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Time and moneyz obviously. They went through all that build up with symbolism and spirit animals, parving a way for some sort of ending where
the dead girl whos name I forgot wasn't supposed to die and by fixing that the boy heroine would make things right again. Sucks for a lez relationship with Chloe the game pushed you towards that nerboy anyway. Instead they went for some "LOL you can't change the past, but at least you got to experience some awsome adventure with your now dead friend right? An adventure only you know, or was it all just a dream? ZOMG SO DEEP AND MULTILAYERED!"
The butterfly represented Chloe and by not dying her flapping wings created the end of the world or what? Remember we got the superpowers and vision of doom BEFORE Chloe died, so it doesn't even make sense in their own narrative.
Whatevers. EP1-4 were fun, by not playing EP5 I can roll with whatever ending I want. Like playing ME3 before the Cerberus base attack, then Citadel and call it the final end.
Where did you get the info they ran out of money? Since the game sold so well, much better than ever expected, one would think that Square-Enix would provide them some resources for the later episodes.
I was pretty impressed with this little gem so I thought I'd write down a few impressions.
I will put the biggest spoilers into tags but there will still be several with regard to the ending, lest I put the whole text into tags, so read at your own peril.
Up until now I have not played any of these kind of new not-a-game CYOA games myself though I am vaguely aware that many on the Codex dislike them. I have watched friends play them for a bit and I can see why, so I was not too keen when someone advised me to check out Life is Strange. The trailer seemed to be completely uninteresting. Some kind high school relationship-simulator or something? I guess I'll pass. My friend then forced me to play the first hour of the game.. and I was immediately hooked. Finally I could be who I was always meant to be: A cute girl in an art school.
I loved how the game started with a school lesson that was actually somewhat interesting and I loved all the little details of the scene. The game creates a great atmosphere right away through the use of music (amazing soundtrack), all the posters, the photos, the graffiti, students walking around, interacting with each other, people sending you text messages and so it. It really brings this little microcosm to life and makes it fun to explore. The atmosphere of Arcadia Bay is very soothing and its just a very relaxing game to play, with the comfy somewhat comic-y graphics and the mellow soundtrack. In a very stressful week it was fun to play Life is Strange and watch some Bob Ross in the evening. I could make photos of little squirrels in-game. Relaxing stuff. That the creators managed to make the town such a loveable place to be will be important later. They do however inject a certain degree of mystery somewhat akin to Twin Peaks (which is referenced). It adds just the right amount of tension without taking away from the chillout factor.
As for gameplay, well, I can see why you call them not-a-game. There really were almost no puzzles to speak of, all of them very easily solvable (and I am not an adventure games expert). You could tell that the creators didn't want to frustrate players who are dumb just want to experience the story. As such, the few puzzles seem to be there more to spice up the game a little and give you the illusion of actually doing something to progress. The fun here derives from living in the world itself, exploring it, talking to people etc. There was one good puzzle in Episode 4 though and some mildly interesting ones which actually put your time travel ability to use, so its not like the creators were incapable of doing something interesting with this. I wish they would have done more.
The only other notable gameplay mechanic is the choices & consequences thing. Considering how this is supposed to be the very center of the game one has to be let down by this a bit. Every choice you make is telegraphed to you by a little icon, often going with the PC commenting on what you did and that you could have done something else (allowing you to go back in time and change what you did). This in itself is already a bit weird and I was wondering if the game would be better if it not clearly pointed out every little decision to you. It seems to be the games version of a quest compass. On the other hand, the game teaches you to make sensible choices and consider the possible consequences so you might as well say that the form accommodates the function. There are a whole bunch of little choices that hardly matter (watering your plant? Kaaay..).
The gravity of the bigger choices on the other hand is somewhat diminished by the fact that, at least the way I see it, there is very often a clearly better choice, so these are not exactly head-scratchers usually. I can back this feeling up with SCIENCE! since the game offers you global stats at the end of each episode and for the most part there seemed to be clearly preferred choices (proving that even consoletards can have a good heart). For a game focusing so much on making right choices this is perhaps its biggest problem. Some of the choices may accumulate and can change how certain scenes play out but ultimately you always get back on the same story-track everybody else is on and the finale is the same for everybody.
There may be choice but not much consequence and it would not matter anyway since
both endings make every prior decision null and void. I can see why a lot of people were pissed off by that.
So what is it that makes the game great then? Well, I am afraid to say its the narrative and the degree of emotional engagement it manages to create. Codex cynics better get ready for massive faggotry:
The best starting point to explain why this game is great is its ending. The emotional impact of the ending choices completely hinges on whether the writing of this game was successful or not, otherwise the last choice would be a total no-brainer.
The needs of the many outweigh the need of the few, right? So it seems to be a pretty immoral choice to let everybody in Arcadia Bay die just to save your friend. If the writers would not have managed to make that character sympathetic, everybody would just sent Chloe to die. Likewise, Chloe is clearly the most important and well thought-out character, so the creators could've easily run into the problem that players would think in the end 'Why the fuck would I care about any of these other people?' and drive with Chloe into the sunset.
Neither is the case, the ending decision really is the only decision in the game that really made me stop and give it thought. I am not the only one, the global stats when I played where almost 50/50. This is in my view a massive triumph for the writers of this game.
For one thing they manage to really bring the two central characters to life. The story of the deep friendship and love between Chloe and Max is told in such a sensitive way that it makes it impossible not care about them both. Yes, it crosses the boundaries to pathos on occasion but I always felt that some sentimentalism is in order when talking about the really grand emotions. There are a lot of beautiful little scenes between them and in fact the game hits this point home by reenacting some of them in the trippy nightmare sequence to show again how deeply the two care about each other. It can get a little grating how often they call each other best friend (turn it into a drinking game!) so even the dumbest player understands, but this friendship is not only declared to the player but also experienced by him in the way these two interact (talking about 'show, don't tell' guys). Max and Chloe have considerably more depth with all their coming-of-age issues, insecurities, dreams and regrets than all the other characters.
The rest of Arcadia Bay seems to be a bit more cliched and flat. As I have pointed out, I see this discrepancy as somewhat of a necessity to make the ending choice impactful. Nonetheless, the characters are engaging enough to make them memorable. Cliches have their roots in reality, they are concentrated archetypes of people we have to deal with in our everyday lives. This is why we can immediately make a connection to them and understand what they signify. We have encountered people like them before. This is a cheap but effective way to manipulate our emotions. Yes, Victoria is your typical high school bully who is at heart just insecure. Yes, Kate is your typical depressed little wallflower who only needs a friend. Nonetheless, they succeed at what they are supposed to achieve. Victoria may be a cliche but we still despise and pity her at the same time. Kate may be a cliche but she still manages to evoke our compassion. Nathan may be the cliché of a typical psychopath with a hard childhood but we still hate his guts. The characters could be more complex but they are sufficient for the roles they have to fulfill in this narrative. The depth is where it counts – with Chloe and Max.
The game manages, despite its short length, to deal with a ton of different themes. Art & pretentiousness, high school bullying, introduction to chaos theory (lol), finding your own way in life, the importance of trust and friendship (its magic!), how to deal with the loss of loved ones .. just to name a few. At the center of it all is the perhaps most important element of growing up – the ability to make responsible choices in your life.
Episode 4 & 5 absolutely excel in this regard.
The moment when Max realizes that William has to die and goes to back in time again gave me the goosebumps (and other emotional reactions I would never admit to on the Codex).
What makes the ending so brilliantly gut-wrechning to me is that the 'right choice' is clear but so incredibly hard. This is very different from your usual either 'good vs. bad or 'there is no right choice' in most RPGs. Since the game spends hours to get you emotionally invested it becomes nigh impossible to do 'the right thing'. Lets just compare this for a second to typical RPG C&C. In Wasteland 2 you have the choice to either save AG Center or Highpool. I like it, its a moral choice that you can certainly discuss on an intellectual level. But it is nothing that makes you feel deeply. Hearing the other location go to shit on the radio was cool and ending slides are cool but after all it seems to be relatively emotionless academical kind of decision, about people you never see or care about. After you have gotten to know beautiful Arcadia Bay and done so much for its residents, and told Chloe time and time again that you will never ever let her down again, this is a choice that hits your right in the fucking feels.
And I couldn't do it. I have traveled time and space and numerous alternate realities and told Chloe that I will be on her side forever. I couldn't just sent her to her death at the final hour, morals be damned. (I am sorry, Kate.) You also have a responsibility for your loved ones and nobody could possibly ask me to go back into that bathroom to watch Chloe die.
It is a bit silly how this game managed to get me attached to fictional characters that much, but its the truth.
The one gripe that I have with the ending is that the final cinematic seems to be a bit of a let down. I have not had it in me so far watch the other ending but I read it seems to be much more elaborate and emotional. I suppose the creators put more effort into what they viewed as the right choice. As one guy on the internet put it, the second ending seems a bit like a cop-out for the weak-willed. It feels kinda wrong and unsatisfying, almost dreamlike. They should have done a bit more here.
tl;dr
Alright, two thousand words of jabbering about feels, lets wrap this up. Life is Strange offers little in terms of puzzles and actual adventure gameplay and even its C&C mechanics are questionable. If you don't like these kind of not-a-game CYOA games this ain't likely to change your mind.
What it offers is wonderful atmosphere and a narrative experience with a level of emotional engagement that to my mind is unprecedented in video game history. If that is something you care about and can engage with without losing your sense of manliness, this game is a must play.
The needs of the many outweigh the need of the few, right? So it seems to be a pretty immoral choice to let everybody in Arcadia Bay die just to save your friend. If the writers would not have managed to make that character sympathetic, everybody would just sent Chloe to die. Likewise, Chloe is clearly the most important and well thought-out character, so the creators could've easily run into the problem that players would think in the end 'Why the fuck would I care about any of these other people?' and drive with Chloe into the sunset.
Neither is the case, the ending decision really is the only decision in the game that really made me stop and give it thought. I am not the only one, the global stats when I played where almost 50/50. This is in my view a massive triumph for the writers of this game.
lol, the only reason why stats are almost 50/50 is because everyone wanted to see the alternate ending so they reloaded the game from save and it still counted into statistics.
At first I disliked Chloe but she grew on me during the game. Still the ending choice was a no-brainer for me. You can replace Chloe with the person I love the most in this world and I still wouldn't make that choice. To me there was only one option. If Max sacrificed her friends, people she knew and her (girl)friend's parents, the guilt would eventually destroy her, especially since the tornado was kinda her fault. The one person she saved would therefor be miserable too in that scenario. What's the point then?
Some of the choices were hard to cope with but none of them were hard to make for me. The only choice I had to think about for more than 5 seconds was...
...whether to stop Warren from beating the shit out of Nathan, because I over analyzed it too much. I didn't want Nathan to keep his gun, especially since he is crazy spoiled fuck who will be looking for revenge. On the other hand I didn't want Chloe to have a gun either and I was sure Warren would get suspended for beating him so bad (daddy would take care of it) so I ended up stopping him.
lol, the only reason why stats are almost 50/50 is because everyone wanted to see the alternate ending so they reloaded the game from save and it still counted into statistics.
aw, shit. but in the days of youtube? anyway, fair point. thus crumbles the fundation to my biggest compliment. nevertheless, most people seem pretty torn between the two.
gonna respond to the other stuff later if other people chime in on ending discussion.
Would not recommend, unless you are into melodramas written by grown men who think they know all about teenagers (and teenage women in particular).
There are some good moments. Talking Kate down off the roof, and helping David take down Mr. Jefferson (and the conversation afterwards) felt like the two most honest parts of the game.
I think the main reason I didn't like it was Chloe. She's the main thing in the game and I hated her character right from the start. So you can guess what ending I picked. I took huge pleasure in finally getting rid of that annoying whiny selfish tattooed butch monster.
To be honest, Dana is the one of the few girls in the game who actually looks remotely 18 like everyone is supposed to be. Still feeling strangely guilty after playing the swimming pool scene.
Sqeenix is probably selling this as "life in junior high school is strange" in Japan.
To be honest, Dana is the one of the few girls in the game who actually looks remotely 18 like everyone is supposed to be. Still feeling strangely guilty after playing the swimming pool scene.
Sqeenix is probably selling this as "life in junior high school is strange" in Japan.
I didn't mean just that but also the way they act. When they aren't in a group, they talk to you like normal people. This mirrors my own experiences at school.
Even the bitchiest one is actually quite a sympathetic character if you try to get to know her. She is just massively insecure, she thinks she has no talent.
Compare them to Chloe who is pretty much a 2d character and was only interesting when she was 13 years old in a flashback.
Its interesting that we come to completely opposite conclusions about the characters.
I'm not inclined to write another essay but I can't for the life of me see why Chloe - with her energy, her rage, her attachement and trust issues with regard to Rachel and Max, her difficult relationship with her Mom, her fairly realisticly told gradually warming up again to Max, the sorrow of her past losses and all the other characteristics that define her - is in any way 2D, particularly not in comparison to the cardboard characters which walk around in Blackwell (the wallflower, the rich bully, the nerd, the cheerleader.. etc). This game had better characterization than any RPG I can think of that I played in recent years.
Its interesting that we come to completely opposite conclusions about the characters.
I'm not inclined to write another essay but I can't for the life of me see why Chloe - with her energy, her rage, her attachement and trust issues with regard to Rachel and Max, her difficult relationship with her Mom, her fairly realisticly told gradually warming up again to Max, the sorrow of her past losses and all the other characteristics that define her - is in any way 2D, particularly not in comparison to the cardboard characters which walk around in Blackwell (the wallflower, the rich bully, the nerd, the cheerleader.. etc). This game had better characterization than any RPG I can think of that I played in recent years.
Its interesting that we come to completely opposite conclusions about the characters.
I'm not inclined to write another essay but I can't for the life of me see why Chloe - with her energy, her rage, her attachement and trust issues with regard to Rachel and Max, her difficult relationship with her Mom, her fairly realisticly told gradually warming up again to Max, the sorrow of her past losses and all the other characteristics that define her - is in any way 2D, particularly not in comparison to the cardboard characters which walk around in Blackwell (the wallflower, the rich bully, the nerd, the cheerleader.. etc). This game had better characterization than any RPG I can think of that I played in recent years.
I just finished all five Episodes, and that little game took me by full surprise. Probably the best story-fag adventure I can remember playing for a very very long time.
Dontnod shits all over these self-proclaimed story-experts like Bioware, Quantic Dream & Co.
Also, the Episode 3 ending made me
But then Episode 4 made me
again.
Albeit the characters are very cliché, they're also adorable and with lot of heart. And then there's the occassional dork humor that actually made me lol. Guess I'm such a... dork. Voice acting is also outstanding.
Definitely a developer that's now on my shortlist of
again.
