Minecraft: Story Mode drops the "Wither Storm Finale" trailer

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Has Telltale ever put out an episodic game series with a schedule as compressed as that of Minecraft: Story Mode? I certainly can't think of one. The first episode came out on October 13 and the studio announced today that the fourth and concluding-but-not-final episode will launch on December 22.

The interesting thing here is that this the fourth chapter is the "Wither Storm Finale," signalling the end of the story, yet Minecraft: Story Mode has been billed since the beginning as a five-part series. And so it remains, albeit somewhat confusingly: As the announcement puts it, this episode "will turn the page on one chapter before adventures begin anew in the mysterious Episode Five launching in early 2016."

So the Wither Storm tale is over (or will be at the conclusion of Episode Four), but the game will continue in Episode Five, which will apparently kick off something new. Or maybe I'm reading it wrong. Either way, Minecraft: Story Mode Episode Four will be out next week, and Episode Five, if the pattern holds, will be out in mid-January of next year.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.