ROSS'S GAME DUNGEON: LIFE IS STRANGE DEMO

[Ross Scott]

This is a blog post. To read the original post, please click here »

 

 

 

New Game Dungeon! I was really hoping to have this out before my marriage went down, but that simply didn't happen. Everything this month has been kinds of nuts for me. I'm still recovering from being sick, and I have absolutely no idea what the future plans are for the remainder of this month and possibly the next. I do plan to have a Halloween episode out later, other than that, I know nothing. I will also try and catch up on some email also, provided I'm here. I'm not sure where I'm going to be. Halloween. Videos.

 

COMMENTS

[Trar]

I liked the video, I think you gave some honest and constructive criticism of the game, but I just have to say there actually is a Life is Strange 2 being made. So there's not just a prequel here.

[Icebox]

Sounds like the typical "altering time make things worst" plot.

[Puhtutz]

Hey Ross,

About the modern music thing

 

Well, when I started my teen angst pretty much when I started watching you, so stuff like Thin Retro God from Animosity is what I usually listened to. It was pretty strange to go from the mall metal or classic rock my family usually listened to full on grindcore but it made me like all kinds of metal. I mean, I grew up on Manowar, Metallica and Black Sabbath, but I started going more "trve" way later. Right now the stuff I like is usually neofolk or black metal; All sorts, National socialistic BM, folk BM, but my absolute favorite is atmospheric BM. There's this Youtube channel "Atmospheric Black Metal" that really got me into it: https://www.youtube.com/user/AtmsphericBlackMetal

Here are some of my favorite albums:

 

Atmospheric Black metal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYUEZUqAc_8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut0KvVtiUmk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rh2Yj7tE0o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0FYYBWx0Ps

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq3JDjVL1bw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaoVdzo00lI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZU71zE8MCQ

 

Blackgaze:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQCZuwLADYE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WI1bgsdXWgw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKU6Z1t1rzA

 

Neofolk/Dark fok:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeh2IMZFUvs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnk2-Jctg6A

 

Folk/Pagan/Epic metal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxD0ymQcu5Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWiRMI88cPE

 

Experimental stuff:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc2E5WcQsfw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIF_rpooxng

 

Black metal classics:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-ZVkESecXk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFC9TXzd8Zc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1zuqZUg4jU

 

Black metal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JeshHKvP-8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nrzhy8j8QZM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SItpi30gqso

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUD2nHnEslA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS7yW2d7Lk4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC1cl_zjE6Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyR5Iwmi9zE

 

And random stuff that's all over the place to categorize:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4DZ_UvMAXk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAApF-FDkoY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaMbKZPBruU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc2E5WcQsfw

 

 

I do enjoy folk quite a lot, all kinds of it. You'll probably find all of this lame and you would be completely right. Also it's easy to play on guitar making it a great pic for /out/'ings. Russian one is really great:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8K0sW8GX-4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDCNlqMgnvo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTiIhZcXLSM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX7TRD6XaRs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGSkviwvjD0

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway, I think that's enough for now. I'm pretty sorry for you, Ross. You made this small request and now you have minimum a few hundred hours of music. 90% sure you'll say that you couldn't possibly listen to it all. Sorry.

Edited August 25, 2019 by The Britain
Moderator Edit (see edit history)

[TotallyNotSatan]

Don't worry Ross, there's a bunch of people who don't like this game. I sure as hell hate it.

By the way, to strike that bridge too far with a 120mm HE shell: The game gets worse as it progresses. You didn't even make it to the moment where they introduce Chloe (the blue haired chick), AKA the worst character in the entire game.

[Meelis13]

Ross, this video perfectly illustrates how good you are as game critic. You can have exact opposite opinion of everyone else, yet you present your viewpoint perfectly and entertaining at same time. Even though Life is Strange is absolute favourite of mine (been gamer most of my 24 years of life), i do think your critisism is spot on. Fact is- and you aknowledge it- that its not game for everyone. Really depends on what you expect going in as well.

As for what i listened back during high school (tbh i did listen to LiS-like music too), well, mostly not in english, but "Terminaator" was (and still is) my favourite band (and still very popular in here in all age groups, including high schoolers).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n66Np1wGfak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsiXgJkcJbo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q94XnDkEcVs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxQG_fxFvcc

 

Of course people still seem to appreciate classic rock.

[billymaize]

Hey Ross, great episode. I first started watching your videos when I was 9 years old in 2007, so I'm one of those Generation Z-ers, and I've got some music suggestions. Most people I know that are my age still like classic rock, 90's industrial and grunge, 80's punk, and some metal. The most prevalent genre is rap, by far, but I'm not really very into that so I don't know a whole lot of rap artists.

 

Mac DeMarco:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLyu1St_4ns

Pissed Jeans:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eaV1WvaApA

Death Grips:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J09aeeBVtk

FIDLAR:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cmcpl55pWu8

Slutever:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KFMnOzvpeQ

The Soft Moon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tgIfVxgWeA

Tame Impala:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-uH1TAGe0I

Savages:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ykv3Ar6BcSM

Wavves:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6dEfAedJpg

Washed Out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LbOIG_8GNg

Dirty Art Club: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn7hpbZxwSk&list=PLdvLhYr3-MzQI2QJVZF6l5u18bVdkuyUq

Neon Indian: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoOqRDlyGio

Chance the Rapper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e67Q-sTHVhc

[Bananaman90014]

Hey Ross, I'm a freshman in high school so I might be leaning towards the more juvenile end of the spectrum but from what I gather a majority of people around my age are listening to mumble rap and generally less structured styles of rap. Like xxxtentacion and Lil' Pump(look them up if you dare, I would only for research purposes). Also, I know this isn't exactly a scientific experiment but I think the people who watch your videos probably have a bias towards metal and rock.

 

I personally have been listening to 70's-80's music recently(like Blondie, Yes and Human League) but my taste in music is subject to frequent change, so I don't think I'm the best example for what my demographic is listening to these days.

[unoriginalSNiP]

Made some edits to fix up the genres mentioned here.

 

I haven't played the game, but I've definitely seen others play it. I thought it was pretty good way, way back when it was first released, but more flaws stood out to me as time went by. There's still quite a few interesting things I can think of that happens in the game, such as weird reality fuckery, uncovering conspiracies and all that, but like you said, they're all overshadowed. Life is Strange is overrated.

 

TIME FOR MUSIC!

Most of the stuff I listen to is electronic (IDM, drum n' bass, etc.), but I'll stick to progressive rock and metal, my other favorites.

Metal first. Ne Obliviscaris is absolutely amazing, and also the heaviest band here. Just listen to "And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope" and you'll definitely see for yourself IF you don't mind a bit of black metal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMorAdnCixg. There's also Coheed & Cambria ("Welcome Home" and "Gravity's Union" are the best,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4zw9qMLKUg) and Dream Theater ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZKrwJzGg0k).

Progressive rock! There's a lot of bands I really like, but the only one I can think of that's relatively "modern" is Thank You Scientist (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK8JgjNxumo).

But my number one favorite band is The Mars Volta. Their stuff is fucking insane. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyUMHEua7-A. They're not so much progressive rock as they are experimental, but nevertheless.

 

Don't mind the lengths...

 

EDIT: So hey, I might as well include the REST of the music I listen to that you may not necessarily be taken to. Specifically electronica. Here's Autechre (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iId1YAtn7o This is from 1994, their current stuff is WAY different and out-of-the-box), Boards of Canada ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qthHlLyvplg), µ-Ziq ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGMgwERhfcI), Nosaj Thing ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOFebA2WKhg), and Aphex Twin ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Z4cLmbw6q0).

Edited November 12, 2017 by Guest (see edit history)

[GordonFreeman]

Now, I thought Ross was covering The Last Stand: Union CIty after he got the fullscreen support to work.

[Presence]

Pretty much why I stopped playing all adventure and moral choice games. Although I am certainly going to play Hiveswap.

[Descriptor]

Man, Ross is such a mean girl.

 

As for music, I'm in my mid 20's now, so I'm probably a bit out of date to do today's homework assignment. Even moreso since my friends and I mostly just listened to classic rock in high school (although one of them was more into metal, so I guess that counts).

 

I haven't played the game, but I've definitely seen others play it. I thought it was pretty good way, way back when it was first released, but more flaws stood out to me as time went by. There's still quite a few interesting things I can think of that happens in the game, such as weird reality fuckery, uncovering conspiracies and all that, but like you said, they're all overshadowed. Life is Strange is overrated.

 

TIME FOR MUSIC!

Most of the stuff I listen to is electronic (IDM, drum n' bass, etc.), but I'll stick to progressive rock and metal, my other favorites.

Metal first. Ne Obliviscaris is absolutely amazing. Just listen to "And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope" and you'll definitely see for yourself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMorAdnCixg

Progressive rock! There's a lot of bands I really like, including Coheed & Cambria ("Welcome Home" and "Gravity's Union" are the best,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4zw9qMLKUg), Thank You Scientist ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK8JgjNxumo), Dream Theater ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZKrwJzGg0k), etc.

But my number one favorite band is The Mars Volta. Their stuff is fucking insane.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyUMHEua7-A

 

Don't mind the lengths...

Good to see Prog get its respects! That being said, most of these guys are a bit heavy for me, or I get bugged by their vocals (Spock's Beard and Thank You, Scientist are definite problems for me in this regard. I'd love Spock's Beard if they made a karaoke version, since their instrumentation is great). I've been scrounging for some modern Prog, since the old stuff can only stay fresh for me for so long, but haven't found much I like outside one band called Wobbler. Any recommendations for someone who preferred more of the less heavy 70's sound?

[steviewonder322]

Alright Ross, I know you mentioned it, but I've still gotta throw my hat in the ring. This first episode of this game is terrible, an absolutely miserable experience. However, moving forward, the team ditched most of the cringy language and dropped a majority of the teen drama, leaving only well written things and focusing on more of the sci-fi stuff. They actually do some really cool stuff with the time travel, but I totally get being turned away from the first episode. One thing I will say is that the choices absolutely DO NOT matter, and everything just comes down to a final choice. So, like Walking Dead, it's a great story but no real choices.

[Descriptor]

Alright Ross, I know you mentioned it, but I've still gotta throw my hat in the ring. This first episode of this game is terrible, an absolutely miserable experience. However, moving forward, the team ditched most of the cringy language and dropped a majority of the teen drama, leaving only well written things and focusing on more of the sci-fi stuff. They actually do some really cool stuff with the time travel, but I totally get being turned away from the first episode. One thing I will say is that the choices absolutely DO NOT matter, and everything just comes down to a final choice. So, like Walking Dead, it's a great story but no real choices.

Sounds kinda like a reverse Homestuck the way you describe it. In the sense that HS started out really strong, with cool sci-fi concepts and fun characters, but turned into an absolutely draining slog of dumb teen drama nonsense by the end. I don't know which progression is worse. I guess starting strong and falling apart at the end is worse because you kinda end up wasting your time when all is said and done. But then, going the other direction, you end up missing out on the good if you can't get through the initial barrier of something that starts off weak. Either way it's a shame, though.

[Spagelo]

As a senior in high school, this is what I generally listen to...

 

 

H_AdEgRpxS8

 

 

lOWX2-l788A

 

 

qcwP2ulxDdY

 

 

KD_YRnuuKyY

 

 

lkeoJggtSu0

 

By order of what I listen to the most. One can guess that a teenager would like Ochs a bit more than ol' Jolie. Still, that whistle of his would land Al a spot on my list any day of the week.

 

Groovy video.

Edited October 13, 2017 by Guest (see edit history)

[FrankBooth]

Music Homework

From within the past 2 years

 

Death/Doom metal

Blood Incantation -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXrVZl4_seI

Progressive influences, sounds pretty cosmic at points.

 

Faceless Burial - Seeping Aberrational Fissures

Emulates early 90s death metal, but with some real wacky riffs.

 

Thrash/Heavy Metal

AlcoholicA -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXl82sBfGDM

I think you can guess who the main influence is.

 

Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zDT_uGYdVs

Proto-metal, heavy instrumentation juxtaposed with soft melodies.

 

Other

The Dillinger Escape Plan -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yztG35U5Hrw

Mathcore/Hardcore Punk/Glitch-hop?

 

Primus -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZVToL4LhDQ

Bass guitar masturbation mixed with the mind of a Bum convinced the world is coming to an end.

[locutus_of_cats]

Someone obviously hasn't heard Chumbawamba's early stuff:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQCD9Ti1rSY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7SRqW7LzBY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXllT4EsRmE

[tionokyo]

Being I was 19 for most of 2015 I'd say I qualify as a teenager during the generation you requested homework from! (Born in 95 for those bad with math).

 

"I am NOT like these fucking posers here, and have some personality and good taste." Okay! Let's pretend that all the hypothetical teenagers in this situation are outcasts, and also that they only like one type of music.

 

This is the kid that doesn't just dislike their peers, but HATES them, and also the color pink.

--->

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BV3LMSMz9WI

 

This is the kid that wants the school to blow up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HS27NS1sFbw

 

This is the kid that doesn't like to go out and would rather stay home and watch let's players.

--->

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FI6Lw1D3czg (Mystery Skulls is SUPER popular with tumblr kids because of their fan animated music videos).

 

This is the kid that thinks they're tortured and also maybe wiccan

--->

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac3qohdtK30

 

This is for the person that identifies a little too well with Max in the game, but is less mopey.

--->

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qu2R0COP0Q

 

And bonus, this is what the normal kids these days listen to

---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNbedcHmjl8 ||| This was insanely popular with younger adults and teens when it first came out.

 

Wonderful video by the way! I played Life is Strange to completion and my takeaway was that it was a pretty game, but only meant for people who can tolerate cringy dialogue, and had a story that was so badly written I'm convinced actual 16 year olds are behind it. I watched your video with my friend and he was in physical pain every time you showed any of the characters speaking. It was hilarious. That said, the last episode is without a doubt the best part of the game just because it's heavily surrealistic, and I found it to be a little haunting. Much more like Twin Peaks then anything else in the story. Not great but not terrible either, although there is a segment where there's dialogue from previous scenes echoing as you explore the environment, and you do hear "hella."

 

And yes, there are only two endings, and both are tragic in their own ways. One more so than the other. Your choices until then don't entirely matter, you can pick which one you want when presented with them.

[Elf_Ears]

Alright, here's a huge effortpost on my favourites and why I like them... Sorry if it's too long. (I got massively carried away....) (This is what happens at 4:00 AM)

 

 

Alright, My music tastes are pretty dorky (Video game OST's only and no metal) so I expect to get damned but whatever, this is fun.

 

I like quite a lot of kinda mainstream VG music (FF, SMT, Minecraft, HIDEKI NAGANUMA, OFF) so here are my most (semi-)obscure picks

 

Sorry if this is too long, but I felt it would be a good idea to explain why I liked the music, and a "Best of" list of tracks so it's a little easier to digest than just a plain list.

 

The soundtrack to Contact for the DS (Masafumi Takada and Jun Fukuda) is VERY interesting, the composers liked to play with the janky limitations of modtracker music and chiptune and ended up with interesting effects

The vocals are wierd in the nicest way, they sound wrong yet really nice at the same time (See the track "Grow Up Nyan Nyan" to see what I mean) (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgVzT86fzD0)

The melodies are original and constantly come back to my head when I try to sleep.

The credits track "Unlocking the real me" is probably my favourite. (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhfBwBxrVU0)

(More amazing stuff from these guys is the soundtracks to Killer7 and No More Heroes, but Contact is the most obscure Suda51 game so I mentioned it first.)

(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRR4PGsyIv4) ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDIXs4KOl_4) ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCGE_ILXqGA)

 

Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland for DS is also another killer on the system. With a mix of orchestra, chiptune and jazz. This soundtrack is as wierd and unmissable as the game it came from.

Check out the song for tingle's house and the song for pinkle to see what I'm talking about.

(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kscaHlNPZoI) ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8EJn_e9V5M)

 

 

Anything by Chef Boyardee is gold. He composed the soundtrack for Barkley: Gaiden and the trippy music for the mspaint dilbert animations.

All great stuff, but a lot of my favourite tracks are from the upcoming Barkley 2.

The synths just sound SO RIGHT in "new2". (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imbxXN2Ez9c)

"Killers3" gives a top notch mysterious vibe with hypnotic sounding drums. (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FSwT_DDyUk)

and "oldman" delivers a very depressing vibe, perfectly fitting the scene. (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLMxl0Yd6Dk)

All from a game that is still yet to be released.

 

Danny Baranowsky is another artist that I like, His tunes for The Binding Of Isaac (The original, not the remake which I found inferior (I still kinda liked the music there though)) were killer.

With astoundingly good instruments and melodies that still resonate in my mind. That music was iconic.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5mnDcZu0I0) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfEUXmKoJQo) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Co2uZ8b2MPM)

 

I also really enjoyed his work on Crypt of the Necrodancer and Super Meat Boy, both were funky as hell.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPe3LT37h-Y) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xHttYIwocY)

 

I enjoyed Jasper Byrne's work on the soundtrack to Lone Survivor. It was like this wierd campy old feel mixed with Silent Hill (Bits of 1 and 2's soundtracks)

"Home" and "sleep forever" are favourites.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD4oU134ot4) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPDCj8nCmoA)

 

I also enjoy quite a lot of old tracks

 

Tim Follin is a musician who could wring all the juice out of tha hardware he worked with.

His music was awe enspiring across the board.

Favoutites include:

Bionic Commando on the C64 (Level 1 explains it all), (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMm_YKbl8u0)

Ghouls and Ghosts for C64 (this soundtrack seems almost impossible on the C64's hardware), (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liy6CF50Bz0)

Plok (Rumour has it that Shigeru Miyamoto himself couldn't believe the music wasn't streamed, akrillic, beach, plok's house and the rocket launcher theme are the best tracks ),

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jbJSftFr20) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ODKKILZiYY) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpFDpIKlmPs) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFq8B1zqCKs)

and the unreleased Time Trax for Sega MegaDrive (The title music, briefing screen music and Level 1's music are the best)

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MozqL_HkHF4) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MozqL_HkHF4&t=1117s) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MozqL_HkHF4)

 

Dreamweb was another good soundtrack: "The Dealer", the song you hear when you meet the gun dealer (and generally get in to trouble) is my favourite, with the slick synths and sampled laughing man. It's unmistakable.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPKV2wnCz5c)

 

Also, Jade Cocoon (A ps1 game with a HUGE twist, right up your alley Ross) Has a really good soundtrack. Great instruments (nothing wierd like my other picks though, mostly primitive stuff) and killer melodies.

Sirus village has a dreamy track that I love but frankly it's all gold. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PVc_CJcEug)

 

If you read all this, thanks. It means a LOT.

 

 

Edit: added links, should be waaaaay easier to parse now

(should have been there in the first place, but it was 5 AM when I got to bed)

Edited October 13, 2017 by Guest (see edit history)

[Tower Of Lead]

Hey Ross, loved the new Game Dungeon, good review as always! When you asked what music the viewers listen to, I had to make an account and suggest some of my favorites.

 

My all-time favorite band, Enslaved, makes some pretty badass music within the metal genre that I think you will enjoy, and hey, they're releasing their new album tomorrow.

Here are some of my favorites:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjisyX2qHI8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB2eov1tCUA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRlhMyXmTYQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ze38ua_e_dY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0zbp6vcyUg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DULdEgVgY8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMFvahxi138

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpoUMRPtzyY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al3Dg02zlYk

 

Hopefully, you can take a look at some of these songs. See you in the next Game Dungeon!