With the release of Life Is Strange: True Colors, developer Deck Nine took the opportunity to bring Steph Gingrich back into the spotlight. Having originally featured in Deck Nine’s first outing in the series, Before the Storm, Steph becomes one of the main characters in Alex Chen’s adventure around Haven Springs.
That got us thinking about other Life Is Strange characters we’d love to see return in future games in the series, so we can learn more about them and see how they’ve developed as characters. Let us know in the comment section below which ones you’d like to see get a little more screentime in the future as well.
Nathan Prescott
Nathan Prescott is one of the most fascinating and complex characters in the Life Is Strange series. While he’s basically an asshole for your entire playthrough of the first game and is responsible for Chloe’s death (if you choose to go for that canon ending), there’s more to him than simply being a spoiled brat.
Not only is it suggested through Nathan is mentally unstable, suffering from anxiety, paranoia, and bipolar disorder — implied by the pills found in his dorm room and locker in the original game, he’s also under a severe amount of pressure from his father.
It’s this that is most intriguing about Nathan. Would he suffer so much from his mental illnesses had his father been more supportive and put less pressure on him? In Before the Storm, Samantha Myers believes he’s actually an okay guy, being sensitive and creative in his best moments.
While we get some closure regarding Nathan’s fate in Life Is Strange 2 — David Madsen has his mugshot if Chloe was killed by him in the first game, and can be heard saying he hopes “they never let him out” — there are still question marks to be raised over exactly what Nathan’s more personal life looks like. Not to mention just how much of a part did he play in Rachel Amber’s death?
Though a game focusing on Nathan as the protagonist seems unlikely given his strong antagonistic qualities, a game that features him as a main character during his early years, that gives us an insight into his development as a child and a young man, could certainly help answer some questions.
Frank Bowers
Life Is Strange Characters We’d Love to See Return Next
Frank Bowers, a.k.a. Frankie B, a.k.a. the lover of beans (not really, nobody calls him this, he just really loves beans). Whatever you want to call him, it’s difficult not to feel for Arcadia Bay’s notorious drug dealer by the end of Before the Storm. Having fallen deeply in love with Rachel Amber, he struggles to come to terms with her disappearance and, eventually, the news of her death.
Then, of course, there’s the whole complicated relationship he has with Damon Merrick, who stabbed Rachel and attempted to kill Chloe. While it’d certainly make for a darker kind of Life Is Strange story, we’d love to get a closer look at Frank’s past. How he got involved with Damon, the crazy stories he’s been a part of in his job as a drug dealer (also fun fact, his RV’s license plate: BRKBD is a reference to Breaking Bad), and how his relationship with Rachel blossomed.
There are also some inconsistencies regarding Frank and his dog Pompidou between the original game and Before the Storm. In the first game, he claims he rescued Pompidou from a dogfighting ring, while in Before the Storm it’s revealed he got Pompidou as a young puppy from Damon as a gift. Perhaps this was a cover-up story to obscure his relationship with Damon, but either way, we need to know.
…we also just want to see more of Pompidou. Such a good boi.
Kate Marsh
Life Is Strange Characters We’d Love to See Return Next
Kate Marsh has a rough time in the original game. Having become a victim of Jefferson and Nathan’s misdeeds, she struggles to deal with the leaked video of her around school and the influx of abuse this sends her way. Ultimately, it’s down to Max to save her in her darkest hour so she can push through and (hopefully) live a happier life.
Ever since, there’s been no word on how Kate is getting on. We see her briefly attending Chloe’s funeral (if you picked that ending), but other than that, nothing. No sign of her in Before the Storm, nor any reference in Life Is Strange 2 and True Colors.
Given her rather turbulent time at Blackwell Academy, and her subsequent rise to a beloved character with fans of the series, it seems only fair that we get some sort of sign that Kate’s grown up into a happy, confident woman and is doing ok, even if it’s just a brief cameo.
Perhaps she’s the vicar of a church in the next location the series takes us. We just want to know she’s doing ok.
Lyla Park
Life Is Strange Characters We’d Love to See Return Next
Lyla Park is protagonist Sean’s best friend in Life Is Strange 2. Before he and brother Daniel have to go on the run, the two of them seem almost inseparable, texting constantly and reassuring Sean when the going gets a little rough or he gets anxious about something, like the party in Episode 1. She’s an incredibly kind-hearted person who has nothing but the best intentions for everyone around her, especially Sean.
However, once the brothers end up leaving their ordinary life in Seattle, we only ever hear from Lyla in text messages. It is possible for Sean to call her in episode 1 — which coincidentally saves her from going to a mental health clinic in Bellevue — but outside of that, the two’s seemingly unbreakable friendship is demoted to a mere back-and-forth of text messages amidst the events of Daniel and Sean’s adventure.
Despite Sean’s apparent romantic interest in Jenn Murphy, the relationship between him and Lyla always felt more authentic and real, and so while it is possible to see the two reunited in one version of the ‘Redemption’ ending, it never felt like quite enough closure for fans.
Perhaps we get to see what Lyla got up to in Seattle following the Diaz brothers’ departure in a future episode, similar to how we saw Steph make her way to Haven Springs following her time at Blackwell Academy in Before the Storm.
Lyla may not have got the screen time she deserved in Life Is Strange 2, but it’s not too late to make up for it in a future title.
Cassidy
Life Is Strange Characters We’d Love to See Return Next
While Sean and Lyla’s relationship may have remained strictly platonic, one that didn’t was that between him and Cassidy, or Lucy Rose Jones, to give her her full name. Initially encountered playing her guitar at the Christmas tree farm in episode 2 of Life Is Strange, Cassidy and Sean strike an immediate connection. Her desire to be ‘free’ causes her to adopt the ‘drifter’ lifestyle, as she can never settle and becomes antsy when staying in one place for too long.
That’s what makes Cassidy so interesting. The free-spirited young woman has the potential to go anywhere and everywhere, and her lighthearted, banter-filled personality is brilliantly brought to life by voice actor Sarah J. Bartholomew.
A fan-favorite character, Cassidy would be a perfect potential protagonist for a future entry in the Life Is Strange series, or just as a main character in someone else’s story. The fact that she can never settle for somewhere for too long makes her a prime candidate for some dramatic adventures on the road in true Life Is Strange fashion. Did she remain a free spirit forever? Did she find someone that managed to settle her down into a normal life in society?
We need to know already!
Published: Sep 9, 2021 12:07 pm