As a dedicated gamer with over two decades of experience under my belt, I must say that Life Is Strange: Double Exposure left me feeling rather disappointed. With such high expectations from the franchise, I was eagerly anticipating an engaging narrative and immersive gameplay. Alas, this was not to be.
My initial experience with the “Life Is Strange” series is through “Life Is Strange: Double Exposure”. Since I didn’t form an emotional bond with the original game, I found it difficult to appreciate the references, humor, and callbacks related to Max Caulfield’s first adventure. People who have a deep emotional connection or a strong sense of nostalgia might find “Double Exposure” more appealing, but my overall impression was one of frustration, confusion, and boredom.
In “Double Exposure”, set a decade following the original “Life Is Strange”, we have our first sequel within the series’ history. You’ll step into the shoes of Max Caulfield, a creative and time-manipulating young woman, who has been suppressing her powers during the decade-long gap. However, an inexplicable murder in “Double Exposure” compels Max to reactivate her abilities once more. But this time, she can tap into an alternate timeline where the murder victim is still alive, adding a new layer of complexity to her story.
In the game “Life Is Strange: Double Exposure,” players are given the freedom to move between two distinct worlds, referred to as “Living World” and “Dead World.” This ability to swap realities is central to both the gameplay and storyline of the game. Just thinking about it makes one imagine a variety of exciting scenarios, such as surreal parallel universe adventures, clever pranks, or complex environmental puzzles that can be manipulated in numerous ways. These possibilities had me excitedly looking forward to the game. Regrettably, “Double Exposure” fails to live up to its potential and ultimately does not justify the cost of playing it.
Life Is Strange: Double Exposure’s Writing Struggles To Get Off the Ground
Just as games from studios like Quantic Dream or Supermassive do, Life Is Strange: Double Exposure is a game that primarily focuses on its story. While there are some elements of gameplay, the real strength lies in its narrative; players aren’t drawn to the Life Is Strange series for complex or intricate mechanics.
It’s not debatable that this categorization holds true; even ardent fans would concede that “Double Exposure” leans more towards an immersive movie or TV series rather than a demanding interactive experience. Essentially, if a game is to bank on its narrative, the storyline must be outstanding, and unfortunately for “Double Exposure”, it consistently falls short in this regard.
The game appears to be a character-driven drama set within a multi-universe storyline, but it falls short in effectively delivering on both aspects. Its characters are rather unappealing due to cryptic dialogues that range from awkwardly clumsy to overtly dramatic. These characters seem engineered to appeal to the audience, yet their attempts at humor and familiar references feel contrived and awkward. Instead of endearing themselves to the player, they come across as trying too hard to be liked, which unfortunately has the opposite effect. The dialogue can also be marred by the overuse of sarcasm at inappropriate times, similar to some poorly-received blockbusters today.
Similar to other games in the Life Is Strange series, Double Exposure features dialogue that is overly casual and seems out of place, particularly given that the main characters are depicted as being in their mid-twenties or older. However, this time, the dialogues feel even more absurd because the characters behave in a manner more fitting for high school students rather than adults.
In the game, the flaws in the script go beyond just dialogue. The story is billed as a supernatural murder mystery, but its structure lacks logical consistency which makes it difficult to become fully immersed. For instance, after the initial murder that sets off events, the main character Max is presented with the police’s leading hypothesis that the death was a suicide. However, the victim died from a gunshot wound to the torso and no weapon was found at the scene, making this plot point seem forced and unconvincing instead of engaging or thought-provoking; it’s highly unlikely that anyone, whether they are police or not, would consider this a suicide scenario.
It seemed as though the narrative of “Double Exposure” was merely ticking off items on a murder mystery checklist, including the “suicide allegation” plot point, which left me with an uneasy feeling. To keep audiences engaged in such mysteries, it’s crucial that the story’s events make sense and are presented in a logical or at least consistent manner. However, speculations about nonsensical suicides in “Double Exposure” undermined this trust.
Life Is Strange: Double Exposure: Beyond the Narrative
Unfortunately, subpar writing is quite prevalent in the gaming sphere, and many exceptional games are let down by weak narratives, but excel through their gameplay. Regrettably, Double Exposure doesn’t escape this predicament either. The primary form of interaction in the game revolves around environmental puzzles, a feature that, as previously discussed, never fully realizes its potential.
My greatest disenchantment with the gameplay of “Double Exposure” peaked around halfway through my gaming experience. At this juncture, I encountered a short stealth sequence where I could manipulate two time-shifts at opposite ends of a room to achieve an objective without detection by an adversary. This scenario seemed promising and sparked curiosity as I contemplated various methods to exploit my power of timeline navigation. However, those aspirations were quickly thwarted when I understood that this segment, like all other key events in the game, was predetermined, offering only one solution that is almost impossible to deviate from. Despite being marketed as a game emphasizing choice, “Double Exposure” offers surprisingly minimal player autonomy in its gameplay mechanics.
Essentially, the game Double Exposure mainly revolves around exploring and interacting with various objects or characters, with its challenges centered on locating the marked items that can be interacted with, rather than requiring strategic or innovative thinking. The narrative, presented as a choose-your-own-adventure style, offers the few instances of player control, but these are often marred by artificial situations and lack originality. Many dialogues lead to predetermined outcomes, with clear “correct” and “incorrect” responses. I found myself rarely faced with moral dilemmas or complex social issues in this choice-based story game, which is disappointing given its intended nature.
Undeniably, “Double Exposure” has its merits. While there’s been some discussion about the shift in art style after the second installment, I found the visuals of “Double Exposure” quite captivating. They make use of excellent environment design and lighting effects to create an appealing game world. The character models aren’t always spot-on, but the best ones, such as Max and Safi, successfully blend realism with style, which I found endearing. These visuals, coupled with a fantastic soundtrack, create a strong atmosphere that softens the blow of some tough writing and simplified gameplay.
For as rough as
Double Exposure
‘s dialogue can be, its voice acting is generally fairly great.
If you’re a fan of the original “Life Is Strange”, “Double Exposure” could serve as a nostalgic journey and provide ideas for indie music playlists. However, its lackluster storyline and minimal engaging gameplay might not appeal to most gamers. Given that other story-and-choice-driven masterpieces are sold at lower prices than the $50 tag of “Life Is Strange: Double Exposure”, it may only be worth considering for die-hard series enthusiasts.
On October 29, 2024, the game titled “Life Is Strange: Double Exposure” will be available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, personal computers, and Nintendo Switch. For this review, Game Rant received a Steam code.
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2024-10-29 01:24