Life is Strange

Life is Strange is an adventure game based around choice and consequence, with modern aesthetics.

The main character of Life is Strange is Maxine "Max" Caulfield, a student at the fictional Blackwell Academy in Oregon. Shy and introverted, art seems to be her only passion – a passion that changes her life completely, as after taking a photograph of a colourful butterfly in the girl's washroom, she gains the ability to reverse time and thereby change her decisions just in time to save another girl from being shot and killed.

After averting a murder, Max's choices range from the simple to complex: tell the principal about a rich bully, or don't? Water a plant, or don't? The game helpfully indicates when a choice is significant and can be changed, or when it's required and can't be. It even tracks each major decision, providing a list of what you the player did at the end of each episode and comparing it to other players' decisions.

The game focuses on its characters and story, rather than on its puzzles and gameplay. There are a few light puzzles in Episode 1, but with the ability to try each step of a puzzle again quickly, and with most puzzles tending towards the forgiving side of things, the focus definitely falls squarely on what results from your decisions – and on figuring out what happens in general.

Although the game's depiction of modern life should generally resonate with high school and university students today, it was written by adults, and some bits of dialogue only work if you're of the right age in a given generation, or if you enjoy certain things. In spite of that, Life is Strange's story and dialogue flow together well, and its depictions of even sensitive modern issues should leave only a little to be desired!

Pros

• Easy to play, with skipping forward and backward built-in
• Well-written dialogue and snappy pacing

Cons

• References to games and movies can feel a little dated
• Early episodes provide much more setup than closure