The first two Life is Strange games have finally been released in a remastered collection on the Nintendo Switch after initially coming out on the other consoles earlier this year.
Like with True Colours, new co-developers Deck Nine are once again at the helm and have given these original classics a makeover. Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection features the first two adventures in the series Life is Strange and Before the Storm. They each tell a different story revolving around characters living in Arcadia Bay.
Life is Strange focuses on the relationship between budding photographer Max Caulfield and her childhood friend Chloe Price. After witnessing a fatal incident involving Chloe, Max unlocks the ability to rewind time, which she uses to save her friend.
This newfound ability thrusts Max into a whirlwind adventure to protect Arcadia Bay and her friends. Life is Strange: Before the Storm is set three years before the events of the first game, this time following Chloe Price and Rachel Amber.
Chloe, who is struggling with the death of her father befriends Rachel and the pair develop an intense relationship as they uncover long-buried secrets. Both games have incredible stories and even though they are contained to a relatively small cast and location, are filled with outstanding writing and character development.
Each of the main cast has been well devised with plenty of layers to their characterisation making each interaction fulfilling. The interactive story is brilliant with both games tackling emotional themes very well.
These two titles were a joy to play the first time around and definitely worth another playthrough as players can access them in one go rather than waiting for each episode. Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection looks great on the Nintendo Switch, with reworked character models and locations really standing out on the Switch OLED.
Whilst the game retains its original aesthetics the improved lighting, textures, and colour grading really elevate the overall experience drastically improving the game's visual storytelling. Improvements in the character models through motion capture technology really accentuate their features allowing them to better express themselves much more than before, especially during those emotional moments.
The lip-syncing has been drastically improved from the first game making all conversations a joy to watch. The epic soundtrack from the original games returns and like before the great blend of licensed music and original tracks from Jonathan Morali is a great accompaniment to the visuals that helps to set the right tone throughout both titles.
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection retains the original gameplay mechanics that utilised Max’s time reversal and Chloe’s backtalk system. The game controls have been neatly ported over retaining the original mechanics allowing for a faithful interactive experience.
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection feels right at home on the Switch running smoothly in docked and undocked mode, with the only issue being really long loading times between different segments which can get frustrating at times.
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection Verdict: 4/5
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection is a faithful remaster with its new visual enhancements greatly improving the overall experience. The Nintendo Switch version is a great way to experience these classic titles for the first time, especially with all the episodes in one place.
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection is out now for the Nintendo Switch.
