Deck Nine announces its highly anticipated next installment to the Life is Strange series, with one highly unexpected aspect
This article contains major spoilers for Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm.
Max Caulfield is back. That’s right, the first protagonist of the beloved Life is Strange series has been resurrected from her completed, put to rest story, for fan service. Life is Strange: Double Exposure features a whole new Max Caulfield story, and you can probably tell, I’m not happy about it.
I was ecstatic when I saw a new Life is Strange game had officially been announced, with a release date and everything. I saw a new character with short brown hair that I was excited to meet. And then, I found out that was in fact Max Caulfield. The excitement slowly drained out of me; not only because Deck Nine had misunderstood the idea of improving a character model with more details and changing the hair style to signal the passage of time, and had instead given her facial reconstruction, but because her story had already been completed.
Max Caulfield’s story ended in two separate canons: going back to the beginning and letting Chloe Price die to prevent the destruction of Arcadia Bay, or letting that destruction unfold, and driving off into the sunset with Chloe. The idea of what the “right” choice was is still heavily contested, but both have their place in canon.
For the “bae” choice, however, a comic series published by Titan Comics and written by Emma Vieceli, followed the aftermath of this choice. You find Chloe and Max a year later in Seattle, grappling with the aftermath, and follow them on a five-volume story that brings everything to a close, any ambiguity leftover from the game completely washed away. It’s officially licensed and part of the canon and did an amazing job honoring the games. It even takes lore from Life is Strange: Before the Storm which was developed by Deck Nine rather than Don’t Nod.
As for the “bay” ending, all we know is that Max saved the town, and lived her life without her best friend. We get sneak peaks into what that may have looked like with the comics, but ultimately it is left up to interpretation as to what her life looks like afterwards.
This means Double Exposure can follow two separate canons; of course, you immediately run into the issue of the comics having completed one of those canons. So where do you go from there? Well, that leaves the story as having to follow Max after the Sacrifice Chloe ending, doesn’t it? The issue this presents, however, is that all Life is Strange games follow the formula of informing the game of your previous major choices. This tailors the universe to you and respects the canon you have followed. This would mean that this new game either disregards this beloved aspect of the game, trashing it in order to maintain the ability to expand on only one canon, or that they intend to retcon the other established canon.
It also cannot be argued that Deck Nine is unaware of the comics, as this game presents reality shifting as a new power for Max, which is a major plot point in the comics. As I watched the trailer, I was shocked to see how they had taken that from the comics, while appearing to completely disregard their canon. Not only that, but the comics are officially licensed and take lore from both the original game and Deck Nine’s own Before the Storm installment.
So why would Deck Nine do this? Why would they completely disrespect a beloved franchise that they inherited, and try to present new canon to a story that’s been wrapped up with a bow for years? Fan service.
![A twitter interaction between an anonymous fan and Deck Nine. Fan: “fan service [5 salute emojis] so happy to see her again” Deck Nine’s response: [fist emoji facing inward, explosion emoji, fist emoji facing inward]](https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:1400/format:webp/1*BIfF7UNrDUjw6lCj7yjZzQ.png)
Many players couldn’t handle the idea of never playing as Chloe or Max ever again, and Deck Nine had clearly run out of ideas, so they folded and gave exactly what the fans wanted, regardless of artistic integrity. Of course, it didn’t go without notice for many players, that Chloe was nowhere to be found in the trailer, which was decidedly not what most of them had been asking for. They wanted what the comics already gave, and Deck Nine should have ignored the pleas and continued to expand the universe with new characters.
It’s insulting to the legacy that Don’t Nod has created with Life is Strange; Deck Nine is taking a character and story that they did not create and making a poor imitation of what the original game was. The original game was lightning in a bottle; it’s why I had medium-set expectations for the next installment. Deck Nine made a perfectly fine, but not memorable game with Life is Strange: True Colors. They took the helm of this franchise, and have done their best, and it’s been just fine.
True Colors lacked the charm of the original, some parts legitimately cringy and difficult to take seriously, something the original game didn’t fall victim to because no matter how many times Chloe said “hella,” you were in Arcadia Bay with Max and Chloe, and it was an experience like no other.
The most impactful thing Deck Nine has done for the series is develop Life is Strange: Before the Storm. Before the Storm expanded on Chloe’s lore and allowed us to meet Rachel Amber who became a fan favorite. The reason this game was the success it was is because it was a prequel. Deck Nine had to follow a certain canon, they could not add anything that would alter the established canon. They worked in a box that forced them to respect the source material, and they did a great job.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure is an example of hubris and a well of creativity run dry. Max Caulfield’s story ended a long time ago, and Deck Nine has thrown her back into the fire; with a new face mind you. The fact that many fans could not even recognize her is a major red flag; the only way I could describe it is they somehow Flat-Stanley’d her face.
Look, I don’t mean to be a hater, but as a fan of this series for the past 8 years, I have expectations. They were low for Deck Nine, but high in terms of respecting those that came before them. I’ll be playing the game, of course, but I don’t think I could ever consider it canon. Square Enix, Life is Strange’s publisher from the beginning, has stated on their website that this is a stand-alone experience, with no prior knowledge of the games required. All of the games take place in the same universe, with your past consequences influencing your surroundings, but Deck Nine wanted to get away with fan service so they decided that that no longer matters. Some people are holding out hope for two different game experiences, your prior choices actually mattering, and even a surprise appearance of Chloe, but this statement puts the nail in the coffin.
Deck Nine should be ashamed, there’s no other way to put it. This game series means a lot to many people, and fan service has it’s place, but not here. You don’t get to play fast and loose with beloved characters and stories just because you’ve run out of ideas and want to make sales.
I honestly hope I’m pleasantly surprised in some way, I do. The game comes out in October of this year and we have plenty of time for more gameplay and story reveal; there’s even already a livestream taking place from Deck Nine on June 13th that will do just that. I’d love to be proved wrong, I really would. At the end of the day, this all stems from my love for Life is Strange, and all I want to see is the IP done justice. I hope Deck Nine finds a way to deliver.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure releases on all consoles and PC October 29, 2024. Pre-order is open and you can watch the trailer here.
