Life is Strange: The Emo Teenage-Girl Roleplaying Experience [SPOILERS EP1/EP2]

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dripdripsplash

Member
So I have been gifted this game by a very friendly gaffer; zer0blivion and have just started my playthrough of the game a couple of days ago.

I have completed episode 1 and have started episode 2 just today.

My first impression was the very slow burn after the initial introduction to the game (the tornado and the attempted murder by Nathan). This game sure as hell does not make it self as interesting as it could be.

Secondly I think that a major point of these games, the decisions, really are so uninteresting, boring and trivial, that I feel the 'weight' and tough moments of picking one of them is not present.

For example at the start of episode 2 I have a choice of two game changing decisions, pick up the phone to talk with Kate Marsh for like 20 seconds maximum, thereby hurting your relationship with Cloe, or not answering to please Chloe.

Personally I'm like; Why can't I do both of them. Why is Chloe such an arrogant, impatient brat.

Jesus.

Other than that I also have a personal complaint; All this hipster music playing everywhere is so cringeworthy and depressing. Reminds me of a girl in my class who also takes pictures... and likes hipster music. It's pretty funny actually, how much she reminds me of Max now that I think about it hahaha!

Well back to topic: Where do you feel this game picks ? Does it pick up ? I'm obviously pretty early in the game but I would have thought that by the end of Episode 1 I would at least have gotten a little excited for it.

I'm only struggling through because I don't want zer0blivion' gift to go to waste (thanks again man!)

Nonetheless I will play through the rest of the episodes over the next couple of weeks and I'll try to give an update if my views has changed radically on the game.
 
played through this recently and Chloe almost singlehandedly ruined the game for me at times to be honest

such an annoying character
 
Episode 2 is where the game starts to go places. It doesn't pick up for you by the end of it then you probably won't enjoy the rest.
 
The phone thing was indeed bullshit and really felt like they were struggling for ways to include major choices into that episode.
 
Personally the moment I walked out of the teaches class in the first episode and "To All of You" by Syd Matters played as I walked down the school corridor I loved it. But I also loved all that "hipster" music, though I'm not a girl or into photography. What makes It hipster by the way? Other than it just not being your type of music.
 
Just finished episode 2 and I've really enjoyed the game from the opening credits on. Just such a different experience than I'm used to from gaming, everything about it just works for me. Oh, and I love the music. So, diff'rent strokes and all that.

StrongBelwas said:
Personally the moment I walked out of the teaches class in the first episode and "To All of You" by Syd Matters played as I walked down the school corridor I loved it.
Click to expand...

Yep. That little sequence sold me right away.
 
Game does start quite slow and I was initially put off by the dialogue but you get used to it. Definitely finish the next couple of episodes before writing it off as the game becomes far more interesting
(excluding the junkyard bit in episode 2)

I loved the music as well :p
 
Kalor said:
Episode 2 is where the game starts to go places. It doesn't pick up for you by the end of it then you probably won't enjoy the rest.
Click to expand...

I definitely will go through this episode yes.

StrongBelwas said:
Personally the moment I walked out of the teaches class in the first episode and "To All of You" by Syd Matters played as I walked down the school corridor I loved it. But I also loved all that "hipster" music, though I'm not a girl or into photography. What makes It hipster by the way? Other than it just not being your type of music.
Click to expand...

Just feels like something that a girl who has a tumblr account would listen too. (I'm very judgemental when it comes to people's music taste, sorry.)

zsynqx said:
Game does start quite slow and I was initially put off by the dialogue but you get used to it. Definitely finish the next couple of episodes before writing it off as the game becomes far more interesting
(excluding the junkyard bit in episode 2)

I loved the music as well :p
Click to expand...

Yeah I guess it's just different tastes.
 
Amjad said:
For example at the start of episode 2 I have a choice of two game changing decisions, pick up the phone to talk with Kate Marsh for like 20 seconds maximum, thereby hurting your relationship with Cloe, or not answering to please Chloe.

Personally I'm like; Why can't I do both of them. Why is Chloe such an arrogant, impatient brat.

Jesus.

Other than that I also have a personal complaint; All this hipster music playing everywhere is so cringeworthy and depressing. Reminds me of a girl in my class who also takes pictures... and likes hipster music. It's pretty funny actually, how much she reminds me of Max now that I think about it hahaha!
Click to expand...

That's not what happened though. She got mad because she got into an argument with her mom while you were on the phone. All of the major choices have made sense in hindsight, more so than any other choice based game I've played in the last few years. I'm only up to episode 2 as well though. We'll see how things shift later.

Also, come on man, that's her character. I think this was one one better attempts at characterization in recent memory. They took a lot of steps to not only define Max but the characters around her in the best ways possible. Max isn't Emo. That's hella dumb.
 
Amjad said:
I definitely will go through this episode yes.



Just feels like something that a girl who has a tumblr account would listen too. (I'm very judgemental when it comes to people's music taste, sorry.)



Yeah I guess it's just different tastes.
Click to expand...
Sounds like you have limited or poor taste in music :P

Stick with it. It sounds like you're not into choose your own adventure style games but maybe you'll fee differentlyrics at the end of episode 2.
 
Lord of Castamere said:
That's not what happened though. She got mad because she got into an argument with her mom while you were on the phone. All of the major choices have made sense in hindsight, more so than any other choice based game I've played in the last few years. I'm only up to episode 2 as well though. We'll see how things shift later.

Also, come on man, that's her character. I think this was one one better attempts at characterization in recent memory. They took a lot of steps to not only define Max but the characters around her in the best ways possible. Max isn't Emo. That's hella dumb.
Click to expand...


I still found it kinda inconsequential and not that impactfull given that the whole game paused and gave of this vibe of this being a very very important choice.

Max seems kinda sad and quite all the times. (I'm also joking a little if that's not clear)


xenorevlis said:
Sounds like you have limited or poor taste in music :P

Stick with it. It sounds like you're not into choose your own adventure style games but maybe you'll fee differentlyrics at the end of episode 2.
Click to expand...

Limited, I'll give you that, yes. Poor? That's subjective!

I'll stick with it nonetheless to the end of episode 2 as people are saying this is where it really begins.

I love these kind of games though, I've played through nearly all Telltale games for example. They are filled with bugs, crazy ugly looking, but they do know how to make a player invested in the story.

I guess that's what I'm missing in this.
 
I liked the game a lot. Not GOTY, mind-blowingly great, but very enjoyable.

Can't understand how people can hate Chloe so much though. :) Great character, and Ashly Burch knocked it out of the park with the voice acting.
 
I played the first episode and watched an LP of the second.

It made me wince into oblivion.

Some of the
mocking
fanart I've seen on my Twitter feed made me lol and want to see the stuff in the other episodes though.

CVw0BVPWsAEbnEu.png
Click to expand...
 
You got my head going about the phone scene.

To really understand it you have to look at the mental state of Chloe at the time. Chloe is a depressing character. She's lost everything. Lost Max 4 years ago, lost her dad, lost her mom to the step dad, and lost her home to change. Max abandoned her and didn't even try to reconnect during Chloe's ultimate time of need. So she finally finds something to give her hope again, Rachael. They're gonna get away from all that baggage. Start new. And... Chloe loses her too. I imagine the only thing keeping her going at this point is the thought that Rachael is still out there kidnapped or whatever, but at the back of mind that doubt undoubtedly lingers; that she's dead or she abandoned Chloe just like Max. Chloe needs Max right now, but I think she hates that she needs Max. Definitely a war going on in Chloe's head.
 
The weight of the decisions rely on how invested you are in the characters and plot. No investment = no personal impact for consequences. That's generally why season two of TWD felt, to me, lesser than season one.

I never had much interest in "hipster music" until this game. I felt the game had me from the beginning. But maybe the end of episode 2 is when it really takes off, I guess? When shit gets real?

I dunno. If you aren't enjoying yourself by midway episode 3, I think you're going to walk away entirely disappointed by the end of episode 5.
 
Amjad said:
Other than that I also have a personal complaint; All this hipster music playing everywhere is so cringeworthy and depressing. Reminds me of a girl in my class who also takes pictures... and likes hipster music. It's pretty funny actually, how much she reminds me of Max now that I think about it hahaha!
Click to expand...

Amjad said:
Just feels like something that a girl who has a tumblr account would listen too. (I'm very judgemental when it comes to people's music taste, sorry.)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure whether to feel insulted :P



end of episode 2 has a pretty big event happen but the really big stuff starts at the end of episode 3.

It makes sense that it might possibly just not being your thing if you're just not the right demographic or w/e. A lot of it reminded me of Veronica Mars so if you like/dislike that show it would give you a decent idea I think of the general tone throughout it. Personally, it was a huge deal for me and I really felt that right from the beginning but a lot of that is the aesthetics just nailing it for me and Max being one of the few video game characters I've ever found relatable.
 
Also, Chloe has no reasonable way of knowing what Kate's been going through. She's not psychic.

I didn't love Chloe at first, but she definitely grew on me.

And anyone who gives the game an honest shot, and isn't in some way emotionally effected by the end of episode 2 isn't someone I need to know.
 
If you're coming from the perspective of "LOL this music sounds like it's for TUMBLR users" you're probably not going to like the game.
 
Episode 1 is honestly kind of bad, but it lays the foundation for the subsequent episodes which are great. Get to the end of episode 2. That's the first really big moment. If that doesn't get you then nothing in the game is going to. It sounds like you may just find the setting to be too grating to be able to enjoy it.
 
Corpekata said:
If you're coming from the perspective of "LOL this music sounds like it's for TUMBLR users" you're probably not going to like the game.
Click to expand...

That seems to be the lens he's viewing this entire experience from, and it's making me wince more than anything in the actual game ever did.
 
Corpekata said:
If you're coming from the perspective of "LOL this music sounds like it's for TUMBLR users" you're probably not going to like the game.
Click to expand...

Can't speak for the other user, but as someone who just honestly joined in not understanding what was going on, the entire first episode was ridiculous on the plot and dialogue front.

I can see the improvement in episode 2, but I can't help but feel that this game's entire identity has to be realized by someone who is into that culture.

It's weird though because I really really liked TWD though I was tired of "zombies" at the time and loved The Wolf Among Us though I'm tired of "realism meets fairy tales".

I feel like the game must've not been as strong if I wasn't able to find it compelling or enjoy it any other way but laugh at it.
 
The tone and style of this game may just not be for you in the same way that "macho" or "grimdark" games aren't for everyone. I think lots of people still expect every game to appeal to them because in the past every game was basically catered towards their demographic. Now there's a bit more diversity.

Personally, I was into from the get go just because I thought all the characters were interesting and stayed that way as they were fleshed out (even if some of the dialog was corny). Definitely stick around for the end of Ep 2 since you're already so close.
 
Lord of Castamere said:
That's not what happened though. She got mad because she got into an argument with her mom while you were on the phone. All of the major choices have made sense in hindsight, more so than any other choice based game I've played in the last few years. I'm only up to episode 2 as well though. We'll see how things shift later.

Also, come on man, that's her character. I think this was one one better attempts at characterization in recent memory. They took a lot of steps to not only define Max but the characters around her in the best ways possible. Max isn't Emo. That's hella dumb.
Click to expand...

Lord of Castamere said:
You got my head going about the phone scene.

To really understand it you have to look at the mental state of Chloe at the time. Chloe is a depressing character. She's lost everything. Lost Max 4 years ago, lost her dad, lost her mom to the step dad, and lost her home to change. Max abandoned her and didn't even try to reconnect during Chloe's ultimate time of need. So she finally finds something to give her hope again, Rachael. They're gonna get away from all that baggage. Start new. And... Chloe loses her too. I imagine the only thing keeping her going at this point is the thought that Rachael is still out there kidnapped or whatever, but at the back of mind that doubt undoubtedly lingers; that she's dead or she abandoned Chloe just like Max. Chloe needs Max right now, but I think she hates that she needs Max. Definitely a war going on in Chloe's head.
Click to expand...

This. Good people do shitty things for shitty reasons. That's a thing that happens. Life Is Strange is a fantastic exploration of that aspect of human nature. It doesn't always deal with black and white morality, or world-altering decisions. It revels in the drama of the mundane. And I think the game is brilliant for it.
 
How dare they make a game for a different target audience than the norm??? It should have been about Space Marines killing civilians and jamming to AC/DC
 
I really didn't like the first two episodes.

Episode 3 and onwards were great. The last episode being my favorite.

Keep playing. I agree with absolutely everything you said, but keep playing.

Personally I'm like; Why can't I do both of them. Why is Chloe such an arrogant, impatient brat.

Jesus.

Other than that I also have a personal complaint; All this hipster music playing everywhere is so cringeworthy and depressing. Reminds me of a girl in my class who also takes pictures... and likes hipster music. It's pretty funny actually, how much she reminds me of Max now that I think about it hahaha!
Click to expand...

Actually, nevermind. Ditch the game. Also avoid most of the world if possible.
 
Rats Off To Ya said:
This. Good people do shitty things for shitty reasons. That's a thing that happens. Life Is Strange is a fantastic exploration of that aspect of human nature. It doesn't always deal with black and white morality, or world-altering decisions. It revels in the drama of the mundane. And I think the game is brilliant for it.
Click to expand...

"no black and white morality" seems to contradict with characters like David, who is a daughter hitting mall cop surveillance loving control freak war veteran who is every teenager YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND cliche rolled into one just to make sure that there's no way the audience doesn't hate him by the end of the intro episodes. There's just no subtlety. It's not a massive complaint, because a lack of subtlety is commonplace in other Young Adult fiction like Twilight or Harry Potter, but it isn't an any way a "fantastic exploration of human nature".
 
Coffee Dog said:
"no black and white morality" seems to contradict with characters like David, who is a daughter hitting mall cop surveillance loving control freak war veteran who is every teenager YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND cliche rolled into one just to make sure that there's no way the audience doesn't hate him by the end of the intro episodes. There's just no subtlety. It's not a massive complaint, because a lack of subtlety is commonplace in other Young Adult fiction like Twilight or Harry Potter, but it isn't an any way a "fantastic exploration of human nature".
Click to expand...

David may come off like that at first, since we are seeing him mostly from Chloe's perspective, but his character ends up being more complex than that.
 
Coffee Dog said:
"no black and white morality" seems to contradict with characters like David, who is a daughter hitting mall cop surveillance loving control freak war veteran who is every teenager YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND cliche rolled into one just to make sure that there's no way the audience doesn't hate him by the end of the intro episodes. There's just no subtlety. It's not a massive complaint, because a lack of subtlety is commonplace in other Young Adult fiction like Twilight or Harry Potter, but it isn't an any way a "fantastic exploration of human nature".
Click to expand...

There's more to David than that. The game presents the trope, only to explore and explain it later. It does that with a lot of the characters.
 
I guess veronica has a GAF account...

I am really enjoying my playthrough of this game, starting up episode 4 tonight, wasn't thrilled with how episode 3 ended, but can not wait to get into the next episode.
 
Coffee Dog said:
"no black and white morality" seems to contradict with characters like David, who is a daughter hitting mall cop surveillance loving control freak war veteran who is every teenager YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND cliche rolled into one just to make sure that there's no way the audience doesn't hate him by the end of the intro episodes.
Click to expand...

did you finish the game?
 
Played through all 5 episode and my opinion of the game never got better. The world and character are uninteresting. Max is a flat character, it might be because of the voice acting but I feel every time she tries to emote it comes off as fake. Chloe is an asshole and unlikable chatterer who never become likable. The whole town of Arcadia Bay is incredibly dull place and I never have any urge to explore it. Felt the game was trying too hard at being Twins Peak.
 
hosannainexcelsis said:
David may come off like that at first, since we are seeing him mostly from Chloe's perspective, but his character ends up being more complex than that.
Click to expand...

Rats Off To Ya said:
There's more to David than that. The game presents the trope, only to explore and explain it later. It does that with a lot of the characters.
Click to expand...

That isn't a meaningful exploration at all. I knew immediately that
he most likely was going to be partially redeemed later on and most likely be aware of the ins and outs of the evil goings on in the town
solely because the intro episodes present him as such a cartoonish baby punching moustache twirler to such an exaggerating, ridiculous and unrealistic extent. There's no subtlety, in that the writers want you to have a bad initial impression of him so badly that they make him as evil as he feasibly can be given the setting.

Guess Who said:
did you finish the game?
Click to expand...

I stopped after episode 2. I've seen bits of the later episodes, and I'll finish it eventually.
 
Coffee Dog said:
"no black and white morality" seems to contradict with characters like David, who is a daughter hitting mall cop surveillance loving control freak war veteran who is every teenager YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND cliche rolled into one just to make sure that there's no way the audience doesn't hate him by the end of the intro episodes. There's just no subtlety. It's not a massive complaint, because a lack of subtlety is commonplace in other Young Adult fiction like Twilight or Harry Potter, but it isn't an any way a "fantastic exploration of human nature".
Click to expand...

Actually I think this is a big part of it.

I remember reading YA way back and picking up that "shady/gray morality" was always handled with choices always boiling down to:

-Characters doing questionable things due to stereotypical characters imposing on them ie: Degrassi

-Good/Bad choice with simple caveats to make it seem like "gray morality" is troubling someone. ie:YA Sci-Fi and High Fantasy

TWD and WAU were great because lots of the choices there and how you approached situations were more abstract.

LiS is more like navigating a Degrassi melodrama and trying to solve their issues.
 
I also did not care for Episode 1, but near the end of 2 I think is where it gets good.
As for Chloe, she does realize she was being a bitch in Episode 2 so *shrug*
 
213372bu said:
Actually I think this is a big part of it.

I remember reading YA way back and picking up that "shady/gray morality" was always handled with choices always boiling down to:

-Characters doing questionable things due to stereotypical characters imposing on them ie: Degrassi

-Good/Bad choice with simple caveats to make it seem like "gray morality" is troubling someone. ie:YA Sci-Fi and High Fantasy

TWD and WAU were great because lots of the choices there and how you approached situations were more abstract.

LiS is more like navigating a Degrassi melodrama and trying to solve their issues.
Click to expand...
Degrassi melodrama is exactly what this game is and why I hate it so much.
 
Lord of Castamere said:
You got my head going about the phone scene.

To really understand it you have to look at the mental state of Chloe at the time. Chloe is a depressing character. She's lost everything. Lost Max 4 years ago, lost her dad, lost her mom to the step dad, and lost her home to change. Max abandoned her and didn't even try to reconnect during Chloe's ultimate time of need. So she finally finds something to give her hope again, Rachael. They're gonna get away from all that baggage. Start new. And... Chloe loses her too. I imagine the only thing keeping her going at this point is the thought that Rachael is still out there kidnapped or whatever, but at the back of mind that doubt undoubtedly lingers; that she's dead or she abandoned Chloe just like Max. Chloe needs Max right now, but I think she hates that she needs Max. Definitely a war going on in Chloe's head.
Click to expand...

Yeah i really dont think people try to get inside these characters' heads enough when they play this game, they are just taking everything from their own perspective and not really trying to empathize with Chloe, Max, Kate etc. Its really is a shame though, because the game has an insane amount of characterization and people nitpick on the dialogue, even though the WRITING is extremely good.

To OP: Play all 5 episodes, form an opinion, share. Dont play a third of the game and come on a forum and talk about your opinions on the story and characters. They will all be different by the end.
 
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