Prime Video has recently confirmed that a Life is Strange TV Adaptation is green-lit by Amazon MGM Studios, nine years after the game's publisher first teased the idea.
The news was broken by Variety, with a press release following not long after. The award-winning episodic will be led by Charlie Covell, best known as the lead writer for End of the F****ing World.
Production will have support from companies such as LuckyChap, Story Kitchen, and the game's publisher, Square Enix. The formers are known best for work on the Barbie movie, and video game adaptations such as the Sonic the Hedgehog movie, respectively.
For those unfamiliar with the series, Life is Strange is a choose-your-own-adventure released in 2015. The franchise is developed by Don't Nod Entertainment, a French game developer based in Paris and Montréal. The game currently has four main installments, the most recent having been released in 2024.
The franchise introduces you to Max Caulfield, a photography student who suddenly discovers she has the ability to rewind time after saving her childhood best friend, Chloe Price. You help Max learn more about her skill while investigating the dark secrets of the town...
News of a digital series was first teased in July 2016. At the time, it was announced that dj2 Entertainment, the former name of Story Kitchen, and Legendary Digital Studios would lead the project.
Despite excitement at the time, not much news would come out after the announcement. In 2017, Story Kitchen would sell the rights to Hulu, the last piece of news about the state of the series fan would hear before the announcement from Amazon MGM Studios.
Interestingly, it was announced in 2021 that Shawn Mendes was enlisted as an executive producer and music supervisor. Though, it has yet to be confirmed if he is still on board the project.
Details of what to expect for the series are still sparse, yet many of the people involved are excited to do the game justice. For instance, Covell said they are a huge fan of the game prior to working on the series.
"I can't wait to share Max and Chloe's story with fellow players and new audiences alike," They said in the press release.
Studio Heads at Square Enix, Jon Brooke and Lee Singleton, said they were excited to finally bring the universe to life.
"For years, we've had so many people asking us to create a Life is Strange TV show, and we're so pleased to finally partner with Amazon MGM Studios," They said in the press release.
Reaction to the news has been mixed from fans. Some fans on X are thrilled to finally hear an update about the project, many noting their faith in Covell.
"the writer of “The End Of The F***ing World” is showrunning Life is Strange’s TV adaptation… oh my god." One user posted on X. As of this publication, the post has 4,700 reposts and 40,000 likes.
Others are worried if the TV show will do the game justice. Some users are worried because the developers are not contributing to the series. Others are concerned about whether the source material will be followed.
"I swear that if in that live action they just focus on the “mysterious” part of the plot and ignore the characters mental health struggles, queer identity, grief process and message I’m gonna be so sooo MAD." One user posted on X.
The Last of Us (TLOU) is another video game franchise that released recently. Season one was first released by HBO with positive reception. The landing page for season one on Rotten Tomatoes, shows a 96 per cent rating from 487 critics, and an 86 per cent rating from more than 10,000 users.
Season two, however, would not receive the same praise. Although critics would give the show a consensus of 91 per cent, fans would give a rating of 37 per cent. It was also revealed that ratings for season two overall declined dramatically.
The main criticism from fans is the show's decision to stray from the source material, either by straying from the original story or by inaccurate character portrayals.
Despite worries for video game adaptations as a whole, the future of potentially seeing more is promising. Even with recent adaptations like A Minecraft Movie or Until Dawn received poorly by audiences, many others were highly acclaimed.
Fallout and Arcane: League of Legends were TV adaptations that received positive attention from fans. Although developed and led by different people and studios, the consensus among fans was that the source material was respected.
For old fans and interested netizens, Life is Strange is available to play on PlayStation 3 and 4, Xbox 360 and One, PC and macOS.
There are currently four installments and two remasters of the first two episodes. For people on the fence, the first episode of the original first installment is available for free everywhere.