How? She’s in the game for a total of 4 minutes, at best, and is always involved with Nathan in some way. If you take her out of the game, literally nothing would have been different. And even if she did contribute to Chloe’s development, my question is if anything she did could have been done by one of the other characters that actually plays a more important role in the story. If the answer is yes, than what was her specific purpose? That moment could have been given to a character like Rachel or Steph or Mikey and would have had a bigger impact because they were more involved in what was going on. Samantha never was, she’s so minuscule and insignificant that she could have been replaced with one of those characters and the same goal is accomplished. If the answer is no, then she is a worthwhile character and actually contributes something to the story. But she literally just popped up out of nowhere in Episode 1 for like a minute when Drew took Nathan’s binder, then eavesdrops on the conversation between Nathan and his dad, and is last seen clapping for Nathan just before the end credits of Episode 2. Because of her inexplicable appearance, I just kept asking myself “Who the hell are you?” when she was on screen. If it wasn’t for someone mentioning it on this thread, I’d still have no clue what her name is. In fact, I completely forgot she was a character when I played Episode 3, that’s how little of value she was to the game.
Samantha helps you flesh out Chloe's character just a little bit more. You know, the main character of the game.
Seems good enough reason t… moreo me for her to be in the game.
That Luke guy from the original game however. Now that was a waste of space.
Isn't the fact that she adds to the illusion that there are more than the same handful of students attending Blackwell a good thing?
(btw you can talk to her before the Drew-Nathan scene. She's sitting against a tree.)
I find it way more annoying that they chose for so many of the old characters to return, who in LiS for some reason have absolutely no recollection of Chloe.
I think Justin is the only one that has any interaction with Chloe in Lis and he doesn't even remember her name. (okay, stoner, but still.) :P
Isn't the fact that she adds to the illusion that there are more than the same handful of students attending Blackwell a good thing?
No, for two reasons:
Again, she just randomly pops up most of the time. We never see her in class, interact with the other students, and most of her time is involved with Nathan in some way. Sure she may add variety I guess, but again, characters like Steph, Mikey, Drew, and others did the same thing.
We know there’s a lot of people that go to Blackwell, we saw that in the original game when Max is walking in the hallway or out in the courtyard. If this game wanted to show us that, it could have done the same thing, but because the developers probably didn’t want to waste money on making random character models, they expertly avoided having to do that by having most of the stuff take place outside the school or give them a reason to ditch it.
I find it way more annoying that they chose for so many of the old characters to return
Don’t get me wrong, I do as well. I mean, what purpose did Nathan ultimately serve? Chloe never interacts with him, he has like 3 lines in each episode, and much like Samantha, isn’t even in the final one. He’s in there for fan service, for people to go “Hey, I remember him from the original LiS, isn’t this game great for including him.” Much like Samantha, take him out, nothing is added or lost.
Isn't the fact that she adds to the illusion that there are more than the same handful of students attending Blackwell a good thing?
(btw y… moreou can talk to her before the Drew-Nathan scene. She's sitting against a tree.)
I find it way more annoying that they chose for so many of the old characters to return, who in LiS for some reason have absolutely no recollection of Chloe.
I think Justin is the only one that has any interaction with Chloe in Lis and he doesn't even remember her name. (okay, stoner, but still.) :P
Samantha was a supporting character whose purpose I believe was to flesh out Nathan's arc. She gave us a pro-Nathan perspective and, through her optional conversations with the main character, she gives the player the chance to show their own perspective on Nathan's struggles.
Most of the interactions with her are optional, as is experiencing Nathan's arc. These things are put in the game for players who like to get the most out of the setting and out of all characters, main or side characters, not for players who are only trying to find things to bitch at.
One question that no one ever mentioned:
Who the fuck is this character, Samantha?
Where did she come from? Why did she care so much a… morebout Nathan Prescott? She wasn't in the main game, was she?
Unless someone has the answers, I will count her as Samantha Ex-Machina.
But Nathan didn't even have a major point in this prequel, he had like only 4 lines and 3 minutes screentime. Samantha is still a deus ex-machina cause there is no mention of her in the main game and Nathan gives no clues about her.
Supporting Character
Samantha was a supporting character whose purpose I believe was to flesh out Nathan's arc. She gave us a pro-Nathan … moreperspective and, through her optional conversations with the main character, she gives the player the chance to show their own perspective on Nathan's struggles.
Most of the interactions with her are optional, as is experiencing Nathan's arc. These things are put in the game for players who like to get the most out of the setting and out of all characters, main or side characters, not for players who are only trying to find things to bitch at.
How does she classify as a deus ex machina though? You can argue that would be Frank, since he saved Chloe by seemingly killing Damon (you can see a pile of dirt + a shovel sticking out of it, as Frank pours one out for his "friend") in spite of his injury.
It's not like Samantha showed up out of nowhere, beat Damon to death and then took Chloe and Sera to Rachel.
But Nathan didn't even have a major point in this prequel, he had like only 4 lines and 3 minutes screentime. Samantha is still a deus ex-machina cause there is no mention of her in the main game and Nathan gives no clues about her.
How does she classify as a deus ex machina though? You can argue that would be Frank, since he saved Chloe by seemingly killing Damon (you c… morean see a pile of dirt + a shovel sticking out of it, as Frank pours one out for his "friend") in spite of his injury.
It's not like Samantha showed up out of nowhere, beat Damon to death and then took Chloe and Sera to Rachel.
No, what I mean is that a deus ex machina is usually a plot device or character that suddenly/conveniently appears to save the story from ending in a tragedy. And that "shows up out of nowhere" refers to if Samantha was the one that was the deus ex machina, by suddenly appearing to save Chloe and Sera from Damon.
It's not like Samantha showed up out of nowhere
I already told you, she wasn't in the main game and there is no clue about her. She did show up out of nowhere.
(Based on your choices talking to Samantha in episode 2)
If you go to a door behind Rachel's mother in the hospital, you can hear a discussion between Samantha's mother and Nathan's dad:
And an alternate scene where Nathan and Samantha are talking:
Damn, I'm starting to think that Nathan is officially worse than Chloe and Rachel at this point, and that's saying a lot. I don't have much sympathy for him now.
Hospitalizing Samantha, one of the few people in school who genuinely wants to be friends with him, by assaulting her and causing her ribcages to break? What the hell, Nathan?
Apparently, this happens if Chloe tries and fails to defend Nathan from a bully, and then advises Samantha in the next episode to support him as opposed to telling her that Nathan's a lost cause.
(Based on your choices talking to Samantha in episode 2)
If you go to a door behind Rachel's mother in the hospital, you can hear a discuss… moreion between Samantha's mother and Nathan's dad:
And an alternate scene where Nathan and Samantha are talking:
Damn, I'm starting to think that Nathan is officially worse than Chloe and Rachel at this point, and that's saying a lot. I don't have much sympathy for him now.Hospitalizing Samantha, one of the few people in school who genuinely wants to be friends with him, by assaulting her and causing her ribcages to break? What the hell, Nathan?
He's a psycho. No wonder Samantha isn't in the original LiS, I bet she moved out after that, good thing, if she stayed at Blackwell, she would be one of Jefferson's victims.
Apparently, this happens if Chloe tries and fails to defend Nathan from a bully, and then advises Samantha in the next episode to support him as opposed to telling her that Nathan's a lost cause.
That's because Nathan's arc was an optional subplot. Not everything has to be about the main storyline in a story. Think of it as a side quest, a lot of extremely popular games are filled with side quests for adding more to the game's setting, and making the narrative and world more immersive to the player.
I don't get at all you calling Samantha "deus ex-machina".
But Nathan didn't even have a major point in this prequel, he had like only 4 lines and 3 minutes screentime. Samantha is still a deus ex-machina cause there is no mention of her in the main game and Nathan gives no clues about her.
That's because Nathan's arc was an optional subplot. Not everything has to be about the main storyline in a story. Think of it as a side que… morest, a lot of extremely popular games are filled with side quests for adding more to the game's setting, and making the narrative and world more immersive to the player.
I don't get at all you calling Samantha "deus ex-machina".
I have a theory. Chloe has powers too. Or at least, had powers when she was young. That's why she kept having vivid and prophetic dreams in Before the Storm.
I guess he's talking about the Max from the alternate timeline where Chloe ends up in an accident instead of William? If so, Rachel is at least missing in that timeline, since characters may talk about it and it's mentioned in a newspaper (going off of memory here).
I wouldn't call this a theory, because, well, what's the point of making theories that can never be proven or disproven?
This is just the way I like to interpret things.
Max never caused the storm, it was always coming. It's Rachel that caused the storm.
Chloe is the only one that can calm Rachel down, but in order to do that she first has to return to her side.
It's simple, it's somewhat romantic, and it's a good enough explanation for me.
That being said, I'll still always sacrifice Arcadia Bay to save Chloe.
Anyone find it odd that the fire went out completely seemingly after Rachel was stabbed and was starting to become more mellow in the hospital and felt like she could trust her dad again? Perhaps it was just a coincidence, or perhaps not. The firemen at the hospital seemed pretty freaked out about how the fire suddenly went out.
Sera is actually a demon. When she threatened to kill Damon if he used the syringe on Chloe, she was actually trying to concentrate hard enough to set him on fire.
Well the dialogue you can hear in the hospital goes like this:
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_069=Hey, just heard the fire went out.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_070=Went out? You mean it’s controlled?
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_071=No, it’s completely out. It extinguished itself.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_072=How could that be?
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_073=Hell if I know.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_074=Everything about this fire has been atypical.
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_075=No kidding.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_076=Are you sure you heard right? Wildfires don’t extinguish themselves.
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_077=I’m just glad we don’t have to go back out there.
There's definitely some not so subtly alluded connection between Rachel's emotional state and the fire imo. Plus, I'm fairly certain that Rachel was the ghost doe, so not the first time she's tied to the supernatural.
Can't really find an answer to that tbh. Besides the fact we're playing as Max. I can almost imagine how it might go down if Chloe saw her instead.
Chloe: Holy shit, Max! I just saw the craziest thing!
Max: Chloe, what's wrong?
Chloe: I just saw this doe following me around. But get this, it was transparent like a ghost. It was a fucking ghost doe, Max!
Max: Chloe... you're high... camera pans to show that Chloe's eyes are red
Chloe: Whaaaa, no I'm not.
William: Kiddo you're, as you would say, hella high.
Chloe: Shut up, ghost of dad! You're not helping!
I actually really enjoyed Episode 3. I think it's the best episode of the season as well as most of the episodes from the original game. However it still has a bunch of problems. You can feel the dwindling budget for the episode towards the end with the off screen fight and death of the antagonist. The voice acting for the most part was very good but again with the exception of Rachels parents who sounded as robotic and stiff as ever. The after credits scene was simple but really fucking good lead into the original game. Lots of interactables and hub areas, and getting to play more Dungeons and Dragons was great.
However, it felt like there were some continuity errors, most notably Rachels relationship with Frank. In the original game it's said that they began a relationship before being kidnapped and killed. But in this series they barely interacted with one another and it's even shown that Rachel never left Chloe which is what I thought the confrontation with Eliot was going to lead into.
In the confrontation with Chloe and Eliot, I felt like it was going into an interesting direction with Rachel being manipulative with Chloe the whole time and with that leading into Rachel going into a relationship with Frank without Chloe knowing, but instead it went for the Eliot is an obsessed crazy person route. They could have just added a short scene at the end with Rachel talking/flirting with Frank or something then lead into the Eliot packing up his stuff scene to drive it home that he was right all along. Another problem I have being characters that aren't written out by the end of the game (ala Eliot). Where are they?
As for the season overall, I honestly thought it was better written than the base game to the point where I think that Deck Nine should help write LiS2. Characters were less stereotypical and characters that WERE stereotypical actually got fleshed out in this (most notably Frank who isn't written to be some huge weirder who says shit like "My lioness!").
The bonus episode is only available to those who have purchased the Deluxe Edition. So, if you have that, you'll be able to download it on the day it premieres. If not, that's still available to purchase or you can get the Vinyl edition package.
We have to wait over a month for the bonus episode? Why.....
Maybe to improve the last details of the episode, idk, I'm impatient that's why I don't like episodic games, sometimes is good because of the cliffhanger of each episode but I really hate to wait.
Edit: I shouldn't be saying this at the telltale games community lmao
https://twitter.com/DONTNOD_Michel/status/958405667810922496
Michel clearly just spilled the beans on season 2. The Next Life is Strange is actually its title and we play as a ghost
Comments
How? She’s in the game for a total of 4 minutes, at best, and is always involved with Nathan in some way. If you take her out of the game, literally nothing would have been different. And even if she did contribute to Chloe’s development, my question is if anything she did could have been done by one of the other characters that actually plays a more important role in the story. If the answer is yes, than what was her specific purpose? That moment could have been given to a character like Rachel or Steph or Mikey and would have had a bigger impact because they were more involved in what was going on. Samantha never was, she’s so minuscule and insignificant that she could have been replaced with one of those characters and the same goal is accomplished. If the answer is no, then she is a worthwhile character and actually contributes something to the story. But she literally just popped up out of nowhere in Episode 1 for like a minute when Drew took Nathan’s binder, then eavesdrops on the conversation between Nathan and his dad, and is last seen clapping for Nathan just before the end credits of Episode 2. Because of her inexplicable appearance, I just kept asking myself “Who the hell are you?” when she was on screen. If it wasn’t for someone mentioning it on this thread, I’d still have no clue what her name is. In fact, I completely forgot she was a character when I played Episode 3, that’s how little of value she was to the game.
Isn't the fact that she adds to the illusion that there are more than the same handful of students attending Blackwell a good thing?
(btw you can talk to her before the Drew-Nathan scene. She's sitting against a tree.)
I find it way more annoying that they chose for so many of the old characters to return, who in LiS for some reason have absolutely no recollection of Chloe.
I think Justin is the only one that has any interaction with Chloe in Lis and he doesn't even remember her name. (okay, stoner, but still.) :P
No, for two reasons:
We know there’s a lot of people that go to Blackwell, we saw that in the original game when Max is walking in the hallway or out in the courtyard. If this game wanted to show us that, it could have done the same thing, but because the developers probably didn’t want to waste money on making random character models, they expertly avoided having to do that by having most of the stuff take place outside the school or give them a reason to ditch it.
Don’t get me wrong, I do as well. I mean, what purpose did Nathan ultimately serve? Chloe never interacts with him, he has like 3 lines in each episode, and much like Samantha, isn’t even in the final one. He’s in there for fan service, for people to go “Hey, I remember him from the original LiS, isn’t this game great for including him.” Much like Samantha, take him out, nothing is added or lost.
Supporting Character
Samantha was a supporting character whose purpose I believe was to flesh out Nathan's arc. She gave us a pro-Nathan perspective and, through her optional conversations with the main character, she gives the player the chance to show their own perspective on Nathan's struggles.
Most of the interactions with her are optional, as is experiencing Nathan's arc. These things are put in the game for players who like to get the most out of the setting and out of all characters, main or side characters, not for players who are only trying to find things to bitch at.
But Nathan didn't even have a major point in this prequel, he had like only 4 lines and 3 minutes screentime. Samantha is still a deus ex-machina cause there is no mention of her in the main game and Nathan gives no clues about her.
How does she classify as a deus ex machina though? You can argue that would be Frank, since he saved Chloe by seemingly killing Damon (you can see a pile of dirt + a shovel sticking out of it, as Frank pours one out for his "friend") in spite of his injury.
It's not like Samantha showed up out of nowhere, beat Damon to death and then took Chloe and Sera to Rachel.
I already told you, she wasn't in the main game and there is no clue about her. She did show up out of nowhere.
No, what I mean is that a deus ex machina is usually a plot device or character that suddenly/conveniently appears to save the story from ending in a tragedy. And that "shows up out of nowhere" refers to if Samantha was the one that was the deus ex machina, by suddenly appearing to save Chloe and Sera from Damon.
(Based on your choices talking to Samantha in episode 2)
If you go to a door behind Rachel's mother in the hospital, you can hear a discussion between Samantha's mother and Nathan's dad:
And an alternate scene where Nathan and Samantha are talking:
Damn, I'm starting to think that Nathan is officially worse than Chloe and Rachel at this point, and that's saying a lot. I don't have much sympathy for him now.
Hospitalizing Samantha, one of the few people in school who genuinely wants to be friends with him, by assaulting her and causing her ribcages to break? What the hell, Nathan?
Apparently, this happens if Chloe tries and fails to defend Nathan from a bully, and then advises Samantha in the next episode to support him as opposed to telling her that Nathan's a lost cause.
He's a psycho. No wonder Samantha isn't in the original LiS, I bet she moved out after that, good thing, if she stayed at Blackwell, she would be one of Jefferson's victims.
Yes, exactly
That's because Nathan's arc was an optional subplot. Not everything has to be about the main storyline in a story. Think of it as a side quest, a lot of extremely popular games are filled with side quests for adding more to the game's setting, and making the narrative and world more immersive to the player.
I don't get at all you calling Samantha "deus ex-machina".
I wouldn't call it a side quest cause it's part of the main cutscenes and you're forced to either defend his ass or stay out of it.
Samantha is still a character that came out of nowhere, it would have made more sense if there was at least a mention of her in the main game.
Sure, is Rachel is the Alternative Max Caulfield still alive?
I have a theory. Chloe has powers too. Or at least, had powers when she was young. That's why she kept having vivid and prophetic dreams in Before the Storm.
You're asking me? I have no theories about LIS, go ask the LIS fanbase.
I guess he's talking about the Max from the alternate timeline where Chloe ends up in an accident instead of William? If so, Rachel is at least missing in that timeline, since characters may talk about it and it's mentioned in a newspaper (going off of memory here).
I wouldn't call this a theory, because, well, what's the point of making theories that can never be proven or disproven?
This is just the way I like to interpret things.
Max never caused the storm, it was always coming. It's Rachel that caused the storm.
Chloe is the only one that can calm Rachel down, but in order to do that she first has to return to her side.
It's simple, it's somewhat romantic, and it's a good enough explanation for me.
That being said, I'll still always sacrifice Arcadia Bay to save Chloe.
Anyone find it odd that the fire went out completely seemingly after Rachel was stabbed and was starting to become more mellow in the hospital and felt like she could trust her dad again? Perhaps it was just a coincidence, or perhaps not. The firemen at the hospital seemed pretty freaked out about how the fire suddenly went out.
Sera is actually a demon. When she threatened to kill Damon if he used the syringe on Chloe, she was actually trying to concentrate hard enough to set him on fire.
Add fires suddenly stopping to the ever growing list of reasons.
Well the dialogue you can hear in the hospital goes like this:
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_069=Hey, just heard the fire went out.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_070=Went out? You mean it’s controlled?
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_071=No, it’s completely out. It extinguished itself.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_072=How could that be?
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_073=Hell if I know.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_074=Everything about this fire has been atypical.
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_075=No kidding.
VO_E3_S04_A_SECOND_FIREFIGHTER_076=Are you sure you heard right? Wildfires don’t extinguish themselves.
VO_E3_S04_A_FIRST_FIREFIGHTER_077=I’m just glad we don’t have to go back out there.
There's definitely some not so subtly alluded connection between Rachel's emotional state and the fire imo. Plus, I'm fairly certain that Rachel was the ghost doe, so not the first time she's tied to the supernatural.
Can't really find an answer to that tbh. Besides the fact we're playing as Max. I can almost imagine how it might go down if Chloe saw her instead.
Chloe: Holy shit, Max! I just saw the craziest thing!
Max: Chloe, what's wrong?
Chloe: I just saw this doe following me around. But get this, it was transparent like a ghost. It was a fucking ghost doe, Max!
Max: Chloe... you're high...
camera pans to show that Chloe's eyes are red
Chloe: Whaaaa, no I'm not.
William: Kiddo you're, as you would say, hella high.
Chloe: Shut up, ghost of dad! You're not helping!
...
...
I actually really enjoyed Episode 3. I think it's the best episode of the season as well as most of the episodes from the original game. However it still has a bunch of problems. You can feel the dwindling budget for the episode towards the end with the off screen fight and death of the antagonist. The voice acting for the most part was very good but again with the exception of Rachels parents who sounded as robotic and stiff as ever. The after credits scene was simple but really fucking good lead into the original game. Lots of interactables and hub areas, and getting to play more Dungeons and Dragons was great.
However, it felt like there were some continuity errors, most notably Rachels relationship with Frank. In the original game it's said that they began a relationship before being kidnapped and killed. But in this series they barely interacted with one another and it's even shown that Rachel never left Chloe which is what I thought the confrontation with Eliot was going to lead into.
In the confrontation with Chloe and Eliot, I felt like it was going into an interesting direction with Rachel being manipulative with Chloe the whole time and with that leading into Rachel going into a relationship with Frank without Chloe knowing, but instead it went for the Eliot is an obsessed crazy person route. They could have just added a short scene at the end with Rachel talking/flirting with Frank or something then lead into the Eliot packing up his stuff scene to drive it home that he was right all along. Another problem I have being characters that aren't written out by the end of the game (ala Eliot). Where are they?
As for the season overall, I honestly thought it was better written than the base game to the point where I think that Deck Nine should help write LiS2. Characters were less stereotypical and characters that WERE stereotypical actually got fleshed out in this (most notably Frank who isn't written to be some huge weirder who says shit like "My lioness!").
She should be casted for a character in the Life is Strange TV adaptation. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
The release date for the bonus episode "Farewell" will be March 6th. On that day, the Vinyl edition will also be released.
Amazing.
The bonus episode is only available to those who have purchased the Deluxe Edition. So, if you have that, you'll be able to download it on the day it premieres. If not, that's still available to purchase or you can get the Vinyl edition package.
It's probably FULL Episode 3 slide.
We have to wait over a month for the bonus episode? Why.....
Maybe to improve the last details of the episode, idk, I'm impatient that's why I don't like episodic games, sometimes is good because of the cliffhanger of each episode but I really hate to wait.
Edit: I shouldn't be saying this at the telltale games community lmao
It's been 3 years as of today since Life is Strange first premiered.
The wait for Life Is Strange 2 better be worth it.
Well with all new characters and a new location...it is hard to say how it will turn out...may see something on it after E3
Michel clearly just spilled the beans on season 2. The Next Life is Strange is actually its title and we play as a ghost
I'm raising my shield and say, that's a terrible title. No comments on the sequel yet, just the title.
Well it was only a little joke about taking his tweet literally. It'll probably just be called LiS Season 2 or have some other subtitle.
Just kill me then.