The Best Order For Playing The Life Is Strange Games

Life is Strange is a franchise that has a mix of games that are connected and standalone entries. In cases like this, there are generally two orders in which the games can be played: release order and chronological order. However, Life is Strange is unique in that not every game needs to be played in a specific sequence to have the required context for other titles. For certain games in the series, however, playing one before another leads to massive spoilers, making things tricky for new players.

While not every game in the series is connected, Life is Strange focuses on characters in their late teens to early twenties as they undergo a coming-of-age experience. However, it can also feature a wider range of ages, like the younger Daniel in LiS2 or Chris in The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit standalone entry. These stories often include a protagonist with unique abilities that help them on their journeys. With the release of Life is Strange: Double Exposure, it's the perfect time to dive into the franchise.

The Original Life Is Strange Is The Best Starting Point

Max Caulfield's First Journey

The original Life is Strange is the best starting point. It follows Max Caulfield, an aspiring photographer, as she returns to her hometown of Arcadia Bay to spend her senior year of high school studying at Blackwell Academy. Revisiting Arcadia Bay results in Max encountering her former best friend, Chloe Price, whom she left behind when she moved to Seattle with her parents. However, what should be a normal senior year starts to take a turn when Max helps Chloe investigate the disappearance of Rachel Amber.

As they dig into what happened to Rachel, and if her disappearance is as simple as her finally leaving Arcadia Bay behind as she wanted, Max learns some dark secrets about the people of both Blackwell Academy and Arcadia Bay. She also ends up in some dangerous situations with Chloe buthas the power to rewind time to help them stay out of trouble as much as possible. Between the cozy vibes of Arcadia Bay and the mysterious plot, Life is Strange 1 is the perfect taste of what the franchise has to offer.

Continue The Journey With Life Is Strange: Before The Storm

Chloe's Story Before The First Game

Life is Strange: Before the Storm is technically a prequel to the first game, but it shouldn't be played before Life is Strange. Even though it's a prequel, the release order of games still often relies on the expectation that a player will have engaged with the originally released content beforehand, so things may not be as clearly explained or, in this case, even contain spoilers. Plus, there are often nods to things that come later in the timeline, which players miss out on enjoying if they play out of release order.

This time, the game follows Chloe when she's still a student at Blackwell Academy, meaning that the player doesn't have access to Max's rewind powers to help them out. Since the main characters are Chloe and Rachel, Before the Storm features some huge spoilers for Life is Strangeby showing how their friendship started in detail. Playing it as the second game ultimately makes for a more rewarding playthrough as you'll have context for some of Before the Storm's key bittersweet moments.

If you still opt for starting with Before The Storm before playing Life is Strange 1, it is still highly recommended that you do not play Farewell, the Before The Storm bonus episode. Even if you play Before The Storm first and feel it's only natural to wrap up with the bonus episode before playing Life is Strange 1, Farewell is best enjoyed after completing both games.

Shift To A New Story With Life Is Strange 2

A Story About Brothers

After witnessing a traumatic event, Life is Strange 2 follows two brothers as they set off on a journey to their dad's hometown in Mexico. Technically, this game can be played first if players have no interest in the first game or just feel that they may prefer this story, as the story of Sean and Daniel's experience of trekking to Mexico with limited resources is a completely isolated story from that of Max and Chloe's mystery-solving.

That being said, it's not recommended. Life is Strange 2 features several Easter eggs and references to the original Life is Strange that can't be appreciated without context. So, while it isn't a must to play the first Life is Strange to understand the second, as they're completely different stories, you will miss out on a few things if you intend to play both and play Life is Strange 2 first. Furthermore, LiS is the more well-received game, so it's a good way to know if you'd like to play more from the franchise.

Join Alex In Life Is Strange: True Colors

Steph From Blackwell Academy Returns

The franchise returns to the cozy small-town vibes with Life is Strange: True Colors, where the story is centered around one location and a mysterious death. In this story, Alex has powers of empathy that allow her to see and absorb other people's emotions, naturally opening up some interesting new narrative opportunities and choices. That being said, True Colors follows the same rule as the others on this list as it should be enjoyed in release order with the rest of the franchise.

For one thing, Steph returns as a character in this title, only adding to the lengthy number of references to previous games that can be found during Alex's journey. Since there is no direct link to LiS2 in True Colors, you could theoretically swap True Colors with Life is Strange 2 in your play order without really missing out on anything, but it's not recommendedunless you simply don't plan to play Life is Strange 2 at all. Also, don't forget to play the bonus episode, Wavelength, after True Colors.

Max Returns In Life Is Strange: Double Exposure

College Isn't Easier On Max

Although some of you may be looking to jump right into the franchise with the latest entry, Double Exposure, that would be a mistake. Since Max returns as the protagonist in Double Exposure, it's vital to play at least the first Life is Strange before it. That being said, if you don't have any interest in LiS2 or True Colors, you can skip them without ruining anything, but the optimal recommended order if you do that is still LiS, Before The Storm, Farewell, and then Double Exposure.

Now in college, Max continues to pursue a career in photography alongside new friends and classmates. With Max back in the role of protagonist, her powers are also going to play a key element as she tries to solve the mystery of her friend's murder. However, after not using them for years, Max creates overlapping timelines when she tries, causing her to see both at the same time.

Release Order Is The Best Order For Life Is Strange

The Strongest Option For New Players

With the risk for spoilers depending on which games are played first, the best option for a new player is to experience Life is Strange in release order. The only real exceptions to this are Life is Strange 2 and True Colors. Since these two stories operate independently, they can be enjoyed on their own without any additional context or skipped altogether if players feel that they would have no interest in these stories.

Once you've already played through the franchise in its intended order, playing them chronologically can be a fun way to revisit the franchise. In particular, it's different to play Life is Strange: Before the Storm, before the first Life is Strange when all the spoiler information for both games is already known. In each game, the small interactions and simple moments that capture what makes the characters unique provide a charm to Life is Strange that is best appreciated by experiencing the story in full.

Life is Strange: Double Exposure

Adventure

Systems

Released

October 29, 2024

Developer(s)

Deck Nine

Publisher(s)

Square Enix

Franchise

Life is Strange

Platform(s)

PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

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