Life is Strange: True Colors

I'm a big fan of the whole Life is Strange series but if I had to pick which game had the best story and character development it would definitely be True Colors. This one grabs your interest from the very beginning and never lets go. While empathic powers don't seem very interesting on paper, this game really makes them work while being enjoyable to use. Now I love Max and Chloe but Alex Chen may be my favorite character is the entire Life is Strange series. She is very relatable even if you have zero experience in the things she's been through. The surrounding cast is excellent as well and their backstories and experiences in the game make you want to know more about them. The link to the other games comes in the form of Steph who doesn't really say anything about Arcadia Bay (at least in the main game but does in the DLC Wavelengths" which I highly recommend you get) but it's nice to have some kind of tie to the original 2 games. The reason to play any of the Life is Strange games is to experience the story and True Colors has the best story in the series. There's plenty of character development given to the main cast and even the side characters. The voice acting is very well done and the animations/motion capture is excellent for the time this game was released. It's a beautiful game to look at and the setting of Haven is perfect. No spoilers (granted this game is older and most LiS fans probably already know it) but like the first game this one is a hunt to find out who is responsible for a death or deaths. The conversations and ways you effect them are extremely well done and the methods for investigating are enjoyable. Given this game has Steph in it you probably already assume it'll have some tabletop gaming in it but this time around she steps it up to LARPing. The whole LARP sequence is very cool and I was surprised by the execution of it all. So yeah I really like this game and it hooked me from the very beginning. Usually I take my time with these kind of games and break up my sessions with other games but the first time I played this one I finished it in a day because I couldn't not know what was coming next. Definitely a game to pick up!

I'm super glad I got this on sale because it's not really worth the full price, especially since I just finished Life Is Strange 2, cried about that game for weeks, immediately got this one a few weeks after and was... shocked at the stark differences. It's a character story first and second, and a choices-matter game third. I know it's from two different studios but seeing the direction the new guys are taking with the Life Is Strange series? I am more than happy to have this be my last purchase of this series. I kinda wish I could refund it and have LIS2 be my last interaction with the series but 15 hours is 15 hours. I really wanted to give this a fair shot. The game is beautiful though and I'm happy they gave good representation (Alex and their family) to us Asians and about being in a broken family. The design of the town and its' multiple places? God, it's cozy and well-made. At first, I thought Alex might not be great and that the story will not do well with this type of character but the moment I finished the game, I notice it wasn't Alex. I ended up loving her as much as I love Sean (LiS2). The game wanted to tell a town mystery, a story about empathy and belonging, a story about a girl suffering from a broken family and having to be independent so quickly, a story about having these powers that make life way too strange for her- I see what they're trying to do- and I love each of its' story beats and moments- but my God, the way it was all put together? Janky. Not as 'oomph' as I wished it was. It's handling very strong topics but it feels muted. Not gut-punching. I wondered why that is, and then it hit me. The choices I make and what happens after those choices- does not feel as impactful or memorable as LiS2's. For True Colors, I feel like I was watching those 'pick your own adventure' Youtube videos where you choose what the next scene would be at the end of it. For LiS2, I feel like I was literally there, in that room as the character, as we go through the anxiety, the unknown, the high stakes or the calmness before a possible storm. I am in the game- meanwhile for True Colors, I can tell I was playing a game with choices. I'm not melting into the world, I'm just trying to finish scenes so that I can choose the next Youtube video option. It's not a bad game by any means, which is why this is not a thumbs down review. I think there's something here and the last chapter with Alex's family member was very special to me, but I just wish it was more interactive and immersive. I wish the game's UI was better and I wish it was telling a story too, but it felt like I was literally looking at UI that was made to finish the job or fulfill the basic purpose of UI and not because "Oh, let's make it look like Alex's journal or music records because she loves music records."- there was no theme to its' UI, basically. So, when I went to look at my choices, I just felt muted and, "Oh, OK, it seems the majority don't know that was an option too."- Don't be afraid of making it look like the character is touching your world. We are literally playing the character and it would be nice to see rough and personalized edges of Alex rather than something so polished and minimalistic. I must say, I really appreciate Alex's journal a lot and it shows what type of person she is as she navigates her emotions. But yes, I don't hate the game at all- I just felt like there were a lot of missed opportunities to make it gut-punching and stick with you. The sale is good, and I recommend just getting it on sale for what it is. This is just my two cents when it comes to Alex being so independent and strong and how the story tells it. It's obvious she is struggling quietly but she keeps telling people she can handle it. What would be really cool is- what if, when we choose the "I'm not OK" options, she doesn't truly say that? But only after we learnt to accept our emotions, she finally listens to us and she finally says what we choose. It'll give so much immersion to what it's like, as someone that had to be strong her whole life and never being able to just say, "I am not OK."- maybe Alex can say it with either Steph or Ryan or someone else- Anyway, with how lackluster the choices feel, if they want to put less importance and stakes in our choices and more to character story, how about doing something like that? Once again, I understand it's a different studio but that doesn't mean the studio should be less creative in telling their stories. Eraser dust on a sketchbook page that is a bit crumpled- can tell a story too. Don't be afraid of those touches. I adore Alex, Sean and Daniel,.. and I'm sad we won't see more stories of random people trying to figure out their powers and how to navigate life with it. It is as they say- Max Caufield coming back sounds more like a threat than anything, haha. It's fine if they want to go down that route where they just tell Max's story. It's their choice. I'm just glad this means I can move on to Lost Records: Bloom and Rage and other stuff from Don't Nod Entertainment and hopefully other studios that might want to do choices-matter games!

**LiS Reunion prep - part 4 review** Ugh man. Here I was, thinking that Before The Storm is the worst game from the franchise I've played, but it turns out I was wrong. I am sad to say this, but I think that True Colors was even more hella disappointing than BTS. Why? I honestly wish I could tell you, but I'd be here all day yapping about this game, so I'll just keep it short. Most of the OST is unfortunately consisting of licensed music, which is already a negative. Because with the option of toggling the licensed music off, you basically have no soundtrack. And it's a damn shame too, because the licensed songs are actually great. The story overall felt so uninteresting, with most characters being quite forgettable. Jed being a villain really didn't work out. Sure, it caught me by surprise initially, but the ending of this game was really freaking disappointing. The only characters I kinda cared about were Steph and Ryan. Way too much forced content that ended up making the game look bad. The pacing - absolutely boring and mega slow. It's also shocking how this game took me as long as Before The Storm to get through. Just 12 & half hours long with side content exploration included? Unacceptable. Now onto some positives. The only things I truly enjoyed about the game were the LARP thing in chapter 3, Alex's power felt unique and interesting, and the graphics are truly amazing. But other than that? I honestly don't know what else to say tbh. This is not a great Life is Strange game and I was left with nothing but disappointment, to the point where I am not even interested in checking out Steph's Story. 4/10 game I hope Double Exposure ends up being a better game, even though for some bizzare reason TC has 7k reviews with 91% very positive reception, whereas Double Exposure has like...4k reviews with 66% mixed reception... I could say I'm looking forward to playing through DE, but I also keep my expectations in check.

i never played the original games (even though i was on lesbian tumblr in 2015) and hadn't expected to ever engage with the series. HOWEVER. i was introduced to true colors thru my partner who has recently been re-playing the entire LiS franchise, and it just happened to show up right when i needed it. i bought the game to play myself after watching their playthrough because I wanted to experience it firsthand. got lucky about it going on sale, too (love being able to afford games). it's relatively short, definitely sweet, and it's made me cry like 3 times (slash POS or whatever). I love all of the characters, both good and bad, for the roles they play and how they deal with grief AND how said grief shapes their relationships (and grief is like. one of THEE main themes of the game). I've seen this game get hate elsewhere which, personally, don't quite understand. like.. i dont gnome about yall but this game is pretty charming. needs a gnome bell peace prize or something. anyways. i could probably go on and on about how much this game means to me but i am currently on a time crunch so i will leave y'all with this. i love you alex chen i love you steph gingrich i love you ryan lucan. scooby gang of all time <3

[h1]Life is Strange: True Colors[/h1] [i]Dropped · 3 of 5 episodes · ~7 hours[/i] [hr][/hr] [b]Not Recommended — the best mechanics in the series wrapped around the least amount of game.[/b] [hr][/hr] [h2]Summary[/h2] A narrative adventure following Alex Chen, a young woman with empathy powers, investigating her brother's death in a small mountain town. Mechanically the most creative entry in the series. Everything surrounding those mechanics is the weakest the franchise has produced outside of Before the Storm. [hr][/hr] [h2]Pros[/h2] [list] [*][b]The empathy mechanic is genuinely the best power in the series.[/b] Reading emotions, reconstructing memories, and entering people's minds as their feelings reshape the environment around you — it's inventive and consistently well executed. [*][b]The LARP section in episode 3 is the single best moment in the franchise.[/b] A town-wide fantasy adventure for a grieving kid that turns into a full Final Fantasy style battle sequence complete with health bars, UI sounds, and move animations. Nothing else in the series comes close. [*][b]Ryan is the most likeable companion the series has produced.[/b] Considerate, emotionally grounded, and written like an actual person rather than a plot device. [*][b]Gorgeous art direction.[/b] The town is almost unrealistically beautiful but it's undeniably eye catching and gives the game a distinct identity. [*][b]Best facial animation and voice acting in the series so far.[/b] The performances do a lot of heavy lifting when the writing can't. [/list] [hr][/hr] [h2]Cons[/h2] [list] [*][b]Barely a choose your own adventure.[/b] Choices are largely cosmetic with almost no ripple effects between episodes. The results screen tracks whether you sat in a chair or listened to music. For a series built on consequence this is a fundamental failure. [*][b]No plot.[/b] Three episodes in and the story amounts to: evil corporation killed your brother. That's it. The murder mystery framing from episode 2 wraps up within the same episode with the most obvious answer possible. [*][b]Single location for the entire game.[/b] A short game with nowhere new to go removes any sense of momentum or discovery. [*][b]Inconsistent rules for its own mechanic.[/b] Episode 1 establishes that Alex can't read emotions on demand — episode 3 quietly drops this with no explanation. [*][b]Doesn't feel like Life is Strange.[/b] The name carries expectations around choice, consequence, and emotional weight. This delivers on almost none of them. A different IP built around the same mechanics could have been something genuinely memorable. Under this title it just invites a comparison it can't win. [/list] [hr][/hr] [h2]Final Notes[/h2] Dropped after 3 of 5 episodes at around 7 hours. A choose your own adventure game should not require four episodes to get going — if it hasn't earned your engagement by the halfway point it hasn't earned a recommendation. Wait for a deep sale if the empathy mechanic sounds interesting to you, but go in knowing this is a different game wearing a familiar name. [b]Not Recommended.[/b]

Hiding your emotions might keep you safe in the short term but it prevents you from ever truly connecting with others. You can't selectively numb the bad without also numbing the good. Forcing a smile or "moving on" before you’re ready doesn’t make the pain go away. True healing requires looking at the ugly emotions. You cannot be truly seen if you are hiding. While it’s tempting to hide pain by simply deleting it. Our emotions, even the painful ones, are essential to our identity. We have to own our feelings to learn from them. "Emotions aren't meant to be handled; they're meant to be felt." The game’s title is the ultimate giveaway: your "True Colors" only shine when you stop trying to dim them for the comfort of others. PS: Alex is a cutie pie <3

[b][h1]Life is Strange: True Colors[/h1][/b] [i][h3]"Моя супер способность - это грустить когда другой грустит, и радоваться когда другой радуется."[/h3][/i] Игра от Deck Nine, это довольно камерная и уютная история о проблемах маленьких азиатских подростков в закостенелой и самобытной американской провинции. Один из этих подростков погибает в начале игры, в общем то это было в трейлерах. И его сестра встаёт на войну с корпорацией. А виновен во всём этом старый дед-пердет. True Colors - это новая LiS, от новых разработчиков. которые поняли общую концепцию, но не поняли суть прошлых игр серии. [u][b]Плюсы:[/b][/u] — Удобно играется на Steam Deck и нет багов. — Приятный и простенький сюжет (в нём нет ни чего мозговыносящего, но играется это незапарно, а главное моментами интригует). — Хорошая графика. — Неплохая, хотя и не цепляющая музыка. — Интересные персонажи. [u][b]Минусы:[/b][/u] — Слишком читаемые ходы и мотивации персонажей. — Слабое разнообразие сюжетных развилок и влияющих решений. — Злодей англичанин с пабом. — Суперспособность сопереживать, это не суперспособность (вот если бы разрабы докрутили, что у главной героини, реально беды с башкой и ни каких суперсил у неё нет, это было бы круто....А так....) Что можно сказать опосля, True Colors что есть, что её нет. От пропуска этой части вы многого не потеряете, от прохождения впрочем тоже. Играть приятно, но последние сюжетные и сценарные решения в играх, свидетельствуют о нехватки высококвалифицированных кадров в этой сфере. [u]5 чувств из 10 эмоций.[/u]

I really loved the depth of the story. Played it at a moment where learning to recognize my own feelings and understanding when not to interfere with other people’s emotions felt really meaningful. I usually lean more toward multiplayer games, but this one really caught my attention and kept me engaged the whole time. Won’t say much more to avoid spoilers, but it’s a really beautiful experience, def recommend it.

это ♥♥♥♥♥♥ товарищи.

Не игра а продукт игросодержащий На красивой картинке плюсы и заканчиваются. А так сюжет, игровой процесс, персонажи, способность гг и она сама просто настолько типичное клише что это я смог пройти только один эпизод и бросил, хотя я стараюсь проходить все игры до конца (даже если удовольствия уже нет почти) С первыми двумя частями и даже bts это и близко не ровня. Максимум 3,5/10 из за графона. Никому не советую