#i really do mean it safi!

[mambalae-s]

hi hi lovely mamba ! guess who’s fiiinallyy done with school > < i came to drop by and ask how you’re doing. i hope this week is treating with kindness and i hope that the next is even better. here’s your reminder to smile today and take some time for yourself, no matter how little !

my darling, i’m very proud of you for getting through it all!! (´ ω `♡) you’ve done very very well up until now, and i hope you’ll also be able to take some time to rest now that you’re able to! just hearing from you and that you’d made it through the last bits of school is more than enough to put a smile on my face 🩵

[arcadiabaytornado]

Looks like they aren't continuing Pricefield. There's an opition where you say to Safi that "Chloe died" or that "Max and Chloe broke apart". The devs are so lazy and stupid

Yeah...I haven't talked Pricefield since the first two chapters released, and that's really because I don't really know what I want to say?

It was lowkey devastating to learn that the first WLW relationship I ever witnessed in media broke up off screen. However, I have always seen the faults in Max and Chloe's relationship and think a Pricefield breakup could have been depicted in an interesting way.

Yet, "interesting" isn't the way I would describe how it happens. It feels very lazy and like they wanted Chloe to go away as soon as possible so they could get on with telling their story. I think the first scene we have with Amanda being RIGHT after we learn about the Pricefield breakup is a good example of this...but by full admittance my life has been busy the last week and I haven't gotten to really analyze DE, so take that as you will.

There are also multiple aspects of the breakup that I just don't like... Like....what do you mean after all they went through Chloe broke up with Max over a LETTER? Chloe didn't owe Max a relationship, but they couldn't have even had one last "hashing it out" conversation?And the Chloe/Victoria thing genuinely feels like fanfiction that I think was meant to be fan service??

So, I guess what I have to say is "I don't love the break up in general, but it's made more offensive by the fact that it's not even an interesting break up." However, there are still three more chapters incoming, so hopefully it'll be more fleshed out then. And I would vey much like to add a "Please don’t bother the DE writers who need a paycheck and very likely didn’t have unlimited control of creative process anyway." statement because as much as I don't like where DE went in terms of Pricefield, I still don't wish any ill on the team who worked on the game. It's never that serious.

[axtivaqe]

Life is strange Double Exposure is NOT canon

So its been getting around that Chloe isn't gonna be in Lis DE and I have never been more devastated in my life. Deck nine said they were going to respect the 2 decisions that players could've made, yet they practically said "fuck you" and took Chloe out of the picture. I just don't understand why though, like 50% of the fanbase picked sacrifice Arcadia bay and it was mainly because we are huge pricefield shippers (idk about y'all but I am). And their not stupid, they know about the pricefield ship and how much people wanted to see Chloe and Max in another game. They literally said they were going to follow through with the original games and the 2 decisions at the end, but then they completely scrap the idea of Chloe and Max being together, and they didn't even want to tell us. People had been asking about Chloes role in DE since the game first got announced, so why would they leave our questions unanswered for so long? It makes no sense on their behalf and its js overall bad marketing, They made it out that Chloe left Max because she didn't want to do long distance, but thats not Chloe at all. Chloe is the girl who dedicated her WHOLE journal to letters for/to Max in before the storm, Chloe is the girl who wrote "and she probably has all new friends up in fucking Seattle, i still miss her. if she came back tomorrow and said "hey Chloe, want to dress up like pirates and be stupid together?" i would take her back in a heartbeat." after she hadn't seen or spoken to her for 3 years, Chloe is the girl who told max that they would last forever and that she would never leave her. They completely mischaracterised her and made the whole sacrifice Arcadia bay option pointless, they spent 10 years together and Chloe throws it away because she cant do temporary long distance? Thats not like her at all. I see people saying "its realistic though, a relationship built from trauma isn't healthy" and it really annoys me, like yes their right, but thats in the real world, its a game about a girl who can jump between realities which isn't realistic at all. And don't even get me started on the rumour about Chloe flirting with VICTORIA.

But the game still isn't out yet, I mean we only have the first 2 episodes and I'm not sure if all of this is confirmed (if it is how do we know when we only have the 2 episodes?) or if people are just taking the 2 episodes and their story line, and then putting the pieces together. I was having a convo with someone in the comments under a yt video by Cucu on Games about how Chloe will be in DE (the video was made 3 weeks ago before all this info came out) and we both thought that maybe Chloe will come back into max's life in one of the last episodes, maybe she misses Max and hears about what happened with her friend Safi and comes to see her and reconnect with her, because surely Deck nine, a huge game company who know what their fanbase wants, wouldn't use false advertising by making us think Chloe is gonna be in the game only to scrap that idea after saying they wanted to respect and follow the two choices players could have made.

Its a really controversial opinion and I've seen a few people say it makes sense and its part of Max's character development, but Id say most of the fanbase isn't happy about this whole thing. I mean of course I'm happy to be able to see Max in another game, and we're lucky to even be getting another lis game. But to make us think we're going to see Chloe and then let us find out that we aren't is just bad marketing. If they never intended to have Chloe in the game then why wouldn't they answer everyones question, 'Is Chloe going to make a physical appearance?' (they would've 100% seen people asking because their social media pages are flooded with the one question about Chloe) Lmk what you think tho, and if you made it all the way through this then thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this long ass rant 😭

[nolessthan7]

why isn't anyone noticing all the failures of double exposure that decknine have been doing all along vs dontnod? the economy of storytelling in dontnod is amazing. just look at the names.

chloe price - the price to pay for saving arcadia bay/arcadia bay is the cost for chloe

victoria chase - "victorious" popular dream chaser girl

mark jefferson - a seeming bastion leader and teacher with a disgusting intimate secret and french attitudes

kate marsh - lost in the marshes of the narrative, sunk in the mire of the plot without understanding

max caufield - catcher in the rye reference to a character that wants to save everyone, "supermax"

i'm not really sure about nathan and warren, but the economy and meaning here is incredible, allowing for a shorthand while planning the story so none of these major characters lose their core. especially in a high school story like this, where that simplicity is not just helpful but a staple of the genre.

whereas the major characters in double exposure like amanda, qwen, safi, moses... they're just names. and maybe deck nine tried to flesh them out with a character sheet, but that's not enough. nothing about them is tied to the narrative in a significant way. since decknine took the reigns they havent given the property the attention and care on a script level that earned its fans in the first place. really sad to see people making excuses for it because "max is back," but i see less and less of that except from paid sponsors and the game only just released

i was so excited because i thought maybe we'd have like the episodic release of the mystery like the first game, but alas those days are gone. maybe we will get it with lost records 🤞🏽

[cinematics123]

So, buddie lifer here, but I will say that I did like Tommy, historic problems with that character aside. While I prefer Buddie, I enjoyed the perspective of an older queer character (look at Josh/Brian Safi’s speech!) to the show.

I would love to see Tommy back on the show, and to get to explore that more - and I think Josh would be an excellent partner/foil for that.

That said, I liked Natalia too. And I even liked Ana, although Marisol can suck a dick. I didn’t dislike characters because they “stood in the way of Buddie” and I still don’t. I hated Taylor because she was BAD for Buck - and he was bad for her.

That said, it’s not good to gloat and I feel bad for the actor getting swept off (although glad he has other projects) and I’d love to see him back on the show in a different capacity.

For the BuckTommy only fans, I know you all feel pretty angry at the moment, but I also would like to invite you to contextualize what this means for 911 and Buddie - Buddie *was* supposed to go canon, that is the direction the show was actively moving in - and the studio not only blocked it but they cancelled the show. Only ABC was willing to step in and give the show a chance to shine and to actually have the courage to do buddie.

Without the passion of the audience, we would never have had bi Buck or BuckTommy from season 7, because the studio that shall not be named cancelled the show in Season 6.

A line from Josh on learning to respect the struggle of your elders definitely applied to Buck needing to respect what Josh has been through. But, it also applies to what the Buddie shippers have been through getting gaybaited by a studio on purpose and getting their whole show (which was the number 1 show in its time slot) shut down so their ship could not go canon. I will miss Tommy. I’d like to explore what his struggles were that led him here and led him to being someone Chim and Hen could rely on instead of being in the group that picked in them. But, understand why people are thrilled to see another barrier to their ship go away. It may come off as something anti-Tommy - but that anger has never really been about Tommy.

[my-little-safe-corner]

What could have been?

This time I'm going to discuss deleted script and ideas from Wish, however by that I don't mean major plot points such as "evil Amaya" or "humanoid Star", but rather (at least mostly) minor things that have been scrapped from the general plot as we know it.

I'll be using the (digital) graphic novel adaptation for my observations, which I assume is supposed to be similar to the Junior Novelization, albeit maybe a little shortened.

Disclaimer: Any haters in the comments / responses will be blocked!

When it happens: Just after "Welcome to Rosas". The tourists do get food in the movie, but Asha never explains where it comes from.

Why it was deleted: Not sure, maybe because Dahlia is the one whose wish is to be the greatest baker according to what I read (though it's never mentioned in the movie itself and even if it were, no one says multiple people couldn't have the same wish). Then again, it could be just to shorten the movie since it's not significant to the overall plot, only expands upon the idea of granted wishes a bit.

When it happens: Pretty clear from the image, since Gabo does say something similar in the movie. However, the rest of the conversation is not there.

Why it was changed: In this version, it seems no one takes Gabo seriously when he tries to warn about Simon. While it could serve to explain why and how everyone is content with their family / friends losing a part of themselves all around the kingdom (they either make up some excuse for it or simply don't notice at all), it was flipped in the final version so that everyone actually agrees with Gabo. It was probably done to get the audience to better understand Simon's condition and what happens to people after giving their wishes.

(BTW, in the Junior Novelization, Gabo even says that most people become boring following their wish ceremony, maybe it was changed to focus on Simon)

When it happens: Asha does blow flour at Gabo, but Safi's text is not in the movie.

Why it was deleted: In this version, Dahlia can be seen getting the batch of cookies out of the oven, but the teens don't take them. In the final version, this sentence would cause a contradiction, since if Safi can't have Gluten, why was he even going to eat a cookie? Instead, Dahlia warns him it has lemon.

When it happens: Read the scroll's text. In the movie, Asha sees only one reflection.

Why it was changed: I really don't know. It's supposed to hint at Magnifico's fascination with mirrors even before we meet him in order to establish his character, so why change it?

And now there's a big skip, and I'm moving to Act 2:

When it happens: Amaya trying to convince Magnifico to not use the dark magic book.

Why it was deleted: Maybe to make the dialogue consist of shorter sentences for each character in order for the scene to be more flowing and dramatic, and also to show again Magnifico's tragic past and his motives.

When it happens: Asha and Valentino entering the observatory to find her family's wishes.

Why it was deleted: Because it's just a joke that doesn't affect the plot. There's also another joke he says earlier ("Chaos! I love it!") that I didn't include.

When it happens: It's clear from Magnifico's text, but what Simon says is not in the movie.

Why it was deleted: In the movie, he just says "What?" and there's a bit of a focus on his face. I think it's actually enough to hint that he's going to betray Asha, so no need to keep this text. Plus, it actually paints Simon as more loyal to the king from the beginning ("he must really be worried"), as opposed to only after his wish was granted, whereas in the final version he acts purely for selfish reasons.

When it happens: Just after "This is the Thanks I Get".

Why it was deleted: Maybe to finish the song ominously, and for Amaya to not catch him reading the book.

When it happens: Just after Sabino absorbs back his wish, before Magnifico breaks into the house.

Why it was deleted: I'm sure everyone has already seen this deleted scene, and I really don't understand why it was cut at the last minute. Maybe because they didn't have another song for the credits? Also, notice what Sakina says, Sabino completely forgot his talent after giving his wish, I think it's good there's another example of what it does to people in addition to that of Simon, and again, shouldn't have been cut.

When it happens: Just after Magnifico creates his staff. He does have a very similar text in the movie, but doesn't see Amaya's reflection, just notices her behind him.

Why it was changed: Another reference to Magnifico's love for mirrors, we do see his own reflection in the staff, and I'm really not sure why not Amaya's, since that raises the question how he noticed her (his new powers?).

When it happens: Just before Magnifico's second assembly.

Why it was changed: Maybe to save on animation and just show the teens near the stage.

And now I'm reaching the climax of the movie. This was originally a much longer scene that has been changed a lot to get what we have in the final version.

When it happens: After Magnifico traps Star and Asha.

Why it was deleted: I really can't think of any reason for this other than to shorten the movie, which is already very short. It gives us another peek to Magnifico's tragic past, and shows he wanted to capture Star to not only have its power and get rid of what he perceived as a threat to his kingdom, but also because he envied Asha for getting the help he desperately needed when he worked hard for his own wish, which is very understandable, at least for me. It's a real pity this text was cut, I don't get you, Disney!

When it happens: After Magnifico asks Asha how taking her wish into her own hands is working out for her.

Why it was changed: In the movie he just says he doesn't actually care. Maybe they didn't want to show kids how he enjoys torturing and mocking her.

When it happens: After Magnifico sucks Star into his staff.

Why it was deleted: Again, maybe to not show him savoring over Asha's pain. It's a pity because it shows Star was a representation of her wish, so when it was lost, she felt the same pain in her heart as all the other people who got their wishes crushed.

When it happens: Just after the last image.

Why it was deleted: I guess to shorten the movie, making the reference to the "At All Costs" song at the beginning lost...

When it happens: That's Magnifico's response to what Asha says in the last image.

Why it was deleted: For the same reason, though this text seems to be somewhat unrelated. In the Junior Novelization, however, his answer is longer, stating he needed the wishes to feel happiness, which is also a reference to "At All Costs", and now he doesn't need them and the citizens of Rosas anymore, making it a sensible response.

When it happens: Quite clear from the images, but they don't mention Amaya's wish to serve Rosas.

Why it was deleted: According to Disney Wiki and Heroes Wiki, she was formerly a ballerina, i.e the same one we see in the beginning of the movie with Magnifico granting her wish, so it makes sense to remove that.

When it happens: Everyone celebrating their victory.

Why it was deleted: Because that implies Sakina gave her wish only after Asha had been born, which also means the family moved to Rosas not that long ago, but then Sabino wouldn't have waited "decades" for his wish to be granted...

And that's all! There are some other differences I didn't include, but they are not really meaningful in my opinion, just small adaptation changes. Also, since I had started this long post, I finally got the Junior Novelization, and there are more changes there, which I may write another post on.

[dalekofchaos]

Okay, I watched the DE livestream and even with my justified complaints before, I am most definitely not playing this game.

it feels like they killed any chance of Chloe, Warren or anyone from Arcadia Bay of appearing.

There was a dialogue option of Din- I mean Safi asking about "the girl with the blue hair"

And a dialogue choice appears between "We were just friends" "We were high school sweethearts"

"WERE" Are you fucking kidding? They said they'd respect both endings, but How the fuck is it "were" when they said they will respect both endings.

Sacrificing an entire town, killing nearly all of your friends and your love's mother is not "high school sweetheart" WHO FUCKING WROTE THIS SHIT?

Now this could've just been someone who chose the "save the Bay ending" in the livestream, but Max would not leave Chloe if that were the case...

Looks to me like they wanna split Max and Chloe even in the timeline where Chloe is alive. There probably will be just short mention of her or at best short cameo but that's it.

Like if they are no longer together/friends what would be even the point of Bae ending.

The idea that she'd leave her behind after destroying an entire town to save her doesn't really validate the ending. It just seems like a cop-out for a story that originally went with the Bay ending as canon.

As for the Bay ending. I doubt Warren will get a mention. Maybe a "There was this boy I liked, but it didn't work out because I just couldn't get over the loss of my friend and my own trauma, I didn't want to burden him, so I left. He deserved better than me." or worse, they'll demonize him and paint him how the fandom perceives him. I doubt Kate will get a mention. Maybe Max and Kate do stay in touch but they don't show Kate anymore, because god fucking forbid we get people we actually wanna see.

A lot of what made the first game so likeable is completely lost here, the art style, the ability to rewind freely, Max and Chloe's relationship/friendship. This feels more like a fanfic with a bunch of mediocre OCs shoved in than an actual sequel.

The majority of people who wanted Max back are those who also wanted Chloe back. It's going to be very surprising if they attempt to make it seem like Max and Chloe just lost touch or were just casual crushes in school. That isn't how the original game is at all.

Between this and the devs saying Max wants to forget and leave her past behind I’m taking this as confirmation that Chloe, Warren or anyone else from AB isn’t appearing at all which is pretty upsetting.

Zero interest in the game if they go this route. They should have just made a new character instead of completely shitting on Max' original story while using her for name recognition only…

Just remember. Deck Nine was outed for protecting a bigoted groomer and did nothing as a fucking Nazi put white supremacist imagery in their games and they so happen to release a game with "Max" in it. A Max without Chloe, Warren or Kate. A Max who learned nothing and fucked over reality over someone she just met. They got caught with their pants down and they slapped Max's name and voice on a completely new character because they panicked.

Anyways, I choose to believe MY Post LIS 1 headcanons or my Save Rachel game pitch, because that's how DONTNOD wanted it to be, a story we could choose after the game was complete.

I don't know who DONTNOD thinks this is, because that's not Max Caulfield #notmymax

[mylifeforchloe]

This a little abnormal for my blog as far as the kinds of posts I make, but I feel like this kind of a Public Service Announcement (PSA) is necessary for the fandom. Things like this make me really concerned-- not only for the LIS3:DE (new Max story) story that is going to be told, but also for the quality of working environment for those who work at Deck Nine.

Quotes from the linked article that bothered me...

[Edit: Original post was a link post with text after. I saw the link in the edit screen and scheduled the post. For some reason this caused the link to get removed when the article was actually posted. Editing to put the link in the original article. I also posted a follow up (before editing the original) to include the same info. Editing original for completeness only.]

Nazi imagery would be inappropriate in most games, but in a Life Is Strange title the dissonance was especially frightening.

...

According to over a dozen current and former employees across several departments, most of whom spoke to me on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, Deck Nine’s management has long let a toxic work culture fester at the studio. They claim the C-suite has protected multiple abusive leaders, encouraged crunch, and allowed bullying of individuals advocating internally for more authentic representation in Life Is Strange.

...

When they saw this version of the [True Colors] scene, a number of people pushed back, arguing that the scene would unintentionally trigger associations with date rape.

...

“It took a three hour meeting in the writers room and one of the writers sharing an extremely personal story to get Zak to agree to get the content out,” said Littleton. “It wasn’t about us not wanting to have difficult topics in there, but Life Is Strange shines because that type of content is chosen extremely deliberately and it’s given runway, it’s given space to breathe. This detail is irrelevant to the plot, it would have been traumatic for players, and there was no space to unpack it. We don’t have time to talk about what it means for Alex to be roofied by a man she trusted.”

fuuu...

Another anonymous source recalled Garriss suggesting that this pushback was only occurring because he was making a game about a woman, and that he wouldn’t have to deal with this if he was making a game about Nathan Drake.

fuuuuu...

[After Garriss' quit voluntarily] Once news got out [that Deck Nine mamagement wanted to re-hire Garriss], the narrative team erupted. Multiple people begged management not to bring back Garriss in a series of meetings, messages, and emails. One person familiar with leadership at the company recalls HR stepping in, noting that management was actively underpaying a number of workers, especially women, while considering a massive salary for Garriss. HR allegedly suggested that Deck Nine could be legally liable for Garriss’ behavior if they invited him back after the bevy of reports. When the company CEO and CFO persisted in arguing that they needed Garriss, multiple writers handed in resignations.

fuuuuuuuuu...

And given that what we've seen in the teaser videos are either

Missing any reference to Chloe

Including a minimalist reference (like a photo on the wall)

Including an awkward reference (Safi? asking Max about the blue haired girl in the picture Max keeps.)

And given that

3a - Either Bay ending, Max keeps a photo of Chloe from before the storm, or

3b - Max keeps a photo of Chloe, but Chloe isn't in her life (possibly not in her life any longer.)

And given that

Costs of developing a story where Chloe is present in only half of the story (the Bae ending version) and the ripple effect that might have on the plot...

I simply do not believe that Chloe will be a meaningful component. And the choices Max is making across dimensions, and the risk of not getting back to Chloe if she were still alive and still part of Max's life... the plot shown doesn't make any sense to me.

So I wasn't going to buy LIS3 to begin with, not without a proper story that included Chloe's presence in Max's present life. And now, after this article, I'm even less likely to buy [anything from D9, ever again,] knowing the cultural depravity of the development studio.

I would, of course, love to be wrong on all counts.

[annymation]

How did the conversation between Simon and Gabo went down? And what were the reaction of the other five? Yes I just want to see how much did he swear—

Heheheheheh I was HOPING someone asked, because I had to cut their scene together for time

So picture this, Simon is sitting down, back leaning on the door his friends are locked in, and we just hear coming from inside

Gabo: YOU $%*#@ LYING &$#!~*! AFTER WE SANG A *ˆ$%# SONG TOGETHER AND EVERYTHING YOU DO THIS??? I MEAN- YOU COULD'VE AT LEAST HAD THE DECENCY OF NOT SINGING WITH US BUT NOOOOOOOOO YOU JUST HAD TO BE A DECEITFUL %&*$ DIDN'T YOU?!

Simon: Look, I get it, you guys thought we could be some heroes here, but we can't. He's THE KING. The only way to keep us all safe is if I do as he says.

Gabo: Woooow and we feel so %$#&* safe right now! Do even hear yourself?! If he wins then Rosas is doomed! You think we'd be safer if we just sat down and watched this play out instead of actually FIGHTING to make a difference?! Then you don't want to protect anybody, you're just a coward!

Simon:...

Gabo: How pathetic is it that we could've literally WON if it wasn't for you. Now Asha is GOD KNOWS WHERE, Aster is gonna DIE, thousands of people are in danger... BUT HEEEY you got to keep a good image with the king! Good job!

Bazeema: Gabo, please, I think you're being a bit too-

Dahlia: No no no, Bazeema, let him speak.

Hal: Yeah, he's talking facts.

Safi: True- ACHOOOO - Like seriously Simon? couldn't even lock us up in a place without dust?

Dahlia: Safi that's not the main issu- You know what, nevermind, everything about this is messed up.

Dario gathers some pans in the closet and starts playing with them like drums, no one can see him signing in the dark room anyway, so he might as well play some ambiance music.

Simon: I made a mistake, I know! But if Magnifico finds you up there then-

Gabo: Then at least we would've tried! And we rather die doing that than sit here doing nothing!

Safi:........ Die? (whisper)

Gabo: If you wanna stay behind then BE MY GUEST, not like you ever was really part of the team anyway!

Simon:...

Gabo: But you can't keep us here forever! And when this door opens I swear Simon- there are KNIVES in that kitchen and I'm not afraid to-

They hear the door unlocking.

Simon opens it. He's looking at them sad. They're looking at him surprised.

Simon: *sigh* I just know I'm gonna regret this.

Gabo: ....... Indeed you will, Dahlia where are the knives?

Dahlia: NOOO nope nope nope! It's reconciliation time and not murder time!

Gabo: It is always murder o'clock.

Dahlia: And you can start making it up to us by pulling us through the food elevator that leads to the king's study

Everyone: .... WHY DIDN'T YOU MENTION THAT WAS A THING BEFO-

Dahlia: I WAS PANICKING OKAY?! I FORGOR

[emerynn]

MAX 🥺🥺🥺

(double exposure spoilers under the cut)

I knew episode 5 was gonna be a nightmare sequence but i still ate that shit up what can i say it's fanservice and im the fan lol

genuinely did get a bit emotional at the end like okay im HAPPY FOR HER

post credits scene was wild?? Not sure how I feel about them just handing out super powers like halloween candy but...okay? and MAX CAULFIELD WILL RETURN HELLO ???? part of me is sceptical and part of me is like yay more max hehe (fanserive, fan, etc.) - either way, guess im gonna be insufferable for a while then whoops

'will you ever go back to arcadia bay' 'one day' 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺girl i'll cry

lowkey the journal entries were nerfed. i mean i dont really care but still.

amanda max flirting scenes gave me major flashbacks to my own lesbian situationship so 10/10 points for accuracy on that one

i really enjoyed all the characters ngl!! and safi was so good and so intriguing i love that they let her be morally dubious oooo

'our lady of the storm' iconic. shes my fucking GIRL.

okay but is safi creating the lis avengers. like what is her plan. im concerned

how many endings were there because i strongly suspect there might have just been one and if that's the case that's hilarious but also like, come on

they kinda baited me with the "two maxes" bit at that one point i was like YES time travel bullshittery and max being a bitch to her alternate self EXACTLY WHAT I ASKED FOR and then i figured out the twist like 10 seconds before it was revealed and i was like well thats cool but.....i just wanna see max bully herself is that too much to ask for.....

'text from: chloe' like okay my heart did skip a beat lbr

okay so did max actually kill safi or what because that was never clear. like i think the polaroids were from the original timeline and then max shoots safi in that timeline leading to timeline 2 which is OUR original timeline i.e. the dead timeline and then...the living one happens asw? or was it like a pre-emptive timeline split did max ever actually shoot safi? i mean someone had to right? maybe this will make sense in the morning. or on the wiki. who can say

knew there was gonna be darkroom shit in the nightmare sequence fuck yeah (lowkey wanted more but hey im just being greedy now)

another tiny criticism but the krampus party did not feel like a college party lol like the vortex club end of the world party felt intense it felt dramatic it had stakes - krampus i was like oh this is giving me dead freshers week vibes guys just animate in some more extras please i know you can do it

music was amazing ofc

man i had this whole theory going on where max died in the "living" timeline at the same point that safi died in the "dead" timeline and that was why there was no alternate version of herself and it was some safis trying to save max while max is trying to save safi thing - obviously very wrong but i still vibe with it

i just really like max okay <3

To form something of a coherent conclusion: Really solid game, with some great scenes (the end of chapter 2 and start of 3 were def the standouts to me) and (in my opinion at least) really really good development for max - she was so clearly the same max as the original game but also she's grown up and she's grown into herself and ahhh it made me so happy to see!

I found some of the twists more effective than others and I think there could have been more build up to the storm (like in the original lis you KNOW it's coming for so long and there's this feeling of dread throughout whereas it kind of felt like we rushed to get to it here), but overall i had a good time, i really enjoyed getting to know the characters, and most of all, i really enjoyed getting stupidly attached to Max Caulfield again <3

7/10 looking forward to going down the rabbit hole with this one and i guess we'll see where we go next...??

[nightmanatee]

reasons why it might be safi all along (i mean why not).

disclaimer! i don't THINK i'm going to be right but i have been thinking about this game and all it's characters for so long that i won't stop until the next game is out i guess. do take this with a grain of salt just in case..

so. yeah. in a perfect circumstances the next game is going to be about max again. and safi. again. and many other things that i'll explain below but i also have tl;dr at the bottom bc there's a lot to talk about.

before we start i want to establish a few things about safi: she can turn into anybody she's met irl. she can leave parts of herself in people when she turns into them. these parts act as things that "change" people making them more like safi (something poetic about her losing parts of herself and being more like others she turns into and others becoming more and more like her). and she can potentially manipulate people.

part 1: all the things that happened before.

there are some weird things that are mentioned even before lis:de timeline. max has a part in her journal about how yasmin "was just some hot older lady who seemed to really want to be my friend" and safi CAN become her mother if she wants to. and even if it's actually yasmin it might be safi's part in her that wants max here. max is also promised an apartment where she "could bring friends over if she had any" and then the first day at uni safi comes in and says hi "like we've been friends for years"??? FOR YEARS??

"did you snoop into my wallet??" seriously how come we moved on from this THIS FAST???? like i get it safi getting into max's house in ep3 to see what max is up to but ep1? why would she want to get to learn about max this way?

i've checked their sms and there's one interesting thing when safi is being like "not to sound like a creeper but are you still at turtle?" or something and it IS interesting how she knows it (max being all alone at thanksgiving at turtle).

what could this all mean? well, 2 things. either safi is really interested in max's life and wants to know her and she doesn't care about consent, personal space and privacy (something max does if she romances amanda btw). or she needs to know not who max is but what, but more on that later.

part 2: max as a character.

although i do think that it's possible for max to be who she is in de given 10 years of growth but also given all the previous things i've said it might be safi's part in her making her act like this. max's freakiness totally comes from safi (remember ep4 dialogue between them), her confidence comes from her too (is it about her having more confidence or max having a lot of confidence through the years before (enough for her to win a few competitions)).

also! remember that max has taken out safi's parts out of moses, gwen and herself? and still safi can turn into her (vinh, yasmin and amanda). i also do wonder if it means that safi doesn't have "influence" on these people she can just turn into them? but then also -

part 2.5: "why isn't it hurting me?"

- also consider this: could it be so that safi lied to max and some part of her is still here. might as well explain why she hasn't replied to chloe's message anyways. or does it mean that safi has "been inside her" for so long that max doesn't even notice it yet.

it is rather interesting how there are a lot of moments specifially with safi that get brushed off and not mentioned again: the wallet thing, safi being too cruel in ep4 confession, her explanation for max not being hurt by her. could there be something more to it?

part 3: the reasoning.

ok. but really like why? why would she need to get max here in the first place? could this be just an accident with the universe being so kind to plot something like this? or could it be safi wanting more talented (like actually talented wink wink lucas) people here and she's noticed max and her work and decided to bring her here?

yeah it can be just it.

it can also be that safi just lied.

part ???: the one where i think safi lies.

ok but also let's imagine for a second that safi just. lied about many things. she did know about arcadia bay (weird how she's ready to snoop into max's wallet but can't google one thing about her? is it really THAT hard to either google who she is and to learn that she's from oregon or to go through her friends online see victoria chase and see that victoria probably posted about arcadia bay. like c'mon guys it can't be THAT hard). she did know that max has powers (just not what kind). she knew about chloe and met her personally.

if you go into the theory of safi becoming "others" who she shapeshifts as then her saying "partner in grime", doing the finger pistols, even her eagerness to "sacrifice herself for a greater good" - might all be from chloe.

she might've lied about not knowing anything to learn just how much max is weak for these things (something she's done for lucas).

part 5: the nightmare sequence.

it starts off pretty realistically with max encountering moses copying safi (one thing she talks about and it being potentially implied that she leaves a part of herself in people and they will act more like safi) but then something weird happens: the nightmare becomes personal. suddenly it's safi being in "chloe"'s position, it's blackwell's bathroom (max told safi about this) max having a weird unexplainable memory of her breaking up with chloe over safi's "coolness" (something she would've never said herself could it just be max). there are memories of her in the darkroom (mentioned in the diary), motels (something safi could've never known). it is kinda weird to focus on these things while the whole "nightmare" is more about helping safi becoming herself again. there's too much chloe for something that shouldn't include her in the first place (bc safi hasn't met her, has she?🤨🤫)

"she was in my head back there, and she didn't think of me at all" and "you know i was in love with her, or i thought i was" are two very interesting quotes from vinh that could mean that safi CAN make someone feel certain things she wants them to feel.

could she also make max feel like she needs to move on from chloe? given how eager she was to make max a move on amanda?

so yeah i do kinda feel like max hasn't finished her job fully and that something's got fixed but not all.

bonus part: aren't they merging already??? wait WHAT.

this thing is written at the very end of the game after safi, after nightmares after EVERYTHING. "something has been restored" and i wonder what, considering that it's not about safi or other peoples' memories. could it be that more that these two timelines merged? i mean it could also mean just max herself being "restored" by being able to save the day with everyone this time around but we'll see.

ok, wait! part 6: bay over bae.

almost forgot it. but yeah how can bay thing be somewhere here? well for once chloe is still important to max in this timeline the only problem is safi not being able to meet her "irl". i mean unless!! she evolves her powers enough to be able to "mimic" not only a person but their power/s as well. and given how she knows both of max's powers she can either timetravel to meet chloe or just travel to a parallel timeline to meet her future self (and to hurt max even more) or both. and now this will be the worst.

tl;dr? kinda?

what could that all mean? it could mean that safi has plotted max getting into caledon (to get what kind of powers max has/to exploit her talent to boost university's fame) and her only way to achieve that would be if max and chloe broke up (given how chloe didn't want to settle in with max yet. or if max wouldn't want to come "home" yet.

OR

it could mean that safi knows max's WEAKEST spot now and might, y'know, use it given a chance and a reason. and oh boy does she has a reason to (esp if you don't side with her). she can turn very fast against someone (did this to gwen and max), one wrong thing and she will want to hurt max in the worst way (remember how she's told all these awful things to robbie despite personally knowing him??? and it's all bc of his dad's actions?).

but only time will tell.

[maxinethevampirequeen]

LIS DE left me feeling weird? SPOILERS!!!

so i just finished the new life is strange game and wooo its defo the weakest in the series there will be spoilers in this so idk read if you wanna i just need to get this off my chest somewhere (also sorry in advance if stuff does not make sense this is just for me lol)

so the game opened really well i think the first 2 chapters that i got to play like 2 weeks ago because of the early access did get me hooked and i was really interested in who killed safi but that almost instantly lost its spark around the end of chapter 3 i think

safi being revealed to have powers is cool i think but i dont like how it kinda completely drops the murder plot for this weird revenge story for a character i hardly know thats been dead way before the game starts???

like cool i guess i care about safi so i want to help thats fine but how we never really get and answer for why max shot safi the first time idk if i missed it or whatever and how the detective guy was just kinda use as a fake threat to set up max to be scared of touching the other version of herself which instantly dosent matter because they fall and grab each other??? like why did he even have to die then also the fact that your choice to save him or let go does nothing he dies either way

and dont even get me started on how chloe is just teased through out the ENTIRE FUCKING GAME and then just fucking used as sequel bait!!!!! i really really like some parts of the game but i also really really dislike a lot of the parts

its not that i dont think the game is worth playing i think its okay but like ughhh it feels like the game was writen by a person who didnt play any other life is strange games and does not know anything about any of the characters

if this game was just a shitty sequel to life is strange 1 where we do gay shit with chloe i will admit i would have gobbled that shit up no matter how shitty the writing as long as the characters feel like the characters they were in the first game

i know max is older but god she does not seem like max at all its like we are playing a shell of max and the only thing that ties her to the old max is the very rare reminders of chloe and then they have the AUDACITY to have chloe text you at the end of the game!!!

like they know how much these characters mean to people and it just feels so fucking weird to not have the interact at all! they even have this thing half way through the game where max almost calls chloe! its like they were writing the game and were like

"this shit sucks lets dangle hope of a chloe interaction so they keep playing" because i think it really falls apart around the end i was really just waiting for it to end around half way through chapter 5

i really think the game is pretty and like a step up from the older games (obv its like 10 years newer lol) i really dont wanna sound like just a hater because i did enjoy most of my time with the game and as much as i wish it had been someone else and not max

i'm glad she's back because she is my favorite lis character! sorry for all the ramble i just needed to get this all off my chest i did like most of the game and i'm still interested in seeing where the story goes since "max will return" or whatever it said at the end

i wouldnt say i'm excited for the next game but i'm still interested but i think thats just coming from the fact that i will gobble up anything called life is strange also don't nod's newest game looks cool i'm excited for that too anyways peace out and sorry for the ramble!

also i wanna add i did not care for safi at all in the game i dont know why but she was the only character the game couldn't make me care about

This is all a thread i did on twitter where i just wrote what i felt without really thinking so if it doesn't make sense that's why lol

[arcadiabaytornado]

Live Playing Double Exposure Chapter 1 Part 2 (Except I’m not live playing because I forgot to post this when I was live playing. 😅)

A: Theory: It’s an alternative universe version of Max leaving the polaroids around.

B: I hate the owl imagery given the last time we got owl imagery it was during the barn in the first game.

C: The sound design on this game is great. I don’t know how I feel about the actual songs, but the sound design is great.

D: Safi just…sitting slumped over like that after getting shot was super fucking eerie holy shit.

E: Man. They’re really rubbing Chloe and Max’s “forever” in our noses huh.

F: It’s so sad to know that Chloe and Max were never the same after the storm. I mean, you know they wouldn’t be, but it seemed like they were doing okay in LIS 2. :(

G: “If I could undo your death I would do it without a second thought” I’m going to analyze the hell out of this line later because holy shit it’s crazy for Max to say that.

H: Max’s avoidant tendencies are stressing me out. Don't get wrong they make perfect sense for her characters, but I'm still stressed all the same. Like, PLEASE let people share in your grief. PLEASE talk to Safi's Mother.

I: Max having a dark room made my stomach drop. I know it’s perfectly normal for a photographer to have a room like that, but to see the words “dark room” in a LIS game made my stomach flip. It sure is a character note that it's not a "dark room" "dark room" though, it's more of a laundry room.

J: What??? So Max just saw her friend get murdered and now she's getting dressed up cute for her crush??? I'm glad we get to see Max's house...but that was a...weird scene transition.

K: I have so much to say about the journal, but I'm going to have to make a full post on it because I just can't quickly sum up my feelings here.

L: Okay. So Chloe broke up with Max due to storm trauma basically. Because that’s what I’m taking from this.

M: YEARS. Max and Chloe have been broken up for YEARS?? I can’t think clearly about the timelines right now but does that mean they broke up not to long after LIS 2?

N: “You need to eat Max” I’m won over.

O: “Friend?” The way Max says that is devastating.

P: There’s celestial stuff all over the box! That seems relevant.

Q: I feel Reggie on a spiritual level.

R: I love that you can decide if Max is a tea or coffee drinker. I choose tea!

S: “You’re the real storm.” Max flashbacking to her nightmare. :((((((

T: It feels so cool to see Max’s work around campus. But seeing that Max’s first photo outside of Arcadia was one of a ruined dinner kills me considering she was likely thinking of Joyce and Warren.

U: Did Max just say “chucklefucks” LMAO

V: I feel like this game is going to age poorly given the amount of meme references.

W: Does Max have some chemistry with Vinh or am I insane??

X: Already love Gwen. In fact I’m so in love with her that I found her book in the library immediately, but decided to pick the lock to impress her.

Y: I’m also down to romance Vinh, and I think he’s a love interest? If he is then I’m going with Amanda in this save, but Vinh will get a flirty Max in the other one!

Z: It makes me laugh so hard that you can choose whether Max is ACAB or not.

[muppetears-stuff]

Hey do you think Kate and Warren are going to appear in Double Exposure ? Seeing Victoria's name in a preview made me so happy, but I'm worried Deck Nine is going to character assasinate her tbh. On the other hand, I have hope to see Kate and Warren again. It will be so sad if they're not and the last time we see them at all is Lis1.

MAN I HOPE SOOOOO OMG

I really really hope that Warren and Kate get an appearance or atleast a MENTION in double exposure and from what I've seen so far (which isn't alot, I'm trying to keep most of the game a secret to me) the timeline we're in RIGHT NOW is sacrifice Arcadia Bay since Max has moved from Arcadia Bay for "unknown reasons" and seems uncomfortable talking about it, but that would also mean Chloe should be there sooooo,,,,?? Idk tbh😭

But I have high hopes for mentions or appearances of Kate and Warren because they're such important characters from LIS1, and Max seemingly has people from Blackwell still in her contacts sooo,,,👀

I have so many thoughts on Safi and Moses and how they're just rebranded Warren and Chloe, but like,,,, I'm not gonna rant about them rn-😭

[wish-incorrect-quotes]

Dahlia: You know Bazeema, I’m shocked you’ve been spending so much time helping with the chickens. Didn’t birds used to scare you?

[flashback]

Bazeema: Oh, it’s that cute guy again.

Asha: Which one? Sandy blond?

Bazeema: No, no. Floppy hair, big nose.

Safi: *walks over carrying a chicken*

Bazeema: Oh, she’s so adorable. I love chickens.

Safi: Do you want to hold her?

Bazeema: *quickly* No thank you.

Safi: ?

Bazeema: I-I mean, maybe I could just pet her for a second…

[present day]

Bazeema: Okay, I swear I love them now, I just wasn't really used to them before I met you.

Safi: That’s awesome! I thought you were just spending time with me because you wanted to see the chickens, but it was the other way around!

[skye-huntress]

I recently finished rereading the Life is Strange comics, and although we don’t know whether they’ll be considered canon in Double Exposure, there are a number of interesting points, especially related to Max’s powers, that may be super relevant if they remain true.

In regards to whether the events of the comics will be acknowledged, probably the most obvious tell will be whether Bae ending Max has a butterfly tattoo on her wrist. It’d be easy to hide something like that before we confirm our previous choices with Safi with the long-sleeved winter clothes Max wears. Whether or not these events happened to the Max we play as isn’t what I find most important. I’m more interested in whether certain details about how certain powers in this series work will still apply in this game.

First of all, there’s how different powers interact with each other. There is a strong implication that one of the conditions for Tristan to use his powers is to be in the general vicinity of another superpowered individual. It also seems that Max, Tristan, and Pixie’s powers all become stronger and easier to control when they were in each other’s presence, or with Chloe. Their powers also became stronger in the presence of the unnatural storm that was eerily similar to the one in the first game. In addition, I’m hardly the only person who suspects there were other supernatural forces at work in the first game, besides the restless spirit of Rachel Amber. It’s all part of the ongoing trend in this series that there’s more to these powers than we or the characters will ever be allowed to understand.

The second interesting point relates to how Max and Tristan could jump between different timelines. The conclusion Tristan came to about why he could do what he did was because there weren’t any other versions of himself to bump into. His theory for why they don’t exist is because he believed they all died without a Max Caulfield to save them or activate their powers. As for Max, when she last entered the transect where we could see windows to multiple other timelines, she told Tristan she couldn’t enter most of them because they were lives already being lived, i.e. by other versions of Max. She later tells him in order for her to enter another timeline there had to be space for her to enter. The unspoken implication is that the Max Caulfield in what I call the Amberprice timeline was no longer there, whether because of more supernatural nonsense or because she met an unfortunate end, we’ll likely never know.

So, those are the two main points I wanted to talk about, and you’re probably already seeing where I’m going with this. It’s already been stated that the sudden evolution of Max’s timeline shifting powers are an important part of the new story. Many of us, including myself, have already floated the theory that Max’s power is reacting to another supernatural power. But there was one question I had before about how Max’s shift power worked, and between what we learned about it in the livestream, and what I’ve read in the comics, I come to a conclusion. How Max uses this power only makes sense if she only exists in one timeline at a time.

There are two possibilities I could come up with. Either something happened with Max’s powers around the time of Safi’s murder that caused the timelines to split but left only one version of Max between them. The other possibility is that Max is dead in one timeline. How I think it would work is that the killer murdered Max first, and somehow her powers caused a past version of herself to start freaking out but not really knowing why. This deviation in the timeline saved that Max but led to the killer targeting Safi instead. Meaning we have one timeline where Safi died, and one timeline where Max died but her body was successfully hidden away so no one but the killer knows she’s supposed to be dead. I will say though, at this stage, that’s still a lot of assumptions to be made, but definitely something I’ll keep in mind as I play.

I am still confident that we’re dealing with one Max and two timelines, which leads to a number of other questions and implications. For example, if Max doesn’t make regularly appearances in one timeline or the other, will people start to notice her absence? That could be especially problematic if she is under suspicion for Safi’s murder. Max would have to constantly juggle her time between both realities and make sure she makes an appearance where she should, when she should. Good thing it’s winter break so Max’s work shouldn’t get in the way. That also leaves the possibility that once Max stops being able to shift, she’ll disappear from the other timeline for good.

I can probably keep going but I wanted to end this with my own prediction for how Double Exposure might end. If Max’s new power is somehow linked to the murderer having a power, then once they are confronted, Max may lose her ability to shift for good. However, that means if the killer exists in both timelines while Max only exists in one, then Max can only confront them in one timeline, while potentially having to let them get away with their crimes in the other timeline. To add to this dilemma, the killer may very well be making their next move in both timelines at the same time, and Max can only stop them in one. At the very least, choices like this are what the writers should be aiming for to make a worthy continuation of Max’s story. Choices where no matter what you choose, someone isn’t getting the happy ending they deserve.