Life Is Strange: Before The Storm (FULL REVIEW)

 Life Is Strange: Before The Storm is a prequel before the original Life Is Strange - and the game does well to fortify the experience of playing Life Is Strange - then Before The Storm as BTS would not make a ton of sense to a newcomer of the series (as far as side characters go) however that being said, Before The Storm does have a lot of elements in the game that require further discussion. (If you would like more in-depth coverage of Before The Storm before my final review, consider reading my Spoiler Free review of episode 1 here.)

STORY: 
Through the game as you uncover the story of Chloe’s past and her feelings before the incidents in Life Is Strange, you begin to uncover the truth about Rachel as well. During this dual storyline only allows for miniscule growth from both characters leading up to the especially strong events in Life Is Strange.

It all begins to feel a little confusing as the truth of the game unfolds. My expectations were that the story would cover the events between the series to help players gain answers or insight further into Life Is Strange, however Before The Storm instead feels more like a “cash-in” on the benevolent story from Life Is Strange as it does not answer ALL the questions and at times have lead to more. For instance, toward the ending of Ep3 we are in full throttle and expecting a more thought provoking and entitled story - only to get a Rachel who is not accounted for in the last few hours, and Chloe whose choices leading up to this point have been ambiguous at best as for what the players were to expect. 

Since Before The Storm uses heavy themes alluding to Life Is Strange (such as connections between characters like Frank and Rachel - and Frank's relationship with other characters) we instead are experiencing stories pertinent in Before The Storm instead. This isn’t to say that our favorite cast is not present! Aside from Max (sorry but there is no Max in any of these chapters, only mentions) we get to really soak in this “extraness” that we see outside of the original LiS. 

Playing as Chloe was exciting, as well as different, with her “back-talk” ability totally being disregarded by episode 3 and used in one instance - this feels like a forgotten mechanic or a rushed final episode. Before The Storm still captures a lot of life problems that are faced by youth today, such as individuals whom struggle with day to day living and tackling their questionable antics headon, this is executed throughout the story - witnessing Chloes clash with her new step-father, David, or Franks distraught position among humanity, as we see towards the end of the series here, not to say there is no riches to be gained from the amazing story the series grows from.

Speaking of, episode 3 felt much like a quick cash-in to wrap up the series. Myself among my hardcore LiS peers felt that a lot was missing from the ending by the time we reach the ending of episode 3 came the feeling of “Oh no this is not how they plan to end it!”

“Overall pretty disappointed with Life is Strange #BeforeTheStorm story just kind of fell flat and felt rushed.” -@LuckyArtist13

It feels that Before The Storm had rather focused on giving Rachel a side story than actually focusing on Chloe and her relationship - which gets “summarized” by ending cut-scenes in a standardized fashion reflecting Chloe's changes in society. 

“Hmm well they leave a few noticeable plot holes and leave a few unanswered questions that need answering”-@eazzz90 

The big problem here is why did the series not produce coverage of Rachel and Chloe’s relationship over the next few years leading to LiS rather we received a quick story.

“We had 3 years of Chloe and Rachel adventures that they didn't give us” -@Tyaeyu 

“It was very hectic and even though we did have some very intimate Chloe and Rachel moments, throughout the continuation of the game those moments become less frequent and things shift from being about Chloe and Rachel to helping Rachel establish a relationship with her mother” -@MsxLiz 

Indeed, it is the stories quick and unfolding progress to uncover the truth about Rachel's mother that is the driving force of the story line, and our supposed ambition as Chloe to assist Rachel in this short but novel romance. Unexplained Plotline Problems: It is never explained to us whether or not Rachel have magical powers or if it is just alluded, what we are to suspect from the fire in episode 1, that it could or couldn’t be either way we are led to believe in ourselves until more factual knowledge is produced (perhaps more fans will give us insight via findings in game?) 

By the end of the day, additional characters felt lackluster to the cause

It is in episode 3 where we are brought through a quickening pace of the story that does not answer some of the things the hardcore fans desire. What about the story with Chloe and Eliot? What about fine-tuning our relationship with Rachel over the next few years? Why were the fans jipped of that precious time between these two characters? Some people are even at a loss about the ending of Episode 3 as we are quickly brought to a scene with not much notice of what happened a few minutes prior (regarding scenes leading to the final ending) but why? 

“Lol hell is empty more like that episode was empty” - @Tyaeyu 

“Felt like the series flatlined after episode 1” (of Before The Storm) - @LuckyArtist13 “Storylines felt rushed, characters talked too slowly and dragged the story. Rachel did not even come close to having enough screen time.”- @DerekKingsland 

SOUND:

Even as I write this review, I am jamming out to perhaps one of the best soundtracks in time. Deck Nine worked their magic and yet again we have a full album that does not disappoint! Speculation has lead to believe that the soundtrack caters to Chloe’s taste in music as LiS catered to Max’s. Before The Storm features the ambience of sound and delight that received the same praise from its sister, but that to me makes it even more of a recognizable feat. Adding new songs that will carry fans through the next few years, as well as more beautiful yet despairing ambietic rhythms that will never leave our skulls. Atmosphere & Graphic Style:

Before The Storm challenged me in the graphical department as Life Is Strange did - and my stance stays the same regarding the series approach with graphics. While Life Is Strange has always featured it’s painterly style graphic, we are still in an age where graphics are something that do need consideration for immersion. A couple of times during gameplay I noticed some clipping and loading mid scenes as well as some unusual transitions. This does not mean that the game does not keep to it’s gorgeous presentation however with the graphic style provided it does leave a lot to be desired as we are missing the “finer details” in Arcadia Bay still. The style works for the game however and should be carefully considered as a part of the games identity - however I do have different expectations for Life Is Strange 2 (if that is to debut). 

Final Impressions: 
William’s dark and brooding appearances in the game were starlight - and that is to be said about this particular game. Before The Storm is not here to “disappoint” fans rather it feels like an expansion pack to give hardcore fans some more LiS delight. The game had significant issues with being downloaded at launch where we needed to find the episode 3 release under the PSN store as “Episode 1” seen with PS4 users. Rachel’s character although glorious did not receive enough show time, especially in episode 3. However she was a fleshed out character that did provide fans with satisfaction of her existence, again an excellent yet jumbled execution.

Although fans are claiming that Before The Storm is an emotional and toll taking ending, I must disagree. I feel like me and my friends saw the ending coming from a mile away, and as it began to unfold, so did a slight disappointment. It’s not about the emotional ending, but more of the connections that fans were not expecting throughout the end. It was more of a mystery to me however, how conclusive the ending became - in its own right - perhaps a noble yet troubling decision. 

Chloe and Rachel in what appears to be the height of BTS

There is a “secret ending” that does not exactly fortify any of the story progress as well, so even with the keen idea of keeping an ending that may be harder to obtain than others, fans will still not gain expected results to a satisfactory ending. 

“It’s as if they took an wikipedia article from Life Is Strange, then based a game on it. Pure fanservice.” -@LuckyArtist13

That’s not to mention that myself and others felt disappointed about Chloe's character development. “I can’t tell if she is aggressive, passive aggressive, new Chloe, or old?” -LuckyArtist13 

If I were to make an assumption, I feel that Deck Nine had limitations on character action and development due to the nature that this game is a prequel, however they played it way too "safe" with our fan favorite characters, and that was an ultimate disappointment for many of us. I wish that the characters were not as bounded as they had felt in this circumstance, leaving me wishing for much more, especially out of Chloe!
While fans are left with all sorts of feelings, it’s hard to deny that BTS did not carry out a smooth and buttery transaction that most would had hoped for. What happened to the time between Chloe and Rachel within the three years they spent together before the incident with Nathan? WHY ISN’T SAID INCIDENT IN THE GAME, FOR PLAYERS TO SEE WHAT HAPPENED? What about the changes Rachel and Chloe left in Arcadia Bay? Surely it wasn’t this 3, 4, 5 day romantic pursuit but so much more - yet we only get a small and simple glimpse regarding this lore, when fans wanted so many more answers. 

For now it looks like we'll be burning the midnight oil again.

It isn’t that Before The Storm failed this delivery, it’s more like they just didn’t care to explain the details. Ultimately, Before The Storm is a game that fans may of demanded - but maybe not everything they wanted. It’s not to say that BTS was not successful, but for the harder fans, you may find yourself with a slight disappointment. Before The Storm is still a treat however and I am more than happy to partake in the series expansion as a customer, but I can confidently say that it’s safe for me to blow out the candles for Max, Rachel, and Chloe in this bittersweet extension. 

 FINAL SCORE: 6/10