Life is Strange by Developer Dontnod

SpacePProtean wrote:

I've actually been having to unhype myself for the remastered versions of the original and BtS, because I'm assuming the redone animations won't be nearly as good as they are here.

So at least on, I think, everything but the Switch, those are available today. I got the Deluxe or Super or Special edition of TC, which included these remasters because, no sh*t, of course I was going to do that. I've pretty much just had time to do the opening section of LiS1, up to where you're wandering the quad, and I'm largely pleased with what I'm seeing. When the trailer for the remasters first dropped, I recall seeing a lot of comments that the two versions look the same, and this in not entirely untrue, it's clear that most if not all of the effort went into the faces in motion, which isn't something that shows well in that sort of before and after trailer. I think this is great, I think the one absolutely valid criticism you can levy against the first game is that the tech is somewhat limited and the characters aren't as expressive as they really need to be. They don't seem to be on the same level as TC, but that's an unreasonable expectation, and it can be a little odd when paired with some of the more puppet-ish body animations, such as Max's nervous hair brushing and face flicking fidgets (tangential invalid criticism I've come across, if I may indulge myself: "Max is a bit of a cypher." Motherf*cker, you spend an entire game listening to this character give her thoughts and feelings about every single person, thing, and incident she comes across, to the point you can put a name on her terrible taste in movies, if you think she's a cypher, that is on you). Still, the lip movement is much better, and the little changes in expression are fluid or, you know, happen, and for a story that really is this reliant on emotional states, that's clutch. I kind of wonder what that aforementioned critic would change his tune about this more obviously expressive Max. All in all, I'm pleased. Can't wait to get to the diner.

I've finally gotten around to playing Life is Strange 2. I'm not enjoying it nearly as much as Max and Chloes' stories.
I'm only in the second episode so far, and the story is good, but I find so much of my time watching quite long story sequences without any agency, not even touching the keyboard. Also, it feels like a lot of the choices made by the characters aren't made by me. You're only making incidental choices and the big choices are made for you, and some of those are not the choices that I would make. I kinda guess that is possibly because you're not the main hero of the story in a way, but your brother's keeper.
I'm mostly playing it for my story completion OCD, because I'm really wanting to start playing True Colors, which looks very cool.
I'll post back when I've completed LiS2 with more thoughts.

Oh, I should also mention, I've gotten down a rabbit hole of reading the Life is Strange comic book series. It's EXCELLENT, and I highly recommend it. The only downside is that the last episode doesn't come out until the 8th of Feb, a whole week away! I thought it was already finished, and I want to see the end result.

For those who haven't seen it, it's a story starting immedately after LiS1, about Max and Chloe after they chose to be together, leaving Arcadia Bay in ruins.

Buzzrick wrote:

I kinda guess that is possibly because you're not the main hero of the story in a way, but your brother's keeper.

I think that's a big part of it. Do you have children? I don't, but I imagine this kind of story might be more resonant with parents, because all you can do is guide them and hope they make the right choices-- knowing they won't sometimes. The way you respond to their choices can shape them over the long term, but you aren't always getting the gratification of an immediate change, or even knowing how much affect you're having.

Buzzrick wrote:

Oh, I should also mention, I've gotten down a rabbit hole of reading the Life is Strange comic book series. It's EXCELLENT, and I highly recommend it. The only downside is that the last episode doesn't come out until the 8th of Feb, a whole week away!

Thanks for sharing! I, at least, didn't know about this. But at this point, I'll wait and hope for a collection.

beeporama wrote:
Buzzrick wrote:

I kinda guess that is possibly because you're not the main hero of the story in a way, but your brother's keeper.

I think that's a big part of it. Do you have children? I don't, but I imagine this kind of story might be more resonant with parents, because all you can do is guide them and hope they make the right choices-- knowing they won't sometimes. The way you respond to their choices can shape them over the long term, but you aren't always getting the gratification of an immediate change, or even knowing how much affect you're having

I’m a parent and it didn’t resonate with me at all. It just fell flat to me and I questioned quite a few of the older brother’s choices which I had no control over and deemed spectacularly irresponsible. If anything, I bounced off of it even more because I was a parent.

Eleima wrote:
beeporama wrote:
Buzzrick wrote:

I kinda guess that is possibly because you're not the main hero of the story in a way, but your brother's keeper.

I think that's a big part of it. Do you have children? I don't, but I imagine this kind of story might be more resonant with parents, because all you can do is guide them and hope they make the right choices-- knowing they won't sometimes. The way you respond to their choices can shape them over the long term, but you aren't always getting the gratification of an immediate change, or even knowing how much affect you're having

I’m a parent and it didn’t resonate with me at all. It just fell flat to me and I questioned quite a few of the older brother’s choices which I had no control over and deemed spectacularly irresponsible. If anything, I bounced off of it even more because I was a parent.

I think I agree with both of you @beeporama and @Eleima. I am a parent of 5 kids, and there is definitely a lot of my thoughts going into how I can prepare them for their futures, futures that I'm unlikely to be closely involved in.

Looking at some of the post chapter statistics (just finished Chapter 2 yesterday), it does seem like a lot of the ways that I had reigned Daniel in (eg: getting him to tell the truth, etc) had an effect on how he had acted at later points of the story. It seemed like if I had spoiled him at earlier points in the story, or let him steal, then his actions later in game would have been more like a spoiled brat.

But, yeah, I agree that some of Sean's decisions which I had no control over, were a bit jarring.

Buzzrick wrote:

Oh, I should also mention, I've gotten down a rabbit hole of reading the Life is Strange comic book series. It's EXCELLENT, and I highly recommend it. The only downside is that the last episode doesn't come out until the 8th of Feb, a whole week away! I thought it was already finished, and I want to see the end result.

For those who haven't seen it, it's a story starting immedately after LiS1, about Max and Chloe after they chose to be together, leaving Arcadia Bay in ruins.

The comics are wonderful, though I've been following them through TPBs, so I have to wait until March 22. Early on, I told myself "Okay, I accept this direction if this is where it is going," and sure enough, it was. Looking at the rest of that company's output, it sure feels like someone is happy to be working on a project where the splash pages are all outbursts of affection.

Buzzrick wrote:

For those who haven't seen it, it's a story starting immedately after LiS1, about Max and Chloe after they chose to be together, leaving Arcadia Bay in ruins.

Really? The comic is based on the ending that the developers barely put any effort into despite it being the obviously correct ending?

iaintgotnopants wrote:

Really? The comic is based on the ending that the developers barely put any effort into despite it being the obviously correct ending?

I'm sorry, but I really hate this line of thinking that this ending was "low effort." Pretty sure it was here I said it's like getting a perfect slice of pizza, and then complaining that the next kid got one that looks bigger but was also covered in sh*t. Ending A was exactly what it needed to be.

IMAGE(https://i.ibb.co/K2wjQy3/20220608-123641.jpg)

THE SAGA CONCLUDES! f*ck YOUR GAUNTLET CRISIS WARS, THIS IS THE REAL EVENT!

So I saw a lot of mention of True Colors in the GotY thread. And I realized I never played this original game. It's just sitting there in my PS4 pile of PS+ games so I installed it a couple nights ago and started. Had a few min today at lunch to conclude Ch 1. I really like it so far.

Seeing friends stats after the chapter was nice. But wow that also made me realize how many things I missed. I felt like I should hurry because dude was texting me about his USB drive so I didn't really hang out in the quad. After the chapter I see I could have let another student draw me and a couple other interactions there. Maybe not a huge impact on overall story but dang I didn't really make a choice, I just missed some stuff

Only took 3 or 4 of the 10 photos for the chapter too. Oops.

One thing really bugged me. In Chloe's bedroom I could not figure out

Spoiler:

how to hide from jerk stepdad. The closet dumped junk on me and I tried to rewind. Then I tried the bed and the window, no luck. Then he came in and I couldn't rewind. Thought maybe you just couldn't hide.

But then at end of chapter I saw 40% of y'all successfully did that. So now I'm wondering if I want to go back and fix that or maybe it doesn't matter? Ugh. Only one choice I went back on the first night but I stuck with everything today. Don't want to look up guides or spoilers but I also don't want to lock myself out of something because of 30 seconds of a puzzle.

Not sure I'm really asking a question, just talking. Very cool game and going to play more this weekend.

Always great to see/read someone play this game.

As far as I recall (not spoilerish beyond anything you already talked about)

Spoiler:

you can hide in the closet with a bit of rewinding

Also (not spoilerish about any specific consequences, only about whether the things you do in that scene matters later)

Spoiler:

This scene could matter quite a bit later, combined with other decisions. Whether you try to hide is not the most important decision in the scene however. Hiding certainly also might not be the "best" option!

Stele wrote:

Seeing friends stats after the chapter was nice. But wow that also made me realize how many things I missed. I felt like I should hurry because dude was texting me about his USB drive so I didn't really hang out in the quad. After the chapter I see I could have let another student draw me and a couple other interactions there. Maybe not a huge impact on overall story but dang I didn't really make a choice, I just missed some stuff

Always, always hang out as much as possible in the quad! Also goes for Life is Strange: Before the Storm.

Yes, whenever you get the chance to explore an area, take your time. Warren's needy ass can f*cking wait anyway.

I still can't believe that there are people that like Warren.

Couldn't finish episode 2 tonight but good progress. Got through junkyard and back to school.

A bit spoiled on the event coming up with Kate and possible romance choices because I looked up some stuff. Annoyed slightly but it's my own fault. I decided pretty quickly I wanted to try romance and then wanted to make sure I didn't blow it. Even then I had already missed one critical choice so I think I had to do something else I probably didn't want to but oh well. Hopefully I can avoid future episode spoilers and just play it out. First episode was mostly better that way.

And Ch 2 done. I took the only final choice that didn't get me suspended. Maybe not the thing to do but maybe so.

Spoiler:

Blame Jefferson

0% of my friends chose that. So maybe some of you aren't PSN friends with me? Surprising either way.

Ch 3 tomorrow I hope. Some crazy stuff is happening.

I just checked, Stele, and it seems you aren't on my PSN list. At the same time, there are a lot of permutations to that scene, and very rarely is there a "right" thing to do, though I do usually manage to remove suspension as a possibility one way or another. I'm a bit biased, LiS1 is really special to me, but I feel like it doesn't exactly do Choice as we've been conditioned to understand it. It's more actual consequence than a more gamified Path Sealed Off situation. It's rarely once choice that prevented something, it's more several choices that made something inevitable, and not all of them directly connect A to B to C.

And, lastly... Yes.

Yeah in chapter 1 i didn't

Spoiler:

Report Nathan or
Take picture of David and Kate

And like I said before I couldn't figure out

Spoiler:

Hide in closet. So I took blame for Chloe's pot.

So between those choices I didn't have any evidence to blame the other 2 with. And David always accused me of being a drug dealer. Tried both conversations and got suspended, so took the other choice that I figured let's me be on campus still. Probably not that drastic of a change for Ch 3, I'm sure you can progress things whether you're in class or not. But felt right to me.

Edit: checked PS app and we are friends. Nyx_Stele is my PSN

Oh, heh, I looked under "S," silly me!

Oh sh*t Chapter 3!

I was like no, no no no, don't do it Max... and then the game made me do it! Ahhhh!

Major choices:

Spoiler:

Stole the money - because the Principal is a lying drunk. How do you know it's really for handicapped kids and not his liquor money?

Didn't hurt the dog

Tried to kiss Chloe

Sided with Chloe, duh.

Chloe has the gun, as she always has in my run

Whoa. Need to get to Ch 4 ASAP.

Those were my picks. Chapter 4 is quite the thing. Are you playing the Remastered versions?

No, original. Had them free from PS+, so running the PS4 versions on PS5. Still looks good to me.

There's a weird tearing effect on the screen in the "previously..." scenes at the start of each chapter. Like diagonal blocks across the screen. Not sure if intentional, a bug, or something with PS4 game on PS5? But it's really distracting. Never happens during the main chapter though.

Interesting. The biggest focus on the Remastered versions was on improving facial animations, which really enhances the whole experience. Especially one coming up.

Chapter 4 opening bit was wild. Got up through hospital visit. Not sure what happens for those on a different path but I'll read comments when I get further. Feels like a longer episode already and I saw some non spoiler comments saying this chapter took more time. I'd like to just finish it all this weekend with the holiday but we'll see.

I'm enjoying reading your progress very much, Stele.

Chapter 4 is probably the longest, a hell of a lot happens in it.

Chapter 4 done. Dammit

Spoiler:

Accepted Chloe's request. At that point seemed clear we were going to undo everything anyway.

Stopped Warren. It just seemed excessive.

No one got hurt. Pain in the ass. Of course now there are guides or tips. Anger Frank two times and things spiral. Then it depends on Chloe having a gun, door open, etc. But I never got a chance to tell him to close the door. Not sure how some of those branches work.

Victoria believed me. Yay

That ending was brutal. And not surprising with who it was. Like others speculated, I immediately thought of a way to redo the party. Guess we'll see in chapter 5.

Fin.

Goddamn what a game

I got semi spoiled on the final choice at some point. But I was sure I knew what I was doing to do. And when it came time to do it I couldn't.

Spoiler:

I went all in on romance Chloe as soon as I found out you could. Only missed 1 of the 4 key choices. And when I found out it was her or the town I decided f*ck it. But then when it actually got to the scene. And Chloe said maybe she can't be saved and would keep dying and she asked me to sacrifice her again. And like her mom is right there in the diner, ground zero, definitely dying. I couldn't pull the trigger. What the hell was the point of saving people in the storm if I was just going to let them die?

Heartbreaking scenes after that. Kiss, love declared, butterfly, death, tears, pictures, funeral, ugh.

Not sure I made the right choice. Surprised the global is 52/48 and friends was pretty close to that as well.

More thoughts in a while. Got a lot of thread to read now with spoilers.

I'm glad you finished the game, Stele. I'm sure it will stay with you for a long time, just like I still remember it all these years later. As for my final decision, if you're curious...

Spoiler:

I chose to save Chloe because to me the whole game had been about saving her, so I wasn't about to let her die right at the end.

Now that you're done with the game, I would highly, highly recommend the prequel, Before the Storm. I thought it was fantastic!

Yeah I wanted to see if I enjoyed this free one I owned from PS+ before I bought any more. Looks like Before the Storm, 2, and True Colors all out there now. Not sure which I'll get next, or where. Probably wishlist and watch for sales.