Oh dear are you in for a ride haha enjoy it, and do come back when you've finished and tell me what you think of the ending
this post was submitted on 21 Feb 2025
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It's definitely one of those that can take a little while to click with the player. I had the advantage of being deeply interested in the setting. It made me miss living in Oregon so, so much. Aside from that, I really came to like the characters by the end of the original game and Before the Storm.
I've continued to enjoy the series--yes, even the newest one--aside from LiS 2, which felt like misery porn after a while. That said, all of the games excel at getting the quiet moments right, and it's worth taking a moment to pause when the game offers the chance.
If you like Life is Strange, you should try Tell me Why. It's by the same developers and it feels like what Life is Strange 2 should've been.
The first game of the series is the best in my opinion. It went downhill from there.
I think Before the Storm is the best in the series. At least it was back when I played it some odd 6 years ago.
2 was actually a strong contender for me up until the ending. I liked the dynamic of the two protagonists and could relate to it because I have a little brother too
Hope you have fun! It's a pretty great game, as long as you can deal with teens being teens (I know some folks can't stand it).
Please do post your thoughts afterwards, I'm curious how or if your opinion changes after completion.
I've always despised teen drama in media. Back when I was a teen, and now. Can't stand it. For that reason, I have zero interest in playing the sequels. Furthermore, some of Life is Strange's writing is downright amateurish.
But somehow, the game threads the needle of the formula in a way I can't explain (and from what I read the developers weren't ever able to fully replicate it either). The gameplay, the themes, the great acting/directing, the amazing soundtrack, the perfectly paced escalation of the stakes... It all works together to attach the player very deeply to the characters. I played it a decade ago and the ending absolutely shook me to my emotional core. To this day one of my favorite works of fiction.
I think I managed to overcome my dislike towards teen drama in media and started approaching it from a place of empathy, at least to some extent, which makes it way more tolerable. Same with characters making stupid decisions in emotional moments. That doesn't mean I give a pass to every single piece of "stupid" or "illogical" writing but it helps treat what happens like a real event rather than "well they should do X like a perfect logical machine".
My relationship with LiS games is a bit weird. I loved both the first game and Before the Storm but for whatever reason couldn't muster any interest in any of the following titles. I don't know why that is but none of them managed to grab my attention again. Maybe the first two came out at the right time, maybe they struck a familiar cord - either way they became a pretty important part of my life as well. Probably not as my favorite games ever (this honestly changes depending on a day and my mood/headspace) but important nonetheless.
After that play the prequel, Before the Storm
I did something similar, where I played up until the bathroom scene, wrote it off as "Telltale's TWD with a neat gimmick" and put it down until covid had me blasting through my backlog. By the time it was over, it was easily one of my favorites ever. The characters clicked in a way that made had me emotionally invested in a way I haven't felt since I was a hormonal high school kid.
Don't bother with the latest game in the series Double Exposure. It plays like a lazy cheap cash grab.
But the same devs as the original also recently released Lost Records: Bloom & Rage that's supposed to be good. It's similar but not officially part of the series due to rights issues.
Same with Tell Me Why, which is free every pride month. Personally I found it to be boring but others seem to like it.
It's a pretty solid game after the first episode. The first episode is like a pilot episode for a show that turns out to be really good. It's good, your watching it, but you don't have any real connection to the characters and it's exposition character mode. The story just keeps getting you more sucked in and by the end I was "what", "oh no", so loud my wife was coming to check on me.
1st game is definitely the best out of the series.
I remember watching my wife play through it and thinking it looks fun and interesting but when I tried I just couldn't get in to it.