Review of Life is Strange: Arcadia Bay Collection Switch: incredible

Our Verdict

The Life is Strange: Arcadia Bay Collection invites you to re-experience two of the best narrative games ever made. Better still, the Switch port performs well with only a couple of hiccups here and there, meaning it's a solid platform to experience the story of Max and Chloe on.

Don't Nod, a game published by Square Enix in 2015, would become a benchmark for narrative-driven games in the future. The game in issue is called Life is Strange, and I have no qualms about acknowledging that it had a significant influence on me years ago, an influence that I still feel now. I've had the Max Caulfield and Chloe Price narrative lodged in my mind like a parasite.

You can only imagine, therefore, how happy I was last year to learn that Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm would be available on the Nintendo Switch in addition to being remastered in one collection. Although, to be honest, I was a little disappointed when Square Enix decided to delay the Switch version's release. The announcement of the collection's release thrilled me, since I've always believed such games should be played on hardware. The cherry on top is that they seem even more stunning now that they are together.

But there's more to this release that thrills me than simply my own satisfaction. It's the idea of two amazing games being given the opportunity to shine in front of a fresh set of players. Although a lot of people are aware of the Life is Strange series, not everyone has played it. Indeed, for others, Life is Strange: True Colors from the previous year serves as an introduction, raising questions about the origins of the game.

Now, those folks—as well as Switch users generally—can finally have firsthand knowledge of how it all started. The tale of Chloe and Max is really precious to me, and while I don't think everybody should play a game since everyone should be free to do as they like, this is the one that I sincerely believe everyone should play.

Although the Life is Strange games aren't for everyone, they do have important lessons, particularly in the case of the first game in the series. I will thus begin there. Despite my want to start with Max's narrative, I believe that I should start with Before the Storm as Chloe is my favorite character.

Let me start by saying that Life is Strange is one of my all-time favorite games, and it's a joy to be able to rediscover such a treasure with its renewed beauty. But I won't lie and pretend that returning to Arcadia Bay made me feel happy all the time—that just isn't true. Rather, I performed the same things that I had done all those years ago—laugh, cry, and go through the motions.

while the game opens, you take control of Max Caulfield, a young high school student, while a storm is roaring across Arcadia Bay. She eventually wakes up in the midst of her photography lesson, sound and unharmed. But as if that dream weren't nerve-wracking enough, the adolescent is about to learn something amazing. She is capable of going back in time. When something happens that pulls her childhood best friend, the one and only Chloe Price, back into her life, her newfound skill becomes apparent.

You know, that's precisely the plot of this story—two ex-friends reuniting and doing so in an unexpected manner that clearly affects the two of them, particularly because the ladies have changed since then. Nevertheless, the two are happy with the turn of events; Max wants to make up for almost cutting off communication with Chloe when she moved to Seattle, and the punk with the blue hair could use some support.

In the end, their continued friendship helps them to find Rachel Amber, which has been a mystery to Chole. A few years after Max departed, Rachel, a girl who vanished from a party at Blackwell Academy six months before and who also happens to be close friends with the blue-haired punk, took up the pieces of Chloe's life (more on that in Before the Storm).

You have to embrace your inner Sherlock Holmes to unravel the enigma at the center of Life is Strange, which has it all. Naturally, Max's abilities are essential to this and play a major role in the gameplay, as does her passion for taking pictures. There are five chapters in the game, and each one calls for you to use your time-bending skills creatively.

Only she is aware that Max can reverse time, for context. Given that Chloe is aware of her talent and has put it to great use, it may be more appropriate to state that she is the only one who recalls. You may have conversations with a variety of individuals throughout the game, and each one presents you with a decision. You may need to have the talk again in order to pick up anything important. This time, you can use what you already know to advance and learn something new.

In terms of gameplay, you lead Max through each of the corresponding chapters' places. These include Chloe's home, the Two Whales Diner, Blackwell Academy, and a number of additional locations that I don't want to reveal for plot purposes. However, there are secrets to be found wherever you look, providing you with knowledge that might change the way you see those around you. Alternatively, you could stumble across the ideal shot - Max is a budding young photographer whose enthusiasm is important to the story of the game.

You have to make some tough choices along the way, which is one of the things that makes Life is Strange both terrible and beautiful. Your decisions have an impact on you. You are forced to consider whether you made the correct decision in each case, and it's difficult to determine if you did. In all honesty, I don't believe this game has many clear-cut choices, therefore determining what is right or wrong is never really clear-cut. Is a terrible decision even possible? No, I don't think so. In life, you have to make a lot of difficult choices, and how you respond to the fallout really defines how right or wrong you are.

Though Don't Nod handles it well, I should note that this game has some serious content that may be triggering. Because the first half of the book is on the decision of whether or not to assist someone in taking their own life, I must emphasize that you should proceed with caution when you get to chapter four. I don't want to talk about this difficult subject any more.

Don't Nod's ability to make you care about these folks in the face of such trying circumstances guarantees that your heart will always break. Whatever version of this tale you decide to tell, you will undoubtedly feel emotionally bruised and maybe even have doubts about your morality. If that's still not enough, you may go far further into Max's feelings by reading her journal. She chronicles her inner anguish in her writings about every significant event that occurs.

In addition, you get texts from different persons throughout the game, which lets you focus in on Max's relationships. The term "relationship" is important in this title since you may choose to pursue a relationship with Chloe or Warren. It has always seemed obvious to me. When I listened it again last year, I went with Chloe, and now that the collection has been restored, the punk still has a special place in my heart.

The town of Arcadia Bay, where the game is set, is a beautiful area with a busy downtown, a panoramic view of the ocean, and a weirdly cathartic lighthouse. However, the things that happen throughout the game damage this impression by bringing more lies and deception to light and lessening the town's original attractiveness. That being said, it is a great moment to discuss how visually appealing the game is. Although I recognize that not everyone will like the painting style, I believe it to be highly effective.

You know what else may heighten the effect of dramatic scenes and breathtaking scenery? Soundtrack. A game's soundtrack can really make or break it, and Life is Strange's soundtrack does just that. It's a fantastic blend of musical elements. Mountains by Message to Bears is one of my favorite songs on the album, and Don't Nod's usage of it just makes the already powerful scenario it goes with much better. Other well-known performers include Foals, whose song Spanish Sahara always makes me imagine a situation in my head that I would never pick.

The prominent songs are expertly arranged to play a significant part in the scenario and act as a kind of trigger for the feelings you're likely to experience as it unfolds, making the sound design unparalleled. You can tell that the original music of Life is Strange perfectly fits the theme of the game as soon as you launch it and go to the main menu.

I could talk about Max's narrative for a very long time, but you want to know what the prequel is about, right? Does Life is Strange: Before the Storm provide any similar problems? Not quite. Not to the same extent as the previous game, anyhow. This book, which is a precursor to Life is Strange, is exactly what its title implies: it takes place a few years before Max comes to Arcadia Bay.

This time, you take control of Chloe, and while though she doesn't have the ability to go back in time, she is far from defenseless. Price is feisty, strong-willed, and has a sharp tongue, as you discover in the previous game. These traits will enable you assist her overcome the challenges she encounters in Before the Storm. Similar to Max's tale, this game puts your morality, determination, and perseverance to the test in a variety of scenarios that might have varied outcomes according on your decision.

Regarding the characters, if you were curious in Rachel Amber after playing the previous game, you're in luck because she plays a significant role in this narrative. It gives you a better understanding of her friendship—and maybe, depending on your decisions, relationship—with Chloe, but whatever way you go about it, it's going to be intense. The story describes how the girls meet and how Chloe's life begins to alter as a result. Would you want to know how she turns into the blue-haired punk from Life is Strange that you know and adore? You may now proceed. This is your opportunity to learn more.

To grasp her character better, I really appreciate taking a look back a few years to see how she was previously. You may now see why she is so filled with hatred, mistrust, and other unpleasant feelings because Before the Storm makes clear how deeply her father's passing affects the adolescent. She provides you with a deep glimpse into her mind, and to be honest, considering all she has gone through since she was 14, it's amazing she's still alive after the events of Life is Strange.

But it's not only the deeper look at Chloe that interests me—I also want to get to know Rachel Amber. Even though the female is mostly a mystery in the first game, it's evident that she has had a profound effect on Chloe. As I said before, the two females have an intimate friendship, which is somewhat explained by the circumstances surrounding the girl who was previously unknown.

Before the Storm centers on Rachel and a family secret that has the potential to destroy her and her loved ones. The two girls' strange bond leads them to learn things that could have horrible repercussions. You take control of Chloe as she travels through many areas, including Blackwell Academy, the Junkyard, and her own house, just as in the original game. Though the absence of time travel makes it perhaps less dramatic, it nevertheless gives you a close-up look at a disturbed young girl and how one other person saves her from certain death.

Alright, I've talked about how incredible the games are. I believe you should at least once have the amazing sensations that both of them provide. But is the Nintendo Switch the best device to see Arcadia Bay on? To put it simply, sure. The artwork of the planet is amazing, and the gameplay is rather fluid with just a few small problems here and there, like the occasional blurriness and sporadic frame rate dips. While playing two of the greatest story games ever created on the go is a modest price to pay, none of them is a game-changer.

I can't stress enough how highly I suggest the Life is Strange: Remastered Collection, in case it isn't obvious. For longtime fans, it's a fantastic walk down memory lane, and for newcomers, it's a fantastic introduction to the series. I have never had an experience quite like Life is Strange before. True Colors does affect me, to be sure, but not to the same extent as this.

All of these games teach you to live life on own terms and never feel the need to apologize for it, however, which is maybe the one thing they have in common. It's not necessary to live with the what-ifs since life is odd. Thus, go ahead and enjoy the experience.