With the release of each new Life is Strange, fans explore every corner of the game in search of hidden moments with licensed songs that perfectly capture how the protagonist is feeling. Life is Strange: True Colors is packed full of similar moments, as Alex Chen's empath powers pair well with the empathetic qualities of music. What's more, Alex's guitar-playing skills give players even more insight into her head whenever she picks the instrument up and sings a song that she's relating to.
Although the music in Life is Strange is powerful, it could do a lot more to be implemented in the game's narratives. Life is Strange: True Colors seemed to be going that route with Alex and Gabe's guitar, but it never came to play in a way that was central to the story. Because of how connected the series is to its soundtrack, it might make sense for the next game to tie the two together deeper by making its next soundtrack full of original music "written" by the game's protagonist.
Life is Strange's Relationship to Music
When Life is Strange: True Colors was first announced, it seemed like introducing the licensed songs going into it was just as important as introducing the new cast of characters. In a sense, Life is Strange's music is almost like an unseen, ever-present character that ties all of the games together. The series is full of emotional stories and complicated characters, but music really helps cement each game as an emotional experience for the player.
It's for this reason that it would make sense for the next game to feature a fully original soundtrack written by the player character to express how they're feeling, and provide even more background on their emotional and mental state. That, in itself, could be the entire focus of the game's story. Writing music isn't always a straightforward process, and it could be interesting to see what the Life is Strange series can do in terms of portraying that process through gameplay. By keeping heartfelt, emotional music at the core of the story, the next entry in the series could be its most emotionally resonant yet.
The Future of Music in Life is Strange
It seems like a safe bet to assume that the next entry in the Life is Strange series will feature some sort of emotional connection to music, as each of the main cast members in the franchise has had such connections before. That said, it could be an interesting direction to take the franchise to completely revolve the next game around its soundtrack by making its protagonist be in a band, and then centering its story and themes around expressing emotions through songwriting.
Deck Nine was able to handle Alex Chen's powers by putting her inside the minds of people Psychonauts-style, and it would be neat to see what the studio could do with someone struggling to find inspiration to write a song. This could really tie the two elements together by giving the player a reason to relate to the music for more than just superficial reasons. What's more, if the next Life is Strange game doesn't include any licensed music, then streamers wouldn't have to worry about DMCA takedown strikes during the most heartfelt moments of the game.
Life is Strange: True Colors is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.