Ironically, I have a strange relationship with the Life is Strange series. The first installment really made a strong impression on me. Sure, it had its flaws, but the characters and their story were heartfelt. The mystery and suspense were strong until the end. And, even though others might find this an controversial opinion, the choices felt meaningful.

I’ve yet to finish the second installment of the series, because I had trouble connecting with the meandering story. Life is Strange: Before the Storm I enjoyed, but somehow it made little impact on me, apart from the Farewell bonus episode.

On the whole, you’d say I’d consider this series a mixed success. Still, something about the core potential of this franchise, keeps drawing me back. People with extraordinary gifts, who live ordinary lives with (at times painfully) relatable ups and downs.

Life is Strange: True Colors’ protagonist, a geeky introvert with the power of empathy, immediately clicked with me. A character who is troubled by her past, desperately looking for a place (and people) to belong. I think this central theme worked pretty well, combined with the likeable cast of support characters. Additionally, this game really excelled at providing feel-good slice of life scenes.

When it comes to Alex’s power of empathy, though, I felt its potential wasn’t fully used. The accompanying game mechanics were clever, but the power lacked significant impact on the plot and the important choices. I would have loved to see a little more conflict in that regard.

The plot of Life is Strange: True Colors is not particularly strong or unique. In fact, it is loosely the same plot as the plot in the first Life is Strange game. The pacing is just a little bit weirder, and the mystery is a lot more straightforward. As can be deduced from the former alinea, the focus is on the characters and their growth. I could appreciate this, though I would say that the final episode fell somewhat short in providing satisfying closure in both areas.

All in all, I really enjoyed the game. It was a perfect game to help me through the dark winter days. I just would have liked it to be a bit longer, so that there would have been more room to polish the different aspects of the story. I cared for the characters, however, and was sad to let them go at the end (luckily, there was a Steph DLC). Also, I repeatedly returned to play the Arkanoid minigame…hehe.