Life Is Strange 2

Life Is Strange 2 is more than a game. It is a piece of art.

There are no dragons to slay or spaceships to maneuver. It is just about two boys from Seattle learning to survive in post-Trump USA.

Teenager Sean Diaz and his little brother Daniel flee their home into the forests of Washington state after a brutal accident that leaves their single father dead. Through their long journey south, the two of them navigate homelessness, police brutality, racism, grief, death, loss, family, friendship, the kindness of strangers, and the intense natural beauty of the American wilderness.

Playing as Sean, the de facto guardian of Daniel, you learn the gentle art of parenting. You learn to play with your little brother, even when fed up and starving. You learn to bear with temper tantrums, because you know he is just a little kid. You learn to shield someone from the brutalities of the real world by taking on burdens of your own.

What really sets the game apart from watching a movie is the fact that you as player are responsible for its characters. In movies, you know from the outset, the main characters will live to experience a happy ending, because producers have paid millions for a top-notch actor to show their face and every minute counts. In LIS2, the main characters can screw up and never recover. Because the consequences of player choice only materialise hours or days after they are made, you cannot simply reload and watch a different ending.

In my whole life, I have never played a game like this. Even a person like me who works with issues of poverty, health, and inequality found dormant emotions inside me of compassion, sorrow, and love that had been numbed out by the daily grind. It made me smile, laugh, stare in shock, howl, and cry. It made me question my life, my place in the world, and my relationship with the many vulnerable people that inhabit it.

I cannot recommend playing this game highly enough to seasoned gamers and newcomers alike. Trust me, it will transform you.