First launched back in 2015, Dontnod Entertainment and Square Enix joined a number of excellent episodic graphic adventure games with the first installment of Life is Strange. Following in the footsteps of games like Telltale's award-winning The Walking Dead, Life is Strange was like a comic book coming to life where players could make their own decisions and help to shape the narrative as they delved into various plotlines and decided the fates of characters. With several mainline installments, a prequel, a spin-off, DLCs, and even a comic book series, many fans are wondering what's next for the Life is Strange franchise.
Alongside the series formula of branching narratives, decision-based gameplay, and some element of the supernatural with a super-powered protagonist, the Life is Strange franchise has a knack for crafting emotionally weighted stories and character-centered tales. This continued to develop as each installment launched, moving from the heartbreaking friendship between Chloe and Max, the trials and tribulations of brothers Sean and Daniel, and the struggles of empathetic Alex. The Life is Strange series will no doubt continue to play with these themes, but there are more than a few directions it could go in.
Rumors Of A Life Is Strange Sequel
Nothing has been confirmed yet about a follow-up to Deck Nine Games' Life is Strange: True Colors, and fans are still waiting patiently for confirmation that a sequel is on the way. The last mainline entry was praised for its picturesque setting and impressive performances, with protagonist Alex Chen being singled out as one of the most compelling characters in the series so far. Thanks to the positive reception of Life is Strange: True Colors, another sequel seems assured, and there's already a healthy dose of speculation and rumors swirling around regarding what this could be.
According to a Reddit post last year, one user claimed that the as-yet-untitled Life is Strange 4 would see a return of original protagonist Max. Apparently the game would revisit her years after the end of Life is Strange as she works as an art professor, and her potent abilities have undergone an upgrade that now let her travel between realities as well as through time. This is of course all unconfirmed, and as there have been similar rumors regarding another game featuring both Max and Chloe, it should all be taken with a pinch of salt.
Where The Life Is Strange Franchise Could Go
With developer Deck Nine firmly at the helm after Dontnod expressed an interest in creating its own original IPs, things might be quiet on the franchise front for a little while. Deck Nine is currently working on The Expanse: A Telltale Series, and with that game set to release some time in 2023, fans might not hear about another Life is Strange game in the near future. However, the developer has also been clear that it intends to shift Life is Strange into more of an anthology series instead of just sequels, showing how the ambition is to continue to expand the world of the franchise.
Players have already seen this with the connection forged between The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit and Life is Strange 2 and the return of fan-favorite Steph in Life Is Strange: True Colors. With the use of full-body motion capture in the last mainline game, it's also clear Deck Nine is looking to continue creating visually enhanced and technically impressive Life is Strange games, which bodes well for the franchise's future.
While the series has already been adapted into a comic, many fans think it would translate nicely into a TV series, potentially focusing on the first storyline set in Arcadia Bay. With new powers and new settings introduced in each game so far, future Life is Strange installments still have lots of areas to explore as well, including taking the narrative to a country outside the USA and upping the ante when it comes to the protagonist's abilities, all the while maintaining the strong emotional heart at the center of each Life is Strange game.