If you played Telltale’s The Walking Dead: A New Frontier, you probably remember the moment you were first tempted to pull the trigger on Conrad. It wasn't just a random choice. It was a massive, narrative-shaking crossroads that defined how players viewed the entire season. Conrad the Walking Dead survivor wasn’t just another background NPC; he was a walking, breathing experiment in player agency. Honestly, he’s one of the few characters in the entire Telltale catalog who can actually die in multiple, wildly different episodes—or somehow miraculously make it to the very end of the game.
Most characters in these types of choice-based games have a "sell-by" date. You know how it goes. If a character can die in Episode 2, they usually don't do much in Episode 5 because the developers didn't want to record a ton of extra dialogue for a character who might already be a corpse. Conrad broke that rule. He’s the exception that proves the rule. If you kept him alive, he didn’t just sit in the corner of the screen. He actually mattered. He had an arc. He went from a grieving, broken man to someone looking for a scrap of redemption.
Who exactly was Conrad?
Before the world went to hell, Conrad lived in Prescott. He wasn't some elite soldier or a survivalist expert. He was just a guy who owned a bar with his partner, Francine. When we meet him in Season 3, he’s got that weary, "I’ve seen too much" energy that defines the middle-years of the apocalypse. He’s stable. He’s part of a community. But Prescott wasn't destined to last.
When the New Frontier attacked, everything changed for him. Seeing Francine get killed right in front of him—used as a bargaining chip and then discarded—snapped something inside him. It’s a classic Walking Dead trope, right? The "man who loses everything and goes off the deep end." But the way Conrad was written felt more grounded than most. He wasn't a cartoon villain. He was a guy suffering from massive, untreated PTSD who was suddenly thrust into a leadership vacuum.
The Tunnel Scene: The Choice Most Players Regret
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the tunnel in Episode 2. This is the moment where most people ended Conrad’s story before it even really started. He holds Gabe at gunpoint. He’s desperate. He wants to use Clementine as a literal piece of meat to trade with the New Frontier so he can get his people back.
It’s an ugly moment.
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You’re playing as Javier, and you’re caught between a rock and a hard place. On one side, you have Clementine—the series protagonist who we’ve all been protecting since she was eight years old. On the other, you have this grieving man who is clearly out of his mind. According to Telltale’s own internal stats from the time of release, about 90% of players chose to shoot Conrad. It makes sense. You don't mess with Clem.
But if you did pull that trigger? You missed out on one of the best written "determinant" paths in gaming history. If you chose to stand down, Conrad didn't just stay a villain. He actually apologized. He grew. He realized he was being a monster. It’s a rare instance where the game rewards you for not taking the easy, emotional path.
Survival against the odds
Usually, if you save a character who was "supposed" to die, they die five minutes later anyway. Think about Nick in Season 2 or Sarah. They get a few extra lines and then a scripted death that feels cheap. Conrad the Walking Dead fans will tell you, though, was handled differently.
If he survives the tunnel, he can die in the warehouse in Episode 3. If he survives that, he can die during the chaotic shootout in Episode 4. If he makes it through that, he can actually be there with Javier in the finale, sharing a quiet moment of reflection on the docks. He’s one of the only characters whose presence significantly alters the vibe of the group for the entire season.
There is a specific scene if he survives until the end where he gives Javier his gun back. It’s a small gesture, but in a world where everyone is stabbing each other in the back, it felt like a real moment of earned trust. He basically becomes the moral anchor Javier didn't know he needed.
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Why Conrad represents a shift in Telltale's design
For a long time, critics complained that Telltale games were "on rails." You’d make a choice, but the ending would be the same. Conrad was the developers' answer to that criticism. By giving him so many potential exit points—and rewarding players who kept him around—they proved they could handle complex branching narratives.
- He’s a mirror for the player: If you killed him, it said something about your loyalty to Clementine over logic.
- He challenged the "Main Character" armor: Holding Gabe (a kid) at gunpoint was a bold move that made players genuinely hate him, making the choice to spare him feel like a true test of character.
- Redemption is messy: He doesn't become a hero overnight. He’s grumpy, he’s difficult, and he’s constantly struggling with his grief.
Honestly, the writing for Conrad was way more nuanced than people give it credit for. He wasn't just "the guy who tried to sell out Clem." He was a person who had lost his home, his love, and his dignity in the span of about twenty-four hours. When you look at it through that lens, his breakdown in the tunnel is tragic rather than purely malicious.
The technical reality of his character
Behind the scenes, Conrad was a nightmare for the writers. Every scene he was in had to be written and recorded twice—once with him and once without him. This is why you don't see characters like him very often in modern narrative games. It’s expensive. It’s time-consuming.
But for those of us who kept him alive, the payoff was huge. There’s a specific moment where he saves Javier’s life by pushing him out of the way of a speeding truck. It’s a "blink and you’ll miss it" beat, but it validates every choice you made to keep him in the group. It wasn't just flavor text; it was a life saved because you decided to be merciful four episodes prior.
Common Misconceptions About Conrad
A lot of people think Conrad is a "scripted" death eventually. He isn't. You can legitimately have him alive in the final shot of the season.
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Another big one? People think he hates Clementine. He doesn't. He’s terrified of what her past connection to the New Frontier means for his own survival. It’s survival instinct, not personal malice. Once the dust settles, he actually shows a lot of respect for her. He’s one of the few adults who treats her like the capable survivor she is rather than just a kid or a tool.
The nuance here is that Conrad is one of the most "human" characters in the series. He isn't a hero like Lee, and he isn't a survivor-god like Michonne. He’s just a guy who used to serve drinks and now has to figure out how to live in a world that keeps taking things from him.
What we can learn from Conrad's arc
If you're going back to play A New Frontier (which, honestly, is better than people remember), try the "Pro-Conrad" run. It changes the entire tone of the story. Instead of a story about Javier and his family vs. the world, it becomes a story about building a new community from the wreckage of the old one.
Conrad’s presence adds a layer of maturity to the group. He’s an older voice, someone who remembers the world before and isn't quite as hardened as the younger survivors. Keeping him alive is a challenge, sure, but it’s the most rewarding way to experience the game.
To get the most out of Conrad’s story, you have to be willing to play against your instincts. You have to forgive him for the tunnel. You have to give him a gun when he asks for it (even though it feels risky). And you have to trust that the writers actually put in the work to make his survival mean something. They did.
Actionable Insights for Your Next Playthrough:
- Spare him in the tunnel: Despite the urge to protect Clem, let Conrad live to see how his personality shifts once he processes his grief.
- Give him the gun in Episode 3: This is a trust exercise. If you trust him, he proves his worth during the New Frontier standoff.
- Watch his interactions with Gabe: If Conrad is around, Gabe actually has a more interesting development as he sees a different model of "manhood" than just Javier or David.
- Pay attention to the ending: Conrad’s final dialogue changes depending on how you treated him throughout the season, offering a more personalized conclusion than almost any other character.
The "New Frontier" might have been a divisive season for some fans, but characters like Conrad are exactly why the The Walking Dead series remains a gold standard for storytelling. He wasn't just a plot point. He was a person. And in the apocalypse, that's the hardest thing to be.