Katy Bentz & Mallory Littleton on Life Is Strange: True Colors Wavelengths

Life Is Unusual: True Colours was launched earlier this month and was a superb entry in Sq. Enix’s narrative-focused journey recreation collection. For those who need to study extra about Haven Springs and the previous of Steph, the Wavelengths DLC is out September 30. It focuses on the returning character from Earlier than the Storm as she will get used to life in a small city.

RELATED: Life Is Unusual: True Colours Assessment: A Return to Type

Forward of the DLC’s launch, ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Treese spoke to Deck 9 Video games Senior Narrative Designer Mallory Littleton and Steph voice actress Katy Bentz in regards to the upcoming Life Is Unusual: True Colours Wavelengths DLC.





Tyler Treese: Mallory, what have been the most important classes you realized from engaged on Earlier than the Storm that you simply have been in a position to apply in True Colours? I’ve all the time appreciated the writing within the video games but it surely virtually feels barely extra mature right here, a bit extra constant all through, I used to be actually impressed by the writing.

Mallory Littleton: Mature is an efficient phrase to make use of. Alex was going to be a bit older than our prior Life is Unusual protagonists. We thought lots about what that meant. And we actually determined that we wished the collection to develop up with its gamers. Max is eighteen within the first recreation, which got here out six years in the past now. And so we knew that the core viewers that actually clicked with Life is Unusual themselves was rising older. And we wished to inform a extra mature story that they might proceed to use to their lives. So we selected a younger grownup who's getting a brand new begin in a brand new place. I believe that’s a reasonably frequent expertise. It’s a scary expertise that I believe everybody can relate to and study from.

Katy, Steph was acquired properly in Earlier than the Storm, however did you ever suppose that you'd wind up enjoying such a key position in a future recreation after which get her personal DLC as a protagonist? It’s been wild to see this character be embraced so naturally by the followers.

Katy Bentz: In no way. I had no concept this was going to be taking place 4 years later. I’m simply so extremely grateful to have been given the chance to have the ability to breathe life again into Steph. The response from the followers has simply been superb and so heartwarming and it’s simply so good to see that she’s being well-received

Mallory, Steph being from Arcadia Bay and going to Blackwell Academy brings some actually nice connective tissue from the prior video games into True Colours. On this DLC has another acquainted faces pop up. We get to see an replace from Mikey, which is a extremely cool callback for Earlier than the Storm followers. How enjoyable was it to revisit a few of these characters once more and provides little life updates, even when they’re not the main focus?

Littleton: Oh my gosh, it was simply a lot enjoyable. We knew that Rachel and Chloe know stuff and that you simply Chloe has frolicked with Steph. They usually have performed tabletop collectively. They commerce DVDs. And they also’re associates and we wished to actually have a look at Steph as a full character with these associates in her previous and experiences that encompass them and people reminiscences. Serious about the issues that they might have finished collectively and the way they might have interacted in these circumstances after which crafting these little moments to stay into Wavelengths was actually enjoyable for us. We’re actually excited to deliver a few of these acquainted faces again and I believe gamers are actually going to get pleasure from it.

Katy, how was the method like doing a efficiency seize? Do you are feeling much more authorship over the efficiency now that it’s your individual motion?

Bentz: Yeah, it was my first time ever doing full efficiency and it was so, so superior. And simply having the ability to play it and watch it. It simply seems unbelievable. Deck 9 [knocked it] out of the park. I believe as an actor, having the ability to carry out all the pieces, physique, face, and voice simply brings a extra real efficiency. And whenever you play the sport, you see that with the entire efficiency actors. You’re in a position to join. It’s the identical individual. You’re residing in that individual and in that scene totally. And it’s going into the sport like that.

Mallory, this sort of DLC, just like Earlier than the Storm, is extra grounded. There are not any actual superpowers. Once you’re enjoying as Alex, you’re going to get individuals’s ideas and these type of supernatural parts. So how does that change your writing?

Littleton: Yeah, I believe the writing undoubtedly modifications. However I believe Steph sorta does have superpowers and in her creativity and confidence. So in writing Alex, we all know that we are able to create this content material round listening to individuals’s ideas and serving to them work by little blocks of their lives or massive blocks of their lives. However for Steph, as an alternative of it being individuals’s ideas or little blocks, we wished bits of content material just like the courting app and a bit tabletop recreation you can play with Mikey. You get to study a bit bit about how she and Ethan clicked so properly and have become so shut. The method is certainly totally different, however we type of have a look at the content material as a complete and craft it uniquely for principally each scene of each chapter, together with the DLC.





Katy, in Earlier than the Storm, Steph is 16 and there’s been a lot character growth that goes on behind the scenes that we’re going to get to see a bit little bit of that right here, however did that additional maturity for the character alter the way you play her?

Bentz: Yeah. Positively having the ability to work out easy methods to deliver life into an older Steph was one thing that all of us needed to work for and work with. And it was enjoyable. It’s cool to have the ability to see her older. It’s cool to have the ability to breathe life into a personality with so many extra feelings that the participant will get to know and really feel. And particularly with the DLC, you get to study a lot extra about all of the issues, since you now hear her inside monologue. You hear not solely her confidence, however her insecurities, her pleasure, her fears, her all the pieces. There’s simply a lot extra to her. And it’s actually thrilling.

Mallory, True Colours provides gamers as a lot as they're keen to place into it. There are such a lot of small storylines that may be missed in case you’re not exploring totally different particulars and searching for the collectibles. How do you steadiness that writing, realizing that a number of gamers would possibly overlook key particulars?

Littleton: I assume the reply is you attempt actually arduous. [laughs] Clearly, we actually need to be certain that the trail that each participant, even those who aren’t significantly inclined to take their time and discover each single element, nonetheless get a narrative that holds collectively and is sensible and has all of that emotional affect. However on the identical time, we additionally knew that this was going to be a recreation about constructing group and constructing a house. And that’s one thing that you simply type of should put effort into. You need to search individuals out and see how they’re doing and attempt to assist them. So we wished the construction of the sport to type of replicate that effort in constructing group. Hopefully, we struck the appropriate steadiness and that even people who go straight and slender by the sport nonetheless get the total expertise. However on the identical time, in case you do construct your self a bit group, we wished that have to be actually rewarding in its personal proper, as properly.

Katy, being considered one of two romance choices within the recreation, are you glad that extra individuals select Steph of their first playthrough? Is it aggressive?

Bentz: In no way. I believe Ryan is such a terrific character as properly. He has such a terrific arc and he’s well-written. Taking part in it personally, I actually love Ryan, too. And there have been instances the place I wished to romance Ryan. I simply instructed myself I wished to romance Steph first. I’m going to do my Ryan playthrough subsequent. Ryan and Steph are each superb choices. And I believe regardless of the participant decides to decide on for themselves is the appropriate alternative. It’s nice that you simply’re provided that choice and also you won't even need to romance any of them. You will have your choices. And I believe that’s superb.

Is it a bit odd romancing your self?

Bentz: No. It’s straightforward for me, I assume. I don’t know. I’ve seen it so many instances and I’ve performed it now that I can disconnect and detach from Steph. She’s Steph. Sure, it’s my voice. Sure, it’s my physique and my face, however as an actor, I’m simply in a position to detach from it and simply play the sport and simply see her as a personality in Haven Springs. And simply me personally, as a gamer, I get pleasure from her as a personality. I believe she’s well-written.

Mallory, early suggestions has been so constructive, however what has actually struck you from followers? Was there any stunning suggestions?

Littleton: We hope so arduous that everybody loved the stuff that we make and once they do, it’s all the time such a aid. It’s been enjoyable to see individuals diving into all of MyBlock content material as a result of there’s really fairly a little bit of stuff in there and it's type of a number of studying. We weren’t certain how many individuals have been actually going to get in there, but it surely’s been tremendous enjoyable to see the parents that take the time and browse by it and discover enjoyable, attention-grabbing content material that they need to speak about.

Katy, Steph is such a enjoyable character. She likes D&D and she or he’s very free-spirited. What a part of her character actually resonates with you probably the most?

Bentz: I believe simply that she simply is so true to herself. We get to expertise a lot extra along with her in addition to simply that cool, nerdy, assured person who we met in BTS. And we’ve already realized that a bit bit in True Colours. She simply actually is true to herself and she or he’s only a rock for lots of people. If in case you have Steph in your aspect, you’re good. She’s there for you. And also you get to see that in True Colours as properly. It’s simply actually superior you can have a reliable pal in her.

Mallory, True Colours has nods to the previous video games, but it surely undoubtedly doesn’t depend on nostalgia. It really works as a standalone story, however long-time followers do get these nods and winks they usually get an actual kick out of it. What's that balancing act?

Littleton: All the Life is Unusual titles exist in the identical universe, proper? So we wished to be sure that that was simply obvious that it's a standalone recreation, however we’re not operating off and pretending that we don’t have a historical past or a legacy and that the fan group that we have now didn’t come from someplace. We actually prefer to acknowledge the place the franchise began and preserve these roots actually on the entrance of our minds as we’re making it. We prefer to put in nods as usually as they make sense.

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