Life is Strange

“My powers might not last, Chloe.”

“That's okay, we will. Forever.”

Verdict: DONTNOD beats Telltale at their own game, creating the preeminent modern choice-based adventure game.

Review: At the time of this writing, the first four episodes of Life is Strange are available for purchase, with the fifth and final slated for a late October release. Certainly, the quality and content of the final episode are a factor in the overall experience of the game, but even if the final chapter of this saga ends up underwhelming, Life is Strange so far has created a world not to be missed.

Telltale's Walking Dead was the beginning of a minor revolution in adventure gaming. The once-dead genre had been revitalized by direct distribution and crowdfunding, but Telltale gave Walking Dead a distinctly new feeling. The game was filled with gut-wrenching decisions, and the characters constantly reminded you of the consequences of your actions. As far as a technique to draw players into the world that Telltale had developed, it was masterfully done. You were not just watching, taking control when it was necessary to solve a puzzle or fight enemies, but you were an active participant in the drama around you.

Unfortunately, Telltale's sense of choice was a carefully crafted illusion, and the more they released games in the same vein, the more the cracks in the mirror became clear. Walking Dead worked partially because of the novelty; their later offerings were increasingly lackluster (with the exception of the charming Tales from the Borderlands thanks to its genuine wit and comedy).

There was a single moment in Telltale's latest and most disappointing entry: Game of Thrones where (without spoilers) you are given the choice to attempt to kill a major character from the television show and books. This choice almost made me laugh in its absurdity: I knew there would be no consequences either way, obviously this character lives. Is a choice still a choice if it doesn't matter? This isn't just a problem with licensed material, it's emblematic of the entire philosophy of false choice behind Telltale. Like a puppet show, it only works if you squint and pretend you can't see the strings.

Which brings us finally to Life is Strange. French based DONTNOD's second game (the first was the polarizing Remember Me) wears its influences up its sleeves. It concerns a small town in Oregon and the strange, sometimes supernatural events that occur therein. Its story is vintage Twin Peaks meets Butterfly Effect, which the game freely acknowledges, but the gameplay borrows liberally from Telltale.

Structurally it works the same. You guide your protagonist (introverted hipster Max Caulfield) as she interacts with an environment, talks to NPCs, solves puzzles and makes one-or-the-other choices that will leave you pondering and regretful. But, not too regretful, because the big gimmick of Life is Strange is the protagonist's limited time travel powers. Besides having an enormous effect on the plot, they also allow her to, well... rewind time.

Practically, this translates into using it to explore conversation paths, solve some simple puzzles, and preventing Max from spilling or breaking things. Which she does with rather alarming frequency. This ability also lets you go back and make other decisions in the game-changing choices, but only to see its very short term effects, since you can't rewind particularly far back (for obvious reasons). It's a cute gimmick that most players will get a lot of use out of, but more than that, it feeds into the two strongest elements of the game: the experience and the narrative.

This is not an opinion everyone shares, but I believe the experience of a game and its ability to draw you into its world is the most important part of the game (hence my blog name). This is especially important in a story-driven game like Life is Strange. In this regard, it succeeds in spades. The rewind ability has an ancillary effect of cutting down on immersion-breaking reloads because there's a built in system for redoing your decisions. Even the menus are designed around the idea of you inhabiting Max's world instead of your own.

Which is important, because you two will be spending some time together. Max's basic personality and outlook is more or less set by the game, your decisions are more about determining her actions and relationships. Any way you play it, she's a serious young artist with a good eye for photography and an empathetic heart. The second most present and important character is her childhood best friend turned punk rock rebel Chloe. She starts out as little more than a cliché, but as the game carries on you see the full depths of her conflicted character.

There are other characters (quite a few, in fact) who you can interact with in various ways, but the majority of the development is between Max and Chloe. This game's laser pointed focus on a relationship between two young women is reminiscent of Gone Home, but this game more fully explores its themes by putting you in the driver's seat. Depending on your choices, their interactions can be strained, friendly or even flirtatious, but there's little doubt their intelligent, well-written dynamic and realistic portrayals are a huge draw for a game like this.

You may find yourself rolling your eyes in her first few appearances, but Chloe will grow on you considerably.

The game's narrative itself is, at its core, a coming of age story. The rewind powers work into the lesson Max has to learn the hard way: When you're an adult your actions have consequences. But it wouldn't be a Twin Peaks inspired game without a good mystery or two. Life is Strange sees Max and Chloe team up to try and find Chloe's missing best friend: Rachel Amber, as well as try and come to terms with and understand Max's powers and their consequences. These elements are handled well, but they are just backdrop to the characterization.
 

Life is Strange uses many of the familiar Telltale tricks to make you feel like choices matter. Characters will constantly bring up events, and little elements are in flux. Life is Strange takes it a few steps further however, by making those choices actually make a real difference. By giving them some teeth, you feel more responsible for the consequences. Characters you alienate early in the game may refuse to help you later and possible choices might be closed off because you didn't pursue the right options earlier. The general beats of the story remain the same, but the details change in meaningful ways you won't see in other games like this.

It's an amazing experience, but it's not for everyone. This is not a game you can come into with a sense of world weary cynicism, and if you're determined not to like it, you surely will not. The puzzles rarely have you rushing to a walkthrough and besides some optional photography there's not much in the way of distractions. And if you don't like adventure games or didn't enjoy any of Telltale's offerings in the slightest, you probably won't fall in love here.

However, if you want to feel pulled into a world so vivid that it feels real, and if you're willing to let the game suck you in, you can hardly do better than a game that reminds you that life is indeed strange, but it is also wonderful, terrifying, confusing and most of all beautiful.

Rating: 3/3 (Not just for fans of the genre, this game is a masterpiece.)