Life Is Strange: Before The Storm Episode 1 Review (SPOILER FREE)

Life Is Strange Before The Storm is a game that takes place before Life Is Strange, this prequel is one of the more important aspects to the series however, as it answers questions that many fans have been looking for. For all intents and purposes there will be a final review with all four episodes (including the bonus DLC one so I can make further suggestions for buyers.)

MAIN PLOT/GAMEPLAY

Before The Storm has a sense of placement in the series that claims it’s spot rightfully so - before the events of Life Is Strange. You play as Chloe Price, the main protagonist who will be featured in the 3 episodes, and if you purchase the deluxe edition, you will gain an extra special chapter as Max, in what I can only assume is a tie-in between LIS and Before The Storm.

Without saying too much, (If you haven’t played the first game, then go play it! You can read my review for LIS here) The story is the telling of Chloe and Rachel Amber’s friendship, and what comes from it. Along the lines are deep and rattling moments that can leave you feeling either bewildered or compassionate towards the characters in the game, as you go along for the crazy train ride that Before The Storm sweeps you off to.  

Playing as Chloe, I found myself feeling slightly off key, already missing Max - yet a pleasant aroma of nostalgia slightly creeps in as episode one unfolds, so does our understanding of Chloe. This story is rich and filled with little details at every corner as you explore once again the wonderful town of Arcadia Bay which is seemingly coated with mystery and ambiguity. The game unfolds linearly however as you enter a new place, you begin to explore that area, which of course is pertinent to the story.  

Before The Storm has a clearly, heavier narrative that is not afraid to touch upon topics that the player may not be expecting, in other words be prepared for an emotional ride. If you can’t get past the fact that the game is a story-based game however, determines whether these topics will push or pull you toward the series as a person. The reason I say that is because there are not enough collectibles or challenges in the game to really offer a heavy replay value (episode 1 atleast) however I felt that the choices in the game were still narrative driven so it was a bit of a change up from LIS but nothing too drastic.

SOUND/DESIGN

As the title screen opened with an onset of heavy instrumental of Life Is Strange’s original menu theme, my ears were very pleased. Bass and snare drums are scattered throughout the series giving a sense of a darker undertone, while also remaining bountiful with acoustic guitar and great lyrics. I originally had mixed feelings while trying to understand the direction of the soundtrack, only to realize that as in series past, the soundtrack was made to reflect Chloe. Situations that appear in the game mixed in with a heavy sound left me feelings of frustration or chaos, all in a very impressive way! Before The Storm will drag you up or down with this glorious soundtrack, offering all the more immersion throughout the story.

The graphics have received a big upgrade from the original game, however there is still room for improvement as I had noticed rendering in game to the effect that my entire screen background was still polygonal on rare occurrences. Life Is Strange is known for it’s painterly design keeping a vibrancy, Before The Storm does the same. This colorful art style while pleasing to my eyes could appear as low-grade to others. I feel this is about acquiring a taste at this point that even took me time, and is considered as “good” graphics in my book. Given the premise of the game, I wouldn’t need the hyper-realism of Heavy Rain as it may be too distracting from the deep story of the game itself. Graphics and Sound get an “A”.

NOTEWORTHY MENTIONS:

Before The Storm offers a chapter select mode that lets you play from a specific scene during the chapter, a much added bonus!

There is no “rewind” ability in this game however Chloe has something called “Backtalk” which allows Chloe to argue her way into/out of a situation by triggering time-sensitive choices that you need to make in order to gain a favorable condition.

On my second playthrough of Episode 1, my “alternate” choices felt like they didn’t vary much in development with where the story was going, but I have yet to see what the other episodes will bring.

A pleasant feature that was partial to LIS are in-game capture moments, where you can let the Chloe stay in a particular moment and hear her thoughts, which is pretty cool.

OVERVIEW:

A few key notes here, LIS Before The Storm is releasing approximately 8 weeks apart from each chapter, this means long wait times for a fanbase that is deserving of a little more in my opinion. We don’t know why for any reason that the release times are longer than anticipated, however it has been without saying that it adds anticipation but also a wet blanket experience. I hope to see Episode 3 and final chapter 4 to release in a more timely matter, for immersion sake. The added wait times make it fun for fan theorizing, but 8 weeks was a bit too long.

LIS:Before The Storm is a game that mainly focuses on story, while I can provide you the utmost satisfaction of my experiences in the game, it is best for you to go and enjoy this game for yourself. If you have found yourself interested and need a game that has a good story embedded with pop cultural references, this is your game. Beware that this Before The Storm is not for the sensitive however and can leave the player with post-game depression. This is a solid game however, and I am looking forward to the new episode installments as they release. You can look forward to episode 2 coming out October 19th, 2017.

You can look forward to my final review once all chapters are released! Thank you!

-Jimmy