Life is Strange is an exciting tale that utilizes its mechanics and episodic format brilliantly. What is interesting about this dynamic is that there are no good or bad choices (I still don’t know if it is better to comfort or ridicule the school bully), but once settled on you are locked in for the rest of the story. Here your decisions can have lasting impact, and you are able explore every possible option. The rewind mechanic also comes into play when interacting with Life is Strange's various characters. Even turning on the sprinkler to spray the mean clique of girls with water stops being fun after the fifth attempt when you still don't know how to progress. While this is the primary mechanic, too often the number of times you have to replay a given zone becomes wearing. You never know exactly what you have to do on your first attempt in any given scenario, and thus find yourself constantly rewinding to try again despite the visual cues designed to help. In part this is because Life is Strange suffers from the old adventure game problem of having to battle the designer’s frequently impenetrable logic. Its no surprise that the game hangs so much on its story and characters as, in isolation, the puzzling gameplay would feel empty. Max is a particularly good example, with her running narration of events feeling believable even in the surreal situations the game places her. This helps you relate to each of the teenagers (with some being quite likable and other being total jerks), a connection aided by nice vocal performances and an expressive art style. The success of this is down to the focus Dontnod's writers have clearly given their work. Fortunately, each element is handled with the care and attention it deserve. With so many themes, it would be easy for them to feel scatter shot and throwaway.

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