LIFE IS STRANGE is an episodic adventure game developed by Dontnod Entertainment and published by Square Enix. The plot focuses on Max Caulfield, an 18-year-old photography student who discovers that she has the ability to rewind time at any moment, leading her every choice to enact the butterfly effect. She uses this ability to solve the disappearance of a girl named Rachel Amber, and the bizarre tragedies that fall upon the women in her academy. The player’s actions can alter the narrative as it unfolds, and the player can in many cases rewind time to choose a different option and thus reshape the story. Fetch quests and making environmental changes represent the forms of puzzle solving in addition to using branching choices for conversation.
LIFE IS STRANGE is a graphic adventure played from a third-person view. The player takes control of protagonist Max Caulfield, whose time rewinding ability allows the player to redo almost any action that has been taken. The player can examine and interact with objects, which enables puzzle solving in the form of fetch quests and making changes to the environment. Items that are collected before time travelling are kept in the inventory after the fact.
The player can explore various locations in the fictional setting of Arcadia Bay and communicate with non-playable characters. Dialogue exchanges can be rewound while branching options are used for conversation. Once an event is reset, the details provided earlier are permitted to avail themselves in the future. In some instances, choices in dialogue alter and affect the story through short or long-term consequences. For each one of the choices, something good in the short term could turn out worse later.
I watched most of the playthrough of this game years ago on YouTube but never saw how it ended. And I felt, with some of the LGBTQ undertones of this game, it would be a perfect game to play during the 2026 Pride Month Fundraiser, which all proceeds went to LGBT Waukesha. I truly love games that focus on the dialog to drive the game along, and how your choices affect the end result. It makes for good replay value.
If you are interested in purchasing LIFE IS STRANGE, you can get Episode 1 on STEAM for FREE or the Complete Season on STEAM for $20.00.
