Sometimes , a video game can sense like it was made just for you . Even though that ’s evidently not the case withLife is Strange : Double Exposure , which is part of a well - known franchise and pass year in development , I still ca n’t help but feel like that way .
As an anxious mellow schooler , I played the originalLife is Strangeand name a lot with Max Caulfield ’s journey then . Now , I ’m play this very ego - reflective follow - up set on a campus as I ’m returning to college myself to get a Master ’s Degree and thinking about where my lifespan has perish since my undergraduate daytime .
I was worried another Life is Strange game star Max Caulfield would find like an unneeded retread of worn ground . rather , it ’s a warm cover that reminds me of why I fell in lovemaking with the series in the first place . threefold Exposure’sgameplay is n’t anything special , but Max ’s aroused journeying is something I can deep connect to and affirms that developer Deck Nine realize why the original resonate with people like myself a decade ago .
Max is back
sprightliness is Strange : Double Exposuretakes place around a ten after the event of the firstLife is Strange . That game end with players making a choice ; they either had to kill Chloe to stop Arcadia Bay from being destruct by a violent storm or let Chloe go at the cost of that town . A 10 after the fact , Max is still go with the consequences of whichever selection she ’s picked after spend lots of meter on the route . She ’s now a instructor at the honored Caledon University and has made plenty of new friends , but she still nurse resentment toward her top executive and past choice .
Continuing Max Caulfield ’s news report offers me a ardent cover that I did n’t know I needed …
There has been some controversy within the residential area over the fact that this game implies thatMax and Chloe crack upif she lived or that she was just a eminent school sweetheart if she died . I do n’t mind this choice because Max ’s failure to swear out and palm what happened in a sound way is a core part of her excited spark inDouble Exposure . After her friend , Safi , is murdered , Max come across she has the power to journey between timelines where she ’s live and numb .
This yield Max a pathway to prevent Safi ’s murder as she could have for Chloe , but it also digs up old injury and forces Max to become more closelipped and withdraw from the multitude who deal about her most . Double Exposureis all about how people are forced to live with the event of their actions , preceding trauma , and even the death of loved ones that they have no control over . That may all sound very fearful , butDouble Exposurestill exit elbow room for witticism and optimism .
Its writing can still be cheesy , but that now do off as less Tumblr - tantalise and more like adult speak without worrying what other people will call up of them . chuck in an excellent soundtrack , andDouble Exposurecreates a vibe that feels not dissimilar from my own adult life . Continuing Max Caulfield ’s narrative offers me a affectionate blanket that I did n’t know I demand , but wo n’t say no to .
A refined production
Other key reasonsDouble Exposureworks so well are its fantabulous part cast and beautiful graphics style . Hannah Telle still feels deeply in line with Max ’s persona and delivers one of the class ’s best execution . The supporting mold is equally strong , with Safi ’s actress , Olivia AbiAssi , standing toe - to - toe with Telle and creating another Life is Strange grapheme that will plausibly become as iconic as Chloe or Alex Chen .
It ’s a tale adventure game you only play for the story .
Double Exposuresports a vibrant , painterly art style that feels like a more detailed version of the look the originalLife is Strangetried to achieve . It ’s similar to the visuals ofDragon Age : The Veilguard , oddly enough , butDouble Exposureexecutes it better because it ’s a lot more intentional in how it couch and lights certain fit . It also has few theatrical role and placement , so it sports telling movement seizure and facial animation despite a more cartoonish artistic creation style .
The one front whereDouble Exposureunderwhelms is gameplay , as it ’s as square as a story adventure biz can get . When player are n’t making dialogue choices in cutscenes to influence the event of the write up , they can take the air around a couple of different country place around Caledon University . Sometimes , to solve a light mystifier or reach context for a conversation , Max will have to use her new magnate to stir between the two timeline or activate a pulse to see what ’s give out on in the same spot in other timeline .
While these two mechanics are novel the first metre you pull them off , Double Exposuredoesn’t go anywhere with either of them . Deck Nine ’s previous narrative dangerous undertaking secret plan , such asLife is foreign : honest ColorsandThe surface area : A Telltale Series , got more creative with their gameplay estimate . I still lovingly remember theTrue Colorschapter that briefly turn the plot into a turn - based RPG andThe Expanse’szero - somberness moments . Double Exposure’sshift and pulse rate mechanics fail to hit that same Browning automatic rifle , making this a narrative escapade game you only play for the story .
Reflection and regret
gratefully , I amply corrupt into Max ’s later excited journey . I have n’t had to deal with nearly the same amount of harm as Max . Still , I ’ve recently gotten more ego - reflective and think about how different my sprightliness would be had I made dissimilar option . For example , had I not reached out toDualShockerson a whim one twenty-four hour period on Twitter in high school , I would not be writing this review for you right on now .
Then , there are the regrets .
If I had experience my heel would ’ve pass away when he did last year , would I have found way to spend more time with him or receive better elbow room to help oneself him ? Why did I hold off four years for a Master ’s Degree instead of enter that program after graduate in 2020 ? Thinking about these what - ifs can aid me process retiring mistakes and feel well - informed for succeeding decisions , but it can also become ego - destructive when go out unchecked .
Max now has mogul that illustrate all of that , andDouble Exposureis not afraid to tip into the fact that major power in this universe are more of a curse than a blessing . Max can make effective decision here because she has a unassailable social internet of friends at Caledon than in Arcadia Bay . I also felt this acquire good sense of community when returning to college , which is likely why this secret plan spoke to me on such a cryptic floor .
That deep connection is also why aspects ofDouble Exposure‘s ending leave me confused .
Without spoiling anything , Double Exposureexpends too much effort trying to lay the groundwork for a subsequence . It does n’t wrap up its story in a thematically and emotionally fulfill way , and there was a slight feeling of unfulfillment and occupy about what this game ’s ending imply for the hereafter of the series . It ’s an queer feeling when your solace food also desire to leave behind you yearning for your next meal .
The originalLife is Strangewas the correct game at the proper time for me , and the same is true forDouble Exposure . Max Caulfield ’s journey vibrate with me deeply , and Deck Nine has demonstrated that it can give that quality the respect she deserves . I may not love every facet of its gameplay or ending , but I ’m glad Max ’s story continued . I ca n’t say whether or notDouble Exposurewill sense like it was made for you , too , but I can sustain that the Life is unusual series can still seize that feeling .
lifespan is Strange : Double Exposurewas tested on Xbox Series X / S with a code provide by the publishing company .
