When I first read about "Life is Strange", I quickly dismissed it as another developer trying to hit on the same notes a title like "Gone Home" did, but in a more drawn out fashion. I guess I wasn't so far off in my reaction, but at the same time that is so beside the point that it doesn't matter. Plenty of mediums tackle time-travel, but none that I've seen do it in the style of "Life is Strange". It all kind of feels like a fever dream, which I guess makes sense when you think about your teenage years and what exactly happened there.
In the best way possible, this fever dream lets you live vicariously through an 18-year old girl who is transitioning into adulthood. That is to say: she reconnects with childhood friends, enters a new, upscale college, is exposed to the "Art World" at large, and so on. Not only is "Life is Strange" quite an accurate depiction of what I remember life in high school/college to be like, but it modernizes it to what it probably is for kids these days. However, it's not done in an alienating way, as I found it to be quite resonant with my own experiences some 8 years ago. Granted, I did not have the capability to rewind time, nor do I have it now, but the "school drama" part reminded me of my own time, blown up to the extreme.
Amidst all the chaos of school life, there is a thick layer of moral choices. A lot of times, simply choosing between "taking" an object, or "looking" at it, can make a huge difference. Of course, you are able to rewind time if you don't like the outcome, but the fact that the main character, Max, comments in a non-committal way regardless of the choice you make, always makes you second-guess if you made the right choice. It is the same with choices that have a much bigger impact on the story and the world around you, except those are made out to be and even bigger deal, since you are prompted with a message saying "If you leave the area, you won't be able to go back". It's a welcome warning, but made it even more difficult to commit to an answer or a choice.
Speaking of choices, sometimes the choices poor Maxine has to make are ludicrous and almost impossible to make. I was ready to dismiss them as simply a developer's way of adding shock value to their game, in order to make it more high-profile and something people would take about, but the real effect is that the stakes become that much higher. It's a way of grounding the story in reality, as the repercussions of your choices burrow into your very heart. Good or bad, it all happens "because of you". Amidst all the games in which you are the hero and have to save the world, I found "Life is Strange" to be a breath of fresh air. I was "back" to being a mundane teenager, with maybe a bit more agency than she should have, but also not a complete grasp of how things work in this world.
While it's hard to navigate through a review and avoid spoilers, let me tell you it is entirely worth playing. I do not regret the experience, and while some aspects of the story soured me a bit on it, I still think this was my favourite game of the last year. I still remember some of the choices to this day, and I do not get tired of seeing the game played by others, again and again.