Man, I love the Life is Strange series. I played all the games prior and I’m in love with the series. The storytelling hit me to the bone and left me in tears more than once. I’m keen to find out how the story of Life is Strange True Colors unfolds and if it can live up to its predecessors.
What is Life is Strange?
Life is Strange True Colors is the 3rd and latest game in the award-winning Life is Strange series. (4th if you count the prequel to Life is Strange 2 called The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit).
For those not familiar with the Life is Strange series. Life is Strange games are graphic adventure games played in 3rd person. The player can explore locations, examine and interact with objects and other characters, to let you progress in the story. Some would argue that these aren’t games because there isn’t much gameplay and I agree with them. Life is Strange is all based on its story, which is absolutely brilliant. The story develops around the decisions you make. The dialogue features branching options. The choices you make will alter and affect the story with short- or long-term consequences. It’s all about making dealing with difficult decisions and emotional storytelling.
The power of emotions
In True Colors, you play as Alex Chen. Gabe, her brother has gotten into contact with her after 8 years because they got placed in separate foster homes. Alex heads out to the small mining town of Haven Springs to connect where he lives and is finally ready to leave her old life behind. Alex’s life finally is headed in the right way after the struggles she had as a kid. As we have come to know, the main character of Life is Strange has supernatural abilities and so does Alex. She has the supernatural ability to absorb and manipulate the strong emotions of others. This is both a curse and a gift. The extreme emotions of others would take over and control her life.
When her brother dies in a so-called accident, she must embrace her volatile power to find the truth about the murder — and reveal dark secrets buried by the town. Discover the secrets behind your brother’s death by getting into other people’s minds to find out what exactly happened that night, in an emotional roller-coaster of an adventure. The game covers dealing with mental health and emotion. This is such an important topic to cover since there are many people around the world struggling with the exact same thing. It’s portrayed in a beautiful, unique, artistic way and blends in well with Alex’s powers and the story about finding out more about your brother’s dead.
Pet-peeves on the story
I will not go into detail too much about the story because that would spoil the entire game. I do however want to tell that the way the story is build-up is different from what we are used to with the series. You essentially play a role as a detective with superpowers. The overall pacing starts much slower than Life is Strange 2. This sets up what the characters are about, what this town is about, and lets you catch up with your brother. I however preferred the faster pacing of Life is Strange 2 story which also had a bigger feeling of urgency. The overall story of Life is Strange 2 was way more compelling to me even from the start. This doesn’t mean True Colors is bad, but it definitely has a different style to it.
To me, the dead of Gabe, Alex’s brother should not have been spoiled by the devs beforehand because it makes the impact when it actually happens so much weaker. I get why they did it since they need to have some reason for Alex to use her powers. True Colors is not connected to the other 2 games. This is no surprise since the other games weren’t connected either, story-wise. There however are some cross-overs between the games. True Colors features Ryan and Steph who appeared in Life is Strange: Before the Storm.
Voice acting, visuals & glitches
The voice acting and storytelling are really great and everything that you expect, know and love from a Life is Strange game. The dialogue within the game is told convincingly which really helps to bring home the storytelling and the emotional messages.
Graphically Life is Strange True Colors is a big step up from Life is Strange 2. This is especially noticeable with the lighting and faces of the characters in the game. The trees and other environmental assets also look more realistic because of the more extensive detailing that has been done. There are also more characters minding their business in the town. This makes the world more realistic and lived in.
There were definitely were some visual glitches like hair clipping through the characters etc. There were also instances of low-quality textures. I also had an audio clip repeat 2 times. These things also occurred from time to time in the games before. There are no glitches that break the game and all these small glitches are no deal breaker but I hope they are able to patch these things out after release.
Changing the release formula
Unlike the previous games, Life is Strange True Colors will not be released episodically. Instead, the game will be released in its entirety at once. The game however still is structured in five chapters/episodes so that you can enjoy the game as you like. I think this is a great and wise decision by the developers. Personally, I think releasing it in episodes was a nice and interesting way but also a bit obnoxious. As is the case with TV series, a lot of people want to bench watch (in this case bench play) a big portion all at once. This way there is an option to do it your way right from the start.
Different releases
Life is Strange True Colors is out now on PS4, PS5, Xbox (series), PC, Stadia and will be released later this year on Nintendo Switch. 3 different versions of True Colors are available as seen below. Standard is the basic game, deluxe contains 4 hero outfits inspired by past protagonists (Chloe’s Misfit Skull, Sean’s Wolf Squad, Daniel’s Space Mission, and Max’s Jane Doe outfits) and an extra, standalone bonus story called wavelengths which has you play as Steph in the year before Alex came to Haven Springs. The Ultimate edition has all this plus contains the remasters for Life is Strange 1 and Life is Strange Before the Storm.
Conclusion
To conclude, Life is Strange True Colors is an excellent addition to the Life is Strange series. The game covers dealing with mental health and emotion, a topic that is so important. It ties into Alex’s powers in an artistic way and that helps her to find out more about her brother’s death. The visuals have definitely been improved which is especially noticeable with the environment and lighting although some old glitches from before remain. Overall I really recommend this game. The storytelling, although different and a bit on the slow side, is yet another masterpiece that hit me to the bone and left me in tears more than once.
