Life Is Strange: Before The Storm Devs Say You Can Start With Either Game

Life Is Strange: Before the Storm is quickly approaching its late-August release date, and as players decide whether they're going to add it to their collection or not, the game's developers have addressed some of the hot questions about the title.

Since the prequel was announced, players have already begun to establish their own expectations for the game based on their opinions of the first. A change in the characters coupled with the removal of the time-rewind mechanic has some players worried, but the game's lead writer, Zac Garriss, says during an interview with GameSpot that such concerns are expected from a community that's so devoted to the franchise.

"People have opinions of the content they've seen; they're going to see new content, and they'll form new opinions," Garriss told GameSpot. "Then they get the controller in their hands, play the game, and form new opinions then. At the end of the day, it is such an incredible privilege to work with a franchise that has such a fiercely invested community, that cares so much. They're going to be so critical. They're going to want the game to be wonderful in a lot of different ways. And we're very sensitive to that because we're fans before we're developers."

But for those players who have only recently begun to hear about the Life Is Strange franchise since the prequel was announced, they may be interested in going back to play the first one to get acclimated ahead of Before the Storm's release. You might just want to replay it in order to refresh your memory if you've already beaten it, but while Garriss encouraged players to do so, beating the first one isn't a requirement for understanding the second.

"It's really intentional for us that no matter which title you come to first, you can play through it, enjoy it, and then go play the other title," said Garriss. "Nothing in our game will spoil anything from the original game. And likewise if you've played the original game, you'll find all sorts of familiar faces and characters and locations. It will be a lot of fun and are kind of Easter Eggs, in a way."

David Heim, the producer at Deck Nine, added that his only recommendation is that players take part in both titles.

Life Is Strange: Before the Storm is scheduled to release on Aug. 31 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.