Game Spotlight: Life is Strange

Relax: This is a non-spoiler review… the totally spoilerific article will be posted at a later time.

Before writing this entry, I waited patiently for each episode to be release so that I could play them all. This review is a long time coming and I’m happy that I can finally sit down and write about a game that I have totally fallen in love with.

I can’t even remember what motivated me to buy the first episode of Life is Strange the day it was released. I remember I did see the trailer for the game some time back in late 2014 and it did look interesting. It wasn’t a game that was on my radar, really… it was really just one game out of many that was in the background noise of game releases. However, when I saw it had come out, I took the plunge and downloaded it to my Xbox One out of curiosity.

It feels so damn long ago now, it’s almost nostalgic… and that’s part of what I love about Life is Strange… it feels… nostalgic. It reminds me of a time in my life that has long passed.

In a way, the best and worst time in my life.

Chrysalis: Discovering the beauty of Life is Strange

It didn’t really hit me until the very end of the first episode of the game. Throughout that first episode, what I thought was a pretty standard game about a girl who discovered she had time powers and used it to save another person’s life was actually something much more.

Max (never Maxine) Caulfield has to come to terms with her new abilities as she is reunited with her childhood BFF, Chloe Price, who she hasn’t seen in 5 years due to Max moving away from Arcadia Bay to Seattle.

Throughout that first episode, I was bombarded by that indie hipster vibe that, normally, I’m not into… but I loved it. In this game, I loved it so damn much because it feels right to have that mood throughout the game with these characters. Even with the stilted phrases the characters speak that’s obviously the result of an older generation trying to deconstruct the speech patterns of a younger generation, making a lot of people cringe.

And you know what? It works! It may not be a 100% accurate recreation of how today’s generation of teenagers speak, but it captured the essence of what it is to be young in the late 20th century and early 21st century. Like I said, this game is pure nostalgia to me even though the indie hipster vibe isn’t one that I identify with personally. The folks over at Dontnod Entertainment have done their research and they’ve clearly got a tonne of inspiration to work from which they absolutely do not hide.

In fact, they plaster their inspirations all over the game with not so subtle references to works such as Twin Peaks, Donnie Darko and a plethora of other media in popular culture that is directly references through the script or through the environment itself.

This is a game that pulls at every fibre of memory that I have of being that age and pulls hard to reveal what’s inside. By the end of the first episode when Syd Matters – Obstacles (aka Nostalgia: The Song) starts playing with a montage of characters you have met and have yet to meet in a Donnie Darco-esc closing, it all clicked for me. Throughout that first episode, I was being nudged with suggestions of what this game is all about, but finally, when I saw all that montage sequence, I suddenly understood.

From that point on, this game had me. Totally.

Out of Time: The simplicity of its gameplay style

Unlike many comparable games, we’re talking practically everything created by Telltale, there are no fail states in Life is Strange. Max has the power to manipulate time which essentially means that there is no need for any kind of “game over” screen. All you have to do is rewind time to a moment before the point you made the error and correct the mistake to move on with the story.

Since time doesn’t matter in that sense, it also means that there are no Quick Time Events that we so often see in other games. Life is Strange isn’t an action game, it’s purely about the character interactions, exploring your environment and discovering things about people, places and events as they have and will happen. The more you explore, the better informed you are and these little pieces of information guide you in the decisions you make, with and without the aid of your time powers.

This game actually takes out most of the “game” elements in favour of its story and character development. It seems pretty clear that Dontnod have made sure not to fall into the trap of unnecessarily adding gameplay mechanics into Life is Strange that don’t serve their narrative vision. An example of a game that does fall into this trap is Deadly Premonition with its combat gameplay which serves only to hinder your progress than anything else. Instead, the development of this game was focused on its story and characters, as well as exploring the idea of the power of choice, making choices, whether they were large or small, fantastic or mundane, and how these choices shape a person and their perception of the world around them.

There’s a fine line being walked, and it seems that Dontnod have kept their balance throughout the series for the most part. There are one or two moments there where things became, perhaps a little too collection focused (finding bottles is hard). However, overall, Life is Strange felt more like a season of a five-part TV mini-series more than a video game.

The level of interaction within Life is Strange is simple, but VERY effective. It knows its limits and it knows how to use its strengths to draw you in and keep you interested. Story is key, yes, but it’s how it’s all presented to you from the music to the way you interact with the world and that characters who inhabit world that shows the true magic behind this series.

Chaos Theory: The characters, their hopes, their dreams, their troubles

Arcadia Bay is home to a number of interesting characters, each bringing their own piece of the story to life. From Max and Chloe, the main focus of the game, to the supporting cast and those who seem to have incidental roles. Together, they paint a picture of the town and helps guide what choices you make in the game based on your personal disposition.

I’ve read the opinions of many on the Internet who look at one character in the game and can’t fathom how anyone can find that character the least bit tolerable. Others, however, see that same character and have a totally different view of them based on their own views and experiences. As you play through Life is Strange, you can’t help but put yourself into that world. You aren’t so much playing as Max as you are playing yourself in the guise of Max… at least, that’s how I felt during my playthrough of the game.

The characters of Arcadia Bay felt real to me, right from the very start, when Mr. Jefferson asks Max if she knows the answer to a certain question. If you choose a certain option, Max will answer back with, “I knew it, but I forgot.” This moment nailed it for me because I’m a teacher… and I’ve heard this answer before many times even though I’m still pretty new to teaching. I laughed really hard at this, probably a lot harder than most just because of my experiences with students in real life.

This was one of the moments that allowed me to open up more toward the game, and strangely enough, so did all the words that were being dropped that sounded absurd to my ears. “Hella” this and “shakabrah” that. Who talks like that? The answer is NO ONE talks like that, though, more accurately, no adult wants to hear themselves talk like that, and that’s the point. As Chloe spouts these absurd lines with “hella” rolled through them, I remember back to my own teenage years in the late 90s/early 2000s with all the stupid words we use to say back then. They sound just as ridiculous to my adult brain when I think about them now and just as foreign as “hella” does when it’s spoken in Life is Strange.

Then there are characters like Warren, one of Max’s friends from Blackwell Academy who is the poster boy for “awkward geeky friend who wants to be more than friends” (that awkward hug that Max shot down, ouch). We’ve all been there and/or know someone who has… it’s hard to watch. It’s also interesting to watch other people’s reactions to Warren since there’s clearly a distinct divide of Warren fans and Warren haters out there. Some people understand his plight all too well and root for him, while others also understand his plight and can’t stand him at all. Some even spitefully despise the guy and his advances toward Max. It’s amazing how far people either love or hate this one character. And again, the differing opinions of certain characters range greatly because of each player’s personal disposition. It’s all about how we see these characters, not how Max sees them… but through the choices you make, your views start to imprint on Max. She’s strangely a blank-slate character who still has a hell of a lot of character of her own.

With each character’s small quirks, their insecurities shining through that are so apparent to me as an adult playing through this game, I started to notice how oblivious the characters in the game were to each other’s inner struggles. Naturally, this is how most people are at that point in their life when they’re still finding themselves. The interesting part in all this is how Max figures into it all. As she manipulates time more and more, her experiences allow her to gain a unique perspective of the world and the people around her. She essentially starts to notice the world the same way we do as the player who is removed from their world’s space-time continuum completely.

I’m trying not to talk too much about specific characters in fear that I’ll give away too much, but as polarising as some opinions are about some characters, there are quite a few other characters in Arcadia Bay who are almost universally liked or disliked across the field.

This is all done intentionally and it’s part of the way the game guides you to making your decisions. This is probably going to be a very poor comparison to make… but it’s like if you cut out all the action elements from the Mass Effect trilogy, leaving you only with the character interactions. Your decisions would be ruled purely on how you feel about the characters and not the actions that are happening in any given moment.

You end up making a lot of decisions throughout Life is Strange based on biases you have formed long before you pick up the controller and start that first episode. The game reveals to you the kinds of people who inhabit Arcadia Bay and your choices in regards to all these people reflect who you are as a person, in the guise of Max Caulfield.

Dark Room: The thoughtfulness of a game made with limited resources

Dontnod didn’t have a large budget to work with when making Life is Strange, and it shows… I mean, in a good way. There are plenty of triple-A titles out there that have had money thrown in every direction to make sure a “quality” product was released, often times showing that most of that money was wasted and most of that quality wasn’t actually achieved. In the case of Life is Strange, Dontnod was working within some very tight limits and was able to maximised what little money they had in their budget to try to achieve their goals.

The gameplay is simple but effective, the premise is tight yet complex, the focus is on character interactions and world building. The set pieces are understated and beautifully rely on the art style and not the actions and flair of other games. While I’m sure there were many challenges along the way in the creation of this game, it seems clear that the money and resources went into all the right places.

All the voice actors are perfect for their roles, no character felt out-of-place. I do remember initially thinking that the voice acting for Life is Strange did feel a little wooden when I played through the first episode, but it quickly grew on me and I got use to it. The script, as stated before, does feel like it’s obviously written by an older generation trying to emulate a younger generation, but it works.

Not once through the game did I feel like I had to scrutinise the script, even with the awkward moments. In fact, I thought the awkward moments felt quite natural to the subject at hand. After all, can you really say we all have the eloquent speech patterns of a master writer when we speak in real life?

Aside from the script, the absolutely gorgeous art style and the hidden complexity, one of the other big things about the game was the music. I did say once or twice earlier in this review that all that indie hipster stuff wasn’t really for me, but… I love the music… how can anyone not love the music in Life is Strange? It fits so perfectly with everything that is going on and has a way of making you see the world through Max’s eyes. I recently watched a clip on YouTube of the early parts of the first episode that didn’t include any music (to avoid the claim bots) and I was horrified. I can’t imagine playing this game without its soundtrack considering that there are many moments through the story that are defined by certain tracks playing in the background.

Polarized: We all have to make our choices and stand by them

I love this game…

Everything clicked with me so well that after playing every episode, I literally felt light-headed… and much more. The events that occur throughout the story are so damn intense and play out so well that after each episode ended, I eagerly awaited the next more than the previous episode. But more importantly, Life is Strange made me realise how episodic games can exist to service the story and not simply be a method of budgeting money for the developer.

What I mean by this is that part of the appeal of Life is Strange, at least for me, was the time I spent waiting. The endings for each episode were so intense for me that I needed to have that time to process everything that had happened. I simply couldn’t load the next episode and go from there, I was forced to wait… and I’m glad I was forced to wait because I don’t think I could’ve handled this game otherwise, it’d be too much in one go.

Time as a factor for storytelling… both in-game and outside in the real world. It’s an interesting concept that Dontnod have hit perfectly with Life is Strange. I was given time to reflect on all the choices I made and how they affected the story I was helping to shape… no, rather, the time between episodes helped me understand what kind of person I was based on the decisions I made throughout the previous episodes.

I know that a lot of people will pass up the opportunity to play Life is Strange because it’s not “gamey” enough for them, or that it feels too far out of range of their usual tastes… and believe me, I’ve tried to get practically EVERYONE I know to play this game with 99% of them simply refusing to even give it a go.

But I really do think that Life is Strange is one of those games that everyone needs to try simply to have the experience to play a game like it. In my mind,very few works in this medium we call “video games” even comes close to what Dontnod have achieved.

With that last remark, that’s the end of this lengthy review. I will be back with another article about Life is Strange that will contain nothing but spoilers all throughout. There’s a lot that I want to talk about… that I NEED to talk about!