Life is Strange: Polarized Review

[dropcap]D[/dropcap]o you think in-game choices should matter? Love dwelling over paths you could have or maybe should have taken? If so, you probably already know about episodic, story-focused gaming Life Is Strange, the brilliant finale of which came out two weeks ago.

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It’s tough to write concisely about Polarized. You get to see all your choices unfold in front of you, from the small to the game-changing, from across the previous four episodes, and Polarized finally shows off just how selfish the choices you’ve made can be. You’ll try to bend rules and cut corners, but Life is Strange forces you to make a choice to move the story on, even if, like me, you end up staring at the screen for minutes on end, agonizing over seemingly impossible choices.

There are no clear-cut answers and Polarized lets your failures sink in, sometimes crudely rubbing salt into the wound. It’s a summary of all the steps you’ve taken so far, all the sacrifices you made and hopes you poured into the characters. Gameplay is more varied this time, as we get to sneak around and even save people.

Life is Strange forces you to make a choice to move the story on, even if, like me, you end up staring at the screen for minutes on end, agonizing over seemingly impossible choices.

There are moments where it’s a lot harder than previous episodes to figure out what to do, and I really like the way Polarized keeps surprising you, letting you think things are coming to a head, only to snatch the rug out from under your feet. Character development races ahead, taking into account the choices you made in the past; some are redeemed, others fall from grace.

Another big plus is the amount of thought put into dealing with mental health, something worth highlighting because of its usual lack of representation in gaming. We get to see the proverbial inside of main character Max’s head, her hopes and fears taking on physical shapes. This is an amazing segment of the game, further showcasing your choices.

You set out beliefs Max holds so that they become part of her psyche, and it’s incredibly compelling, very different from what I was anticipating for the finale.

Life is Strange has already left a profound mark on gaming, even if developer Dontnod has obviously modelled its production on Telltale Games’. but there’s a big difference between the two studios; Telltale lets its stories unfold slowly, leaving choices until the last minute, whereas Life is Strange asks you what you want to do.

Do you want to see this character hurt? Will you lie to your best friend? The themes covered throughout the series range from bullying, to abandonment, to suicide. There’s no side-stepping the issues, and you have a hugely proactive role.

Do you want to see this character hurt? Will you lie to your best friend?

All in all, this is a great title that you have to play at least once, and for me, the finale is great, even if I was let down by some of its explanations. There’s a definite possibility of a second season, so I guess we won’t be rid of Max Caulfield for a while yet.

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