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Life is Strange: Before the Storm | Review Thread

C

chadskin

Member
Episode 1 - Awake: GAF OT / Spoiler Thread

OpenCritic / Metacritic

GameSpot - 8/10
Polygon - 8/10
GameInformer - 8/10
GamesRadar - 4.5/5
Hardcore Gamer - 4.5/5
DualShockers - 6.5/10
Twinfinite - 4.5/5
Metro - 8/10
TrustedReviews - 3/5
PCGames.de - 8.5/10
CGMagazine - 8/10
WindowsCentral - 4.5/5
GodIsAGeek - 7/10
PushSquare - 8/10
DarkZero - 8/10
AttackOfTheFanboy - 4/5
Gameblog.fr - 7/10
PCInvasion - 7/10
XboxAchievements - 8/10
WeWriteThings - 9.6/10
ComicsBeat - 9/10
AppTrigger - 7.5/10
JustPushStart - 8/10
USGamer - 3.5/5
IBTimes - 3.5/5
PlayStationUniverse - 8/10
CogConnected - 8.3/10
NZGamer - 8.5/10

Videogamer - review in progress
RockPaperShotgun - no score
ACG - Wait for sale
TheSixthAxis - no score
VG247 - no score
 
B

benzopil

Member
Finished it. Amazing episode. Great attention to details, some questions from the first game are answered here, some fun optional dialogues (talk to everybody and interact with everything!). New developers did a great job I think. It was hard to make a good prequel which nobody asked for but they succeeded.

Found one more review: Twinfinite -- 4.5/5
 
Z

Zareka

Member
Man. Better than I thought, but I still don't like the decision to recast Chloe. I'd feel guilty supporting that.

Quick edit: I'm glad the game is good don't get me wrong.
 
G

Gator86

Member
Did not realize this was coming out so soon. I'll see you after all the episodes are out.

RIP Chloe's voice.
 
K

killroy87

Member
Hmm, ACG thought almost everything about it was shit.

I'll wait until all episodes are out, and see how it fares. I hate the idea of committing to something that doesn't stick the landing, that will just piss me off. It's not like I need another game to play right now anyway.
 
C

carlsojo

Member
It's way better than the original so far. Animations are GREAT, new Chloe voice does a great job, and it's really funny too.
 
J

Jay Shadow

Member
Zareka said:
Man. Better than I thought, but I still don't like the decision to recast Chloe. I'd feel guilty supporting that.

Quick edit: I'm glad the game is good don't get me wrong.
Click to expand...
It wasn't really a decision though. Either they recast or they can't finish their game. It's a shitty situation though.
 
T

TheDanger

Banned
benzopil said:
An excellent start to a prequel series that taps into the same style of sincere storytelling as the original, making a previously unsympathetic character seem vulnerable and likeable.
Click to expand...

wtf I liked her before, as does pretty much everyone I have talked to
 
P

petethepanda

Member
Not sure about this one. I thought Chloe was a far more interesting character than Max in the first season, but this would need to amount to a lot more than simply "spending more time with Chloe" to get me on board.
 
TannerDemoz

TannerDemoz

Member
Have we got a full OST (SOUNDTRACK not a typo) for this?

Soundtrack to the last one was amazing. Hope they press this onto vinyl and don't hide it behind Square Enix store again...
 
S

Staf

Member
Nice reviews! Have it pre-ordered. Not sure if i'll play it now or wait until all episodes are out though.
 
S

SpotAnime

Member
Newegg has a $3 discount coupon, so I picked up the digital code for $13.99. Not too bad, a latte away from my $10 blind buy limit.

Glad to see this is getting good reviews. Can't wait to get back into this world.
 
N

Nictel

Member
Just finished season one with my girlfriend. It is one of the very few games we enjoyed playing together so looking forward to the new season, reviews are good so far.
 
S

shaneo632

Member
Got a review code from SE this afternoon, just finishing up my review now. I basically enjoyed it bar some cringe-worthy moments. Solid 7/10 for me.
 
F

Family Fry

Member
VGdrumCovers said:
Have we got a full OST (SOUNDTRACK not a typo) for this?

Soundtrack to the last one was amazing. Hope they press this onto vinyl and don't hide it behind Square Enix store again...
Click to expand...

The band Daughter are doing an official soundtrack. Believe it's due September 1st.

Music from Before the Storm.
13 tracks, 10 new, 3 old.

Square PR
https://eu.square-enix.com/en/node/7107

Interview with band.
http://www.m-magazine.co.uk/features/interviews/interview-daughter/
 
NeoRaider

NeoRaider

Member
It's unlocked on Steam now.
I am really surprised that no one created OT for this.

Great scores so far.

killroy87 said:
Hmm, ACG thought almost everything about it was shit.

I'll wait until all episodes are out, and see how it fares. I hate the idea of committing to something that doesn't stick the landing, that will just piss me off. It's not like I need another game to play right now anyway.
Click to expand...

One person thinking that "everything abut the game is shit", says nothing.
Maybe they just don't like the genre, or themes this game is about.
 
C

Conscience Falls

Member
Played two hours last night, still have a bit to go judging by the achievements they reward for optional objectives (think the photos from the original) and I'm still unsure of how I feel about it. Life is Strange was tied for GOTY with The Witcher 3 for me, as I was constantly bowled over by the character interactions, score, atmosphere and plot. The writing wasn't perfect but the overarching narrative was effective in drawing me in and keeping me riveted throughout the months that episodes were dropping. This, however, has a ton of cringe-worthy dialogue; the worst offender being the "SASSY CHLOE GONNA TEAR YOU DOWN VERBALLY MODE" which reads like a painful and hastily written retort to an argument that happened hours earlier. The voice acting for all the characters missing their voice actors due to the SAGAFTRA ranges from barely noticeable to egregious and Chloe fluctuates wildly between the two. Also, (light spoilers)
they paint Max as a total asshole through unread texts and Chloe's personal journal.

Looking forward to playing more (purchased the deluxe edition for the epilogue episode) but trying to keep my expectations in check.

Family Fry said:
The band Daughter are doing an official soundtrack. Believe it's due September 1st.

Music from Before the Storm.
13 tracks, 10 new, 3 old.

http://www.m-magazine.co.uk/features/interviews/interview-daughter/
Click to expand...

Is the full album not out yet? I keep seeing tracks from it show up on my Spotify recommended playlist/Release Radar.
 
J

JehutyRunner

Banned
Finaika said:
How's the voice?
Click to expand...

It's immediately obvious it's isn't Ashley, but after a few minutes, it becomes second nature. New actor fits into the role really well. It just takes a bit to get used to, but no longer than ten or fifteen minutes. Otherwise, it's a near-perfect decision. Obviously, you'd want Ashley Burch to be voicing Chloe, but as a backup when the other option was the game's cancellation (literally, it was on the cusp of being canned because of this), this is a stroke of great castmaking.
 
C

carlsojo

Member
Conscience Falls said:
Played two hours last night, still have a bit to go judging by the achievements they reward for optional objectives (think the photos from the original) and I'm still unsure of how I feel about it. Life is Strange was tied for GOTY with The Witcher 3 for me, as I was constantly bowled over by the character interactions, score, atmosphere and plot. The writing wasn't perfect but the overarching narrative was effective in drawing me in and keeping me riveted throughout the months that episodes were dropping. This, however, has a ton of cringe-worthy dialogue; the worst offender being the "SASSY CHLOE GONNA TEAR YOU DOWN VERBALLY MODE" which reads like a painful and hastily written retort to an argument that happened hours earlier. The voice acting for all the characters missing their voice actors due to the SAGAFTRA ranges from barely noticeable to egregious and Chloe fluctuates wildly between the two. Also, (light spoilers)
they paint Max as a total asshole through unread texts and Chloe's personal journal.

Looking forward to playing more (purchased the deluxe edition for the epilogue episode) but trying to keep my expectations in check.



Is the full album not out yet? I keep seeing tracks from it show up on my Spotify recommended playlist/Release Radar.
Click to expand...

But like..
Max is a total asshole who never texted or wrote or called her best friend. That's what happened lol
 
F

Family Fry

Member
Conscience Falls said:
Is the full album not out yet? I keep seeing tracks from it show up on my Spotify recommended playlist/Release Radar.
Click to expand...

I want to say there are maybe three tracks that are out there, those could be the old Daughter tacks maybe? Only date I could find was September 1st for the Daughter album.
 
A

Aaron D.

Member
NeoRaider said:
One person thinking that "everything abut the game is shit", says nothing.
Maybe they just don't like the genre, or themes this game is about.
Click to expand...

You should watch the review.

I think it deftly analyses the most important aspects of the franchise, contrasting against the brightest qualities of the original.

Sounds like it just doesn't measure up. Like at all.

That's okay though. They caught lightning in a bottle with OG LiS, and I'm cool with just leaving it at that. Much like I'd have little interest playing Gone Home 2.

Still rocking the Soundtrack from the original on my phone. It's such a touchstone moment in gaming.
 
C

Conscience Falls

Member
carlsojo said:
But like..
Max is a total asshole who never texted or wrote or called her best friend. That's what happened lol
Click to expand...

The way it was painted in the first is that she was negligent but not outright totally ignoring the existence of her friend. Reading the texts in the game it's 1 response for every 6-8 texts over the span of months. It's possible I'm remembering her in a more positive light and I know she did drop Chloe but this seems to take it to a place I find hard to believe considering Max actually does like Chloe as a person/Chloe brings up Max in almost every conversation she has.

Family Fry said:
I want to say there are maybe three tracks that are out there, those could be the old Daughter tacks maybe? Only date I could find was September 1st for the Daughter album.
Click to expand...

Ah, you're right. Went to my Spotify and it's just singles under the banner of Before the Storm, one of which is new. Looks like I have something to look forward to then!
 
B

benzopil

Member
Aaron D. said:
You should watch the review.

I think it deftly analyses the most important aspects of this franchise in particular, contrasts against the brightest qualities of the original.

Sounds like it just doesn't measure up. Like at all.

That's okay though. They caught lightning in a bottle with OG LiS, and I'm cool with just leaving it at that. Much like I'd have little interest playing Gone Home 2.

Still rocking the Soundtrack from the original on my phone. It's such a touchstone moment in gaming.
Click to expand...

I thought some parts were even better than in the original game ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
M

MUnited83

For you.
NeoRaider said:
It's unlocked on Steam now.
I am really surprised that no one created OT for this.

Great scores so far.



One person thinking that "everything abut the game is shit", says nothing.
Maybe they just don't like the genre, or themes this game is about.
Click to expand...

The original game is literally one of his favorite games ever, so...
 
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