Life is Strange: Double Exposure follows Max, the protagonist from the first game in the series, 10 years after we last saw her. She is once again caught in a mystery where she has to discover who murdered her friend, Safi (and why), and she has some interesting new powers to go along with it.
The story itself is not directly tied to the first Life is Strange, but many day-one fans have been questioning if Chloe will be present in the new season. While Double Exposure primarily focuses on Max's new life at Caledon University, there is a way that you can carry over the choices you made in the first game so that they can have an impact on the overall story of Double Exposure.
Warning: This guide contains story spoilers for Life is Strange: Double Exposure and Life is Strange!
Life is Strange: Double Exposure Hands-On Preview - A Focused Development
Life is Strange: Double Exposure showcases how far the franchise has grown, while keeping all of its original spirit intact.
How to Carry Progress Over to Double Exposure
While you cannot carry over a save to Life is Strange: Double Exposure from the original game, you can make some choices while talking to Safi to determine how Max reacts to her history and who you can see updates from throughout the game. After you've explored the abandoned bowling alley with Safi, she'll ask you about the "blue-haired girl" whose photo she found in your wallet. Here, you can make some dialogue choices that explain how you decided the first Life is Strange ended.
First, Safi will ask who is in the photo, and you can respond with:
- "We were just friends"
- "We were high school sweethearts"
While there was nothing overtly romantic between Chloe and Max in the first game (besides the kiss, of course, but that was still a choice you had to make), this choice is more based on what you felt their relationship was like. If you haven't played the first Life is Strange, then this is all about the backstory you'd like to craft for Max. The answer you give here informs the choices you have in the next question Safi asks, which is simply, what happened to Chloe?
- "She died"
- "We broke up"/"We grew apart"
If you chose the high school sweethearts answer previously, you'll be able to explain that you and Chloe broke up, but choosing that you were just friends will give the "grew apart" option. This is where you can carry over whether you sacrificed Arcadia Bay in the first Life is Strange.
How the Choices You Make Change the Story
Depending on the choices you made when speaking with Safi, you will either get updates and messages from Chloe when checking your phone, or you will get updates from people in Arcadia Bay like Joyce and Victoria. If you choose to save Chloe, then you can also find a letter from her in Max's room, and a happier photo than the one you would pick up if you sacrificed her in the first Life is Strange.
The bad news for Pricefield fans is that there is no way to work around this. Chloe remains special to Max whatever you choose, but Deck Nine decided to take her out of Max's life in this sequel, whichever choice you made in the original game.
At the very least, if you choose the high school sweetheart route, Max does explain how they were in a serious relationship for many years before deciding to call it quits. Their romantic history, and their history as people who knew and cared for each other for a long time, remains an important part of Max's backstory throughout Life is Strange: Double Exposure, and there is some comfort to take from that.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 71 /100 Critics Rec: 54%
- Released
- October 29, 2024
- ESRB
- M For Mature: Mild Blood, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Deck Nine
- Publisher(s)
- Square Enix
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Franchise
- Life is Strange
WHERE TO PLAY
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
