Recent reviews by (Boosted) Gaebolgs

It sucks to leave a thumbs down on anything in the LiS franchise, but LiS:DE is THE hardest sell of them all. I was always going to play this game because the franchise holds a spot in my heart, and I love Max. I've always been open to seeing other interpretations of her character in official, unofficial (fanfic), and official-adjacent (the Titan Comics run) when it comes to Max.

I believe this game could have been something great, but it falls flat in so many different ways. It has an interesting premise and a good first 3 episodes, but the last 2 are where I would say the fall of needs to be studied. You're playing two different games at that point, and by the time you've reached the end, there is no payoff whatsoever. Anything this game sets up in the beginning just has no overall consequence or even relevance to the ending. There are straight up some "important" choices that end up never being mentioned again! This leaves you feeling disjointed, confused, and wondering what was the point of even giving you a choice that results in almost nothing but plot holes.

The romance options exist just to give people a choice between dating a man or a woman (Vinh or Amanda) but they have no relevance to the story. You feel obligated to engage with them in a romantic/flirty sense because the other dialogue options are just mean or like... not-Max, I guess. I'm sure if I didn't romance anyone the game would have felt a lot more empty since the other side characters are very flat outside of their minimum needed contribution to advance the plot.

Visually the game is amazing, the character models and mo-cap have improved significantly over the titles (whether it's Deck Nine or DONTNOD) and the music is pretty good. Hannah Telle reprises her role as Max and she's still got it! I did enjoy a lot of the characters introduced, but again, they fall flat with what the story brings. Safi's character is confusing and you know she's dead because of the trailer, but I feel like we are given very little reason to care about Safi other than EVERYONE is telling us we should, because she's our new best friend.

There are tidbits of Chloe mentioned in photographs, text messages, or dialogue options that ultimately DO NOT affect the story in DE at all, but exist as like, flavor text/fanservice to previous fans. Remember, this game was sold as a standalone entry to the LiS franchise, so anything they include in this game will be connected to LiS1 in the most minor of ways as possible. Every time Chloe is mentioned or you can see her posting on social media could have easily just not been included. Feels like D9/Square Enix only did it to continue having minor crumbs for people to come back in with, but it served only to aggravate those same people.

Overall, this game was a solid 5.5/10, leaving much to be desired and was pretty disappointing. If Square somehow still makes another one, I will be here to see it and surely it can't get worse than this game. If you want to play this, get it on sale and go in with zero expectations.

I think it is a mistake to go into this game believing it's just another entry in the Life is Strange franchise -- Lost Records: Bloom & Rage is definitely it's own thing among the other DONTNOD stories. This game starts out a little slow, but I think Tape 1 does a great job of setting the stage, getting to know all of the characters and learning how the plot unravels. By the time you get to Tape 2, you have a level of investment in the characters, the plot advancing, and the mystery unfolding bit by bit.

Visually, it's ABSOLUTELY STUNNING and I'm in awe of the unique lighting and scene setup they went for. Soundtrack is a bop per usual. You can equally romance (or stay friends with) all 3 girls, and depending on how you play your cards, you will get copious amounts of additional dialogue options. Additionally, it should be noted that silence IS an option and can be handy to consider (especially since not every dialogue has to be about you :P). The characters are fleshed out and real, but the actual dialogue can be kind of corny/cheesy, but who doesn't expect that!

No spoilers here, but I did not go into this game expecting to cry, but I was a mess by the time I finished Tape 2. This game just hit me a certain way and it will stick for me for a while. It's something special, not for everyone, but I think if you have enjoyed any other LIS title, this one is worth it. If you know me, please play this game :) <3

Vanripper does it again! My brain is small so this was slightly easier for me than Helltaker, but 10/10 would kiss all the ghost girls again. Great soundtrack, art is on point, I can't wait to go back for the last half on Hard mode. PLAY THIS GAME!! I can't wait to see all the fanart soon <3

A snail man sucked the life out of me and danced on my body afterwards. 10/10

you can be a catboy, fight god, AND catch fish, what's not to love?

you? maidenless
me? eternal consort of the stars

LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOONNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!

EDIT: Just finished the Wavelengths DLC. It's a great add-on to the base game and gives me the insight I wanted into Steph's connections in Haven and her journey to get here. It also has minor story implications based on whether or not you played LiS1 and your final choice there. The gameplay is confined to the Record Store/recording booth but I always enjoyed discovering story elements and character interactions via your notebook/cell/PC enjoyable.
The dating app element was almost too realistic... I respect it :P

With the DLC my overall rating is a 9/10. Don't think this trumps Before the Storm as my favorite but I have a special place in my heart for every single one of these games.

--

Another one down for the Life is Strange series! To date, this is probably the most beautiful out of all of the games. I really enjoyed Alex as a protagonist and I was initially skeptical about how her "power" would be used throughout the game and in minor instances -- it turned out wonderfully and I was surprised at the choices and opportunities to use it! My only gripe would probably be the length, as some chapters were shorter than others -- also the episodes end rather abruptly compared to previous entries.

Overall, I think if you like Life is Strange, you'll enjoy the trip to Haven, meeting new faces (and revisiting old ones for BtS fans!) The soundtrack is absolutely stellar as always, so don't skip out on the "Moments of Calm" and really let yourself dive into the game.

Spoiler-free review for friends who are interested in what this game has to offer.

To start off with, I'd probably only recommend you this game if you enjoy choice-based adventure games, but there aren't very many "important" choices to make. It's tough comparing it to the 5-episode tales of Life Is Strange 1 & 2, while Tell Me Why only has 3 episodes for their complete story. The story is somewhat underwhelming (with some twists that didn't really make sense to me) but I think most of the characters and what they go through are believable and realistic.

As far as gameplay is concerned, you play as both Tyler and Alyson at certain points of the story and utilize their "power" to replay memories of their childhood and communicate with REAL twin telepathy. This is also never explained similar to the protagonists from both LIS games, but I think it just feels like an underutilized element of the game. It's only actually used for story purposes during a few conversations, but I guess I can understand why they axed the majority of it if so. The puzzles in this game were somewhat challenging, but I did enjoy the fairytale book aspect they incorporated into it.

While I did not experience nearly as much emotional distress as I did in the LIS series, certain points in Ep1 and ESPECIALLY Ep2 got to me. But don't go into this expecting to feel like those games did. Overall, I enjoyed my time playing this game, and I recommend my friends who did enjoy LIS to at least give this a shot. At the very least it's got great visuals and music, and when's the next time you're going to experience a dinky little town in Alaska?

I give it a nice 7.5/10 -- I'll probably only go back to grab the 3 (three) collectibles I missed... one per chapter ):

Some of the puzzles will leave you feeling EXTRA tiny-brain, but the art and soundtrack is worth it. Justice is the best fyi