Max and Chloe, One Last Time

For fans of Life is Strange, the series means a lot of different things to everyone. For some, it’s one of the first true representations of a queer relationship in a mainstream game; for others, it’s the various mysteries and working out how they unfold. Or perhaps, it’s about the slice of life story in towns with a close-knit community, where everyone knows everybody, and it would be shocking to think that somebody would do some of the acts that have happened throughout the series.

One thing that is certain is that Life is Strange is a very important series to many people. So, a finale that brings back fan favorite Chloe Price was always going to be a gamble. Has it paid off? For me, at least, it has.

View Full-size

Every scene that involves Max and Chloe is gold, if you’re invested in their relationship.

Course Correction

As I mentioned in my preview, the previous entry, Double Exposure, wasn’t well received by fans. While I had my own complaints with the game, I still found parts of the adventure I enjoyed, although the ending itself nearly killed my entire interest in the series going forward.

Perhaps, then, it’s no surprise that Reunion goes out of its way to walk back a lot of the controversial moments in Double Exposure’s ending. Leaving on a cliffhanger that the gang was on the lookout for more like-minded people with powers, and Safi, the character at the center of all of the events of the game, going off on her own, has almost all been entirely walked back on.

All of Max’s friends who have learned of her powers at the end of Double Exposure now have conveniently forgotten about Max’s powers and what she did during the storm due to the effects of it. Meanwhile, Safi is soon back at Calendon and up to mischief, but not with a ragtag band of superheroes (or villains) with her. This is a good thing, as it’s by far the worst part of Double Exposure and Reunion is all the better for it.

Still, Double Exposure knowledge is still required before you sit down with Reunion, as it very much feels like a part 1 to this new title. As a result, Reunion helps the previous adventure stand out a bit more now, due to setting up a lot of the events that happen here. The majority of the game takes place in most of the same places, a lot of the cast returns, and knowing about them and their circumstances helps the package feel a lot more fleshed out. Reunion wouldn’t feel half as great if it weren’t for all of the groundwork that Double Exposure did.

View Full-size

1

2

(1 of 2) One of the main mysteries is centered around Chloe’s existence.

View Full-size

View Full-size

One of the main mysteries is centered around Chloe’s existence. (left), Double Exposure feels like a prologue to Reunion, and you’ll be lost if you skipped it. (right)

The Chloe Factor

A lot of fans have been worried about bringing Chloe back to Life is Strange (me included), especially if the ending you chose in the original is that of Arcadia Bay surviving at the expense of Chloe. Reunion, though, does a good job of justifying her return, regardless of your outcome (which you can select at the start of the game), and I didn’t realize how much I missed having her around, not to mention that every scene with Max and Chloe together is gold.

The main plot of Reunion centers around two mysteries: the first is that of Chloe and the recurring nightmares she’s started having since the day of the storm at Caledon. Alongside this, Max witnesses a new tragedy, as the campus is set ablaze and many people, including Moses, are killed as a result. This sees Max use a photo to return to the weekend prior to the event as she looks to change it.

While there are some loose ends by the end of the adventure, having Chloe along for the ride with Max, as the two of them look to change history once more while trying to work out what’s going on with Chloe, makes for some of the best moments in the series since the original. Additionally, Chloe herself gets the chance to shine, rather than being relegated to a side character for Max; this is certainly a story that belongs to both protagonists.

This is helped by Chloe having a lot of screen time with Max’s friend, Moses, who was arguably the best part of Double Exposure. The two of them feel natural together, and I was invested in both their relationships and the stakes they found themselves in. Indeed, it was a great choice to be privy to Max’s powers, as it helps take a deeper look at how they work and may affect the world and universe around her.

Despite the plot moving at breakneck speed, I felt the finale wrap up well; my choices I made, and the evidence I gathered seemed to have an impact, and I couldn’t be happier at how Max and Chloe ended up once the story was over. I can safely say, as a fan of the original Life is Strange, that the finale will stick with me for a long time.

View Full-size

Moses being involved heavily in the plot is good to see, as he was the best character in Double Exposure.

Turn Back Time

When it comes to the gameplay in Reunion, Max’s ability to traverse between two timelines is gone, and instead, we see a return of her Rewind powers, something that makes the game far more enjoyable. Just like in the original, rewinding time to ask people questions you learned from previous attempts is always a good time, and it helps ratchet up the tension during periods of the game that call for it.

While this makes up the bulk of Max’s gameplay, there are still hidden collectibles to find and optional evidence, which will determine if Max has the ability to solve the central mysteries when it comes to the game’s finale.

Chloe, on the other hand, is much more grounded, due to her lack of powers, and gets more than enough screen time as a protagonist. At certain moments throughout the adventure, you’ll find yourself in a Backtalk situation, where you must choose the correct responses to win an argument against someone. This couldn’t feel more fitting for Chloe as a character and matches her personality completely. This will often require you to really explore the surroundings to get as much information as possible, because odds are, this will come up in the questions you’ll face. Aside from this, Max has hidden photographs to take, while Chloe can draw some sketches inspired by some of the things you can look at.

Finally, as mentioned in my preview, you’ll find yourself in situations where both characters are having a conversation with each other. Here, you’ll direct both of their responses, indicated with an icon to show who is delivering the answer. This is perhaps one of my favorite features of Reunion, and it really lets you have full control over Max and Chloe’s relationship and reinforces the fact that both characters are the protagonists of this adventure.

View Full-size

1

2

(1 of 2) There are optional collectibles to find such as Podcasts you can listen to.

View Full-size

View Full-size

There are optional collectibles to find such as Podcasts you can listen to. (left), And you’ll need to find all of the optional evidence if you want to get the best possible ending in Reunion. (right)

I’ve Been Here Before

While this review has been mostly positive so far, there are some parts of Reunion that are a bit of a letdown. If you weren’t a fan of the setting of Double Exposure, you’ll be let down here, as the majority of the locations you visit are the same. You’ll visit the Snapping Turtle a few times, the quad on campus, and even the observatory. There are a few new additions, but for the most part, you’ll be going to the same places. Fortunately, Chloe visiting them for the first time prevents them from feeling completely the same, especially as her experiences with the characters of Lakeport will be completely fresh.

Likewise, the supporting cast is hit and miss, and some are almost missing altogether, none more so than poor Diamond. While this may be a result of the move away from Double Exposure’s controversial ending, she’s relegated to a phone conversation at the very end of the game and some text messages, despite her connections to Safi. Likewise, despite interacting with them still, both Vinh and Amanda seem to have less focus here, Amanda especially. To offset this, both Moses and Loretta have far more screen time and are integrated into the main mysteries.

There are a few new characters added to the supporting cast who seem to take up a lot of the screentime, although by the end of the adventure, all but one of them never felt like they had enough time to truly shine or bring across some of their potential traits that the early parts of the game hinted at. Safi, then, still finds herself as part of the core mystery and story in Reunion, but her arc goes by at a blistering pace, getting her to her ending without much depth to it. Still, a lot of the work that was done in Double Exposure does help to improve the lack of development for a lot of the characters if you take both games as one story.

Despite some fantastic voice acting across the board, and, as always, effective use of music during many of the game’s most poignant scenes, there are some technical shortcomings when it comes to Life is Strange: Reunion. While playing on the PlayStation 5 Pro, I constantly ran into graphical bugs, be it odd shading glitches on Max’s face during some scenes, odd animations from some of the NPCs, and water glitches whenever there’s a scene at the lake at the Snapping Turtle.

View Full-size

Chloe’s Backtalk sections test your understanding of the area and the current events.

It’s a shame, because at times, Life is Strange: Reunion is the best the series has ever looked, being a step up from the improved visuals that Double Exposure brought. I also had a bug where Max’s rewind gauge got stuck on the screen, and I had to reload a checkpoint. Another of my issues is that the game’s autosave only happens at those checkpoints, meaning I’d have to reach one of those before I could quit my session. I was also disappointed to see the chapters disappear from this entry; instead, it only lets you see the choices the community made once your playthrough is over.

When all is said and done, what you get out of Life is Strange: Reunion will depend on where you stand on Max and Chloe’s relationship, and what it means to you. If you find yourself (and Max) wanting to move on from that, you’ll find little to enjoy in it, as it does rely heavily on creating a satisfying conclusion for the pair. If, however, you’re like me, you’ll be happy to see Chloe return and where their journey ends. If this is the last Life is Strange game, I’m happy it ended in a much better place than Double Exposure.