REVIEW

Life is Strange 2 Episode 1: Roads Review

by Rob Pritchard, November 22nd, 2018

The Life is Strange franchise has gone from strength to strength since it launched back in 2016, receiving a prequel in the form of Before the Storm, and a midquel named The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit. The time has now arrived for Life is Strange 2 to take centre stage, with DontNod Entertainment providing us with another five-episode series to give us another emotional experience with just a hint of supernatural mystery.

Max and Chloe have now been given the ending to their story, so it is the turn of sixteen-year-old Sean Diaz and his ten-year-old brother Daniel to play the part of the protagonists. The first episode, Roads, starts in relative peace, until a tragic set of circumstances take away a beloved family member. Sean is gripped by the fear that he or Daniel will take the blame, so he takes his younger brother on an Incredible Journey style adventure to go back to their native Mexico. Things are made more complicated by the fact that Daniel has inexplicably obtained psychokinetic abilities that he lacks the ability to control.

As you may imagine, the relationship between Sean and Daniel is distinctly different than the friendship shared by Max and Chloe. Not only is Sean having to act like a loving big brother, he is now being forced to take on a parental role during their expedition, teaching Daniel several lessons in moral etiquette such as waiting for food rather than stealing some from an abandoned car. This implementation of the choice and consequence mechanic in Life is Strange 2 is a refreshing change to the life altering decisions in games such as The Walking Dead, as it forces the player to consider the implications of teaching a child how to accomplish certain tasks in a positive or negative fashion.

Alongside showing the strong bond that the siblings share, the story of the first episode brings home some unpleasant truths about the political overtones in some areas of America, particularly surrounding the ethnic origin of the protagonists and their family members. Thankfully in the case of Sean and Daniel, the issues are portrayed in a sympathetic light, especially during the scene where Sean sticks up for Daniel after he is being bullied by a neighbour. As a whole, this first episode does it’s best to show that any racial prejudice towards people of a different race will not be tolerated in a civilised society.

Although we are shown that Daniel has his supernatural abilities, it is not shown in the first episode how they will be implemented as a gameplay mechanic, as Daniel only becomes aware of them towards the end of the narrative. This is perhaps one of the only flaws in the first episode, as you lead on a linear path for most of the journey, with no real puzzles to speak of outside of choosing different responses to the dialogue choices presented to you. This will hopefully change during the second episode, now that the metaphorical cake is out of the oven.

Like it’s older brethren, Life is Strange 2 uses photorealistic graphics intertwined with softly rendered backgrounds and minimalist graffiti to add a touch of artistic flair. Unlike its predecessor, Life is Strange 2 is built using the fourth iteration of the Unreal Engine. This has allowed for the developers to vastly improve the quality of the in-game graphics and keeping the frame rate at 60 frames per second across PS4, Xbox One and PC. The PS4 Pro helps to keep the frame rate relatively stable, with only a few drops present during some of the more intense cutscenes.

Like the original Life is Strange, Before the Storm and Captain Spirit, the soundtrack for Life is Strange 2 consists of various alternative themed bands such as Phoenix, The Streets and Bloc Party. All the tracks fit well with the situations they are placed with, especially during the opening credits when we are first introduced to Sean. The voice acting feels fairly solid, with some of the best voice work coming from the actors who portray Esteban Diaz, the brother’s father and Sean’s best friend, a hyperactive teenager by the name of Lyla.

Overall, the first episode of Life is Strange 2 feels like a gentle introduction to the larger experience that is yet to come. The emotional family relationship between Sean and Daniel will entice players to continue with their journey, despite the lack of any true challenge during this first instalment. This game might not be the sequel that fans came to expect, but it certainly has the potential to become an enjoyable extension to the Life is Strange universe.