“Is the future inevitable? And, if not, just how much can we change without breaking reality itself?” These are two of the many questions at the heart of Life is Strange: Reunion, the next chapter in the Life is Strange series, developed by Deck Nine and published by Square Enix.
Pitched to the audience as the conclusion of the Max and Chloe saga of the franchise, Life is Strange: Reunion sees fan-favorite heroine Max Caulfield reunited with her best friend/possible love interest Chloe Price after many years apart. After fully taking the reins from original Life is Strange developer Don’t Nod Entertainment in 2019 and their attempt at Max’s solo return in 2024, can Deck Nine bring the dynamic duo’s story home in a way that satisfies both long-term and new fans? Let’s find out.
The Dynamic Duo
After a thorough summary of the story so far, told with both Max and Chloe’s voices alternating throughout, the game opens up with the player as Chloe, now the manager for indie band Drugstore Makeup (a deep reference for longtime fans), waiting on the band to arrive for a show. While waiting, Chloe experiences a vision of sorts, the most intense one in a series of them that has been going on for about a year. Inspired (or rather, terrified) by the vision, Chloe heads off to find Max.
A quick scene change and you’re now watching Max drive home to Caledon University, where she was recently hired as an instructor in photography, after a major, successful gallery showing of her photographs in New York City. Now in control of her, while stopped, she receives a text that a fire broke out on campus, and Max rushes back to see the whole of Caledon ablaze. Unable to save her students, her university, or even her beloved friend Moses, Max uses a long-dormant power: the ability to go back in time to a previous version of herself in a picture. The picture was taken the Friday morning before the fire breaks out Sunday night, and Max now has three days to save everyone and stop the fire.
Double the Powers, Double the Fun
For the first time in the series’ history, there are two playable protagonists: Max and Chloe. You will alternate back and forth between them as the story progresses, sometimes working in the same scene, sometimes in completely different locations. Each of them comes with their own unique gameplay mechanics. Specifically, Max has begun using her “Rewind” power, last featured in the original Life is Strange, where she can rewind time to undo choices she’s made. Chloe, however, has a mastery of insults and mockery, giving her the “Backtalk” ability, bending the will of or deceiving other people, which was last used in the prequel Life is Strange: Before the Storm. Unfortunately, Max’s powers from Life is Strange: Double Exposure, Shift and Pulse, do not make a return in Reunion.
The powers are as fun as ever. Rewinding an entire conversation just to play out the different dialogue choices and hear the different voice lines, while not usually worth it, is enjoyable because of the effort the developers put in to give the option. Plus, if there’s a repeated line, you can skip it. As a gameplay mechanic, Rewind is a blast, whether it’s running around to stop a tea kettle from burning up, figuring out how to not break a mug when opening a cabinet, or replaying a conversation because you learned new information, it’s always fun to watch things you just watched happen go quickly in reverse.
Backtalk is an equally enjoyable ability, if not more so because of the quality of writing. Chloe’s insults or ability to think on her feet are always good for a laugh, and there’s an additional level of interactivity. More dialogue options become available if Chloe’s snooped around before beginning the activity, like discovering the university’s mascot. The biggest downside of Backtalk is that there’s just not a lot of it. There are only a handful of opportunities to use the ability, which is a little disappointing.
Time Well Spent
In fact, the biggest disappointment of Life is Strange: Reunion as a whole is the abbreviated nature of the game. The game is, without a doubt, the shortest Life is Strange game in the series (not counting the free The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit prequel to Life is Strange 2), clocking in at about 12 hours. And it was an awesome (no pun intended) 12 hours, but it left me wanting more.
As is tradition, the bulk of your time with Life is Strange: Reunion is split evenly between exploring the current scene interacting with objects and in conversations with the colorful and entertaining cast of characters, most of whom return from Double Exposure. Both Max and Chloe are prolific “inner monologuers” — people who regularly talk to themselves in their own heads, narrating what they’re doing or should do, or whatever random thoughts pop into their heads.
In the case of Max and Chloe, this happens most often when interacting with various objects, where Max will comment on a piece of art’s beauty or recall an event from the previous game, and Chloe will make a snarky remark, and they both make bad puns. It’s lovely, charming, and almost always puts a smile on my face. It really makes Life is Strange: Reunion fit right in with the rest of the series. Sometimes, it’s a tad too frequent on the reminders of the task at hand when you’re exploring, but it can be overlooked because interacting with an object or person will cut it right off with new dialogue.
There are also collectibles scattered throughout the different scenes, photo opportunities for Max and sketch opportunities for Chloe. There are achievements for getting them all, but they don’t impact the outcome and the dialogue added is flavor. As a bonus, you can replay any scene after completing it in “explore” mode to get collectibles and finish the scene to go right back to the main menu, no need to do more for credit.
Home is Where the Charismatic Characters Are
The conversation side of Life is Strange: Reunion is where the game is at its best. Whether it’s talking to an ex-flame still in love with you, a potential enemy, or your best friend, the game oozes charisma. The characters are all incredibly well written, with multiple dimensions and different motivations.
The voice acting is superb, too, with the return of Hannah Telle as Max. Chloe is voiced by Rhianna DeVries, reprising the role from Before the Storm and replacing the inimitable Ashly Burch from the original game. Despite not being Ms. Burch, Ms. DeVries does a wonderful job putting her own spin on Chloe, enough so that any differences in voice can be explained by a personal head canon however you please. Personally, I just remember that Chloe’s been smoking for a decade.
The rest of the cast is as strong as ever. Though there are not quite as many characters as in the previous entry, those present give it their all and really manage to impress with the emotion in the performance. Nevertheless, Deck Nine manages to make coming back to Caledon University and the Snapping Turtle feel like a homecoming for the player.
Imperfect Beauty
Speaking of Caledon and the Snapping Turtle, the game is beautiful, especially its locations and scenery. Keeping with the artistic direction consistent throughout the franchise, Life is Strange: Reunion is so pretty to look at but also manages to give off a unique vibe depending on the scene. The team doesn’t aim for photorealism, and yet they manage to animate the characters, so the emotion shines through their eyes, and they even have some quality lip syncing to boot!
The technical side isn’t entirely flawless, though. There are occasional hitches in performance, completely consistent with the use of Unreal Engine 5. Transitions between making dialogue choices and the final “goodbye” line, which you don’t always get to select if all other options were chosen, when speaking with a character will look a little abrupt, like the animation cycle didn’t quite finish returning to the base. There is nothing outrageous, just these little quirks that can be jarring when they happen because of how well it runs otherwise.
To Live Without You Would Only Mean Heartbreak For Me
It wouldn’t be a Life is Strange game if I didn’t talk about decisions, making choices that will impact the outcome of the story. As always, they are present here, and this time, they can have a major impact on the ending, to the extent that the ending summary had an end-state for some characters by which I was shocked. One of the best parts of the series is you never really know which choices will have an impact on what. Does revealing a secret cause someone to die? Does being honest save someone’s life? The only way to know is to play again. Personally, I’m good not knowing, I was satisfied with my ending. And the beauty of Life is Strange is that maybe my ending was better than yours will be, because choices matter.
So, we return to the question: did Deck Nine bring the dynamic duo of Max and Chloe to a satisfying close? The answer is unquestionably yes. Every moment, every interaction between the two young women is tinged with true respect and adoration for both their history and the history of the franchise. It honors the legacy of the stories that came before, finding a way to acknowledge your past choices without dishonoring them or choosing a “true” canon. Finally, without spoiling anything, the developers don’t close the door on Life is Strange as a series, but I would be surprised to see Max or Chloe ever star in one again.
Life is Strange: Reunion had a monumental task ahead of it. And yet, Deck Nine manages to masterfully handle closing Max and Chloe’s chapter in this beloved series successfully, more than making up for the slightly smaller scope, shorter runtime, and any other minor foibles. The team wrote an ending with which I could not imagine being more satisfied, creating a truly sensational game.
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