With some delay, the Life is Strange saga has just been released on Nintendo Switch with its latest chapter, the one starring Alex Chen through True Colors. So we have the perfect excuse to check out their one-of-a-kind Steph-centric DLC.
Along with Alex, Steph was the other great character on this Haven Springs trip. He also enjoyed great weight in the story, contrary to what happened in his debut with Life is Strange: Before the Storm as a secondary. And what does this spin-off? Because as any follower of the series will know, Steph does not have powers. The answer is simple: this DLC helps us to know how it came to town and its adaptation with the music store. And that 100% Steph personality.
Any given day in the bargain. With distractions
Music has always had weight in Life is Strange and its best representation is precisely in Steph, especially as a result of seeing her running a music store (apart from local radio) in Alex Chen’s adventure. Those moments of relaxation with background music are once again a constant here, with the incentive of being able to choose which songs we want to play while we fulfill various tasks in Steph’s new job to turn the page of her old life.
Not your typical Life is Strange adventure (Steph does not have powers), but at the same time it is the typical adventure with that same stamp. The reason is simple, by focusing on his life and how he relates to people, but at the same time satisfying our curiosity with endless documents, songs or images to see how he reacts. Because work is just a mere adaptation process before which Steph will make time to flirt with a Tinder app while he is chatting in passing with the villagers, where Gabe (Alex’s brother, before she came from the foster home) is one of his best friends.
Yes, this DLC takes place only in the music store. Now, there will be a new area of the interior, a room that we could not visit with Alex … In any case, the pattern of each day will be basically the same, with slight variations as Steph adapts to the routine: putting songs on the radio, put a wedge in between (trying not to screw up the instructions that are dictated to us) or answer the calls of the listeners acting as “fortune teller”. Because Steph discovers that she has a knack for knowing what’s up with people, despite being a bit of a joke about using a role die for better luck.
Wavelenghts is based on three cores deeply rooted in Steph. On the one hand the music, of course; on the other, her geek part with role-playing games (we’ll have to redesign an old game she created with the help of a friend); and finally their personal relationships to find a relationship and heal a certain past wound …
The prominence that the genuine Steph needed
No plot twists to blow our minds. It is simply witnessing Steph’s new life just before Alex arrives in town. And the truth is that as soon as you liked Life is Strange: Before the Storm (with Chloe Price as the protagonist, being a normal girl without powers), here you will feel the same.
It is a short experience, which is advisable to enjoy in small sips. Every day that Steph works, to see her evolution. As with the design of the role-playing game. Or how she is redecorating the store in her image and likeness, to make it clear to the customers what she is like and what values she brings as a person. In fact, the latter is evident when taking calls and is enjoyed (without fanfare) when we feel part of Haven Springs, where we will fulfill the wishes of its inhabitants.
Each “day” is actually a change of season, living his first year in the village. And although the “physical” presence of the locals is lacking (almost everything takes place by photos, SMS or telephone), there is even a gap to know part of Steph’s past. Hence, if you “fell in love” with this character in True colors, you are most likely interested in knowing more about his personality.
After all, from Deck Nine Games they were fully aware of how much they liked it in the spin-off of Chloe and how much her charisma with Alex exploded. A most intimate experience that serves as an ideal brooch inside a main adventure with great emotional charge. Of course, it is not sold separately and can only be obtained as an update for 12.99 euros, or from the Deluxe (69.99 euros) and Ultimate (with the remastering of the first Life is Strange and Before the Storm, delayed until early next year 2022).