Screenshots & trailers
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 81 | 80 |
| Creator reviews (2 tracked) | – | 88 | 2 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 89% | 83 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 82% | 76 | 31 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 88 reviews sampled · 61 total reviews in window · weighted 58.1 up / 12.3 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (163)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 75
“Life is Strange: True Colors offers up a tightly written mystery story with likeable characters and some solid music to back. It may be a bit cheesy and melodramatic at times, but it’s a lot of fun in spite of that.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“Alex Chen’s journey is a good one and the five chapters provide a concise, slick story that gets the job done without much fuss. Unfortunately this also exemplifies how often certain areas are reused and the relatively simple choices given to players. Thankfully, True Colors dazzles its flaws with a vibrant, enjoyable adventure that’s well worth checking out”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Life Is Strange: True Colors is worth your time, and is a title you don't want to miss. Just be ready to put the controller down at the start of fifth chapter, and pretend that the game ends at this exact point.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“The best Life is Strange game to date and a big triumph for Deck Nine Games.”
read full review ↗ - 40
“True Colors already feels closer to an interactive movie than a game, especially in the final chapter. Here, we’re plunged into a series of overly expository flashbacks in which our decisions have already been made for us. There are fewer choices to make and interactions to discover as we’re led toward a narrative twist that’s as convenient as it is messy. You can see the seams in the editing as the game’s engine chooses which of two responses you’re going to get from each member of the town council, depending on how you interacted with them in earlier chapters. Were you ever actually empathetic toward these people, or simply tallying up points to get them on your side? A stronger game might have better concealed this behind-the-scenes scorekeeping, but Alex’s power makes the game’s true colors all too visible.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“True Colors is by far the best entry in Life Is Strange to date. Pulling the focus away from powers and onto relationships allows the story to grow naturally, and beautifully, without losing the essence of what makes the series great.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Life is Strange: True Colors is the best game in the series so far, without a doubt. The town of Haven Springs is full of excellent characters, with Alex Chen herself being one of the best protagonists we've seen in some time. The game does suffer from some pretty severe visual downgrades with the Switch release, and some of the additional minigames left us feeling a bit cold. Nevertheless, developer Deck Nine has crafted a fantastic narrative that you'll be eager to see through to the very end. Reduced visual fidelity aside, Switch is a great place to experience True Colors.”
read full review ↗ - 75
“It's all cozy but rote, which is a shame because the series has been bolder in the past. Walking away from it, I'm impressed at how much I cared for the cast, for example, and am also keenly aware of the fact that while I liked them, I will largely forget who they are because I've done this before and will likely do it again somewhere else in a few years. Life is Strange may sell itself on comfort, and True Colors may be the one most emblematic of this, but I wonder if the series itself has become too comfortable for its own good.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Whether you’re an existing fan of Life Is Strange or a series newcomer, there’s a lot for you to love here within True Colors. The story is the strongest to date and my personal favourite of the franchise, and when backed by it’s stellar soundtrack, there are many moments that deliver such a powerful emotional punch. I thoroughly enjoyed my time adventuring through Haven Springs as Alex and I’m incredibly excited to see where the team at Deck Nine take the series next.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Life is Strange: True Colors is the highly anticipated new chapter in the series developed by Dontnod Entertainment and Deck Nine Games. The game tells the troubled life of Alex Chen: a young girl not very inclined to social interactions and strongly intimidated by the opinion of other people. Get ready to experience an exciting adventure and be overwhelmed by emotions and empathy. Discover and master the true power of the protagonist and reveal the mysteries of Haven Springs.”
read full review ↗ - 55
“It's a game that elicits a plethora of vivid emotions, both good & bad, but my overriding true color by the end was beige.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“While there are many excellent story-driven titles in the Switch eShop, the tendency is more usually on grand tales or bold accomplishments than fleshed out characters that feel authentic...”
read full review ↗
cublikefoot
TheReviewGeek
GameMAG
3DNews
Slant Magazine
Jump Dash Roll
Nintendo Life
Paste Magazine
ani-game.com
Indie Games Devel
VGChartz
Nindie Spotlight…and 151 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Patch #3 Is Out Now!Oct 8, 2021
- Patch #2 Is Out Now!Sep 27, 2021
- Week 1 PatchSep 20, 2021
- AN UPDATE FROM THE LIFE IS STRANGE TEAMAug 11, 2021