The prominent rise of the gaming industry over the last few years and subsequent money being pumped into the form of media has enabled game studios to create meticulously detailed character models with impressive motion capture. It has also left them able to afford skilled voice actors and scriptwriters. This has subsequently resulted in games being able to tell more immersive and captivating stories than ever before, exemplified by titles like Life Is Strange.
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Life Is Strange was developed by Dontnod Entertainment and tells one of modern gaming's most well-constructed stories. Thankfully for Life Is Strange fans who are looking for something else to play, numerous other games offer similarly impressive and encapsulating narrative experiences.
Updated on May 18th, 2023, by Kristy Ambrose: Many other gaming titles have followed the path of Life Is Strange, and have taken players beyond the trend that it started with unique artwork, unconventional storytelling, and creative integration with other gaming styles.
More titles have been released that have a similar look, and for fans of the franchise, there's also a series of comics and novels to enjoy. There are even rumors of a possible television adaptation in the future. In the meantime, there are plenty of games like Life Is Strange for those that are looking for a similar experience.
Oxenfree is a graphic adventure game that was developed by Night School Studio. It was first released on PC and Xbox One in January 2016 before arriving on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices in the following years.
The game puts players in the shoes of a teenager named Alex, who accidentally lets a paranormal force loose on an island and must find a way to stop it. Oxenfree turned heads upon release with its unique visuals.
The first episode of Broken Age was one of 2014's most highly-anticipated releases, as the game was the first point-and-click adventure to be worked on by Tim Schafer since Grim Fandango. The hype for Broken Age was reflected in the game's crowdfunding performance, as it became one of the highest-funded video games on Kickstarter at the time.
The game didn't reach the heights of the classic Grim Fandango, but it's still a tremendous modern point-and-click game like Life Is Strange that is well worth playing for anyone interested in the genre.
This game was released in 2018, but it takes place in 1995, which is why the setting has a late 20th-century aesthetic which adds to the immersion factor. Gone Home is a point-and-click mystery-solving puzzle game that focuses on a lonely house in Oregon.
The main character comes home from a long absence to find her family has vanished without a trace. The artistic merit and complex story are the game's positive features, but those looking for some tension and combat might be slightly disappointed.
Night in the Woods was released in February 2017. The story follows a young woman who has recently returned home after dropping out of college to find unexpected changes and strange occurrences taking place.
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This Life Is Strange-like game was a hit with critics, exemplified by its multiple award wins, and players loved the unique artwork that made the game stand out from the crowd.
Tell Me Why was developed by Dontnod Entertainment, the same studio that made Life is Strange, making it easy to recommend to fans of the series.
Tell Me Why is an episodic adventure separated into three chapters that follow a pair of twins with the supernatural ability to communicate telepathically. The game is notable for being the first AAA release to feature a transgender main character.
The Wolf Among Us was developed by graphic adventure and storytelling specialists Telltale Games. It was released episodically, part of the effect of being a complicated serial narrative, between October 2013 and July 2014. The retail version hit stores a few months later in November.
The Wolf Among Us puts players in the shoes of Bigby Wolf, who was formerly the Big Bad Wolf from fairytales and folklore and tasks them with investigating various murders.
Firewatch was developed by Campo Santo and first released on PC and PlayStation 4 in February 2016, before releasing on Xbox One and Nintendo Switch later down the line.
The game kicks off with a somber text adventure that explains why the protagonist decides to escape his normal life and take a job as a forest fire lookout. Firewatch initially appears to be a casual exploration game like Life Is Strange but soon delves into an intriguing and, at times, intense mystery adventure.
Beyond: Two Souls is an interactive drama starring Elliot Page and Willem Dafoe. The game was developed by Quantic Dream, the same team that made Heavy Rain and Detroit: Become Human.
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Like Heavy Rain and Detroit: Become Human, the game received somewhat of a "love it or hate it" reception of both its gameplay and storytelling. It's not for everyone but overall a good selection for players who like a complex story.
How many games are based on music? This one is, and it's one of the details about it that is so beautiful and brilliant. Last Day Of June is based on Drive Home, an album by Steven Wilson that was inspired by the atmospheric and experimental work of the progressive 1970s rock band Pink Floyd.
The story of Carl and June is a tragic one, as the title suggests because this is the name of a character and not a reference to the month of the year. The plot has an evitable ending, but the moral of the story is that even when the outcome seems bleak, there are still choices and hope for the future.
What Remains of Edith Finch was first released in April 2017 and tasked players with returning to the protagonist's family home as they investigate numerous premature deaths that have occurred in the family and are said to be the result of a curse.
What Remains of Edith Finch impressed fans and critics with its story and the great variety of gameplay mechanics. Players have to use every ability that's available to experience and unravel the retellings of each family member's death.
Quantum Break had a large weight of expectations on its shoulders leading up to its launch. This was the first action-adventure title from Remedy Entertainment since the highly-regarded Alan Wake.
Like Life Is Strange, 2016's Quantum Break puts players in control of a protagonist who can manipulate time. Despite this unique mechanic, the game's most interesting aspect is that it features an integrated live-action television show, where the actors perform the player's in-game choices.
Until Dawn was developed by Supermassive Games and released exclusively on the PlayStation 4 in August 2015. The interactive drama has similar gameplay to titles like Heavy Rain and Detroit: Become Human, with quick-time events being central to the game's action sequences and decision-making.
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However, Until Dawn differentiates itself from the aforementioned interactive dramas with its emphasis on horror, which helps ramp up the intensity of the decision-making.
The highly influential Heavy Rain tends to get a bit of a bad rap today, though the fact of the matter is: not many of this list's entries would exist without it. Quantic Dream's Heavy Rain begins with a father tragically losing his son before his life spirals out of control shortly after. The game puts players in multiple other characters' shoes, which was a unique feature for its time.
Heavy Rain may not have the polish that Life Is Strange and other recent games possess, but it still tells an interesting, powerful story that will have most players gripped from beginning to end.
A lot of story-rich games are designed to be beautiful, artistic, and suitable for the whole family, but this isn't one of them. Vampyr is a selection for those that appreciate the horror side of gaming, and the plot also has plenty of mystery and thriller elements for those that want a more sophisticated game with an occult aesthetic.
The game is also an RPG and adventure game, so in addition to a great story, there's also some character customization and plenty of combat. The player controls Jonathan Reid, the main character, a doctor who contracts vampirism and struggles between his Hippocratic Oath and his blood lust.
Although it seems like a distant memory now, it was only a decade ago when films, books, and video games were being inundated with stories featuring zombies, undead, or infected villains.
It's clear how overdone the form of media was becoming when playing The Walking Dead today, as even the characters don't seem surprised that a zombie apocalypse is taking place and many of them just accept what's happening straight away.
This particular element may have aged badly, though the rest of the first season still holds up, as it tells a fantastic story that isn't afraid to pull on the heartstrings. The subsequent seasons weren't as well-received as the first, but they're still worth checking for those that found season one enjoyable.
2018's The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit is an obvious choice for this list as it was developed by Dontnod Entertainment and published by Square Enix, the same teams that worked on Life Is Strange.
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The game wasn't as critically acclaimed as its predecessor, but the game is still worth checking out for anyone who loved Dontnod Entertainment's gameplay style in the Life Is Stange series. Moreover, the games are set in the same universe, so it will certainly be interesting to anyone wanting to know more about the game world.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt certainly differentiates itself from Life Is Strange with its gameplay that supplements frequent combat sections with common RPG elements. However, The Witcher 3 earns a spot on this list through the similarities in decision-based storytelling.
CD Projekt Red's adventure sees the protagonist Geralt finding himself in numerous complex situations where he needs to use his judgment rather than his sword to find a solution. Along with the main story, the game has many memorable side quests, particularly the Bloody Baron and Ghosts Of The Past questlines.
Alan Wake puts players in the shoes of an author, as he and his wife travel to a town named Bright Falls in hopes of helping his writer's block. Things soon turn sinister as Alan's wife goes missing, and strange, unexplainable events start to occur.
The game utilizes Resident Evil 4-like combat as players tackle numerous enemies throughout their journey to save their wife and resolve the horrifying mystery inspired by the work of American author Stephen King.
Detroit: Become Human is the second Life Is Strange-like game on this list developed by Quantic Dream, the first being Heavy Rain. The gameplay and storytelling style of Detroit: Become Human has many similarities to Heavy Rain, most notably the way that leading characters can die throughout the game depending on the player's decisions.
Beyond: Two Souls is another game from worth Quantic Dream that is worth checking out, though having three entries from one game studio on this list seemed like overkill. Beyond: Two Souls has an impressive cast that includes Willem Dafoe and Elliot Page.
Naughty Dog set a new standard for storytelling in 2013 with their morbid post-apocalyptic adventure, The Last of Us. Although it seems silly now, many people were dismissive of the game before it was launched. They believed this Life Is Strange-like game would just be an Uncharted clone looking to cash in on the previously mentioned zombie hype, a criticism that quickly subsided.
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The storytelling of The Last of Us was particularly innovative in how much of it is told outside of cutscenes, through more natural interactions during gameplay and notes from survivors. The game's heavy story showed that mainstream gaming audiences were ready for more emotional storylines that focused on difficult subjects.