Meatball

Game Info

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What The Critics Said

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Recent Releases