Newsletter
  • Guides
  • Previews
    • Indie Games
    • PS4
    • PC
    • Xbox One
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo 3DS
    • PS Vita
    • PS3
    • Xbox 360
    • Wii U
  • Site Info
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Staff Directory
    • Join Our Team
    • Privacy Policy
      • Cookies Policy
    • RSS Feeds
    • Social Media
      • Youtube
      • Facebook
      • Twitter
      • Twitch
      • Instagram
      • Tumblr
      • Linkedin
      • Pinterest
      • Discord
  • Discord
  • Store
  • Logitech G
  • green man gaming
  • Affiliates
    • GAMIVO.com
    • Logitech
    • Astro Gaming
    • Nord VPN
    • Best Buy
    • Namecheap Hosting
    • Blue Mic
    • Ultimate Ears
    • Jaybird
Tuesday, October 3, 2023
BG
  • News
    • All
    • Esports
    • Interviews

    45 minutes of Eternights Gameplay

    Back to the Dawn Gets New Gamescom Trailer

    Avatar: The Last Airbender: Quest for Balance Launching Late September

    Remnant 2 Available Now For PC and Consoles

    Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?: Battle Chronicle Pre-registration Available Now

    New Remnant 2 ‘Hunter Archetype’ Trailer Released

    ROBOCOP: ROGUE CITY Closed Beta Announced

    Guardian Goddess Idle RPG Registration Open

    esports tournament dates 2023

    Don’t Miss These Major Esports Tournaments Coming in 2023!

    Trending Tags

    • Top Stories
    • PlayStation
    • Xbox
    • Nintendo
    • Retro Games
    • Mobile Games
    • Indie Games
    • Square Enix
    • Sony
    • Microsoft
    • PAX
    • EGX
    • Gamescom
    • Rockstar Games
    • Electronic Arts
    • Activision Blizzard
    • E3 Expo
  • Reviews
    • All
    • Flash Game Reviews
    • Google Stadia
    • Indie Game Reviews
    • Mobile Game Reviews
    • Nintendo 3DS Reviews
    • Nintendo Switch Reviews
    • PC Reviews
    • PS Vita Reviews
    • PS3 Reviews
    • PS4 Reviews
    • PS5 Reviews
    • Retro Game Reviews
    • Reviews RoundUP
    • Xbox 360 Reviews
    • Xbox One Reviews

    AKIBA’S TRIP: Undead and Undressed Switch Review

    Remnant 2 PC Review

    The Legend of Heroes: Trails Into Reverie PC Review

    Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly Nintendo Switch Review

    Atelier Ryza 3

    Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key Nintendo Switch Review

    No More Heroes 3 PS4 Review

    Neptunia: Sisters vs Sisters PS4 Review

    Wanted: Dead Review

    The Legend of Heroes Trails From Zero

    The Legend of Heroes: Trails From Zero PC Review

    Trending Tags

    • Resident Evil
    • Call of Duty
    • Final Fantasy
    • Destiny
    • Borderlands
    • Halo
    • The Elder Scrolls
    • Fortnite
    • PUBG
    • Bioshock
    • The Witcher
  • Opinion
    • All
    • Second Opinion
    7 Tips to Game in a Shared Space

    7 Tips to Game in a Shared Space (Without Irritating Each Other!)

    explore a new world of esports - bet successfully on valorant matches!

    Explore a New Era of eSports: Bet Successfully on Valorant Matches

    betting on video games - 5 tops picks

    Betting on Video Games: 5 top picks

    esports betting featured image

    5 Secrets of Bankroll Management That You Don’t Know

    Popular games featured image

    The increasing popularity of online casinos

    Manga Review: Summertime Rendering Volumes 2 & 3

    buying, szelling, and trading csgo skins

    What To Expect When Buying, Selling, & Trading CS: GO Skins

    What Are the Best Ways to Gear Up in Retail WOW?

    Chance to make money with valorant?

    Valorant, CS: GO, Dota 2 – Just Online Games or an Opportunity to Make Money on Bets?

    Trending Tags

    • Is It A Classic?
    • Remember When
    • Do We Even Care Anymore?
    • Humpday Haikus
    • Top Series
    • Thirsty Thursday
    • Aging Gamer
    • On The Way To E3
  • Podcasts
    • All
    • The BagoCast
    • TSR BagoCast

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – The Future of Game Journalism

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Social Media & Esports

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Politics in Video Games Games

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Content Creators vs Game Journalist 2

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Titan Fall and Apex: Legends Hacked

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Content Creators vs Game Journalist

    BagoCast EP: 12 – Code Vein and the DLC

    Debate/Discussion: Bad Video Games That We Love

    Discussion/Debate: Is Bioware Gone?

    Trending Tags

    • Film Fallout
    • 8Bit Proof
    • Gaming Historia
    • Bago Anime Cast
    • Gamers In Beta
    • Gamers Unscripted
  • Videos

    So, You Wanna Play Junker Queen?

    Matchpoint Tennis Championships Live Review

    Void Slayer – Review

    The IDEAL Spider-Man VR Game

    Crunchyroll Panel Full Video @ Anime Frontier

    BPM: Bullets Per Minute – Shooting to The Beat (Review)

    She Will Punish Them – Warning: Mature Content (Early Access Review)

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – The Future of Game Journalism

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Social Media & Esports

  • Geek Culture
    • All
    • Anime and Manga
    • Anime/Manga Review
    • Collectibles
    • Comic Books
    • Cosplay
    • Movies
    • Tech
    • TV Shows

    Crunchyroll To Host My Hero Academia UA Heroes Battle World Premiere Screening at New York Comic Con

    Xbox to Launch the Xbox Credit Card

    Nacon Rig 600 PRO Gets Release Date

    Cliff Bleszinski’s Comic Book Launches at San Diego Comic-Con

    RiotPWR Gaming Controller RP1950 Is Future Proof

    Manga Review: Summertime Rendering Volumes 2 & 3

    Pwnage Releases New Info On Stormbreaker, The Magnesium Alloy Gaming Mouse

    Eminence in Shadow Mobile RPG Gets New Trailer, Available Now

    Crunchyroll Announces Anime Frontier Panels and Premieres

    Trending Tags

    • Movie Reviews
    • Movie News
    • TV News
    • TV Episode Review
    • Episode Guide
    • Competitive Gaming
    • Tech News
    • Tech Review
    • Anime and Manga News
    • Anime and Manga Review
    • Comic Book News
    • Comic Book Review
  • Forum
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • All
    • Esports
    • Interviews

    45 minutes of Eternights Gameplay

    Back to the Dawn Gets New Gamescom Trailer

    Avatar: The Last Airbender: Quest for Balance Launching Late September

    Remnant 2 Available Now For PC and Consoles

    Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?: Battle Chronicle Pre-registration Available Now

    New Remnant 2 ‘Hunter Archetype’ Trailer Released

    ROBOCOP: ROGUE CITY Closed Beta Announced

    Guardian Goddess Idle RPG Registration Open

    esports tournament dates 2023

    Don’t Miss These Major Esports Tournaments Coming in 2023!

    Trending Tags

    • Top Stories
    • PlayStation
    • Xbox
    • Nintendo
    • Retro Games
    • Mobile Games
    • Indie Games
    • Square Enix
    • Sony
    • Microsoft
    • PAX
    • EGX
    • Gamescom
    • Rockstar Games
    • Electronic Arts
    • Activision Blizzard
    • E3 Expo
  • Reviews
    • All
    • Flash Game Reviews
    • Google Stadia
    • Indie Game Reviews
    • Mobile Game Reviews
    • Nintendo 3DS Reviews
    • Nintendo Switch Reviews
    • PC Reviews
    • PS Vita Reviews
    • PS3 Reviews
    • PS4 Reviews
    • PS5 Reviews
    • Retro Game Reviews
    • Reviews RoundUP
    • Xbox 360 Reviews
    • Xbox One Reviews

    AKIBA’S TRIP: Undead and Undressed Switch Review

    Remnant 2 PC Review

    The Legend of Heroes: Trails Into Reverie PC Review

    Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly Nintendo Switch Review

    Atelier Ryza 3

    Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key Nintendo Switch Review

    No More Heroes 3 PS4 Review

    Neptunia: Sisters vs Sisters PS4 Review

    Wanted: Dead Review

    The Legend of Heroes Trails From Zero

    The Legend of Heroes: Trails From Zero PC Review

    Trending Tags

    • Resident Evil
    • Call of Duty
    • Final Fantasy
    • Destiny
    • Borderlands
    • Halo
    • The Elder Scrolls
    • Fortnite
    • PUBG
    • Bioshock
    • The Witcher
  • Opinion
    • All
    • Second Opinion
    7 Tips to Game in a Shared Space

    7 Tips to Game in a Shared Space (Without Irritating Each Other!)

    explore a new world of esports - bet successfully on valorant matches!

    Explore a New Era of eSports: Bet Successfully on Valorant Matches

    betting on video games - 5 tops picks

    Betting on Video Games: 5 top picks

    esports betting featured image

    5 Secrets of Bankroll Management That You Don’t Know

    Popular games featured image

    The increasing popularity of online casinos

    Manga Review: Summertime Rendering Volumes 2 & 3

    buying, szelling, and trading csgo skins

    What To Expect When Buying, Selling, & Trading CS: GO Skins

    What Are the Best Ways to Gear Up in Retail WOW?

    Chance to make money with valorant?

    Valorant, CS: GO, Dota 2 – Just Online Games or an Opportunity to Make Money on Bets?

    Trending Tags

    • Is It A Classic?
    • Remember When
    • Do We Even Care Anymore?
    • Humpday Haikus
    • Top Series
    • Thirsty Thursday
    • Aging Gamer
    • On The Way To E3
  • Podcasts
    • All
    • The BagoCast
    • TSR BagoCast

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – The Future of Game Journalism

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Social Media & Esports

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Politics in Video Games Games

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Content Creators vs Game Journalist 2

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Titan Fall and Apex: Legends Hacked

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Content Creators vs Game Journalist

    BagoCast EP: 12 – Code Vein and the DLC

    Debate/Discussion: Bad Video Games That We Love

    Discussion/Debate: Is Bioware Gone?

    Trending Tags

    • Film Fallout
    • 8Bit Proof
    • Gaming Historia
    • Bago Anime Cast
    • Gamers In Beta
    • Gamers Unscripted
  • Videos

    So, You Wanna Play Junker Queen?

    Matchpoint Tennis Championships Live Review

    Void Slayer – Review

    The IDEAL Spider-Man VR Game

    Crunchyroll Panel Full Video @ Anime Frontier

    BPM: Bullets Per Minute – Shooting to The Beat (Review)

    She Will Punish Them – Warning: Mature Content (Early Access Review)

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – The Future of Game Journalism

    Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – Social Media & Esports

  • Geek Culture
    • All
    • Anime and Manga
    • Anime/Manga Review
    • Collectibles
    • Comic Books
    • Cosplay
    • Movies
    • Tech
    • TV Shows

    Crunchyroll To Host My Hero Academia UA Heroes Battle World Premiere Screening at New York Comic Con

    Xbox to Launch the Xbox Credit Card

    Nacon Rig 600 PRO Gets Release Date

    Cliff Bleszinski’s Comic Book Launches at San Diego Comic-Con

    RiotPWR Gaming Controller RP1950 Is Future Proof

    Manga Review: Summertime Rendering Volumes 2 & 3

    Pwnage Releases New Info On Stormbreaker, The Magnesium Alloy Gaming Mouse

    Eminence in Shadow Mobile RPG Gets New Trailer, Available Now

    Crunchyroll Announces Anime Frontier Panels and Premieres

    Trending Tags

    • Movie Reviews
    • Movie News
    • TV News
    • TV Episode Review
    • Episode Guide
    • Competitive Gaming
    • Tech News
    • Tech Review
    • Anime and Manga News
    • Anime and Manga Review
    • Comic Book News
    • Comic Book Review
  • Forum
No Result
View All Result
BagoGames
No Result
View All Result

BagoGames > Articles > Game Reviews > PC Reviews > Life is Strange: Before the Storm – Awake Review – Waking Back Up

Life is Strange: Before the Storm – Awake Review – Waking Back Up

Kailan May by Kailan May
6 years ago
in Game Reviews, PC Reviews, PS4 Reviews, Xbox One Reviews
Reading Time: 4 mins read
1
Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix

Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

…Aaaahhh…

…Sorry! I was just thinking of back in 2015. Back when it seemed Telltale had locked down the episodic choose-your-own-adventure genre by riffing off established IPs to tell new tales within the universe. Then Dontnod Entertainment swaggered in, thumbs in its trouser’s belt loops and stormed the scene with Life is Strange. Sure, it ended disappointingly, but it still came out the blue to dominate the genre with its humanistic writing, quirky choice mechanics and thoughtful discussions of complex subjects. I really do adore it.

So, when a prequel was announced, I was cautiously excited (I mean, could they really do it again?). When I found out it was another developer, and that an episode was only in a deluxe version, I was upset. I mean, Life is Strange was a pretty surprising achievement, could a developer whose most noteable recent work was a PS3 port of Ratchet & Clank Collection and Ratchet: Deadlocked write to the same standard? While perhaps not precisely to the same high standard, Life is Strange: Before the Storm does come close with its unique interpretation of the Life is Strange IP that leaves me raring for more.

RelatedStories

AKIBA’S TRIP: Undead and Undressed Switch Review

Remnant 2 PC Review

Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix
Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix

Life is Strange: Before the Storm is an episodic choose-your-own-adventure walk-n-prod title, where choices come with consequences. Set before Life is Strange (last chance before minor spoilers…Coming…Coming…), you play as 16-year-old Chloe two years before the events of Life is Strange as she befriends the currently-not-missing-or-dead Rachel Amber. The change in protagonist and time is not the only new folk around here, as Deck Nine is the developer this time around (replacing DONTNOD who did the original Life is Strange) and Chloe has been recast (due to a voice actor strike).

A new developer and new protagonist comes bearing the gift of a new mechanic. Gone are the days of playing with time; that’s old-hat and only came in after the storm. Instead, Chloe’s “special power” is being a gobshite. Sometimes she may be able to force people to back down by throwing what they’re saying back into their face, cherry picking their response depending on keywords by the opposition. It feels like it is a form of “verbal combat” that characterizes Chloe, offers time-pressure that isn’t just a QTE and fits within the conversation-dialogue format.

That said, I do have a little nit picking to do. Unfortunately, the difficulty for the backtalk feels a little easy. It always presents three options with one that feels clearly the right one. Maybe by fortune, I never failed once. Before the Storm’s version of difficulty was to make it less forgiving, giving the opposition less successes needed to win, rather than making the correct retort more obscure. Something that didn’t make things harder, but instead more potentially frustrating.

There is also a danger in presenting multiple choices and one requiring a backtalk challenge. I swear, if a game required me to work for my bad ending I’d go for it first. I’m hard-wired to travel the harder road, just because the fallacy that more effort automatically equates to a better pay off. So I picked options that usually I’d say no to just because of the backtalk attachment.

Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix
Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix

Speaking of choices, let’s talk of agency. Unfortunately, your choices seem to affect little. On one hand, Life is Strange: Before the Storm is a prequel; most of it is predetermined due to the events of Life is Strange. However, it is weird just how little your choices matter. Apologizing or telling someone to play in traffic still leads to a fight. Trying to show respect or trying to be honest leads to similar rabbit holes. Even wanting to be friends or something more leads to the same emotional moment. While there are two more episodes to go to show consequence (something an after-ending scene hints of), it is a shame I don’t feel much agency in this episode of Life is Strange: Before the Storm.

That said, let’s get into where the meat of the marks lie: Writing. Fortunately, this is the episode’s strongest part by a long shot. Without spoiling what happens, episode 1 of Life is Strange: Before the Storm manages to flesh out and bounce off the original series. It nails the heart-felt Garden State feeling of the original, delivering the quaint charm people know-and-love, while also realizing it is about a very angry and upset 16 year old girl who finds a friend/partner. The episode not only expands on some parts of Chloe’s life the original Life is Strange glossed over, but also lends more depth to a frustrated teenager dealing with the loss of her father. This is also a three hour long episode, which in episodic circles is rather chunky.

My only grumble with the narrative is Rachel Amber feels a little too perfect. The popular girl with the rebel spirit who seemingly selflessly reaches out to the school outcast. I have a theory or two about Rachel having an ulterior motive, but as shown it feels like Deck Nine risks creating a character who is flawless and idealised almost to the point of being two-dimensional. If Rachel will begin to become as deep as Chloe is, even just in this episode, is something that’ll have to be seen.

Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix
Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Square Enix

The final score for Awake, the first episode of Deck Nine’s Life is Strange: Before the Storm, is an 8/10. If the backtalk mechanic was a little more polished, the choices holding more agency and Rachel Amber a little less two-dimensional, this episode would have been looking at an easy 9. After all, writing wise, it delivers what I wanted (i.e. a heart-felt tale about a frustrated female teenager finding a friend) and then goes beyond with plenty of charm, a lovely episode length and as a cherry on top has a mechanic that personalizes its protagonist. I hope episode two and three, Brave New World and Hell is Empty, escalate things and end up just as good as Life is Strange‘s episodes three or four (maybe with some commentary akin to those episodes). Perhaps unlikely considering how good those episodes were (and the topics those episodes handled), but then again life is strange.

 

Life is Strange: Before the Storm

Life is Strange: Before the Storm
8

Score

8.0/10

Pros

  • Skilled writing that bounces off the original story but adds its own flavour
  • 3 hour episode
  • A lot of charm
  • Mini game is an interesting twist

Cons

  • A little on the linear side, partially due to being a prequel
  • Mini game can encourage some behaviours over others
  • Mini game can be a bit easy
Tags: Dontnod EntertainmentLife is StrangePCPlayStationSquare EnixTop StoriesWalk-n-prod
Share3TweetShare


Previous Post

Hyped or Afraid: Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

Next Post

Fire Emblem Warriors Special Edition Announced

Subscribe
Connect with
Login
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
guest
The comment form collects your name, email and content to allow us to keep track of the comments placed on the website. Please read and accept our website Terms and Privacy Policy to post a comment.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser cookies for the next time I comment.

I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
guest
The comment form collects your name, email and content to allow us to keep track of the comments placed on the website. Please read and accept our website Terms and Privacy Policy to post a comment.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser cookies for the next time I comment.

1 Comment
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
trackback
Life is Strange: Before the Storm - Episode 2: Brave New World
5 years ago

[…] Before the Storm – Episode 1: Awake as well as the review of the episode (which you can find here). However, the rating at the bottom will be spoiler-free if you wish to skip […]

0
0
Reply
wpdiscuz   wpDiscuz

BAGOGAMES WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

Get this week's top news, reviews, guides, videos and opinion for your favorite games, movies, TV and tech in your email every Friday.

Don't worry, we don't spam.

NEW ON BAGOGAMES

Anime and Manga

Crunchyroll To Host My Hero Academia UA Heroes Battle World Premiere Screening at New York Comic Con

by Abdul Saad
2 weeks ago
Geek Culture

Xbox to Launch the Xbox Credit Card

by Michael Mosley
3 weeks ago
Game Reviews

AKIBA’S TRIP: Undead and Undressed Switch Review

3 weeks ago

LATEST PODCASTS & VIDEOS

Currently Playing

Void Slayer – Review

Void Slayer – Review

Game Reviews

The IDEAL Spider-Man VR Game

Opinion

BPM: Bullets Per Minute – Shooting to The Beat (Review)

Game Reviews

She Will Punish Them – Warning: Mature Content (Early Access Review)

Game Reviews

Bagocast: Interview with Upper Echelon Gamers – The Future of Game Journalism

Opinion

FOLLOW US

BagoGames

BagoGames.com © 2023 BagoGames LLC. All rights reserved.

Navigate Site

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Staff Directory
  • Join Our Team
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter
  • RSS Feeds
  • Discord Server
  • BG Store
  • OpenCritic
  • green man gaming
  • Logitech G
  • GAMIVO.com
  • ASTRO Gaming
  • Logitech
  • Namecheap Hosting
  • Nord VPN
  • Best Buy
  • Blue Mic
  • Reviews
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Guides

Follow Us

  • Login
  • Sign Up
No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Opinion
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Geek Culture
  • Previews
  • Guides
  • Short Videos
  • Forum
  • Site Info
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Join Our Team
    • Staff Directory
    • Privacy Policy
    • Newsletter
    • RSS Feeds

BagoGames.com © 2023 BagoGames LLC. All rights reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
wpDiscuz