Brave New World is the second installment in the Life is Strange prequel, Before the Storm. The latest chapter is a thoughtful exploration of Chloe and Rachel's developing relationship against the backdrop of a burning Arcadia Bay. The episode starts with a game of chicken, in which both you and Rachel attempt to take the blame for the previous day's unauthorized field trip, saving the other from the wrath of Principal Wells. The introduction peaks in a beautiful expression of Chloe's frustration with Blackwell Academy, her family, and even Rachel. The episode continues to explore Chloe's deteriorating relationships through conversations, journal entries, graffitti, and of course the nightmares featuring her recently deceased father.
Unfortunately, the game's momentum slows throughout the middle of this episode. Despite the looming forrest fire, uncertainty about Chloe's future at home and school, and even the presence of dangerous drug dealers, this chapter lacks any of the urgency you'd expect given the prominent plot points. I missed the atmosphere of desperation from the original game. The lull in this episode is further drawn out by tedious fetch quests that seem only to serve the purpose of extending the play time. While this type of gameplay can be used effectively if choice is involved, the potential is far from realized. For example, there is a scene where Chloe decorates her junkyard truck, but even though the player can choose which items to use, you have to use the first item you pick up, so the purpose is more to navigate around the junkyard and relay items back to the truck than it is to customize your ride.
Luckily, the episode ends on an even stronger note than where it starts. The last third of this episode blends the quality storytelling and character development that we've all come to expect from the franchise-- though some plot lines were more overt than they needed to be (I enjoyed the subtlety of piecing together a story from a classmate's trash without any unnecessary expository dialogue). This part of the episode returns to more "substantial" narrative gameplay, including inside jokes that reference the original game and compelling chemistry until we still get see the passion of Chloe and Rachel's relationship culminate in a dramatic on-stage declaration. The final scene in this episode is taught with the frustration of desperately wanting to (and wanting to avoid) a confrontation that inevitably ended in a reveal that left me with the same frustration and excitement I felt in the penultimate episode of the original Life is Strange.
Ultimately, while I was still unimpressed with the mechanics presented in this episode, the narrative (of course) redeemed the experience, though it wasn't quite as satisfying as Episode 1. The game continued to present choices that let me shape how Chloe develops into the blue-haired rebel in Life is Strange. Not only that, but we see how Chloe's life at home changes and how those changes affect her. Finally, we see how her relationship with Rachel blossoms in those angst-ridden circumstances and how the pair influences one another, for better or worse. There is surprisingly little commentary on the raging forrest fire, or the potential consequences for starting it, which will hopefully be addressed in the conclusion to Before the Storm. In the meantime, I haven't quite decided if the lack of attention to this fire decreases its effectiveness as a plot device, or makes it all the more powerful.
