SPOILERS ON LIFE IS STRANGE 1
So recently I beat Life is Strange: Before the Storm, and I’m feeling kinda mixed on it. Overall, I think there are things better than the first game, but also some things that are worse than the original too. Like one part that I think is worse is the main mechanic, which is Backtalking. It’s okay, but not as good as the Time Travel from the first game, which offered more to play with, and offered different puzzles than Backtalking, which feels more like a minigame than anything.
However, one thing that BTS does improve on is the narrative. Yeah it’s a prequel, and it does suffer from prequel syndrome, meaning you know what’s going to happen because of what has to line up with the future. While it is a prequel, BTS builds up the character of Rachael Amber, and I love that. In LIS 1, Rachael has always been a mystery, and even when you find out Chloe has a deep connection to her, it was just kinda there for Chloe’s character to get motivated over. With BTS now, it really drives home the main impact of the first game, which is Rachael Amber’s death, and makes it so much more impactful. Now with this game, you feel the loss that Chloe feels, and it’s beautiful.
Overall, I can’t say which game is better, this one of LIS 1. Each game has its strengths and weaknesses yeah, but they’re in different elements in the game, that it’s hard to choose. Like LIS 1 has the gameplay and lore/ mystery. BTS has its narrative and characters. Idk which one is better, so I’ll say both are great games and you should play both of them. Play LIS 1 before BTS though.