Max, who returned as the protagonist of Double Exposure, will reunite with her former lover\/best friend Chloe for one final adventure \u2014 and for the first time in the same game, both characters will be playable.<\/p>\n
Once again, there’s a sci-fi mystery to solve and limited time to do so \u2014 this time, Max’s Caledon University must be saved from a deadly fire \u2014 and once again, Max can rewind time to remake decisions, while Chloe can use her risk\/reward “Backtalk” ability from 2017’s Life is Strange: Before the Storm to provoke further responses from others.<\/p>\n
How is Chloe back, if players previously saw her demise? The story here seems to be that Chloe is now alive regardless after Max merged a pair of disparate timelines in Double Exposure’s finale. Returned to life with memories of a past she never lived, Chloe is prompted to seek out Max for answers.<\/p>\n
“This game builds on all the character-led, grounded storytelling for which the Life is Strange series is known, with meaningful choices that affect the outcome of a dramatic and surprising narrative \u2013 all culminating in an epic climax that serves as a finale to the Max and Chloe saga,” Square Enix wrote today. <\/p>\n
Life is Strange: Reunion Screenshots<\/p>\n
Fans may be surprised to learn that Max and Chloe’s stories will end here, but after a lengthy and often bumpy development road for the franchise, now perhaps feels a good point to ensure their tale gets a definitive ending, with both characters together one final time. <\/p>\n
Remember that Don’t Nod, the series’ original developer, never planned for the characters’ stories to continue beyond its initial hit game. Remember also that both Don’t Nod and current maker Deck Nine have experienced mixed fortunes with the series since, with the original game’s emotional climax still considered by many fans to be the franchise’s high point. Finally, there are likely narrative advantages to letting players decide on a final outcome for the pair \u2014 something that doesn’t need to be unpicked or worked around in any continuation.<\/p>\n
Will Life is Strange continue without Max and Chloe? Square Enix doesn’t go as far as stating that Reunion is the last Life is Strange game ever \u2014 though this feels an ending, for now. <\/p>\n