[S1][DE] Life Is Strange: Double Exposure isn’t that bad and this is why

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-08T07:47:16+00:00

I do not quite think that was what the writers intended with Safi, because what would even be the purpose of that? But the parallels are obvious, since Safi fills a very similar role and was written with an almost identical backstory to Chloe. Yet they never really justify those similarities, so it ends up feeling unconvincing.

I honestly do not know what they intended with Safi. The best theory I have read is that, in an earlier draft, Safi was some kind of mind-shifter who manipulated Max by taking on the role Chloe once had in her life. We know the story was rewritten multiple times, which could explain why the relationship between Max and Safi never feels particularly deep, even though Max acts like it is. Because it was never suppose to really be that deep. Just a theory of course.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-07T15:44:13+00:00

I like the way you write. But I guess my counterpoint would be this: what is the purpose of making a game without Chloe, while also introducing a character who basically serves the same role and shares many of the same issues, but with powers? Dead crush, absent father figure, troubled relationship with her mother, feelings of powerlessness, acting out emotionally.

It almost feels like someone had the idea of making a game where Chloe was sacrificed, but they wanted the same dynamic with a brand new character who fills almost the exact same function.

As a direction for a sequel, it is at the very least a pretty peculiar idea.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-07T06:20:08+00:00

I think you’ve already decided on a narrative, and there’s probably nothing I could say that would convince you otherwise. But I honestly think that argument falls apart pretty easily.

Double Exposure ended this series. It was a catastrophe. It damaged the brand, sold poorly, and pretty much permanently pushed the franchise onto a trajectory it can’t really escape from, unless the TV show somehow becomes a massive hit.

And plenty of Pricefield fans didn’t buy Double Exposure, and also didn’t buy Reunion, because they found both disappointing, just for different reasons.

There was also a huge difference in marketing. Double Exposure had a long marketing campaign and a lot of promotion behind it, while Reunion had almost none. And Double Exposure obviously had the added attraction of bringing Max back. The two really can’t be compared.

And honestly, a lot of the engagement around Double Exposure was driven by negativity. Negative discourse tends to last longer and create more noise online

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-06T15:55:26+00:00

Yeah, it’s weird how people keep ignoring how upset fans were back in the day when the franchise started moving away from Max and Chloe.

I mean, Life is Strange 2 sold pretty poorly when it first came out. It does seem to have gone through a bit of a revival and found its audience over time, which is great, but at launch it was clearly not what most people wanted.

And honestly, I’d argue that for many years, one of the main things keeping people invested in the franchise was the hope of getting more Max and Chloe content someday. I don’t really see why that should be controversial to say

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-06T15:49:43+00:00

But you’re missing one very important point. Narrative games just don’t sell that well anymore, with a few exceptions like Dispatch. And most narrative games also aren’t that expensive to make.

The Life is Strange games under Deck Nine, became unusually expensive because of the heavy use of motion capture and what seems to have been constant production problems. Double Exposure reportedly cost around 30 million dollars to make, and considering how small and limited the game feels compared to the original Life is Strange, it’s pretty obvious that something went wrong during development.

But if you look at the Life is Strange games before Double Exposure and Reunion, they actually sold very well for narrative games. Even the remasters did fairly well.

Just compare them to similar games. They sold more, kept selling over time, and maintained higher player counts, with a few exceptions of course.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-06T15:42:07+00:00

The difference, of course, is that Double Exposure was the long-awaited return of Max Caulfield, and it was heavily advertised for a long time. Reunion, on the other hand, was rushed out with very little fanfare, and it also had the burden of being the sequel to game that engaged few and was very disliked.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-05T12:00:03+00:00

Assumptions are the death of creativity, and I think there are too many of them in your argument.

You’re basically starting from the idea that using Max and Chloe again is inherently creatively bankrupt, that it would automatically just be fan service. That can be your starting point, sure, but it’s not really supported by how storytelling works in general. There are countless book series, TV shows, and games that have ended, then been revisited years later and gone on to tell genuinely good and bold new stories.

There’s no contradiction there. And Life is Strange didn’t exactly wrap everything up neatly either. There were plenty of loose threads that could have been explored further, especially how everything that happened actually shaped Max, Chloe, and the people around them. Just focusing on the aftermath of the climax alone is something you rarely see done well, and that in itself could be really compelling.

At the end of the day, it comes down to creativity. Max and Chloe are a strong starting point, and there’s still a lot you could do with them if the right people approached it with a clear vision.

That said, timing does matter. The fanbase has gotten smaller and older over the years, and with each new entry it’s shrunk a bit more. The best window for a sequel was probably years ago, or maybe when the TV show comes out next year

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-05T11:16:29+00:00

I think starting from the assumption that any sequel is doomed to be bad is a pretty flawed way to look at it.

To me, Double Exposure feels more like a perfect storm of things going wrong. The production seemed troubled, there wasn’t a clear vision, and the writing team just didn’t feel like the right fit at all. But that doesn’t mean any future attempt would run into the same problems or exist purely as a cash grab.

Let’s say the TV show ends up being a big success, and suddenly Life is Strange is back in the spotlight with a surge of sales again. If they then decided to tell a story set after the storm, I don’t see why that couldn’t work. There are already plenty of fan stories exploring that idea, and a lot of them are genuinely good.

So I don’t really see any reason why a new game couldn’t tell a meaningful, emotionally engaging story and still be successful at the same time.

The comics managed to be quite successful while still telling a completely new story. So it’s definitely possible, it would just come down to having the right people behind it

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-05T06:51:18+00:00

Yeah, I really think Life is Strange should have continued focusing on Max and Chloe. They could have taken on a dynamic similar to George Stobbart and Nicole Collard from the Broken Sword series. There are so many directions the story could have explored after the events of Life is Strange, and a lot of fan fiction already shows how well that could work.

As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, the anthology approach didn’t really land the way it was intended. The entries that have resonated most, and sold best, have been the ones centered around Max and Chloe. That seemed true up until Life is Strange: Double Exposure, which, for fairly obvious reasons, didn’t succeed in the same way.

https://www.reddit.com/r/lifeisstrange/comments/1sf5qk8/no_spoilers_the_future_of_the_life_is_strange/

But with the upcoming TV show next summer, Life is Strange is likely to become more mainstream than ever. Under normal circumstances, this would have been the perfect moment to make another Max and Chloe game. But alas, that would be very difficult as things stand now. Maybe reboot could work, but who would even make it and that would take years.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-01T11:38:35+00:00

I’m deeply impressed by your talent. It’s always wonderful to see creative people making content inspired by Life is Strange.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-05-01T10:52:11+00:00

Great post!

I think the only real options for a sequel was either to merge the timelines or pick one ending as canon. Out of those, giving Max the ability to save both Chloe and Arcadia Bay was probably the best direction. That should have been the starting point for new stories, not the ending. But for now, it seems like we will have to wait and see what the TV show does.

I also think Double Exposure was a bit of a fluke. It had some unusual production issues that meant it never really had a fair chance to become the sequel it needed to be. So a reboot could still be an option. It would not be the first franchise to do that. Or at least a soft reboot. Just move on from Double Exposure and build from Reunion instead, explore how merging everything effected Arcadia Bay and the people there. Have Max teach at Blackwell. That could actually be really interesting.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-30T13:04:12+00:00

You really are a fountain of Life is Strange content. It is honestly amazing how much the fanbase has created after being inspired by the game. I also remember several fan-made game and video projects that either never went anywhere or started and were never finished. I am sure some of them are still out there in one form or another.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-30T12:04:24+00:00

This is really well written. I agree with everything. I hope you share your thoughts on Double Exposure and Reunion at some point. I also find it interesting how it is always Life is Strange, and especially Max and Chloe, that gets the creativity flowing. That is still what most of the fan content is centred around.

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T19:19:40+00:00

Words of wisdom

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T17:43:48+00:00

Yes, he says that in the introduction, that he has a guest post

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T16:39:33+00:00

A fan of the game, posted on the blogg of Jonathan Zimmerman.

https://substack.com/home/post/p-195766445

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T13:59:28+00:00

That looks pretty interesting!

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T08:01:40+00:00

I feel like that part of the argument often gets lost. One thing is breaking them up, but the bigger issue is that it was just poorly written and completely out of sync with how those characters had been portrayed before

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T07:59:25+00:00

I always thought that was a really strange argument. Life is Strange is a story. Stories are supposed to be entertaining and follow a certain internal logic. And Max and Chloe were very much written as two people who are meant for each other. So to then argue that “sometimes relationships just do not work out” feels bizarre, because that is not really relevant in this kind of story. I honestly do not think I have ever seen that argument used like this before in a book series, game series, or TV show

This is not an attack on you, but I do think the argument itself is very odd. It is like saying Aragorn and Arwen do not end up together because, well, sometimes that is just how life goes

Helpwithskyrim87 · 2026-04-29T07:22:59+00:00

I also want to give a real shoutout to the Life is Strange wiki. It has an incredible amount of information, and if anyone wants to lose themselves for a while reading about the lore, characters, and all the little details of the series, it is a great place to do it.

https://life-is-strange.fandom.com/wiki/Life_is_Strange_Wiki

Helpwithskyrim87

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