What do you get when you cross the precedents set forth by developers Quantic Dream and Telltale? Well, that would be Life Is Strange, a coincidentally memorable episodic adventure game from developer DONTNOD Entertainment; the people behind the ironically forgettable Remember Me. While their 2013 product was not an absolute failure, it was unable to capitalize on the promise of its concept. Fortunately, Life Is Strange isn't plagued with those same issues from Remember Me, as it ditches its action-adventure samplings in favor of a modern adventure game. Its first of five episodes, titled "Chrysalis", not only sparks interest for what is to come, but is probably the most promising title of the new year thus far.
The story follows Max, an eighteen-year-old female student at Blackwell Academy for her senior year of high school, attempting to pursue her dream of becoming a photographer. To keep it brief, let's say she's not enjoying herself as much as she thought she would, encountering various bullies with little to no friends. While causally attending class one day, she finds herself in a surreal dream, only to return able to rewind time itself. This is Life Is Strange's main mechanic and plot component. With a simple tap of the left trigger, you can rewind certain decisions and their resulting outcomes. Naturally, this comes into play with various puzzles of the sort, but the twist is that you always have the option to change a decision if it's not to you're liking. As long as you don't exit the event's general area, you can contemplate and alter your choices for any length of time you want. Given the genre and polish of the title, this mechanic is welcomed open arms. The system adds additional depth the story and characters, that I would otherwise be completely oblivious to. Even if the situation was already to my preference on an initial attempt, I found myself rewinding anyway to view how the characters would adjust to different outcomes; occasionally leading me to change my decision yet again from further insight gained on the characters. This time manipulation is greatly implemented, and a needed change of pace from the heavy use of QTEs that both Quantic Dream and Telltale games are guilty of. It's also worth pointing out that the actual main characters in the game are very round. Max appears believably socially awkward to certain crowds, but also innocent and generally likable. Contrasting personalities are successfully portrayed as condescending as possible, all while keeping up with the work's excellent script.
It should be noted that Life Is Strange evokes a fairly abstract art style. While nothing revolutionary, it's portrayed in a very artistic sense that I am obviously having trouble communicating. Just know that it's a portrayal that fits into the adventure game genre with ease, and brings out aspects such as night rain with great significance. Technically, the remaining aspects of the game are competent. The game runs at a constant and reasonable frame rate, all while seamlessly flowing from gameplay to cutscene. Simultaneously, the game is fully voiced with excellent voice acting; nearly every NPC in the game. Sure, the lip-sync is almost always tremendously off, but it's easily forgivable given the rest of this exceptional package.
Life Is Strange's inaugural episode, "Chrysalis", is a fairly promising start to what may become a great full game. The production quality is clearly present, and the characters seem round enough to carry on the remainder of the season. Problems may only rise with the aspects of the plot, as the episode's intentionally ambiguous ending leaves on a note similar to that of a television program's pilot. What is to come may just as easily jump the shark as it may pull a Twelve Monkeys-esque revelation. Life Is Strange may not be as thought-provoking or emotionally impactful as its contemporaries, but it's almost guaranteed to provide the player with a fairly enjoyable two hour start to end a rather bland January.