Written by Anthony L. Cuaycong
Title: Life is Strange 2: Episode 1 - Roads
Developer: Dontnod Entertainment
Publisher: Square Enix
Price: $39.99 (Complete Season)
Genre: Adventure
Also Available On: PS4, Steam
It’s a testament to the critical and commercial success of Life is Strange that Dontnod Entertainment had already begun work on a sequel even as its final episode was just being released. When the French developer confirmed the piece of news in January 2016, sales had already reached the three-million mark and physical copies were already making their way to store shelves. Episodic adventure games weren’t new to the industry, and yet it managed to present a choice-driven, coming-of-age narrative that transcended the genre. And, understandably, it wanted to build on its singular achievement.
Parenthetically, it was no surprise to find Dontnod leaning on the same group that produced Life is Strange for the next title in the series. Directors Michel Koch and Raoul Barbet were again tapped to lead the effort, backstopped by writers Christian Divine and Jean-Luc Cano, voice director Phil Bache, producer Luc Baghadoust, and composer Jonathan Morali. From the outset, however, it made clear its intent to come up with an altogether new story for the sequel, featuring new characters, new locations, new milieus, and, yes, new dilemmas.
It’s a testament to the critical and commercial success of Life is Strange that Dontnod Entertainment had already begun work on a sequel even as its final episode was just being released. When the French developer confirmed the piece of news in January 2016, sales had already reached the three-million mark and physical copies were already making their way to store shelves. Episodic adventure games weren’t new to the industry, and yet it managed to present a choice-driven, coming-of-age narrative that transcended the genre. And, understandably, it wanted to build on its singular achievement.
Parenthetically, it was no surprise to find Dontnod leaning on the same group that produced Life is Strange for the next title in the series. Directors Michel Koch and Raoul Barbet were again tapped to lead the effort, backstopped by writers Christian Divine and Jean-Luc Cano, voice director Phil Bache, producer Luc Baghadoust, and composer Jonathan Morali. From the outset, however, it made clear its intent to come up with an altogether new story for the sequel, featuring new characters, new locations, new milieus, and, yes, new dilemmas.
The result, released two and three-quarters years later, is nothing short of remarkable. Considering that only the first episode has been made available, it may well be premature to say Life is Strange 2 is better and more polished. Yet, if Roads is any indication, it’s well on its way to earning its status as a superior sibling. It certainly runs and thrives with concepts and frameworks established by such disparate wordsmiths as John Steinbeck and Jon Krakauer, showing the good and bad sides of the United States while its protagonists travel across the country.
Life is Strange 2 has players in control of Mexican-American high-school teen Sean Diaz. With nine-year-old brother Daniel, he goes on the run from the authorities following an unfortunate development that disrupts their otherwise uneventful lives in suburban Seattle. En route to Mexico with no money and armed only with supplies from the backpack they’re carrying, they experience bigotry and racism, politics and violence (and not always of the physical kind), and a hint of the supernatural. The circumstances they find themselves in inform their relationship, with the elder sibling’s choices — even the seemingly small ones — firming up the younger’s moral code and affecting the direction of the narrative.
As with the original, Life is Strange 2 compels players to make hard decisions, and how they act determines the course of the game. And because nothing is presented in black and white, there is no right or wrong choice. Then again, there are consequences, and the gravity of the effects are certain to be felt moving forward. Sean is faced with having to protect Daniel by the means at his disposal, but at the same time needs to weigh the demands of expediency with their long-term repercussions on an impressionable companion.
In terms of actual length of play, the first episode of Life is Strange 2 is short; Roads won’t take players five hours to finish. Then again, the sure-footed manner with which Dontnod lays it out may well have them playing it anew, or, at the very least, appreciating their experience. Often, the turns in the story will give them pause and make them wonder if things would have been the same had they done something else or gone another way earlier. And if they’re left to their thoughts in the end, looking back wistfully and ahead impatiently, it’s because the game succeeded in moving them.
Certainly, much of Life is Strange 2’s capacity to immerse players in its world can be traced to Dontnod’s painstaking care in making visual and aural cues as realistic as possible. Settings are extremely detailed, and the smoothness of the character animations complement the excellent voice acting. The soundtrack is spot-on, with background music and ambient noise appropriately enhancing the mood at the moment. That said, the taut script and dialogue add the most weight; taking in the plot as it unfolds, players simply cannot help but be caught up in Sean and Daniel’s travails, and, in so doing, reflect on their own.
If there’s any negative to Life is Strange 2, it’s that the second segment cannot come soon enough. Even as Roads possesses high review and replay value, its very excellence figures to make waiting for Episode 2 seem interminable. The original appears to have already been surpassed, with the best yet to come.
THE GOOD
- Excellent presentation of moral choices
- Outstanding production values
- Audio-visual cues enhance the atmosphere
- Taut script and dialogue
- Compelling tale that promises better things to come
THE BAD
- Short by videogame standards, its episodic nature notwithstanding
- Can be heavy-handed on occasion
- Episode 2 can’t come soon enough
RATING: 9/10
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