Life is Strange: Before the Storm Farewell Review

Chloe and Max give each other a hug

• Reviewed by: Mark Goninon
• Developer: Deck Nine
• Publisher: Square Enix
• Release Date: 6 Mar 2018
• Time played: 1.2 hours

What is it

Life is Strange: Before the Storm Farewell is a DLC episode available for Life is Strange: Before the Storm which is set during the fateful day that Chloe loses her father (a traumatic event in Chloe's life that is covered in both the original Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm. Unlike Life is Strange: Before the Storm, Ashly Burch reprises her voice acting role as Chloe Price (she was replaced by Rhianna DeVries in Life is Strange: Before the Storm due to the 2016-17 video game voice actor strike); Hannah Telle also reprises her role as Max Caulfield.

This DLC episode doesn't have a Metascore as I type this post but it does have a Steam Rating of “Very Positive" as 92% of the 652 user reviews are positive.

How I got it

I enjoyed both Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Before the Storm so I was pretty keen to try out the episode that covers such a pivotal moment in Chloe's life. However, I wasn't so keen on the fact that you couldn't purchase it separately or the fact that the Deluxe Upgrade is normally $13.95 AUD. This all changed with the recent Steam sale where I was able to get the upgrade for just over 5 bucks.

Chloe has a heart of gold

What I like:

You feel Chloe's pain

If you think we haven't felt enough of Chloe's pain after playing Life is Strange or Life is Strange: Before the Storm well you'll definitely hit the motherlode if you play this episode; in fact, it's one of the reasons that some reviewers have rated the game negatively because it is that soul-crushing. However, if you truly want to get an even better understanding of Chloe's emotional baggage, you have to give this a try.

You get to see a different side of Chloe

Chloe is in her early teens in this episode and unlike her rebellious older self, she's an adorkable straight-A student. Seeing how Chloe used to be makes her whole story across the entire series even more tragic as you can see how the trajectory of her life deviated wildly once her support network was suddenly ripped away from her.

Original voice actors

As mentioned before, both Ashly Burch and Hannah Telle reprise their roles as Chloe Price and Max Caulfield respectively.

This is probably the closest you'll get to a puzzle in this episode

What I dislike:

Lacking any mini-games

Unlike Life is Strange where Max is able to use time travel to overcome obstacles or Life is Strange: Before the Storm where Chloe would use the "Backtalk" mini-game in order to get past certain characters, you'll have neither of these in Farewell. Consequently, the game feels even more like an interactive movie than its predecessors which is bound to disappoint those looking for half-decent puzzles in their adventure games.

Very short

The episode is very short and only takes about an hour to complete.

No Steam Achievements

There are no extra Steam Achievements for the Farewell episode.

Score – 7/10 (Good)

It's quite simple really: just as it was with Before the Storm, if you're a fan of Life is Strange and Chloe Price in particular, you have to get this episode. Yes, it's very short and it isn't particularly challenging, even by Life is Strange standards, however being able to relive the moments just before Chloe's world was turned upside down is something every Life is Strange fan will want to experience.

Is the game worth $13.95 AUD?: No. I mean, it's something Life is Strange fans probably cannot live without but when you pay $13.95 for the "Deluxe Upgrade" to the base game, you're really only paying for the 1 hour "Farewell" episode since I don't really value being able to try out three new outfits and pick songs for background music. If it's on sale for a few bucks (like it is now), then definitely give it a shot.

If you like this game, you might like…

• Life is Strange (2015)
• Life is Strange: Before the Storm (2017)
• The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit (2018)

[ LINK: Official Life is Strange: Before the Storm Website ]