Spoilers for the original Life Is Strange game.

Life Is Strange is the story of Max and of her transformation from shy teenager into fearless hero. It's also about Chloe, her lost, troubled friend who dies a tragic death in the first minutes of the story. If we were to look through Chloe's eyes, would the story not be, beyond an adventure filled with tragedy, something of a poetic, bittersweet farewell?

Life Is Strange, episode 5

Chloe: "Max, you finally came back to me this week, and... you did nothing but show me your love and friendship. You made me smile and laugh, like I haven't done in years. Wherever I end up after this... in whatever reality... all those moments between us were real, and they'll always be ours. No matter what you choose, I know you'll make the right decision."

Here are my thoughts about this possible interpretation of the story and of the "Sacrifice Chloe" ending.

(Please keep in mind these are my subjective thoughts and me philosophizing a story and its themes, I'm not arguing for any primary, absolute meaning to the story. Also, I'm focusing on the original LIS game and pretty much completely ignoring Before The Storm. That said, good reading and feel free to join the discussion.)

Chloe's death

If Life Is Strange may be a farewell for Chloe, it's first and foremost because the story pretty much starts and ends with her death.

Chloe dying in the school's bathroom is arguably the first scene of importance in the game. Earlier scenes, dreaming of the storm and waking up in Jefferson's class, become significant later, but having someone murdered in front of you is a shock, even if Max doesn't recognize Chloe. At this point, the storm is just a nightmare, however Chloe's death is reality.

Without Max's timely time-rewinding superpower, Chloe dies there and then, a fact confirmed by the "Sacrifice Chloe" ending. If Chloe dies in that bathroom, that's the end of the story as we know it. Chloe is the main presence in the game and often a driving force for the story, in that she pushes Max to experiment with her power, to investigate Rachel's disappearance, and to get involved in matters that seem too great for a teenager to deal with. And, most relevant, Max has to keep saving Chloe from deadly events.

Really, it might be Chloe's death, not simply Chloe herself, that drives Max in her actions. Because Max saw her die in front of her eyes. Because, afterward, Chloe experiences near-death and actual death several more times. She "dies" at the junkyard when they're shooting bottles, she dies on the railroad tracks, she dies consequently to her car accident in the alternate reality, or from the morphine overdose, she dies when shot by Jefferson at the junkyard. And she dies yet again as a sacrifice to save Arcadia Bay.

Episode 5 in particular is in great part focused on Max desperately struggling to save Chloe. This peaks with the scene at the lighthouse, where Max tells Chloe she's her number one priority, while Chloe suggests that she has to accept her fate, that she died in the school bathroom, that she was fated to die there.

And perhaps Chloe's death was written in fate, a fixed point that cannot be overturned, not without significant sacrifices. Or perhaps, Chloe did die the first time, and when Max reached out, she created an ephemeral, alternate reality where she can only delay Chloe's death again and again. Whatever the case may be, I think it's fair to say Chloe's death and Max fighting it off are the starting point of the story.

Beyond its significance for the story, it's important to highlight Chloe's original death and its circumstances for what they are. Chloe is a nineteen-year-old woman, a kid, whose life meets a brutal end. And this death is only the latest in the series of her tragedies. Chloe's life toppled over when her father died and her best friend left. She had to go through five unhappy, difficult years, during which she tried and failed to cope with traumas of death and abandon. As far as we know, Chloe got little help and meager respite, only for her to end up murdered, shot by someone who had previously drugged her and abused her, her last moments spent with anger and dread in her heart, in a crappy school bathroom, with the best friend she has been yearning for hiding a few meters away. It's tragic, it's unceremonious, it's unfair, it's shit.

Life Is Strange, episode 5

Chloe: "Look at how many times I've almost died or actually died around you. Look at what's happened in Arcadia Bay ever since you first saved me. I know I've been selfish, but for once I think I should accept my fate... our fate..."

Chloe's life

We get little information about Chloe's life prior to the game's events, and perhaps it was a simple, normal childhood, in which peace and happiness were shattered by the death of her father, William, leading to years of distress as Chloe deals with uncontrollable sorrow and anger, all the way to her being murdered. It might seem like it doesn't matter, mentioning how sad and troubled Chloe had been prior to dying, since dying at such a young age will always be a tragedy. However, what happened to Chloe is more than simple death. She went through grueling sorrow, battled it in a five-year-long agony, then suffered a senseless murder which robbed her of any chance there could have been for her to find a semblance of happiness again.

The elephant in the room is obviously William's death. Everything points at Chloe's life being perfectly normal and happy until that dramatic event. At the very least, Chloe was surrounded with the love from her parents and from Max. When William dies and Max leaves, Chloe's entire support system collapses. Her father is gone, her mother is burdened with grief and responsibilities, and her best friend moves away. For a fourteen-year-old teenager, it's understandable any recovery at all would be complicated.

It's unfortunate that we don't see more of Joyce and how she managed, since on one hand she seems like a kind and awesome person, yet on the other hand it seems she couldn't help her daughter to cope with the loss. As another matter, she brought David into the family when Chloe clearly opposed it, when there was no way he could replace her father. He might have done more harm than good, as far as Chloe is concerned.

It appears Chloe was left all alone with her grief, receiving too little support, and perhaps too little love. Chloe is an only child and seemingly had no close friend apart from Max. She had Rachel for a time, but what happened with her is pretty unclear and may have been overshadowed by Rachel's sudden disappearance and Chloe's renewed despair. Chloe's only other notable acquaintance is Frank, her dealer, who appears to have a soft spot for her although he certainly doesn't feel like a friend. Whatever other social relationships Chloe might have don't receive much spotlight. She does mention and interact with people from Blackwell, and she talks about boyfriends ("boy toys" really) with Max, but none of it seems particularly meaningful. Overall, I feel like there are strong hints to Chloe's loneliness and helplessness, the need for someone who truly cares for her, if not for support in general. It's especially visible in the alternate reality, where Chloe got into a car accident and is now paralyzed, a situation in which she ends up even more isolated, forcibly so.

Lonely or not, Chloe feels like everything has being taken away from her, violently, and her happiness replaced with unbearable misery. She feels like she was abandoned. Furthermore, she believes the people around her don't care about her or her feelings, when they don't go as far as denying or invaliding them. Joyce moved on and wants Chloe to do the same, David only ever orders her around, Max abandoned her and is barely even trying to make amends. Chloe lashes out after little provocation and seemingly even brings up her father to have reasons to get angry. William's death broke Chloe, and the wound was made deeper by Max leaving, then again by David intruding. It's not like there's any good way to handle that situation but I think Chloe is entirely entitled to feeling the way she does.

Nathan abusing and murdering Chloe would have thrown her into new depths of distress. I feel like the assault gets glossed over by the game, pretty much never being brought up after Chloe tells Max. At the same time, episode five makes it pretty clear what must have happened and how awful it must have been. Furthermore, Chloe doesn't get any sort of help or care for it. As far as we know, she only tells Max, meaning Chloe died without telling anyone. Max, while appalled, doesn't understand the gravity of the situation at that point. Feeling forced to deal with it on her own, Chloe probably acted the way she usually does: lash out and fight, through confronting Nathan, and keep the rest of her feelings inside, since she isn't able to discuss nor process them. Her actions only worsen her situation, she doesn't get the help she needs, and it all culminates in her dying. And not just dying, Chloe doesn't get into some tragic accident, she is murdered by the very person who abused her, possibly tortured her.

Life Is Strange, episode 3

Chloe: "I wish that made me feel better. But ever since [my dad] died, my life has been dipped in shit."

Chloe's adventure

So, we've established Chloe's life and her death basically sucked hard, as she would say. Then suddenly, some unknowable magic happens and Max saves her. More than that, the triggering of Max's time-rewinding power coincidences with Chloe's original death, her getting shot by Nathan. It implies Max's ability is directly linked to Chloe's dying. While Chloe never experiences that superpower directly and gets left out of some of its perks, notably seeing William again, it affects her tremendously, giving her a few more days to live and to experience one last adventure.

Because if the game is Max's adventure, it's also Max and Chloe's adventure. And it might as well be Chloe's adventure too. While Max is the protagonist throughout, no other character is more present or more involved than Chloe. Many aspects of the story are as meaningful for Chloe as for Max, if not more. Chloe is not only getting an adventure, she's getting some measure of resolution.

First there's Max returning to Chloe's world, as well as her literally saving Chloe's life. It probably feels like a miracle to Chloe, which it is after all. She gets some of her past life back. She gets to experience a semblance of happiness, to remember how happy she used to be. She gets to go on an adventure and to solve mysteries, the way they did when they were kids. She gets to hang out, have fun, and simply talk with a close, trusted friend. She gets to say everything that has been weighing on her heart: her trauma, her grief, her lost love. Chloe gets to feel once again and her wounds are tended to. She heals a little, gets some comfort, finally.

As for the adventure itself, there's whatever is happening in Arcadia's Bay. For Chloe, it's imperative that she finds Rachel, a woman she grew very fond of and who disappeared without warning. Meanwhile, Max is worried about her new power and about Kate suffering from having been abused and now being bullied. Max starts investigating but Chloe is acting with much more levity, talking about it as having fun and going on an adventure. Her goofiness and forwardness often contrasts with the generally creepy atmosphere of the town and the odd behaviors of its inhabitants, although it does comes with recklessness and resentment.

As we dive deeper into things, it becomes clear Chloe has unfinished business. She needs to find out the truth about Rachel's disappearance, and probably about her feelings and behavior as well, since it seems Rachel was involved in a lot of things and with a lot of people. Presumably, Chloe finds out about it only during the adventure, meaning after her death, but it's possible that she had come to know some of it already and that their relationship had already been rocky. There's also Chloe's family, the feeling that it doesn't work and that it simply isn't the family Chloe had and is now grieving. Finally there's the abuse she suffered by Nathan and her increasingly fierce desire to destroy him.

It's important to note, in the end, nothing gets fixed, as in, it's no actual miracle. But some progress, or a respite, or just something good occurs in every aspect. For one, Chloe keeps dying, right down to the moment Max can decide to sacrifice her or not, but she also gets to live a few more days. Chloe's troubles with David remain but she gets an opportunity to confront him and can get support from Max and Joyce. Finally, Chloe finds out what happened to Rachel, and while its horrors cannot be undone, she gets a semblance of resolution and some justice with Jefferson getting arrested, as well as the small satisfaction of seeing Nathan getting his ass kicked by Warren.

Chloe went through a difficult life and suffered an unceremonious death. However, thanks to a little magic, she's offered a conclusion which might feel a little more satisfactory. It certainly isn't getting her father back, and with it her life and happiness. It is only an ephemeral what-if and, as far as Chloe is concerned, a last adventure with her best friend.

Life Is Strange, episode 4

Chloe: "I know things were different when we were just dorky kids, but being with you made me feel like we were little pirates, jumping and running through the forests again. It meant a lot to me just to chill out with you and bullshit."

Chloe's love

In that last section, I left out an important bit, Chloe's feelings toward Max and Rachel, and them not getting realized.

The exact feelings between Chloe and Max are up to the player's interpretation and choices. Still, it's clear there's a deep connection between the two of them, and the possibility of their relationship turning romantic is there. At the very least, there are several occurrences where Chloe looks longingly at Max and others where she teases her, if she's not openly flirting. The scene at the school's swimming pool, the kiss dare in Chloe's room, and how alternate Chloe looks at Max when she's falling asleep come to mind. Going through the scripts, it also seems to me like Chloe mentions sex quite a few times.

In the end, I don't believe there's any need to decide whether their relationship is romantic, platonic or even just friendly. It's not like Chloe is looking for a lover, or for a friend. She wants someone who loves her and whom she can love in return, someone who knows her and can bring her happiness back. Whatever the truth of their deepest feelings, there's a bond between Chloe and Max. This bond survived the years apart and it seems like it wants to survive death itself. For that matter, it survives jumping from one reality to the next.

Then there's Rachel, and again that relationship is unclear, shrouded in mystery really. To begin with, all we know about Rachel is secondhand testimony, if that. She might have been manipulative or earnest. She might have relied on Chloe or wanted to help her. She might have been and done anything. We don't know how she felt about Chloe, and we're not quite sure about how Chloe felt about Rachel. That said, Chloe admits at least crushing on Rachel. She seems infatuated, and could well have been in love. Chloe and Rachel might have been lovers, or they might have been friends. What is clear is that their relationship was left unfinished, perhaps it hadn't even begun.

The two relationships mirror each other. They're hypothetic, unclear, up to interpretation. What does Chloe's and Max's relationship mean if Chloe dies without ever seeing her again? What happened between Chloe and Rachel? Did Rachel replace Max or, on the contrary, is Max standing in for Rachel? Chloe introduces Rachel as her angel, but Max comes back into her life very much like a guardian angel. And, small detail, one of Max's nicknames is Noir Angel.

Perhaps Chloe had been falling in love with Max in the past, perhaps she is doing so now, or perhaps she is looking at Max as if she was looking at Rachel. It's more unfinished business, but it's especially significant in that, most of all, it's love and support that Chloe lost, it's what she's been needing and yearning for. It's likely Chloe desired true, meaningful love. She wanted to be in love and to be loved, if only just one last time before she would have to let go. Because Chloe's life stopped before it happened. Chloe's happiness was broken, her life cut short, her dreams put out of reach.

I want to say Chloe was in love with Max, but I don't know. Still, Chloe got to reunite with Max, to go on adventure with her. They got to exchange a hearty farewell, when their original reality allowed no such goodbye.

Life Is Strange, episode 3

Chloe: "I just don't think anybody is good enough for you... besides me."

Chloe's farewell

If the story starts with Chloe dying alone on the floor of a bathroom, it ends with her staring at that very event in her mind, while her actual eyes watch the impending disaster of the storm. This time however, Chloe has her best friend by her side and finds herself at the much more meaningful and beautiful place that is the lighthouse. Chloe and Max emerge from the storm and nightmare onto an empty headland and its relative peace.

There, at the end of the world, Chloe comes face to face with her death and with the reality of Max's power. At first, she is all about mindless fun, then focused on finding Rachel and hunting down Nathan. She doesn't seem to care much for what it all means, not until Max forces her to stop for a second, convinces her they're in danger and reveals how much has been happening as she created alternate realities.

As Max returns to her present and walks through the nightmare, Chloe presumably gets time to think and to go over everything, which isn't unlike what's Max's going through. Chloe's attitude afterward, at the beach and at the lighthouse, seems different. She's much more openly apprehensive, lacking the anger and resentment she's usually carrying around. She praises Max, wholeheartedly and unconditionally, when before she'd often add some mean remark or mention how Max abandoned her and won't support her. In some way, Chloe had been using Max and relying heavily on her power, to live again and to keep herself out of trouble.

Chloe seems decided, not exactly serene but seemingly having come to terms with her situation, facing the fact that she died and that this reality was created through Max's supernatural power. Perhaps the thought had been in her mind for a while. And so she suggests Max should leave her behind, return things to how they were before Max saved her. Chloe gives Max her deepest love and thanks, even while visibly terrified of being abandoned again. Most significantly, she trusts Max with the final choice, relinquishing any agency she might have had. She's accepted that she might need to let go. She has to say goodbye, even if she'll forget all about it.

On the flip side, there's Max who, thanks to Chloe, has grown from hesitant to confident and strong, from shy to courageous and selfless. She's owning her power, its blessings and its consequences. She accepts her role in the events, good and bad. And it all comes to a final clash when Max has to choose between letting go of Chloe, accepting the original reality, or staying by her side and venturing together into this new world.

The exchange between Chloe and Max at the lighthouse is the most meaningful, and probably the most open it's been between them. It shows their bond, as love and friendship, as well as the distance between them, the fact they did get separated and the difficulties of being together. It's a farewell as much as it is a declaration of love. Again, it being romantic or platonic doesn't matter. They love each other, beyond the distance, beyond death, even if memories are all that will remain, even if the world ends.

The whole story is Chloe and Max having one last adventure together before they have to say goodbye. It is about them giving each other a meaningful farewell. They're remembering their lives together and apart, the good things and the bad things. They open up, confront each other, apologize, confess. Yet, despite their best efforts, death just doesn't care about unfinished business and untold feelings. It happens, and sometimes there are no goodbyes.

Life Is Strange, episode 4

Chloe: "I'm saying that being with you again has been so special. I just wanted to feel like when we were kids running around Arcadia Bay...and everything was possible. And you made me feel that way today. I want this time with you to be my last memory... Do you understand?"

Other deaths and parallels

Before moving on, let's mention that while Chloe is not always present throughout the various events of the game, the themes stay consistent with her story and echo her feelings.

Kate was abused, and nobody gives her any real support. The other students openly bully her while half her family is repulsed by her, not to mention absent. How the hell are you suppose to feel when you are wronged so horribly, only for your classmates to spit in your face and for your loved ones to disavow you. Even Max seems like she isn't ready to be fully supportive. She reaches for circumstances, as if she can't fully believe Kate. All of this leads to Kate attempting suicide, at which point a short window appears, one last opportunity to help. It's notable that both her surviving and dying are possible, strengthening how present death and mourning really are, in addition to suffering and coming to people's aid.

Rachel disappeared, and nobody cares. With how much time has passed, it seems there's little chance she's still alive. However, as it is, she might be seen as both dead and alive. She did die, yet she also sticks around through the spectral doe, whose link to Rachel is heavily implied by the doe disappearing once Chloe and Max find Rachel's corpse. Her being dead or not doesn't really change her place in the story. Rachel is another person whose whole character evokes pain, sorrow and lack of resolution.

Chloe's herself is another example, through her story in the alternate reality (arguably, these two Chloe are not the same person). Chloe is at the end of her life, in pain, left alone in a bunker. The unexpected visit from her long lost best friend brings a semblance of happiness to her, only for Chloe to ask for a fatal overdose. While each situation deals with extreme pain and is just generally very dark, the case of alternate Chloe adds the idea of letting go, and of leaving on a high note. Importantly, Chloe cannot make the choice of her death herself, nor did she get to voice her opinion on saving William.

Actually, much of Chloe's and Max's relationship is played again in the alternate reality. Within an even shorter time span, Chloe and Max reconnect, have fun, express their love, and have to separate again. It felt very much like a goodbye on Chloe's part. She made her peace with death. In her state, she can only thank Max and ask to be let go of.

From the perspective of Max, the story is a lot about fear, even dread, and the courage and selflessness required to fight. Whereas from the perspective of Chloe, and from the victims in general, it's all about the pain and wanting for it to end, from venting out and closing yourself off, to killing yourself.

Overall, the story is just plain morbid. Death, abuse and abandonment are omnipresent, as are pain, sorrow and grief. There's also a kind of mental violence, through the denial of death, the hardships of healing, the lack of emotional support. William's death, Kate's abuse and suicide, Rachel's disappearance and murder, Chloe's many deaths, alternate Chloe's accident and her asking for a fatal overdose, etc. There's just that many tragedies and traumas, personal ones too. They're the very foundation to the story and the character's emotions. I could also mention a number of other, more minor elements, such as the Prescott's domination over the town and its citizens, the comments and doubts for the abuse done to Kate and Rachel, the references to war and PTSD through David.

Sacrificing Arcadia's Bay

To touch quickly on sacrificing the town, since by now it might feel like I'm painting it as nothing but denying reality, and I don't think it has to be so one-sided. The reality of that ending, necessarily alternate to a world without Max's power, may be seen as Chloe's afterlife, of a new world being created so that she may live on. And it is also the ultimate realization of Max's determination, the refusal to bend down to tragic destiny. Defying death can seem futile, doesn't mean we won't do it. Furthermore, and in line with the story's themes, loss, pain, grief can be impossibly hard to live with. No doubt lifelong sorrow is not desirable, but it's understandable.

Chloe's life after death

Ultimately, it may seem that Chloe's life after death amounted to little and that sacrificing Chloe ends up feeling cruel no matter what. She has suffered so much already and then you go and steal what little she got away with? Because, when it comes down to it, all that remains is Max's memories. Chloe herself got nothing. She didn't go on an adventure, didn't get to love, didn't get to say goodbye. She didn't experience any of those precious last moments, regardless of them being sad or happy, distressful or comforting. She just died.

Was there anything to it? Did Max just imagine it all to try to cope with losing her best friend, with Chloe being murdered in front of her? Could Chloe herself have imagined it all, creating her own alternate reality in the instant of her death, in a similar way one could see their whole life flash before their eyes?

Sacrificing Chloe, returning to her original death, it dispels the magic. It leaves us with the pain and inevitably of death. It leaves us mourning. It also leaves us with memories and complicated feelings. Because this is a story, a what-if and a place for emotions, not facts. Beyond the storm and time travel, beyond the pain and horrors, beyond the many lives and deaths, the story might just be about just one particular person, their life and death, and all the emotions that went with it.

It's equally surreal as it is down to earth. Chloe is saved but still dies, she is comforted but still hurts, she finds out about everything but is left with only a bitter conclusion. In the end, what remains is memories and the idea of turning the page. Chloe feels like she has to let go and Max feels like she has to let go of her. Chloe and Max made their peace.

Life Is Strange, episode 5

Chloe: "Being together this week... it was the best farewell gift I could have hoped for. You're my hero, Max. I'll always love you... Now, get out of here, please! Do it before I freak. And Max Caulfield? Don't you forget about me..."

Max: "Never."

That's why I think it fits well with the concept of a farewell. It's not any kind of lovely afterlife or grand justice. It's about saying goodbye to someone you loved and lost.

Death is never easy. Death leaves things unfinished. Contemplating this sort of afterlife may be comforting, even beautiful. A few and short extra days, an opportunity to have a little something more when you got so little, a bit of magic when life was nothing but harsh realities. At the end, not all is said and done, but it's okay. People and stories live on because we remember them.

Life Is Strange, episode 2

Joyce: "That was his gift to us...wonderful memories."

All in all, I feel like the story is a fascinating take on death and grief, and it contrasts with how vivid it gets. I love how the story parallels itself so much, like many people looking at each other at a funeral, wondering what to do, what to think. You wonder about your choices, about the possibilities. Perhaps things could have played out differently, perhaps there could have been one last chance to talk.