Will Life is Strange: True Colors Have Any Last of Us References?
Life is Strange games are about to see the addition of a new chapter to the series, called Life is Strange: True Colors. This entry is developed by Deck Nine, rather than the original developers of both Life is Strange and Life is Strange 2, Dontnod Entertainment, and there may be a few changes as a result. Life is Strange: True Colors is set to retain the characteristic element of Life is Strange games in the form of the protagonist having supernatural powers, but on the other hand, it is ditching one of the most recognizable features the series ever had, episodes. While the game will still be divided into chapters, with the option for players to go through each of them separately to retain the same feeling as the other games in the franchise, True Colors will come out as a full game on release.
One of the big alluring elements of Life is Strange games was, to some fans, the fact that waiting in between the release of each episode led to theories about what the story was going to go, and exploring the possibilities of certain things happening for one reason or the other. Life is Strange: True Colors is likely to lose this charming component to its magical formula, but it doesn't mean that it won't bring back other things from its predecessors like references. In fact, Life is Strange 2 had several references to movies and games, with a very specific one to Naughty Dog's The Last of Us.
In the very first episode of Life is Strange 2 the main characters, brothers Sean and Daniel Diaz, find a creepy mushroom in the woods. Daniel takes a closer look at it, and he says it looks like a Clicker, then Sean proceeds to mimic the signature unsettling sound that Clickers make, scaring his brother. When this happened, since the second episode took a while to come out, Life is Strange players started coming up with some theories about the event, pondering if it could bear any sort of relevance to the story told in LiS 2 or if it was a simple Easter egg. These theories sprung from the fact that the game was also oddly released on "Outbreak Day," which is Joel's birthday in The Last of Us and, coincidentally, also the day when the Cordyceps Brain Infection reached critical mass.
Naughty Dog is known to celebrate Outbreak Day every year, regardless of a new The Last of Us game coming out or not. As such, the inclusion of such a specific reference in Life is Strange 2 and the game being released worldwide on Outbreak Day seemed too much of a coincidence for it not to mean something. It turned out that these were inconsequential events, though, much to the dismay of some fans who had high hopes for the connection.
However, Life is Strange: True Colors could have a similar reference to The Last of Us franchise, especially because The Last of Us Part 2 came out last year, and another reference to it would make a lot of sense. However, True Colors is set to launch on September 10, which is close to Outbreak Day, but not close enough to warrant any indication that another TLOU Easter egg will be included. Without real world connections and a shift in developer, it's plausible and perhaps more likely that no reference will be mad this time.
Emotions are a big part of The Last of Us games, too, and Part 2 was quite an emotional rollercoaster. Considering the fact that a precedent was already set by Life is Strange 2, it's impossible that True Colors will include a little homage to The Last of Us 2. Whether this proves to be the case it remains to be seen, but fans can hope.
Life is Strange: True Colors releases September 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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