Life is Strange Game Review
- Dawn M.
- Mar 4, 2019
- 11 min read
Updated: May 20, 2019
I've been so deeply immersed with the characters of this game that after playing it consecutively over the past few days, I'm feeling some sort of dissociation from reality (in a good way, I guess?)
If you are planning to play the game in the future, I suggest you don't proceed reading after the border below, because it will contain major spoilers from the game. I wanted this to serve as my personal rant after my unforgettable experience from the game.
First off, let me start by saying that I can see how the game makers were heavily influenced by the film, The Butterfly Effect. And it is SO befitting, because I just recently re-watched the movie a few days before playing Life is Strange. I also mentioned in my previous blog post how The Butterfly Effect is my all-time favorite, so you can tell how excited I was to be able to purchase this game. From the title of the film itself, and the significant symbolism of the butterfly in the game; to the scenes in LiS which are so difficult not to connect with the film. (I'll talk more about them later, as they had an impact on the overall quality of the gameplay/storyline for me.)
Life is Strange is a point-and-click interactive adventure/puzzle game. The game heavily focuses on its story line more than the action. We play as Max Caulfield, a transfer art student at Blackwell Academy in Arcadia Bay. After waking up from a vision of a tornado wiping out Arcadia Bay, Max finds out that she has acquired the power to rewind time when she saves a blue-haired punk girl from death, who turns out to be her childhood best friend, Chloe Price.
After the eventful intervention, Max faces threats from several characters. She and Chloe reunites after many years, and Max is surprised to see the drastic changes in Chloe's personality after the tragic death of Chloe's father years ago. Together, Max and Chloe try to find Rachel Amber, the missing popular girl from Blackwell Academy, and who also used to be very close to Chloe.
Max has the power to rewind time and alter her choices, all of which, will affect the outcome of the game. The script is so realistic and well-written, that most of the choices you have to make can be absolutely difficult, especially when you consider facing similar situations in real life. I took my time choosing each path for Max, because I didn't want to end up dead so soon in the game. And even then, I kept regretting my choices as I went along, to a point where I pondered over them outside the game. (Yes, it's that good!)
The graphics of the game is superb, both on the PC and android version. This is my first graphic adventure game, as I mostly play pixel/retro or flash games. Playing LiS also gives you the feeling of watching an animated film. It's very interactive. Square Enix is well-known for its beautiful and graphically-rich games, the most popular of which, is the Final Fantasy franchise. I first watched Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within film, and it started my fascination for the other FF games, which you can actually watch as movies, with the action scenes cut out. That's how much effort this game makers are putting into their writing. And a game is lost on me if it doesn't have a great story.
The game in itself is simply eye-candy. I have to admit, that I would take artistry over gameplay all the time. (It works on movies, as well.) I'm an artist and although I was overwhelmed with the opening of Life is Strange, with Max as an aspiring photographer (with all her jargons and elitist classmates), it was a very creative experience for me. A few episodes into the game will surely hook you right, left and center.
I believe that for most people, the game is a whirlwind of emotions. You are the bearer of the outcome, and it isn't easy to go back on a choice once you've made one. It certainly wasn't for me, and I played it only in one run. You affect the lives and the actions of people towards you, just by one interaction or a seemingly small, unnoticeable action.
The game is also a puzzle, the genre which I enjoy the most. I like solving problems, as long as they are not extremely concealed in a game (I have no patience searching for things, but I like racking my brains for answers when I have the questions). I also believe that LiS is a fairly easy game compared to others. You basically decide what you want to experience through your actions, and whenever you get stuck, Max will usually say hints out loud which will guide you.
The 1st two episodes will give you more questions than answers so it is understandable not to identify the culprit, then and there. However, I made a list of the suspects in my head during my first play, and on the top of the list, was the one who turned out to be the main villain. (Blame the number of books I've read and films I've watched for my inability to find shock factor in most things nowadays.)
SPOILERS AHEAD: Don't proceed if you're playing! I'm giving away everything.
Game play: Approx. 12-15 hours for all 5 episodes (1-3 hours per episode)
Available on Steam and Android. Ep 1 is free to play.
Contains sensitive topics, foul and abusive language, suicide, rape, death
Not for the faint-hearted, but I'm sure everyone can take something from this game. I read about how many people's lives were changed after playing the game. It certainly has that effect.
My prime suspects:
David Madsen, Chloe's strict and aggressive stepfather, was the first hostile encounter Max had. Max talks too strongly about David, since he is also constantly referred to as "step-douche" by Chloe, because of his extremely protective and strict behavior. He seemed like the best suspect the way the game makers presented him, especially since Max went against him harshly. (I guess my choices had an averse effect on that!)
I doubted him in the very beginning, but not enough to really think that he was the killer. It was too obvious. An angry army veteran stepdad who kidnaps students for fun? Nah. A bit far-fetched. You'd understand if you grew up with someone similar. And the guy was also Head of Security, so I felt that he was just doing his job.
Samuel, the creepy janitor who is always bullied, however, was on my list. He always spoke softly and slowly to Max. A real sweetheart and creep. He gave me goosebumps during our first encounters, but I also felt that he was just plainly kind. I made sure of that by engaging in conversations with him more often. And he always made sure to leave cryptic remarks about how Arcadia Bay was just getting what it deserved. I also visited his janitor's room in (Ep 3), an episode where I was completely freaked out because of the night setting. There, I found some girl stuff and he remained on my list of suspects afterwards. (I can still feel the hairs on my neck standing as I'm typing this).
Mark Jefferson, the sexy and charming art teacher. One of my strongest suspects. He was the talk of all girls. Everyone said how Rachel, or this girl and that, had a sexual encounter with him. He was kind to Max. In fact, she was his favorite. Max also specifically went to Blackwell Academy due to his famous reputation. He just seemed like he had no agenda to kidnap anyone, but as soon as Rachel's name was linked to his, I never forgot about him.
Then there's Nathan, the druggie who shoots Chloe in the beginning. Very aggressive, clearly unstable and hated by many. He's the son of Sean Prescott, who basically owns the town and Blackwell Academy. I hated Nathan, but I knew he was too mentally weak to handle such a crime.
And then, there was a doubt on a character who I was probably not noticing. Someone who completely acts innocent. Apart from that, everybody else was just not in the list. Frank, the hobo & drug dealer, was off my list the moment I saw his dog. Meanwhile, Principal Wells, as a character, I felt was way too bland and stiff to be the culprit.
Now, in the beginning, no one was sure whether Rachel was dead or just truly missing. I felt that she was, but I was still too afraid to admit it in the first few episodes. The more you delve into the game, the more you'll find clues about the people surrounding her and it wouldn't be so difficult to deduce who to strike off from the list.
And that was why when Chloe and Max found Rachel's corpse, and the killer's face was revealed, I wasn't so shocked to see Jefferson. I almost believed it was Nathan, because all clues were leading to him. The hidden bunker in the barn owned by the Prescotts, his marks left everywhere, the drugs and Vortex Club. However, something just felt amiss. At first, I was doubtful of Nathan's father--doing all the crime and putting it on his son.
Then, I also thought that maybe Jefferson was actually Sean Prescott, since we never got to see his face. But it turned out to be a lot simpler than that. He was just a psychopath who manipulated Nathan, and eventually killed him. Slightly boring if you ask me, as I still couldn't see the need for an expensive bomb shelter/bunker, when it could've even been utilized in the story line as a shelter for the tornado.
Thanks to Max's powers, I felt safe even when I was kidnapped and harassed. Although I felt extremely uncomfortable, especially after finding Rachel's corpse and seeing Chloe get shot in the head, and knowing that I couldn't use Max's rewind power to go that far back. At that point, I was genuinely angry at Jefferson for killing my Chloe. I've done so much to save her. He also did the other girls so much wrong, as I saw photos of drugged and tied-up, Kate Marsh and Rachel. But I was sure I could save them all from that horror somehow.
And that brings me to the similarities of this game and The Butterfly Effect. Max is also able to alter realities by going far back in time, just by focusing on a certain photo. Evan and his father from The Butterfly Effect both had this power, too. Max discovered this when she tried to save Chloe's father from the car accident. It turned out that they would all be happy, but with a price.
And of course, there Chloe was.
IN A DAMN WHEELCHAIR.
Familiar?
Then, there's also the nose bleeding and headaches caused by messing with time too much. Is it common for all time travelers? Or is it just me?
There was one rare moment where I really cried in this game, and that was when I watched William (Chloe's father) go into the light, as I sacrificed his life in exchange for Chloe's. When Chloe asked me to take her life, I just couldn't do as she wished because I knew that it couldn't be the end of the game. Not yet. So I went back in time, and poof. Goodbye, William. It still hurts, by the way.
Trying to save Kate Marsh from jumping from the roof was also extremely tense for me. Max's powers didn't work in that scene and I was in so much pressure. I was picturing so many friends in the same situation. Talking her down was just emotionally exhausting. By god, you had to have all the answers right! But it was a great relief that she survived. Like I was actually able to save someone real. She was too precious of a character.
And a bonus scene that I love is the Vortex Club party.
My goodness, what a game! It was like actually entering a different world. The soundtrack was so on point. The music is blazing in your ears. The dark and ominous aura of the party, and the wasted members were too realistic. I actually said to myself out loud, "This game is so WEIRD."
The only thing that surprised me the most was the freaking time loop Max almost got stuck in. She meddled with time so much, that her realities started overlapping each other. It was genuinely terrifying. It was like she was stuck in limbo. One moment, she was in the art gallery after winning the photo contest. Then she was back again, tied-up in the bunker, after trying to save Chloe from the tornado--all because Jefferson burned her photo journal. Max was changing the reality so much, and at the same time, not getting anywhere. And indefinitely, causing the tornado in the process. The writing is just pure effing genius.
For people who haven't seen many horror/psychological movies, they would find the last Episode in the game extremely dark and disturbing. (Perhaps even be stuck in it!) I've seen enough horror, and even I, was still horrified. There was a part where Max was locked in a bathroom with a digicode and the walls were marked by so many numbers. I was truly afraid I wouldn't make it out. Most of the codes in the game had to be written down or memorized, but a quick look in the mirror gives the answer. Composure is the secret!
The genius in this game shows again when Max made it back to the halls of her school and one of the 1st scene plays out but in reverse! The people were all walking and talking backwards. All the texts and even the music were reversed. I actually found it calming despite of the fear that I was stuck in a somewhat Hell, seeing as Max was just passively and numbly going through the motions of her chaotic reality.
Towards the end, I didn't become as emotional as I expected to be, because of certain factors. One is because of the predictability of the game for me, and the other is because of my lack of connection with Chloe (Me, as a person, not as Max). Max LOVES her. I just found Chloe to be too angst-y. Like I'm not sure if we would get along in real life. Even when she and Max did. And I'm a lot like Max, too.
I also have a best friend who is like Chloe to me. Someone I consider as a sister, who I would do anything for. However, she is more like Max instead of Chloe. She is smart, outspoken and even dresses like Max. Funny, she even looks like her! I found it so fascinating because her boyfriend looks a lot like Warren too.
I was slightly disappointed but I knew what was coming long before. (Thanks, The Butterfly Effect!) As soon as I realized that the storm was caused by Max, and the flashbacks of their friendship were shown in Limbo, I was preparing to give up Chloe. I've always thought that Max would somehow submit Chloe's photo and declare her as an "Everyday Hero" for saving Arcadia Bay. I even thought that she would sacrifice herself. The darkness was so dragging in the time loop that I almost wanted to kill Max off, knowing that she would gladly sacrifice herself to save Chloe and Arcadia.
If anything, the game only made me miss my best friend more. Max loved Chloe so much and it's so contagious. Chloe was her "first priority". Her first choice over the hundreds of lives in Arcadia. That's how much she loved her. But I just didn't want to be selfish by saving her and killing everybody off, including Warren and Kate who I grew to love. I also felt that Chloe would be angry at me if I did that. (Which I learned doesn't actually happen.) But either way, it's a sad ending. It took me really long before I decided. I've played the freakin' game in order to keep her alive!
And no, I don't feel like playing Life is Strange: Before the Storm. YET. I'm too freaked out after digging up Rachel's corpse, then seeing Chloe get shot in the head by Jefferson. They're both dead. So, NO.
The ending leaves you with a numb and hollow feeling. Like you've grown a few years older after playing the game. However, it also left me with the excitement of having a journal like Max again. Her creativity, Blackwell's environment and the whole story makes me want to take photos again and start printing them and putting them into a journal. And just write. Like the way I'm doing now.
And as some players said, words will never be enough to explain the deep connection they had for Life is Strange.
"It's not just a game, it's a life experience."
And boy, what an experience.
Listen to the WONDERFUL soundtrack here:
Watch me play all 5 episodes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRsVD08sgkw&list=PLdXjpGeuJ7j0VdyK06v70ksF_CiInF5yT
Follow my page for more games like this:
https://www.facebook.com/Dawns-Arcade-2271312079810478/
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