"Life Is Strange is one of my favorite video games of all times, in part because of the emotional base and the characters. Now that a new game is coming out, I've decided that the best time to talk about it is now." - Bryson Saunders-Beckles, Grade 10
Life Is Strange is a game that is, at its core, a story about choices, their impact on the world, loss, and really chill music. All of the above come together well to create an atmosphere that is both homely and comfortable, and also one that is surprisingly ominous in later parts. The story is that our main character, Max Claufield, discovers that she has the ability to rewind time while saving the life of her best friend Chloe Price, and together, they try to figure out the mystery of what happened to Chloe’s best friend, Rachel Amber. All the while, Max is having visions of an incoming storm that will destroy their hometown, Arcadia Bay, and tries to learn how to stop it from happening in the five days she and everyone else have left.
In terms of main characters, Max is honestly one of my favorites. She’s part shy girl and part smartass in a way that’s balanced out pretty well, all things considered. She’s really engaging to watch throughout the story as she comes to terms with herself and her new rewind power as she seeks to do the right thing and sometimes wonders what is correct in the moment. Chloe serves for a good character dynamic as she’s the more rambunctious and rebellious of the two. She’s the one who likes to live free, and the one who has the most emotional baggage. Their adventures are genuinely heartwarming to watch. The other characters help set up the structure and tone of the story pretty well, including the shady drug-dealer Frank and Max’s awkward best friend Warren, who quite sincerely does his best to .
The music of the game is one of my favorite parts of it. It’s full of peaceful guitar music and pretty good indie/alternative/pop music, and some of the music really latched onto me, including the game’s menu music, Golden Hour, which based on where you are in the game is either really appropriate, or create a chilling dissonance that’s hard to shake off. Other songs include “Kids Will Be Skeletons”, “Piano Fire”, and “In my Mind” are among my favorites.
Now to talk about the thing that originally pulled me into the game: Max’s rewind power. Max discovers that she has the ability to rewind time several minutes into the past, with only her having any memory of it happening. The power itself is meant to build on the narrative about choices and the morality of them. If you want to try out a certain path, you can. How much fun can you have with this rewind power? A lot, if you utilize it properly. This power was fun to play with as I tried to figure the right thing to say to get this or that result. And the choice I had to make in the ending emotionally destroyed me, and if you buy the game and get as invested in me, you might feel likewise.
In terms of main characters, Max is honestly one of my favorites. She’s part shy girl and part smartass in a way that’s balanced out pretty well, all things considered. She’s really engaging to watch throughout the story as she comes to terms with herself and her new rewind power as she seeks to do the right thing and sometimes wonders what is correct in the moment. Chloe serves for a good character dynamic as she’s the more rambunctious and rebellious of the two. She’s the one who likes to live free, and the one who has the most emotional baggage. Their adventures are genuinely heartwarming to watch. The other characters help set up the structure and tone of the story pretty well, including the shady drug-dealer Frank and Max’s awkward best friend Warren, who quite sincerely does his best to .
The music of the game is one of my favorite parts of it. It’s full of peaceful guitar music and pretty good indie/alternative/pop music, and some of the music really latched onto me, including the game’s menu music, Golden Hour, which based on where you are in the game is either really appropriate, or create a chilling dissonance that’s hard to shake off. Other songs include “Kids Will Be Skeletons”, “Piano Fire”, and “In my Mind” are among my favorites.
Now to talk about the thing that originally pulled me into the game: Max’s rewind power. Max discovers that she has the ability to rewind time several minutes into the past, with only her having any memory of it happening. The power itself is meant to build on the narrative about choices and the morality of them. If you want to try out a certain path, you can. How much fun can you have with this rewind power? A lot, if you utilize it properly. This power was fun to play with as I tried to figure the right thing to say to get this or that result. And the choice I had to make in the ending emotionally destroyed me, and if you buy the game and get as invested in me, you might feel likewise.
