There is nothing that can prepare you for this masterpiece of a game. Life is Strange is a game that comes around once in a blue moon. A game that is almost perfectly crafted. Its almost hard to put into words how amazing this game is. I recall multiple points where my jaw was left open in shock. This game will catch you off at every turn. I was lost at how to feel or whether to cry at some points because I always hoped I could go back and fix my mistakes. Sometimes that wasnt always the case, and thats how this game catches you off guard. It almost seems impossible to make a game where youre able to change your mistakes right on the spot and still end up making the wrong decision. Somehow Life is Strange did just that, throughout the story no less. I was always on the fence about every choice, even after seeing consequences of them and having the option to go back and change it. Nothing felt worse than seeing the results of my past actions and realizing i made a huge mistake.

Life is Strange doesnt shy away from sending out important messages, like climate change and bullying. The best part about these themes is that they dont feel forced. They seem like they belong in the world your playing in and it doesnt feel like youre being preached to.

The story in this game is phenomenal. Like I said before, a game like this doesnt come by that often. Thats mainly in part to the crazy story written for this game. No matter what you think will happen in this game, I guarantee youre wrong. The complexity of the plot is comparable to an endless labyrinth. Nobody but the creator knows where each turn takes you. In this maze youre given plenty of characters to create relationships with. In most games its difficult for me to remember each characters name and who they are, but it was no challenge for me here. Every character was unique in their own way. Everyone had their own story and I was compelled to dive into all of them. Whether your talking with a side character or someone important it always feels like you need to say the right things. Even pondering over squirrels and birds had me questioning myself.

Aside from everything else, the graphics in this game arent the greatest. Although the game isnt up to par graphically compared to games like The Witcher 3 or Fallout 4 which came out in the same year, I feel like the lower poly visuals give this game its charm. It feels like youre playing through an indie movie that youre in control of. It shows that the story telling element was the highest priority.

Lastly the music. The soundtrack in Life is Strange is full of songs that I love listening to outside of the game. Whoever picked the soundtrack for Life is Strange did a perfect job. Obstacles by Syd Matters which was featured in the trailer for the game is a beautiful song that pairs perfectly with the tone of the game.

Overall Life is Strange is a fantastic game that seems to have fallen away from the limelight. I hope in the future this game is widely remembered for the masterpiece that it is. Life is Strange deserves to be spoken about among the likes of Skyrim and Halo. A game that pioneered in its genre and a game that will leave you tearing up just remembering it. Though your desk might have a puddle of tears on it when you finish the game, I promise you wont regret it.
10/10

Siren's Call is an interesting visual novel to say the least. Very confusing at times but by the end of the story I was able to make sense of most of it. I really enjoyed the beginning part, focusing on what happens AFTER the hero's journey. How does one go on with normal life after saving the world? This story gives a good telling of how that might go. Now I wouldnt go as far to say this game is a "Psychological Horror". Its a bit distressing at times but nothing really discomforting. A lot of that distressing stuff also feels a bit out of place. Even at the end of that story and understanding what was really happening, it feels as if a lot of the scary stuff is unnecessary and pulls away from the story itself. Also, not to be rude but I feel as if a lot of things that happened, or things that were said in the first quarter of the game feels unneeded. It made the story hard to follow and some of the important twists were ultimately pointless. SPOILER-> To me this game feels like a mixture of Inception and Doki Doki Literature Club. The worlds inside of worlds trope is really interesting but like I said before, at times the "important" parts end up being pointless. Like DDLC the game puts on a cute face but underneath its actually much deeper and creepier than just a boy leaving for college. <- SPOILER. While reading the story I cant help but feel as if every single line is poetic in its own way. As if every single word needed to fit perfectly. This is very good and very bad at the same time. Its extremely good because you feel as if everything you read is really important and holds some important wait to the story. Its extremely bad because you feel as if everything you read is really important and holds some important wait to the story, when in reality it isn't. A lot of the stuff in this game is extremely meaningful and quotable, but I don't need a super elegant speech while Oliver and Andi are out on a jog talking about nonsense. Ultimately this game does a lot of things good, but there's a lot of stuff that has more to be asked of. The story is really amazing though overwhelming at times. The characters are likable and each have their different roles and they are executed well. The art is very well done and easy to look at (even the spooky art). The horror aspect is lacking a little bit, but at some points it does feel unnerving. The ending is acceptable. I feel it would be hard to write a "good ending" for a story like this but they managed to pull it off pretty perfectly with the plot points they were working with. It was somewhat bittersweet, a few questions left unanswered. Overall a really good ending to a really complicated story. For a free visual novel this is very well done and definitely worth your time. 7.1/10