Whenever there’s some form of hesitancy around a game, the best way to settle it is a good discount. Knowing you aren’t going to be forking out full price for an experience you may not be all for can help minimize the blow, especially if it turns out to be not your thing.
I’d recommend Life is Strange Double Exposure whether it was on sale or not but right now you can pick it up for just $34.99 at Amazon, saving you 30% off its MSRP of $49.99 on the PS5. This is only the second price drop I’ve spotted for the game, having dropped to $39.99 less than a month after launch. Now, even the winter sales and all its best cheap PS5 game deals with it have come and gone, Double Exposure has reached a new all-time low.
A saving of just $15 may not seem like a big deal, but most PS5 games that saw huge discounts during last year’s sales have since returned to full price. This is, however, a limited time deal and as of writing, 4% of the copies have already been claimed. As Max’s old rewind powers are (sadly) not real, if you want to see what the fuss was about in Double Exposure I recommend grabbing one while you still can.
Should you buy Life is Strange Double Exposure on the PS5?
If you’re at all clued on the world and fandom of Life is Strange, chances are you may be worried about picking up the latest game. Developer Deck Nine sent out a survey asking fans for feedback on Double Exposure, which didn’t get as similar a reception as previous games in the series. While I can understand why it didn’t tick everyone’s boxes, if you want to continue Max’s story it’s very much a worthwhile experience.
I will precis this by adding that Life is Strange is a game series I hold pretty close to my heart. I’ve platinumed every game I can in the series and even cosplayed Max Caulfield herself. That being said, I can be pretty precious about its characters and even I didn’t pre-order the game at launch as I was concerned about its contents. Now that I’ve finished my first playthrough, it’s an experience I can wholeheartedly recommend, despite some of its misgivings.
Just like the precious Life is Strange games, Double Exposure is a narrative-driven experience where you walk around a detailed environment, talking to characters and putting together a mystery. This time around, Max unlocks brand-new powers that allow her to delve into alternative timelines, which I honestly had more fun with than the rewind mechanic in the original game. If you’re a fan of the DualSense controller, the developers even included a neat feature where the LED on the gamepad will change color according to which timeline you’re in.
The first few chapters are incredibly compelling. Enough to make you forget about the change in art style, which can be daunting at first. You’ll forget about it even more when you meet the new cast of characters in the form of Max’s friends and co-workers now she’s a photographer-in-residence at Caledon University. There may be no Chloe to be seen, but the new characters are one of the best things about Double Exposure – from the lovely nerdy Moses to the endearing Safi who becomes pivotal to the overall story.
GameRadar’s own Heather Wait stated in her Life is Strange Double Exposure review that the game “draws you into a mystery full of intriguing twists” but that its exploration of powers left me wanting more” and that is where the misgivings come into play. This game definitely feels like it’s leading up to a bigger story, with some plot holes and an ending that didn’t have the same impact as the original.
I also experienced my fair share of bugs and glitches with the PS5 version, which included multiple instances where an entire area of NPCs would T-pose. With such detailed environments cluttered with characters, some bugs are to be expected, but months after release I expected these to be patched out in some capacity.
Despite the plot twists, sub-par ending, and many visual issues, I still hold Double Exposure in high regard. Is it my favorite Life is Strange game in the series? Definitely not. But I’m pretty excited to go back and play through it a few more times to get that last Life is Strange PlayStation platinum trophy I need. If only to say hello again to some of my new favorite characters in the series.
Already got Double Exposure in your gaming backlog? Pairing your Sony console with one of the best PS5 controllers or best PS5 headsets will make the perfect addition to your Life is Strange setup. You can also pick up one of the best PS5 SSDs if you need a bit of extra storage for your pixel-pushing Sony machine.