Life is Strange: True Colors Reviews
Overall, Life Is Strange: True Colors is such a good quality story that its technical shortcomings can be forgiven. This isn’t the best platform for the game, and players who really care about a top quality graphical experience will likely want to turn to another device. However, for Switch owners who don’t have access to a PS5, Xbox Series X, or high end PC this is a must-play.
Life is Strange: True Colors is the best game in the series so far, without a doubt. The town of Haven Springs is full of excellent characters, with Alex Chen herself being one of the best protagonists we've seen in some time. The game does suffer from some pretty severe visual downgrades with the Switch release, and some of the additional minigames left us feeling a bit cold. Nevertheless, developer Deck Nine has crafted a fantastic narrative that you'll be eager to see through to the very end. Reduced visual fidelity aside, Switch is a great place to experience True Colors.
At the end of each chapter, Life is Strange: True Colors follows the same procedure as its predecessors in allowing you to compare your choices with other players and to find out exactly where your, and your friends, morals lie that will undoubtedly provide some interesting (possible arguments?) conversations. I had waited with bated breath to play Life is Strange‘s next narrative adventure and I can honestly say I wasn’t let down. Every expectation was met and then some. From the deeply impactful writing, the consequences of choices, and the attention to every detail, True Colors was an experience that I can’t wait to start all over again.
If you were already a fan of Life is Strange, then Haven Springs is absolutely worth a visit. True Colors doesn’t introduce much new, but it continues the series' strongest points in a powerful new story that’s sure to have you chasing it down until the very end. And while the PlayStation 5 performance left a lot to be desired, it didn’t discount the experience enough to stop me from playing. Alex Chen will have a place in my heart for a good while.
Life is Strange: True Colors creates a world that players will want to be in, and a story that needs to be seen to the end. Despite the small scale of Haven and its unnerving issues, True Colors plausibly allows itself to have high stakes and is convincing in its premise. It's a game that is not only a shocking emotional rollercoaster, but also a compelling lesson about the importance of empathy, and an enjoyable time that could serve as a viable foundation for more storytelling in the future.
An adult story about empathy that shows us the beautiful & difficult side of life in an emotional rollercoaster ride.
Review in German | Read full review
Life is Strange: True Colors has the best characters in the whole series, but at the same time, it also has the weakest story. The narrative takes way too long to take off, and by that time, it might already be too late for many players.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Deck Nine and Square Enix took a gamble on making Life is Strange: True Colors a full game from the get-go as opposed to an episodic adventure. But the decision has paid off, delivering one of the series’ more refined entries to date. Haven Springs is a joy to explore, and Alex’s emotional journey is one that will stay with me for a long time to come.
True Colors is worth exploring in its entirety, but it glosses over the rougher parts of life, painting them in a romantic light.
Life Is Strange: True Colors is right up there as one of the best games in the series, if not the outright best. Its characters are interestingly complex and believable, the writing is strong — albeit a bit clichéd in true Life Is Strange fashion — and its more sinister narrative has plenty of twists and turns that’ll keep you hooked. It’s all punctuated by heartwarming, lighthearted sections reminiscent of Before the Storm’s beloved ‘play’ scene, and its decisions will have you second-guessing yourself for hours. The whole experience is wrapped up in the strongest presentation values and a soundtrack that never skips a beat. This is a must-play for fans of the series, and a serious contender for my Game of the Year.
Life is Strange: True Colors is the most extensive and ambitious chapter of the Square-Enix series, but it does not reach the narrative depth of the previous chapters. While declining in a precious way the theme of empathy and forgiveness, some narrative choices and certain script ideas would perhaps have deserved a greater deepening.
Review in Italian | Read full review
True Colors already feels closer to an interactive movie than a game, especially in the final chapter. Here, we’re plunged into a series of overly expository flashbacks in which our decisions have already been made for us. There are fewer choices to make and interactions to discover as we’re led toward a narrative twist that’s as convenient as it is messy. You can see the seams in the editing as the game’s engine chooses which of two responses you’re going to get from each member of the town council, depending on how you interacted with them in earlier chapters. Were you ever actually empathetic toward these people, or simply tallying up points to get them on your side? A stronger game might have better concealed this behind-the-scenes scorekeeping, but Alex’s power makes the game’s true colors all too visible.
Who knows; you might just find someone that shares those feelings with you.
Life Is Strange: True Colors automatically becomes one of the best games in the franchise. Emotions with a life of their own.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Heartfelt and poignant, the only thing Life is Strange: True Colors trips over is its own words.
Its story doesn't quite stick the landing, but this is a beautiful game - not just in its look, sound, and feel, or even in its real and relatable characters, but in its message and its delivery.
Even if it feels like you've already played it a few times during its the first hours, Life is Strange True Colors feels definitley fresh thanks to its writing and lovable characters - thanks to its voice actors. The power of its protagonist could have been used in better ways in terms of gameplay, but this trip to Haven Springs will definitely captivate players in need of emotions.
Review in French | Read full review
It’s a glimmering, supernatural journey that reminds you life really is… weird.
Life is Strange: True Colors has a lot of the ingredients that make the series so beloved, most notably in its compelling protagonist. Technical advancements for the series bring its story to life with fantastic performances and a keen eye for detail. Unfortunately, the story it brings to life is full of stutters and stops, and takes far too long to develop. Where Life is Strange games are full of movement, True Colors feels painfully stagnant for too long.