PSN Level: 29 - 28%
Life is Strange was a 5 part episodic game that started coming out earlier this year in January and now almost 10 months later it has ended. Unlike I usually do with the Telltale episodic games, I marathon through all 5 episodes after they came out in about 2 days, and I loved it.
I was sold on this game when they described it as living the life of a teenage girl who get time manipulation powers. Then it fell by the wayside as other games were coming out, but I did buy the season pass and install each episode as it was released. With the last episode hitting recently, it was the perfect time to start playing. I am so glad I waited for them all because once I started, I couldn't put it down. If they ever make a Tales from the Borderlands season 2, I will definitely wait for them all to be released because I love season 1. That being said, I will continue playing Minecraft story mode as they come out.
So after playing through and re-watching Steins;Gate, I've been eager to consume more excellent time travel stories. Much like Steins;Gate, apart from well done time travel, this game really makes you care for the characters (and their potential deaths).Though not as emotional as Steins;Gate, I did shed tears during this game, notably the end. One reason why I keep comparing Life is Strange to Steins;Gate (SG) is because the essential time travel story is the same: discover time travel, save a life, grow attach to that person throughout the story, horrible consequences ensue due to your time travel, and at the end you must choose between fixing the timeline or saving the person you love. So I did see the ending coming to an extent, but unlike in SG, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Even as I chose what I knew was the wrong choice to selfishly save my best friend, I couldn't bring myself to sacrifice her (though apparently that ending is a bit better). And my "wrong" choice I figured was unpopular turned out to be almost split according to the global statistics.
What I love about making choices in this game compared to the Telltale games is there is no timer, so you can think about how your choice may effect future events. There were many times where I hesitated, or contemplated for minutes on end, weighing my choices. The other good thing is due to Max's time manipulation powers, you can go back and change your choice after you hear the characters dialogue and see the end of the conversation. If it didn't end how you like, you can go back, but Max usually hints after a conversation how your choices can affect the future, so even with rewinding time, you never know if you are making the right choice. One of the most stressful moments happened when the game took away your powers and had you literally talk someone off a ledge.
The gameplay was at it's best when they throw you in a location and you must look through items all around you to help you make better choices during conversation (along with more bits of story). Thinking back on it, it is very reminiscent of a Quantic Dream game: investigating a mystery (Heavy Rain) and making choices as a young female character (Beyond: Two Souls). Putting all the pieces of evidence that we gathered onto a board to find a location of a suspect was also a fun aspect. I could use a whole game being a private dick with Chloe by me side!
I totally fell for the best friend character Chloe. It didn't hurt that she was voiced by Ashley Burch a.k.a Mayuri and many other characters in games and anime. The voice cast was awkward at times. It took a while to get used to the Max's (the main character) shy slow monotone talking but by the end, I thought the voice actor was great. It is good to note most of the voice actors do multiple characters in the game.
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