After the rollercoaster that came with the first Life is Strange entry and the adventure across America that came with the second, I was interested to see how the next game would pan out with an empath in the lead. Though the developers behind True Colours were Deck Nine and not Dontnod, I went into this new title with excitement. Finally, I would get to play as someone that looked like me. Black hair. Brown eyes.

Better yet, they also had to contend with a gender-neutral name. Although, with Alex, hardly anyone ever assumes your gender like they do with mine. Growing up, it’s been hard to have people ask me why I have a ‘boy’s name.’

And while we may not have had the exact same experiences growing up, it was a relief to play a game through the lens of an Asian American (although I’m Asian Australian) trying to make their way through the world. Best of all, no high school drama! This time, Alex Chen is properly adult and trying to carve out her own little place is something I could immediately connect to. Even if Gabe and her never exchanged one word of Chinese.

Plus, Life is Strange: True Colours also saw the return of fan favourite Stephanie Gingrich. Who was I to turn away a music-loving and overall nerd considering it’s a label that I’ve also had to grow into as a mass consumer of video games and wannabe dungeon master for a non-existent Dungeons and Dragons campaign (it’s all right, Kyndaris…you can revive it after this lockdown is over)?

True Colours starts with Alex enduring one last session with therapist at the Helping Hands. After the death of her mother, her father abandoning the family and her brother ending up in juvenile detention, she has had to scrape by in the foster care system. For years she has endured the humiliation of never being picked for adoption. Over her life, she has run away countless times, couch surfing with friends, occasional lovers and simply looking for a way to survive in a world that’s far too loud. These are made especially clear in the text messages found on Alex’s phone.

Unlike the previous protagonists that were able to manipulate time or were granted telekinesis, Alex is initially portrayed with the curse of empathy – able to feel people’s negative emotions. So, it comes as no surprise that she shies away from people and can’t deal with crowds. The escape to Haven Springs to be with her estranged brother: Gabriel Chen feels like a fresh start in many ways.

The first chapter served as a great way to introduce all the characters and helped build up the bond with big brother Gabe. My Alex was eager to reconnect but also shy in the face of meeting new people. She was blunt and unafraid to speak what was on her mind: like calling Ryan a dork, while also being quick to sell Gabe out to give cute local mountain man a leg-up in their friendly rivalry.

Best of all, she could shred a broom guitar amongst the very best.

Though I entered True Colours with my heart set on Steph, I soon found myself enticed by Ryan’s charm. Perhaps Deck Nine was banking on Before the Storm nostalgia, but during that first playthrough, Alex barely had any interaction with Steph besides picking an album being played before scurrying away into a corner when the radio DJ stormed out of the record booth, on the phone about a LARP. It was Ryan that immediately noticed something was wrong and who sold me Gabe’s order that was on hold.

How could I not fall for the guy that had ordered a CD about bird calls?

Even on the journey up the mountain to find Ethan, Charlotte’s son and Gabe’s pseudo-stepson, Ryan was there. When Typhon detonated their explosion despite the fact that there were still four people within range of the blast, Ryan was there. And when Gabe was struck by a flying boulder and toppled over the edge, it was Ryan who made the hard call to cut the line lest Alex perish as well.

I wanted to hate Ryan for that, but in the second chapter, it was clear that the poor golden Labrador of a person was consumed by guilt and his own self-hatred. As he and Alex talked it out on the clifftop, I couldn’t condemn the poor sweet boy.

That was probably when I fell hard for Ryan Lucan, son of Jed (owner and proprietor of The Black Lantern, as well as local hero that had set Alex up out of the kindness in his heart) and mountain ranger. The Mounties will spot a goose grave from 100 paces indeed.

Chapter Two was also the one where I discovered I had a knack for solving the scripted emotional encounters set out in True Colours. Helping Steph as she reminisced about the good times that she shared with Gabe was cathartic in its own right. Plus, I got to goad her quite a bit before my inevitable loss in Foosball (it was also good that I could cut loose with a zinger and not immediately regret that it was the bad dialogue option. Honestly, have writers ever heard of sarcasm or just trying to mess with people?). These moments were great ways to explore Alex’s power as well as make her feel seen. Every time I denigrated my powers as a curse, the other characters would lift her up. That positivity was empowering because it helped cut through the negative chatter rather than forcing a worldview upon me. For that, I respect the writers behind the game.

One of the most hard-hitting questions I faced though was telling Riley about her grandmother’s memory problems. While I wanted to tell Riley the truth, I also realised that it was not my secret to tell. Eleanor would have to tell her granddaughter in time. For now, when she still had use of most of her faculties, it seemed better to abide by her wishes. Besides, I liked to think that just because I never told Riley in-game, it was a secret that would be revealed later when it was necessary by the characters. Haven Springs was such an inclusive town, with everyone looking out for each other, it was highly doubtful that Eleanor would be left out in the cold even if she was suffering from Alzheimer’s.

But it was in Chapter 3 that I really felt immersed in the world. After Ryan and Steph became a part of Alex’s Scooby gang (and summarily revealed that they only shared one braincell between the two of But it was in Chapter 3 that I really felt immersed in the world. After Ryan and Steph became a part of Alex’s Scooby gang (and summarily revealed that they only shared one braincell between the two of them), I went full-in on the LARP. Alex’s hesitance to either wear the dorky bard hat/ take her precious guitar out for a spin was one of the most relatable moments I’ve ever experienced in a game. Also, when she told both Ryan and Steph that their plan to seduce Diane, an employee of Typhon, needed additional work-shopping truly was a key highlight of the game. It was a stupid plan and I cannot believe that Alex had to use it to steal Diane’s USB stick.

Honestly, there needed to be an option to end up with BOTH Steph and Ryan.

And the fact that Ryan played all the enemy encounters! He was so cute as a snake, hissing and playing along with Ethan…quality future husband material right there. I just…my heart…

Beyond that, I also took immense joy in requesting Steph’s hand in marriage in exchange for one of the precious jewels Ethan and Alex were seeking on their LARP quest. Reading her thoughts and seeing the shimmer of gold around her was enough to know that I made the right choice in that regard.

Then, of course, there was the boss battle with Jed! As I already had the reveal of his treacherous colours revealed to me as I was reading through a few comments, I liked the use of foreshadowing that Chapter 3 bestowed. The king that had sent Thaynor and his bard friend (played by Alex) revealed himself to be the actual villain of the piece. I loved how Ethan’s enthusiasm for the game took hold and immediately swept Alex up into the fantasy of it all. The final battle, held in an abandoned castle truly felt epic.

This, unfortunately, was swiftly followed by another hard decision with Charlotte. As someone that has lost someone dear to them, seeing the depth of her pain and anger was frightening but understandable. Humans grieve. And occasionally, we blame others – no matter how unfair that blame might be. In the end, I could not take away Charlotte’s anger because it was a part of who she was and she needed to feel those emotions and accept them.

In fact, taking away anyone’s emotions did not sit right with me (although I had to do this with Pike. It was either that or sign an affidavit that would have forced Alex to drop her investigation into Typhon and THAT was something I simply could not do. Or, at least, viewed Alex would not do). They are what make us who we are. Over the years, I’ve been told many times that I shouldn’t be ‘angry’ or ‘sad’ or ‘miserable’ or ‘depressed.’ That, instead, I should try and be ‘happy.’ But how can one be happy without processing and acknowledging my other emotions? Nobody is positive all the time. To squash out my very valid feelings would only be detrimental to my health.

It’s okay to cry, sometimes. Heck, it might even be okay to cry most of the time when life’s pressures feel like they can be too much.

Maybe I just need a Ryan or Steph in my life. Or even an Alex that can help cheer me up when I’ve grown tired of trying to prop everyone else up.

Speaking of which, the fact that Alex serves as the negotiator between the bad blood between her brother and her father (in the past) is also something I could not help but draw comparisons to. Lockdown has been hard for everyone and my grandmother and mother seem unable to understand where the other is coming from. It’s been tiring trying to be the one to bridge their misunderstandings. Worse, it means that I sometimes can’t articulate my own frustrations without them staring at me as if I’ve grown three heads.

Alas, it seems I’ve gotten on quite a tangent.

Back to Chapter 4, which was one of the better chapters when it came to Alex dealing with the shit Ryan and Steph probably pull on her on a daily basis.

This was the chapter that also helped solidify who I wanted to romance. Ever since the first chapter, I wavered between Ryan and Steph. Did I pick Ryan, the good boy that would do anything for his friends as he thumped his tail on the carpet? Or would I go with Steph, the cool and confident nerd that I wished I could be? In the end, I went with Ryan. He was the one that I could see would have a fruitful future with Alex. He represented stability whereas I had the sense that Steph had only been in Haven Springs for a short time and was possibly looking for adventure in some place new (which was fine, but it made me wonder if they would forever remain in a relationship).

Everything was starting to look up, especially after the performance at the Harvest festival that Ryan and Steph had sprung on Alex (and which she would have totally killed them for) that the encounter with Pike left a bitter taste in my mouth. And when I went to Jed for comfort (being the father of my possible romance partner), I was surprised that he bloody shot Alex and left her for dead down a MINE SHAFT!

To be fair, if this was the real world, it was likely that Alex would be dead after such a fall. At the very least, she would have been severely injured and her glasses would have been completely useless. True Colours being a video game, her glasses remained ON HER FACE AND PRISTINE! Never once did she ever have to search for her glasses after she had survived a fall that was about fifty metres.

The game would like to convince me that it was all pure adrenaline…but that’s such utter nonsense. Nobody would have been able to dig her way back to the surface and then walk who knows how long to get back to town. But that confrontation with Jed and his sins was one of the best things a video game has ever gifted me with. In the end, I forgave the man (though I was still righteously furious that he had SHOT me Alex). And, to be frank, that forgiveness was probably what broke him after denying the loathing he had carried for twelve years.

It also hurt me that I had destroyed Ryan’s image of his father. After reading up on the myriad of ways the confrontation could go, I could understand why Ryan would be hesitant to believe anything bad about the man – even if it was from a girl that he had kissed the night before and had entered the local tavern with dried blood across her brow and sporting a mean limp. Even though I had everyone else in town sticking up for me, or advocated for my trustworthiness, I would have understood if Ryan had stepped back.

His father was everything to him. Hero, outstanding father and supportive parental figure. It’s hard to have everything you thought to be true shattered and it hurt my heart to see Ryan trying to grapple with the enormity of the allegations.

But trust Alex, he did. And I was immensely grateful for that support.

True Colours provided an excellent story and managed to carry it well until the end. If I hadn’t been spoiled of the twist, Jed’s betrayal would have probably cut more keenly than it had. He was a man that I had respected the moment Alex had first him. Much like his son, he was friendly and helpful. People make mistakes. His was a bad call that resulted in the loss of seven lives. But after so many years and after all the goodwill he had fostered, it didn’t seem right that I condemned him for the actions of so long ago (though I’ll still bear a grudge for the fact that HE SHOT ALEX!).

By the time I had my last conversation with Gabe’s ghost up on the rooftop, and the pretty picture he had painted of a life in Haven Springs, I was eager to take a break from the small town that had helped give Alex purpose, a home and the possibility of a future. It is my head-canon that my life in Haven, as described by Gabe, would be waiting for Alex after she had returned adventuring across the wider globe.

After all, who needs to settle down at just the tender age of 21? Certainly not my Alex, who was still trying to sort out a few things, but who had also discovered a talent for music and helping others. Haven Springs was to be her home. And gosh darn it, where can I find a nice place like Haven Springs with a himbo to call my own?

Still, even though the game never had Alex or Gabe or their parents speak Chinese, I liked the elements of their culture sprinkled throughout the game. The shrine dedicated to Gabe with incense and oranges to the cookie tin that was filled with sewing needles and thread (the truest East Asian experience as long as that cookie tin said Danish butter cookies). And I’m fine with that. Why, I hear you ask? Because throwing in a few random Chinese words would not have added much to the game’s narrative. And though I felt it strange that Alex’s race was hardly ever raised, this was a theme that was already explored in Life is Strange 2.

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As for the DLC, Wavelengths…hoo boy, let me tell you of all the trouble I went through just to play a short few hours of downloadable content!

It should come as no surprise that Stephanie Gingrich was one of my favourite characters from Before the Storm. As I’ve stated previously, I liked her confidence and that she could so effortlessly lean into her passions – whether that was being a GM or her taste in indie music. So, getting to play a side story as she navigated her first year in Haven Springs was a great way to learn more about her character.

From the start of the DLC, it was clear that she might have bitten off more than she could chew when she agreed to get interviewed for the gig at the local radio station. But she aced that interview with aplomb (and gosh, I wish I could emulate that on even my best days) and was finding her way around a switchboard and all the gear that had been left behind.

While Wavelengths doesn’t rise to the heights of the narrative found in True Colours, it was a great character study for a fan favourite. During my time with it, I liked learning about the woman that I had first met in Arcadia Bay and then discovered anew in Haven Springs. Just like with Before the Storm, I got to see more facets of her character that were barely touched upon – such as the trauma of the deaths of Chloe and Rachel (I saved the Bay) coupled with the crimes of Mr Jefferson. I even got to see more of her flirtatious side, and dictate it a little, with my interactions with Fiona (who later came out as trans and was thinking of changing their name to Quentin) and Vi, a biker chick, who I had swiped right for on a whim.

Then there was the return of Mikey. The few games that she played with her old friend were a great way to harken back to when players got to first meet Steph and it was nice to see a familiar face.

Beyond that, the nods to Critical Role, something else I have a great passion for (there’s a whole history behind me watching a group of nerdy ass voice actors sit around and play Dungeons and Dragons and it all begins with Felicia Day and The Guild), were a great highlight. Keg and Reani being dating options I could swipe right for were excellent nods, considering both of them slept with Beauregard.

Unfortunate, indeed, that I didn’t notice a Beauregard or Yasha option. I need more disaster lesbians in my life!

Still, I am eagerly awaiting the release of The Legend of Vox Machina on Amazon and, at time of writing, am also impatiently anticipating Campaign 3. I can’t wait to see what Matthew Mercer and the rest of the gang will bring to the table.

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Overall, my time with True Colours and its Steph-centric DLC Wavelengths, were excellent additions to the stable of Life is Strange games. In fact, they might be one of my favourites out of the whole series. I fell in love with ALL of the characters and there was something refreshing with the fact that the main protagonist wasn’t in high school and trying to protect someone else. This was a game that wasn’t afraid of asking hard-hitting questions that weren’t all about death or impending disaster. That levity, perhaps, is why I think the game shines so much for me given everything that the world has endured these last couple years. Here’s hoping that Deck Nine or Dontnod continue in this vein and keep pumping out these weirdly wonderful games that have curated such a loyal fan following.

Also, if Jane Douglas and Luke Westaway (from Outside Xbox and Outside Xtra, respectively) could discuss this latest entry, my bingo trifecta would be complete.