Nana MarfoA student with a passion for game development and all things Japan. Archives
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Life Is Strange:First Impressions28/5/2018 So, I don't want to make it a habit that I write First Impressions for games, but I felt with this game being heavy on the story, and episodic, this was one that needed it. I kept hearing about this game, and it's prequel, Before The Storm, but I really got to try it until now. Anyways Rules: 1.Spoilers are abounding, and depending on the game, can spoil the experience. This one in particular is very story heavy, so be warned going into the review. 2. I will not put aside any bias, but will try to be fair for games I do not like. This is my personal opinion. If you want to send your opinion, please do so in the comments below. 3.I am covering the PC version. Also, I know this game covers sensitive topics, which I may talk about, but besides maybe teens smoking, I will not show as a screencap. Enough Lead-In. This is my 1st impressions of Life Is Strange. Story If you have played this game, you know this is the real reason you play the game. Maxine(Max) Caulfield is a photography student who has been having visions of the forest and lighthouse breaking within her town of Arcadia Bay, which is based on a real life place called Tillmook Bay in Oregon. She finds herself in the bathroom having to stop a shooting of student and best friend Chloe Price. If you have played or seen Before the Storm, you will know who this character is. From her we find out Max is able to rewind time. The person who attempted to shoot Chloe was one Nathan Prescot, who we don't learn much about, but Chloe tried to use him pay $3,000 that she owes to her dealer. Max has to deal with Victoria, self righteous stuck up bitch who we have to throw paint in order get into the dorm. It turns out that Max has been in Seattle for 5 years, and Chloe is kinda pissed about that. She then takes her to the Light house and Forest, and she realises she has to stop a storm that is coming to the Bay. Overall, I think the story works as both a standalone, and setup for the bigger picture. While the game is story-heavy, I feel that it's not overwhelming. Max and Chloe are great characters, and they are really relatable. I feel though that Chloe will become the Main Character, and Max will represent the player's viewpoint, which while it works here, may become disjointed. Gameplay For the sake of the saving the full overlook for the full review, I will just go over the basics. Max can't do much besides walk and run, and her photography side is underplayed. Max can interact with certain objects, which I have to say is very clunky. You have to hover over the object, but that can be a problem when you have multiple objects, then press the look button over the mouse. It's becomes frustrating at points. The last thing I will talk about it the fact that Max can REWIND TIME AT ANY POINT IN THE GAME. This is not a game breaker...YET. It is however interesting to uses time to see the different outcomes. Looks, Sound and Final Thoughts The game looks great with a combo of realistic models, and cel-shading. The animations on the other hand... are really jarring. The faces barely move. And they did use Mo-Cap for this, and this in some cases is worse than what I've seen from Mass Effect Androimida. But I can't not let that get in the way of an amazing soundtrack! Very Atmospheric, almost all of it is acoustic, and the vocal Songs really suits the characters. Shoutout to this song in particular: Max, you have really good taste. The voice acting also does really lift the the presentation value. I really like Hannah Telle as Max and Ashly Burth as Chloe. Overall, I think that Episode 1 is a really good start to Life is Strange. I am intrequited to see how it goes on from here. Thanks for reading, have yourselves a great day/night, share if you enjoyed it and take care.
Written by Nana Marfo Life Is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm(C) Square Enix/Dontnod Entertainment
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