Life is Strange: True Colors – emotions, perfect for the winter days
MyMMO demon Cortyn has a little tip for games during the cold season. Life is Strange: True Colors should please many story fans.
The cold season is always the perfect occasion for me to finally play through a few games in peace that I otherwise never came to during the year. This time it was “Life is Strange: True Colors”. This is the (still) most recent part of the series and once again full of exciting history, quiet adventures and a touch of supernatural abilities.
Do not worry. There will be no particularly large spoilers in this article. Life is Strange lives mainly from the story and I don’t want to anticipate it. Of course, I still have to use a few key data – and at least describe one scene that has little to do with the main plot.
In Life is Strange you usually slip into the role of people who are endowed with some special abilities, which are mostly a curse and a blessing at the same time. While in the first part it was still possible to turn back time, in the current offshoot “True Colors” it is the opportunity to perceive emotions and related thoughts.
For the protagonist Alex, however, it’s a difficult fate. Because she can not only perceive the feelings in the form of clear auras, but is also often overwhelmed by them. When someone around Alex is particularly restless, the feeling spreads to them. If someone gets angry and wants to start a fight, Alex gets infected and clenches his fists.
As a result, Alex rarely really lets people close to him and tends to keep his distance when there are strong emotions – at least until, after a long wandering around, she finally moves to her brother’s small town and starts a new life.
Visiting the flower shop looks terrific
One of the most impressive and yet actually so simple scenes takes place in a flower shop that Alex visits during the course of the game. The a little old saleswoman does not notice us immediately and is terrified when we speak to her.
This small, panicked reaction triggers an emotional outburst that Alex can perceive. With her power she can read some memories from objects and perceive the thoughts. The owner of the shop suffers from rapidly developing dementia. All of her fears and worries come to light – but above all the fear that her health will mean that the flower shop will be stolen from her and that she will have to close it.
This turmoil and the loss of order is simply beautifully portrayed in the game world. While Alex lets himself into the thoughts and feelings of the old woman, the numbers on the clock jump and rearrange themselves. The big lettering that just said “FLOWERS” suddenly reads “FERWOLS” and the “Closed” sign at the entrance of the shop suddenly says “Edlosc”. While the windows of the street were still facing outside, the white veil of oblivion now covers it, which threatens to devour more and more of the shop.
Alex helps the old woman to bring order and structure back into her day and to fight the emerging dementia – at least for the moment. You recapitulate the day, go back step by step to see how the owner’s day must have passed.
From opening the door to answering a call, processing the order and evaluating a check.
While this is a scene that has little to do with the main characters in the game, it was pretty impressive. The confrontation with the subject of dementia – a disgusting disease that many are afraid of – is burned into my memory.
Especially because at the very end of the scene there is the terrible realization that the shopkeeper has forgotten something different, much more important because of the illness: the last devotion of a person who has just died and who meant a lot to her.
Here the game confronts you again with a difficult decision. Do you explain to the old woman that she has forgotten that person’s death? Or do you keep your mouth shut and hope that the subject won’t bother her any further?
Although the scene actually happens “on the side”, I had to swallow hard. It was incredibly intense, even though little actually happened. It’s just a visit to a flower shop with a little help from the neighborhood. But it not only affects the characters, but also the players themselves – at least that was the case with me.
Life is Strange – Accessible to All
“Life is Strange: True Colors” is also suitable for people who otherwise have little to do with video games. The game has a lot of “training wheel” functions that might seem strange in other games. You can optionally set a whole range of warnings, for example in front of these incidents:
- Particularly loud game scenes
- Particularly bright or garish effects
- Decisions with special consequences
- Extra time in making a decision
- Warning when a quick action sequence is pending
Occasional gamers and newbies will be happy about what “true gamers” roll their eyes about. It takes a lot of pressure off someone who may not have played that many games and has to get involved first.
For those who, like me, tend to spend the time alone or as a couple between the holidays, Life is Strange: True Colors offers a slightly different gaming experience with some sad, but also many beautiful scenes. Because at heart the game is a somewhat supernatural adventure with many important messages and an interesting story that you can influence yourself.
It is a game that stimulates thought and at the same time deals a lot with emotions, emotional outbursts and other human sensations. Something that at least I like in the dark winter time.
The message behind Life is Strange is completely unobtrusive and actually so obvious: Try to understand the feelings and desires of other people and do them something good. In the end, everyone is better off with it.
You can take this to heart not only at Christmas, but all year round.
Reference-mein-mmo.de