Max Caulfield was born in the first Life is strange. In a medium often associated with muscular, scantily clad protagonists, it felt quietly revolutionary to step into the shoes of a regular person with relatable hopes and fears (and, yes, a dash of superpowers).
Discovering the secrets of Arcadia Bay was the headline of the game, but helping Max find out who she Over the course of our adventure, it has become the thing I remember most about the first installment in what has now become such a significant game series.
So when I picked up the controller to play a clip of her unlikely return, I expected it to feel familiar—a character, her powers, and a mood that would stick with me years later. I’m happy to say I was wrong.
We knew that the Max Caulfield of Life is strange: double exposure would be older, with a life story that we have to catch up on, but that makes the game feel just as evolved. Double jeopardy is set years after the original and plunges Max (and us) into a supernatural murder mystery. Her best friend Safi is killed, which awakens a whole new power in Max – the ability to move between two timelines, allowing her to see a world where Safi never died along with her own.
In my demo of the game, set a few hours into the game, I see how much these new powers change the overall look of Life Is Strange. Where Max’s original ability to turn back time effectively played on the idea of a “Choose Your Own Adventure” – the virtual equivalent of poking your finger in the page before turning a new page – the shift in timeline helps to completely change the genre. Double explosion is more of a puzzle game than this series has ever allowed before.
In my demo, I try to help Moses, a (seemingly innocent) friend suspected of Safi’s murder – a science lab at Caledon University accidentally locks incriminating evidence, and Max must find and remove it before a suspicious detective stumbles upon it himself. Max can only shift timelines through rifts in space and time, providing me with a way into the lab that is otherwise inaccessible.
At first it’s pure Life Is Strange – I enter the lab and ask the other Moses where he might keep a secret safe, imagining the situation entirely through dialogue. But soon it becomes a very different kind of game. Not only do I have to figure out how to find my way around, but I also have to piece together the mystery across both timelines – clues from one affecting how I progress in the other. There are elements of stealth as I evade the detective in the ‘dark’ timeline, and even an entirely new power that allows me to switch objects between timelines and alter the spaces around me. This is not the Life Is Strange you remember, and that’s exactly why it’s all the more enticing.
It’s a whole new approach to puzzle-solving for Life Is Strange – there are still the crucial dialogue choices, deeply personal stories to uncover, and carefully chosen diegetic indie music, but with a new focus on classic game design that ties it all together. Like Max, Life Is Strange is learning to become something new.
Life Is Strange: Double Exposure will be released on October 29th this year for Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC – and those who pre-order the Ultimate Edition will be able to play both Chapters 1 and 2 starting October 15th.
Life is strange: double exposure
Square-Enix
49,99 $
Max Caulfield, a photographer at the prestigious Caledon University, finds her new best friend Safi dead in the snow. Murdered. To save her, Max tries to turn back time – an ability she hasn’t used in years… Instead, Max opens the way to a parallel timeline where Safi is still alive and still in danger! Max realizes that the killer will soon strike again – in both versions of reality. With her new ability to switch between two timelines, can Max solve and prevent the same murder? ORDINARY GIRL, EXTRAORDINARY POWER Max is drawn into a thrilling supernatural crime story – more dangerous than ever before! TRAVEL THROUGH TWO TIMELINES Make allies and track suspects through two versions of reality, shaping both timelines through unforgettable choices. RACE AGAINST TIME A relentless detective has Max in his sights, and Safi’s killer comes closer with every clue uncovered. Can Max survive long enough to do the impossible? DECIDE THE FATE OF CALEDON. Explore two versions of a vibrant winter campus, each filled with clues, secrets and difficult decisions. EXCLUSIVE SOUNDTRACK A rich original score, new songs and exciting licensed titles!
