Alexandra Chen (born: July 10th, 1997), better known simply as "Alex", is the main protagonist of Life is Strange: True Colors. After eight years apart, Alex reunites with her brother Gabe Chen and establishes a new life in the town of Haven Springs, Colorado. Her fresh start at Haven is shaken by the sudden and mysterious death of her brother.
Personality[]
Alex is described as a sharp, witty, and hardened girl who went through a lot during her time in foster care (children must be in order to survive). Due to the nature of her powers, she is also highly observant to her surroundings and sensitive to the needs of others. While initially shy towards most people she meets, she is generally friendly and approachable. Alex has always put the needs of others first rather than confronting her own emotional turmoil. As a consequence, strong negative emotions can take a great toll on her well-being.
Appearance[]
Alex has short black hair stylized into a pixie cut with a large protruding bang swept to her left. She wears large red glasses, diamond earrings in her earlobe piercings and two helix piercings with silver hoops on her right ear, and a silver stud piercing on the left side of her nose. She has two small tattoos on her right hand, one of a shooting star and a shield on her middle finger. She wears black nail polish and dresses in a blue denim jacket with three different patches, a navy blue hoodie with a yellow bird and lettering over a black shirt with long sleeves, black skinny jeans and brown hiking boots. However, she also has a selection of other outfits she can choose to wear in her room.
Biography[]
Following the abandonment and disappearance of her father, John Chen, the death of her mother, Wendy Chen, and being separated from her older brother, Gabe Chen, Alex mostly grew up in the Oregon foster care system. Due to her tragedies, she develops a unique power of empathy that allows her to see a person's emotional aura. Should Alex get too close or really focus, she feels what emotion the other person is feeling, allowing her to read that person's thoughts.
As Alex's powers manifested, she was deemed to be too emotionally unstable, and therefore no family wanted to adopt her. After eight years, she had eventually been located by Gabe, who had gotten his life back in order. After reconnecting, Gabe invites her to the small town of Haven Springs, Colorado, in order to live with him. The siblings are reunited for one day before Gabe is killed following a mining explosion. Using her power, Alex unravels the town's secrets and the truth of her brother's death.
Background[]
Alex Chen was born on July 10, 1997, to John and Wendy Chen. Alex lived with her parents and older brother Gabe in Portland, Oregon. When Alex was ten, her mother was diagnosed with cancer. At one point, Alex was visiting her mother in the hospital where Wendy told her how proud she was of her and that she was going to have to be strong for both her father and Gabe. Wendy then gave Alex a locket containing pictures of her and Gabe before passing away. When Alex was 11, her Dad and Gabe got into an argument over John losing his job. Alex tried to defuse the situation by suggesting they sell their records and her guitar in order to pay the bills, but despite her best efforts, the argument continued to esculate and soon turned physical, resulting in John unintentionally elbowing Alex, knocking her to the ground. John, after realizing what he just did, told Alex and Gabe that he couldn't do this anymore and that someone would come by to get them. After pleading with John to stay, Alex throws her mother's locket at him out of grief and despair. John briefly stops to pick up the locket before walking out the door, leaving them for CPS. Alex was then taken into the foster care system, and when she was 12, Gabe was sent to juvie. Over the next few years, Alex was moved between orphanages, group homes, and foster parents. Around this time, Alex developed her empathy powers. At some point, Alex ended up at the Helping Hands Group Home where she remained until moving to Haven Springs.
Chapter 1: Side A[]
Alex is first seen having an interview with Dr. Lynn (who cannot be seen from the player's view), where she is now preparing to move to Haven Springs to live with her brother Gabe. When Dr. Lynn asks Alex about her "issues", Alex doesn't want to say anything about it and only believes things will be normal for her once she arrives there.
Alex travels to Haven Springs by bus. After arriving, she stops on a bridge to do some sightseeing, in which Gabe eventually arrives to greet her. Alex can then choose to either hug him or give him a handshake. During their conversation, a blue aura then appears around Gabe (which only Alex can see) as Alex hears Gabe's thoughts expressing how much he missed her. After Alex comments on this, the siblings then head into town. They stop at a flower shop called Lethe Flowers where they meet one of its owners, Eleanor Lethe, who happily greets Alex. The two then head inside where they meet Riley Lethe, Eleanor's granddaughter. After a brief talk, Alex helps Gabe pick out some flowers for Charlotte Harmon, his girlfriend, as an apology gift. After picking a bouquet of flowers (sunflowers or lily-of-the-valley), Alex can then explore the shop where she has the option of putting sunglasses on a nearby gnome. She can also notice a purple aura around Riley and learns that she is anxious to leave town. The two then leave the shop afterwards and head to a nearby building called the Silver Dragon, which is where Charlotte is. Alex can also optionally see a purple aura around Gabe and can sense his fear of making things up to Charlotte. As Gabe goes into the Silver Dragon, a boy named Ethan Lambert, Charlotte's son, greets her. After talking about the comics that Ethan has, he gives one to Alex and expresses his interest in exploring the mines up in the mountains.
Alex then decides to go to the nearby record store called the Rocky Mountain Record Traders. Upon entering, she looks around the store and sees Steph Gingrich dancing inside a DJ room. After noticing Alex, she smiles and shows her two records, requesting her to pick one for her. After Alex makes a choice, Steph begins her broadcast. Alex then comes across Ryan Lucan. After greeting each other and talking about Gabe, Alex helps Ryan search for a missing hold list. Alex also has the option of playing with Steph's drums and looking through some records. She eventually finds it under a black cat named Valkyrie, but can't get the cat to move. Ryan helps Alex find Valkyrie's favorite toy to lure her away from the list, allowing her to recover the hold list and hand it to Ryan. After another conversation about Gabe, Alex purchases a record. Upon seeing Steph coming out of the DJ room arguing with someone on the phone, to which she is unable to come over because she is busy handling her job. Alex sees red aura around Steph and mimics Steph's foot tapping while clawing the desk. After Ryan deals with the situation, he goes to ask Alex if she is okay, in which Gabe then shows up. After talking about Ryan and Gabe's friendship. Alex and Gabe then leave, with Ryan promising to come see them later after he finishes carrying out Steph's job.
The two come across Ethan, who is excited for the upcoming LARP. After a short conversation regarding Gabe being like a father figure to Ethan, Ethan then leaves. Alex can then tell Gabe about Ethan's plan or keep quiet. If she tells him, Gabe will inform Charlotte of this. While walking to the Black Lantern, Gabe informs Alex about a scheduled blast happening at the mines at night. They then meet Jed Lucan, who is Ryan's father, Gabe's boss, and the owner of the Black Lantern. He tells them about the upcoming Spring Festival before the two head for the Black Lantern. Once there, they go to Gabe's apartment on the second floor. Gabe reveals that he plans to give the apartment to Alex while he intends to stay at Charlotte's place. Alex then gives Gabe the record she bought at record store. Gabe then puts it in a record player and the two then dance to the music. Gabe gives Alex a broom and encourages her to use it. Alex can choose to do so or have Gabe do it. After this choice, Alex and Gabe continue dancing with one of the siblings playing the broom like a guitar. They are suddenly interrupted by a knock at the door. After turning the music off, Gabe goes to answer the door. Mac comes in and confronts Gabe over his talk with Riley, as he believes he is trying to take her away from him. Gabe tries to clear up the misunderstanding, but Mac ignores and beats him. Alex, upon seeing a red aura around Mac, is overwhelmed by his rage. After becoming infused with it, she copies Mac's words and beats him repeatedly in a fit of rage. Gabe tries to stop her, but Alex accidentally punches him before finally calming down. Mac calls Alex a psycho and storms off. Alex tries to apologize, but Gabe says it's okay. Later, Alex is seen washing her hands before proceeding to unpack her things. She takes out her toy mouse Zhu-Zhu, a torn photo showing her and Gabe (which she puts next to a similar photo), and her notebook. She then discovers a guitar under the bed along with a note from Gabe saying that it is a gift from him. After playing it for a while, Alex then heads downstairs.
Once downstairs, Alex comes across Charlotte, Jed, Ryan, and Gabe. Ryan is tending Gabe's injuries and decides that he needs first aid. After they leave, Alex then speaks with Charlotte before Jed gives her something to eat. Without his helper, Jed asks Alex if she can help. She can agree or tell him that she has never served before. If she agrees to help, Jed instructs her to talk to Steph, Diane Jacobs and Reginald McAlister III (nicknamed Duckie), and to clean a table. While cleaning the table, she will come across Mac, who is now emitting a purple aura (which represents fear). After she is done, Mac will talk to her. Riley will show up to confront Mac about his violent actions. Alex can choose to stay out of the fight or tell Riley the truth. Telling the truth will ruin Riley and Mac's relationship. After Alex talks to Mac and Riley, an officer named Jason Pike shows up to arrest Alex, but reveals that he is just playing a prank. When Alex talks to Duckie and Diane, they will tell her what they want to eat. Alex must then tell Jed precisely what they ordered. Jed then discovers that Duckie's favorite rye whiskey is missing. To find it, Alex must ask people of the whiskey's whereabouts. She can also choose not to find it. Exploring there, Alex finds it in the couch and gives it to Duckie. When talking to Steph, she will introduce herself to Alex and challenges Alex to a jukebox game where she must correctly guess the song. If she wins, Steph will drink the green-colored wine on the table. If she loses, she will drink it instead. Once all three tasks are done, Alex returns to Jed, who will tell her whether she did well or not so well. Gabe then returns and asks Alex to meet him on the roof.
Once up on the roof, the siblings spend time talking to each other about the earlier fight while drinking beer. Alex can then tell Gabe about her past or powers. After the conversation, Ryan shows up and informs them that Ethan is missing. If Alex told Gabe about Ethan's scheme, they will realize that he has gone to the mines against Gabe's wishes. If she didn't tell him earlier, she will do so now, in which Gabe will not be happy with Alex for hiding this from him. The three then head off to the mines.
They make it there by night. Approaching the mine's entrance, Alex learns that the mine collapsed a long time ago, but Jed (who was the foreman) saved all the miners and Jed is hailed as a hero. Alex recalls the comic book that Ethan gave him and realizes that his efforts are based off what's in the comic. They then decide that they must go to the nearby silo. As Gabe tries to open the gate blocking the way, Alex and Ryan head into a warehouse to find another way there. Once inside, Alex moves a metal plate blocking some stairs and heads up to the second floor where she deduces that Ethan used a conveyor belt to get across the warehouse. She then turns a winch, opening the backdoor. They reunite with Gabe outside. Reaching the silo, Alex pinpoints the direction that Ethan went. While searching the wood and calling for Ethan, Alex sees a purple aura and follows it, leading them to Ethan, who is injured and stuck on a cliff on the other side of a ravine. Coming up with a plan, they tie a rope around Alex and Gabe and use a tree stump as a fulcrum. Alex then crosses a fallen tree (because she is lighter, the tree will not break) and tries to help Ethan, but he is too scared to move out of fear of being spotted by a monster. Deciding to help him with his fear, Alex uses her powers on him, causing her to enter Nova, where she can see the world based on that person's thoughts. She then sees large claw marks on the cliff and at the bottom of the ravine, she can see a big monster face, which is what Ethan is hiding from. She then encourages Ethan by pretending that she is invisible, allowing her to carry Ethan to the other side. After they make it, Alex then lies on the ground, relieved. An alarm suddenly goes off; a planned blast is starting. Gabe is struck and knocked over the cliff by a falling rock, dragging Alex towards it. Ryan tries to help pull Gabe back up. Upon noticing an avalanche, he realizes that they will not make it in time and is forced to cut the rope and drag Alex back when she tries to go after Gabe. After the avalanche ends, Alex looks over the cliff and grieves for her brother's demise.
Chapter 2: Lanterns[]
Alex is seen mourning Gabe's death alongside Ryan, Charlotte, Duckie, Jed, Steph, Pike, Mac, and Riley. Ryan blames himself for his death, but Mac reveals that he was part of the operation and claimed that there was no call. Ryan finds out that Mac is actually lying (to which Alex can support Ryan's claim or not), leading to a heated argument with everyone else while red auras appear around them. Alex, overwhelmed, goes upstairs; Steph takes notice and follows.
Steph comes to Alex's apartment and she invites her in. After telling Alex to ignore the argument, they talk about Gabe and Alex's guitar before Steph notices a wine bottle that says "foosball champion", causing her to become upset. To help her, Alex goes into Nova mode, where she learns that Gabe once convinced Steph to stay in Haven by winning a bet of foosball, which Steph was ultimately grateful to Gabe for. She then decides to have Steph play a game of foosball to cheer her up. While playing, Alex talks to Steph and learns that she was once in a band. After three games and regardless of who wins, Steph leaves to return to work. Alex has the option of cleaning her apartment, spending time on the roof, and washing the dishes before heading downstairs. She meets up with Jed, who apologizes for the earlier argument. Remembering Mac's lie, she decides to talk to him. Jed tells her that Mac may be at Lethe Flowers, but tells her that she may not get the answer she’s looking for. Jed gives her the key to the bar and advices her to go to the Silver Dragon to talk to Charlotte. Alex has the option to leave a photo of Gabe by the memory table and create a face on the dart board before leaving.
After she leaves the bar, she sets off to find Mac. She can optionally spend time at the docks, talk to Pike and Ethan, and help a bird watcher find the bird that she's looking for. Should she go to the Silver Dragon, she will encounter Diane. Inside, she talks to Charlotte and learns that Ethan is shunning her due to Gabe's death. Alex also notices that she has an affidavit sent to her by Typhon, offering her money in exchange for her silence. Charlotte believes that the money could help Ethan while Alex grows suspicious of Typhon's motives. She can then convince Charlotte to sign it or not. If Alex doesn't visit the Silver Dragon, Charlotte will still sign it. If Alex visits the record store, she will talk to Steph, who is busy planning the LARP for Ethan and has Alex pick a final boss from two drawings. After selecting one, Steph also suggests that Alex can sign up as a character for the LARP in the form on the front desk, which she can optionally do so. She also has the option of helping a guy in the store locate his missing dog. Once at the Lethe Flowers, Alex finds Eleanor, who reveals that Mac left recently, but is still nearby somewhere. Before Alex can leave, she senses fear in Eleanor after a purple aura appears around her. Going into Nova, she learns that Eleanor is in an unhealthy condition and fears of what will happen if Riley finds out and that her shop will be put out of business. During this, the world outside of the shop's windows turns white while the shop itself begins to fall apart. Using objects around the shop, Alex helps Eleanor remember an order of flowers to Jed. Reality then returns to normal afterwards. Alex can choose whether to tell Eleanor about Gabe's death or choose not to so to avoid causing further pain to her. If she tells her, Eleanor will break down in tears and go into her office.
Alex finds Mac on the bridge and confronts him of the lie; his reaction will depend on if his relationship with Riley is severed or not. Mac is unwilling to talk as a purple aura appears around him before leaving. Alex briefly enters Nova to dig deeper into Mac's fear and at one point, she sees a security camera and becomes aware that Typhon is watching. She finds and talks to Riley about Mac where she learns that Mac had planned to leave town with Riley. After this talk, Alex goes to talk to Mac about it, in which Mac confesses that he did hear the call and tried to warn Typhon (the company that was responsible for the blast), but was ignored and forced to keep quiet while also admitting that he never wanted to hurt anyone, indicating that Typhon has sinister motives. Alex can then choose to calm Mac down or leave him. Calming him down will earn his respect. Alex then receives a phone call from Ryan and heads to the cliff where Gabe died.
Arriving there, she finds Ryan standing there with a red aura around him. Touching him, Alex goes into Nova where the world around them turns dark with the ground collapsing except from where they are standing. It turns out Ryan blames himself for Gabe's death. Alex then tries to comfort him, eventually causing him to break down in tears as Alex exits Nova, returning reality to normal. Later, Alex and Ryan (who is no longer upset) are shown cloud watching where Alex tells him about her powers and demonstrates this by sensing a yellow aura around Ryan while using clouds to read his thoughts, learning that he and Gabe once accidentally killed a goose and buried it. Afterwards, Alex can then choose to hug Ryan or give him a handshake. Alex then plans to put a stop to Typhon's plot with Ryan's help.
The scene then changes to nighttime where in the record store, Steph plays a song in honor of Gabe as the camera shifts to various points around the town. Everyone later gathers on the bridge where Alex makes a tearful speech on how important Gabe was to her and everyone else before Ryan releases a sky lantern into the air with everyone watching it. As Alex watches, she sees everyone emitting yellow auras, except Diane, who instead emits a purple aura, making Alex suspicious before she resumes to watching the sky lantern.
Chapter 3: Monster or Mortal[]
At the start of the chapter, Alex and Ryan tell Steph about Alex's powers and Alex uses it on her to prove it. Recalling that Diane was working with her laptop earlier and remembering her fear from the previous chapter, Alex suspects that she may be working for Typhon and plans to learn the truth from her. After cleaning up dishes from the tables in the bar and optionally talking to Jed and Eleanor and playing a song on the jukebox to help out a student with her problem, she returns to talk to Ryan and Steph, who have already formed a plan, but it isn't well thought out. Diane then comes in and sits at a table to work on her laptop. Alex can then choose to have Ryan or Steph act as the distraction. Alex sits down at Diane's table and begins to talk to her. Her choices may sadden or anger Diane. Alex then goes into Nova and she examines the nearby objects before discovering a flash drive that might have valid information. At Alex's signal, Ryan or Steph distract Diane by asking her on a date as Alex swaps the drive. After they excuse themselves, they head to Alex's apartment to try and decrypt the drive using Alex's laptop, but it is password-protected. Ryan sends it to Riley to see if she can access it. Steph then leaves to prepare for the LARP and reminds Alex to bring her guitar and bard hat. Alex has the option to pull weeds on the rooftops and listen to a song on the record player. She finds the hat in the trunk but notices that its feather is missing. Eventually, she finds it under the TV. Once she has the guitar and hat, she then heads downstairs. In a note, Alex wanted to pay for the rent the apartment; However, Jed told her to forget rent for a few months to save up money while she worked.
Out on the docks, she finds Ethan; however, he is still upset by Gabe's death. After Alex manages to cheer him up, they then go to take part in the LARP (which is based on Ethan's comics). The LARP begins with Ethan and Alex, playing as the main character Thaynor and his sidekick, meeting King Tabor (played by Jed), who informs them that his kingdom (which is really the town itself) is under attack by monsters and instructs them to find the three soul gems to defeat them. Throughout the LARP, Alex can find power-up scrolls and coins. She also has the option to help a blacksmith and answer a jester's riddles (who will give them something useful if they pass). They eventually encounter the first boss: a werewolf (played by Ryan), to which a battle will begin. During battles, health meters appear on the top right of the screen. Should they run out of health, Notheria, the forest spirit (played by Charlotte) will help them defeat the monster and the LARP will continue. Defeating monsters will reward them with helpful items. After the werewolf is beaten, they are given a key. The first soul gem is guarded by a troll (again played by Ryan). To get it, they must either defeat the troll, bribe him with coins if they have enough, or put him to sleep with magic powder (if they have acquired it before this). The second gem is in the tavern (which is actually the Black Lantern) where they find blood and severed limbs (which are all fake as part of the LARP). There is a gnome (played by Duckie) inside the tavern, who reveals that a monster killed all the staff and he had to serve himself. Finding a music box behind the counter, they use the key they got from the werewolf to open it, revealing the gem. The third gem is in the Magpie Emporium (which is actually the record store). There, they meet Steph, who is dressed like a witch and has decorated the inside of the record store to make it look like a magic shop. They have the option of buying helpful items. To buy the gem, they will need to get a special type of scale from a serpent (once again played by Ryan). They must either put it to sleep (if they have the sleeping potion) or defeat it. During the LARP, Alex pays a visit to the flower shop (unlike the Black Lantern and the record store, it is not part of the LARP). There, she speaks to Riley and learns that the drive has not yet been fully unlocked. Depending on Alex's earlier choices, Riley may or may not find out about Eleanor's condition. Once all gems are collected, they are greeted by Notheria, who congratulates them for finding all the gems and provides them with a reward, the Skysword of Power, which is affixed in a tree stump. Once Ethan removes it and attaches all three gems to the sword, Alex goes into Nova, where the LARP becomes real, with the surrounding area turning into actual ruins in a forest and Alex and Ethan's costumes turning into real outfits. They are then confronted by the final boss (also played by Jed); who the final boss is depends on Alex's decision in Chapter 2. The boss reveals that he is King Tabor and had tricked them into find all the soul gems so he can take them for himself. They take on the final boss; unlike earlier fights, this one is realistic. If they defeat him, he will be destroyed. If they fail to defeat him, he will retreat. Afterwards, Ethan hears the sound of sirens and breaks down in tears, causing reality to return to normal. It turns out he hasn't fully gotten over Gabe's death.
Later that day, Alex goes to the Silver Dragon where she finds Charlotte in the back room. She explains that Ethan is grateful for Alex for helping him with the LARP and that he has left with his father. Eventually, Charlotte emits a red aura, but Alex is unable to understand why. To help, Alex goes into Nova where she sees Charlotte working on a sculpture. While examining objects, she learns that she blames Ethan for Gabe's death and is taking her anger out on Alex, Gabe, and Ryan. During this, the sculpture changes its likeness to resemble Ethan, Gabe, Ryan, and Alex herself. After exiting Nova and failing to reason with Charlotte again, Alex decides to remove her anger, although she knows it will affect both her and Charlotte. She can choose to do so or leave. If she does take the anger, Charlotte will calm down and Alex will leave afterwards. She returns to her apartment where she finds Ryan and Steph waiting for her. It turns out that they had finished unlocking the drive. She then begins to listen to the messages inside it. If she took Charlotte's rage earlier, Alex will get enraged and throw Gabe's foosball winner whiskey at the wall, causing Steph to storm out with Ryan following behind. If she didn't, she won't destroy the whiskey and Steph and Ryan won't leave and will instead stay to help Alex. Alex learns that Diane is part of a project called Rhea, which reveals that the explosion was a decoy to cover up another explosion and that they were trying to bury something.
Chapter 4: Flicker[]
Alex is seen talking to Pike on the phone, informing him of her discoveries on Diane's drive and schedules a meeting with him. After hearing a radio announcement revealing that the Spring Festival is starting, Alex has the option to sit on the couch before heading to the festival. Alex arrives at the festival and heads to the stage where she meets Ryan and Steph, who comments on Alex's skirt before they are interrupted by a loud screech from the speakers. If Alex got enraged in the last chapter, she will apologize to them and Steph will claim that she is the one who needs to apologize. As Ryan and Steph continue to work on the speakers, Alex can use this time to do some side missions. In the festival, she can help a guy win a jelly bean guessing game, sit at a bonfire, give a rose to Ryan or Steph, and talk to Mac (his reaction will depend on Alex's past choices). In town, she can help out a couple, a diner counter, and talk to Riley (her location and how she will react depends on Alex's earlier choices). She can also tell Riley about Eleanor's condition if she does not know yet. In the Black Lantern, she will find Duckie, who isn't in the mood to go to the festival. Alex can use her powers on him to get him to dance with her or just leave him. Eventually, Ryan will finish setting everything up and Alex can then talk to him. When Alex asks who's going to perform, they have her go onstage with her guitar, to her dismay. Alex nevertheless begins singing her song with Steph playing her drums alongside her. After the performance, she receives an applause, but Alex suddenly sees Charlotte going down to the docks and goes to talk to her. How the conversation will go depends on Alex's previous interactions with Charlotte. Alex then has the option to talk to Eleanor before heading to the Black Lantern rooftop to spend time with either Ryan or Steph. Depending on earlier choices, they may share a hug or a kiss. Exiting the bar, she meets up with Pike, who takes her to the police station.
In the interrogation room, Pike reveals to Alex that Diane is charging her for stealing her flash drive and hands her an affidavit from Typhon, attempting to convince her to sign it so she won't receive charges, but Alex is reluctant to as she knows that Typhon is up to no good. Pike explains that he knows what Typhon is really up to but is too scared to do anything about it because of how powerful Typhon is. Alex can then choose to sign the affidavit or remove Pike's fear. Signing the affidavit will allow Alex to leave without any issues. Removing Pike's fear will cause him to agree to look at the drive's contents and he will allow her to leave without signing the affidavit.
Alex then returns to her apartment. If she removed Pike's fear, she will begin to express it. She then finds a note from Jed asking her to come find him. She then does so and heads downstairs. One there, she sits down at the counter where Jed reveals that he found out about her arrest. She then tells him about Typhon's scheme and that Typhon is responsible for Gabe's murder. Jed reveals that he knows what Typhon is hiding and decides to show her instead of telling her.
Jed then takes Alex to a mine shaft out near the mines, which houses the secret that Typhon is trying to cover up. Jed then pulls out a gun, revealing that he and Typhon are working together. He had made a deal with Typhon to cover up this secret so to hide the truth of Jed's past, which he feels guilty for. Because he couldn't get Alex's mind off of it, he had no choice but to get rid of her to ensure that she cannot find out about the truth and reveal it to the public. Unable to talk Jed out of this, Alex takes a stand towards him, forcing him to pull the trigger, shooting Alex in the head and causing her to fall down the shaft. Luckily, the gunshot had missed unbeknownest to Jed.
Chapter 5: Side B[]
Alex finds herself back in Dr. Lynn's office where she talks to Dr. Lynn about her time in Haven Springs. While talking, a flash of light appears around her as distorted voices are heard. Dr. Lynn then implies that Alex is by herself; the camera then changes angles to show that Alex is indeed alone in the office. When she tries to open the door, the knob disappears. On the office chair is a tape recorder, which plays Jed and Dr. Lynn's voices. Nearby are pictures of Alex, Gabe, and her parents, which weren't in Dr. Lynn's office before. The feelings poster on the wall also shows faces that all look like Alex herself. She also notices a picture of a tuning key. Upon removing the picture, she then shakes it, causing the key to magically fall out of it. Alex also finds her guitar case with a note that says "Knock Knock!". Alex knocks on the case and the note changes to say "Who's there?" Alex then says her name and the note changes to state that it doesn't recognize her. Behind the note is a combination lock. She finds the combination in her case file on the desk. After opening the case, she takes her guitar out and after attaching the missing tuning key, begins playing it. The guitar plays very distorted music as blood begins dripping from cuts that have appeared on Alex's face, confusing her as she slowly shifts back to reality.
Alex wakes up hanging onto a wooden plank halfway down the mineshaft, having survived both the gunshot and the fall, but is severely injured. Noticing a nearby ladder, she attempts to grab onto it, but the board ends up breaking under her weight, causing Alex to fall deeper into the shaft. Alex finds herself in a hospital waiting with Gabe in a hallway; this is a flashback that takes place long before Chapter 1. As they talk to each other, their father John Chen comes out of a patient's room and asks Alex go see her ill mother Wendy Chen. Entering the room, she goes to her mother's bed where after a brief talk, Gabe appears and points out that this isn't what happened. Alex is taken back to the start of the flashback where she repeats the entire thing, but this time, Wendy begins coughing. At John's urging, Alex grabs a thermos full of water and brings it to Wendy. After she drinks it, she expresses how proud she is for Alex and Gabe and gives her a locket of her and Gabe before dying. As Alex grieves, she is taken to a second flashback, which takes place in her childhood home sometime after her mother's death. Gabe and John come into the room arguing before heading outside. Alex puts on some headphones and listens to music to ignore the argument. She is then interrupted by Gabe, who tells Alex that the argument is not what she thinks. The flashback repeats and after Gabe and John go outside, Alex attempts to follow them, but they quickly come out in. It turns out John lost his job and they are now facing bankruptcy. Alex tries to calm them down and resolve the situation, but is ignored. After John accidentally hits Alex, he proceeds to pack up and leave, deciding that he can't be a good father. Alex throws him Wendy's locket, but this fails to convince him to stay. Alex finds herself within the third and final flashback, which takes place in an orphanage that Gabe and Alex were sent to after John had abandoned them. After she and Gabe climb out of their bunker beds, Gabe leads Alex to a trunk near some large windows with moonlight shining down on it. As she sits there, she sees silhouettes of people outside the windows who decide not to adopt Alex, indicating that the reason why she ended up in foster care in the first place is due to that fact that no one would adopt her. Gabe then encourages Alex to get up and fight. This ends the flashback.
Hours later, Alex wakes up at the bottom of the shaft, having sustained even further injuries. She painfully drags herself over to a nearby lantern and takes out a matchbox that was once Gabe's. She uses the remaining match inside it to light the lantern. She makes her way through the tunnel and arrives in a large room where the lantern blows out. She then sees a red aura up ahead, leading her to find the locket that she gave John hidden under a pile of rocks. It turns out that sometime after abandoning his children, John got a job as a miner working for Jed. During a cave-in, Jed was forced to leave some of the miners behind, with John being among them. Jed's selfish act caused John and the other trapped miners to be killed and he lied to the public about saving everyone so that they will think he's a hero and took extreme precautions to hide the truth. Alex eventually finds her way out of the mine, where it is now morning. Upon noticing a sign on the gate dedicating to Jed for his false heroism, she tears it down and heads to town.
She arrives at the Black Lantern right as the town council meeting is occurring. Jed is immediately shocked at the sight of Alex, confused at how his previous attempt to kill her failed, all the while Alex simply glares back at him in anger. Ryan and Steph are the first to notice Alex and are horrified to see the state that she’s in and suggest taking her to a doctor, but she immediately dismisses their concerns. She then tells everyone the truth about what really happened at the mine and how Jed tried to kill her, as well as his attempts to cover up the deaths of the seven miners he left to die back in 2008, which included her father. Jed and Diane try to defend themselves by dismissing her claims as nonsense. Depending on Alex's choices from the past chapters, Duckie, Charlotte, Pike, and Eleanor may or may not support Alex. Steph will side with Alex regardless of her choices. If this convinces Ryan, he will demand the truth from Jed, who will get mad at Ryan for "betraying" him. If not, he won't support Alex and Steph will get into an argument with him. Either way, Alex’s powers unexpectedly activate and the entire room goes dark with only Jed being visible. Alex has a long, tearful talk with Jed, who will remain silent. She comes to see that Jed felt guilty for being forced to abandon the miners and had to lie to everyone to avoid getting in trouble with the public. Afterwards, she can either choose to forgive or denounce him. Regardless of her choice, Jed will break down in tears, now feeling regretful and ashamed of his wrongdoings as reality returns to normal. It is implied that Alex was taken to a doctor after this to care to her injuries.
Two days later, Alex is shown spending time in her apartment lying in bed and playing her guitar, having mostly recovered from her injuries. After the radio announces that Jed has been arrested for his crimes, the Black Lantern has been temporally closed, and Typhon's operations have been put to an end, Alex then throws ShuShu at the radio, turning it off. She then decides to go up to the roof for some air. Before doing so, she has the option to lie in bed for a while. A message on her laptop reveals that Diane either expresses her regret for helping Jed and Typhon with their schemes or is planning to make amends for her crimes. As Alex prepares to head up to the roof, Steph or Ryan (depending on who Alex chose to romance) will visit her. If Steph visits, she states that she intends to leave Haven Springs, but also decides that she wants to stay with Alex if she chooses to and even tears up her ticket to ensure that; Alex must make the decision for her. If Ryan visits, he will express his experience with learning about his father's crimes. If he didn't believe Alex earlier, he will apologize to her and Alex can choose whether or not to forgive him or just say that she doesn't know. Not forgiving him will end their relationship. After Alex goes to the roof, she hallucinates her brother Gabe sitting beside her, who explains what will happen if she stays put in Haven Springs. Some of the following events will vary depending on Alex's major choices. Alex must then choose to leave or stay; after making this choice, Gabe will disappear.
If Alex chooses to stay, she will spend time on the docks before leaving. If Alex chooses to leave town, she will board a bus either by herself, with Ryan, or with Steph. If Alex didn't form a relationship with Ryan, he will be shown on her apartment's rooftop, looking sad. The last scene shows Alex about to perform onstage in front of a large audience.
Wavelengths[]
At the start of New Year, Gabe mentions Alex to Steph, but does not reveal her identity. Alex eventually appears at the end of the story where Steph shows her two records for her to select, leading to the events of the main story
Powers[]
- Main article: Alex's Abilities
Abilities[]
- Empathy:[3] Alex has the ability to detect and feel the emotions of people around her. Emotions regularly project as color-coded auras to her, with purple representing fear, red representing anger, blue representing sadness, and yellow representing joy.
- Aura Detection: Alex can detect auras coming off of people and/or objects. She once used this to navigate the dark collapsed mine tunnel she was trapped in and find her father's locket.
- Empathic Telepathy: When reading someone's aura, Alex can hear the thoughts they're having in correlation with their emotions as well. This allows her to discern a person's innermost thoughts, such as when she was able to read one woman's mind and learn that there were 731 jelly beans in a jar.
- Psychometry: Alex can tap into emotional auras on certain objects and/or people to access memories attached to them. If she comes across a particularly strong aura, she can reach out and connect with it, allowing her to enter a state called "Nova," which transforms the world around her into a reflection of that person's psyche, experiencing fragments of their thoughts and memories.
- Emotion Absorption: By concentrating hard enough, Alex can remove certain emotions from targets by absorbing their strong feelings, but she will eventually experience the absorbed emotion herself.
Limits[]
- At the beginning of the game Alex claims that she cannot turn off her empathy and often acts up whenever a person experiencing a strong emotion appears near her. After the first chapter, however, she seemingly gets over this.
- Alex has to be in close range with someone to see their emotions and hear their thoughts.
Consequences[]
- Since she feels what others feel, Alex becomes heavily influenced by them. An example of this is when Mac barges into Gabe's apartment and beats him up unprovoked, Alex began to feel his anger herself and despite her attempts to fight the intense emotion, it overtakes her to the point where she attacks Mac and accidentally punches Gabe when he tried to intervene. Finally, when she takes an emotion away from someone, it becomes a part of her briefly, like if she takes Charlotte's anger and hears Gabe's call to Mac, she gets in a fit of rage that causes Steph and Ryan to leave the room.
- Although she has well-meaning intentions, Alex taking someone's essential emotions, such as grief, and speeding up the process can cause more harm than good, essentially leaving them numb like an empty shell. On a positive note, her taking away someone's fear could give them the confidence they need to convince them to see the errors of their ways and do what's right.
Relationships[]
Family[]
- John Chen – Alex once implied that she didn't have the best relationship with her father, even before her mother got sick, but they cared for each other to some degree. After her mother's death, she tried to take over her role as caretaker while her father tried to find a job to keep their family supported (to no avail). In the middle of an argument with Gabe, Alex tried to intervene, only to be accidentally elbowed in the face by her father. After which, John gives up on being Alex's father, takes his daughter's locket which his wife gave her, and abandons both his children for CPS. Alex was deeply affected by this, feeling like a failure and terrified of what'll happen. Eight years later, Alex finds her mother's locket in a collapsed mine, which her father had and still had pictures of her and Gabe inside, revealing to Alex that her father was a victim to Jed's cave-in.
- Wendy Chen - Alex seemed to have a much better relationship with her mother, as shown during the flashback in chapter 5 where Wendy comments on how strong Alex is and that she'll have to take care of her brother and father from now on. She then gives Alex a locket containing pictures of herself and Gabe before passing away, leaving Alex heartbroken as she subsequently breaks down into tears. Wendy would go on to have a big impact on Alex's life long after her death, as it's heavily implied that Alex got her caring nature and almost obsessive need to look after others from her.
- Gabe Chen - Not much is known about Alex and Gabe's relationship during their childhood prior to to their seperation, however it is known that Gabe had a rebellious streak as a teenager and would constantly clash with their father, while Alex tried to take on the role of caretaker after their mother passed and attempted to deesculate their arguments and fights. Years after being seperated, Gabe spent an unknown amount of time before the game trying to track Alex down, even going through an old phonebook and calling each Alex Chen he could find, as well as keeping a file on her stashed in his drawer. When he finally did locate her, he texted her and they started to reconnect. Gabe was very eager and happy to have his sister back in his life, with many of the townsfolk informing Alex of this when she first arrives. Once they finally reunite, their interactions are a bit awkward at first, with Gabe feeling a tinge of sadness at the fact that he missed watching Alex grow up. In the midst of giving Alex a tour of the town however the two start hitting it off again, telling each other jokes and generally enjoying each other's company. Alex can even join Gabe in jamming out to Kings of Leon in his apartment. However, after Mac starts attacking Gabe and Alex retaliates with Mac's own anger, she accidentally hits Gabe while he tried to get her off of him. This tests their relationship briefly as Gabe leaves the apartment in order to get treated for his injuries. Once Gabe comes back from the infirmary, the two reconcile on the rooftop and he formally welcomes Alex to her new home in Haven. When Gabe is unfortunately killed after saving Ethan at the old mining site, Alex is grief-stricken but represses her own emotions in order to focus on other people's wellbeings, as well as investigating Typhon in order to get justice for her brother. It isn't until Chapter 5 during the nightmare sequence where Alex fully comes to terms with her grief of losing Gabe, and finally lets her emotions out. Even after his death, Alex hallucinates seeing Gabe on the rooftop at the end of the game, showing that she still misses him a lot.
Friends[]
- Steph Gingrich – Alex and Steph first meet in the record store when Alex sees Steph in the radio booth after arriving in town, but they don't formally get to know each other until Alex's first shift at the Black Lantern later on. After Gabe's death, the two form a very strong friendship with each other, as Steph joins Alex in her efforts to investigate and take down Typhon Mining in order to get justice for her brother. However, if Alex took Charlotte's anger in chapter 3, she lashes out later on in front of Steph and Ryan, breaking the foosball trophy Gabe gave to Steph. This briefly strains their relationship as Steph storms out of the room in anger and disbelief. Later on at the Spring Festival, Alex apologizes for her behavior from earlier, to which Steph responds by apologizing as well, stating that ever since she met Alex, she's been there for her the entire time, and that it wouldn't be right to bail on Alex when she herself starts struggling. The two both apologize to each other and mend their friendship. In Chapter 5, Steph will support Alex at the council meeting no matter your choices throughout the game, showing how much she trusts Alex. If Steph wasn't romanced, she ends up leaving Haven Springs alone, but not before giving Alex her job at the record store should Alex herself decide to remain in Haven Springs.
- Ryan Lucan – Alex first meets Ryan after wandering into the record store in search of a gift for Gabe. The two introduce themselves to each other and Ryan decides to help Alex pick out a record for Gabe. After Ethan goes missing, Alex along with Gabe and Ryan go out to look for him, and subsequently find him at the ravine. After successfully saving Ethan, the blast scheduled in the mountains that night unexpectedly goes off, resulting in Gabe being hit by one of the rocks. With Alex still tied to Gabe, Ryan tries to hold on to the rope in order to save both of them, but after seeing an oncoming avalanche of boulders from behind, he takes out a knife and cuts the rope, resulting in Gabe’s death. Ryan is overcome with guilt and grief after this ordeal, and later on in Chapter 2 Alex can reassure Ryan that it wasn’t his fault whatsoever and that he saved her life. Afterwards, Alex tells Ryan about her powers, along with her plans to take down Typhon. Ryan assures her that he has her back and that she’s stuck with him from here on out, to which Alex can either hug him or give him a handshake. For the rest of the game Alex and Ryan have a very strong friendship as they work to take down Typhon and find out the circumstances behind Gabe’s death. However, their friendship is put to the test at the council meeting in chapter 5 when Alex accuses Ryan’s father, Jed, of attempting to kill her and that he was responsible for the deaths of Gabe, her father, and multiple other miners. If Alex was able to convince key members of the council to support her, Ryan will believe Alex, and the two remain friends. If not, Ryan will completely turn his back on Alex, and after the truth is finally revealed when Jed confesses, he apologizes to Alex via text, to which she doesn’t respond.
- Ethan Lambert - Alex and Ethan have a positive relationship throughout the game, as the two first meet outside of Charlotte’s weed dispensary after Gabe goes in to apologize to her. After Ethan tells Alex he plans to go up to the mountains in order to explore the old mines, Alex becomes immediately concerned and later on is given a choice on whether or not to alert Gabe about his plans. After Gabe’s death at the old mining site, Ethan is overcome with guilt and anger, believing that it’s all his fault. In chapter 2, Alex can try and talk to Ethan but he promptly shuts down the conversation by saying that he’s fine. In chapter 3, in order to lift Ethan’s spirits, Alex with the help of Steph host a town wide LARP in honor of Gabe. After convincing Ethan to participate, both him and Alex wander around the town in search for items while defeating the occasional monster (who are all played by Ryan). The LARP culminates in Ethan being filled with joy after receiving his sword, and Alex is then transported into his Nova. It’s here that the two battle against Jed, posing as Stormwrither. After defeating him, the two celebrate their victory but are interrupted by the sound of the mining sirens. Ethan is quickly overcome with sadness, as the siren reminds him of Gabe’s death and how he feels as if he caused it, to which Alex quickly comes over to comfort him. After this, Ethan is picked up by his father later on in the day. Ethan texts Alex in chapter 4 thanking her for the LARP and hoping that they can do it again someday. In chapter 5 after the council meeting, Ethan texts Alex professing his worry over the whole ordeal and expresses how relieved he is that she’s okay. If Alex leaves Haven Springs and didn’t romance anyone, Ethan will text Alex at her show wishing her luck.
- Riley Lethe - Alex is introduced to Riley when she first arrives in town by Gabe. The two go on to have a relatively close friendship, as both cope with the pain of losing Gabe after the first chapter. Riley goes on to help Alex with her investigation into Typhon Mining by decrypting Diane's USB drive in chapter 3. In chapter 4, if Riley didn't find out about Eleanor's dementia, Alex will find her at the bus stop waiting to be picked up in order to go off to college. If Alex tells Riley about Eleanor's condition, Riley is shocked and in disbelief, but tells Alex how much she appreciates the fact that she told her and that it couldn't have been an easy thing for her to do. In chapter 5, if Alex decides to leave Haven Springs, a picture on her guitar case show's her visiting Riley (if she went off to school), heavily indicating that the two remain good friends after the events of the game.
- Eleanor Lethe - Eleanor warmly greets Alex with a hug when she first arrives in Haven Springs, to Alex's discomfort. In chapter 2, Alex visits Eleanor's flower shop in search of Mac, but notices Eleanor's sudden aura of fear and decides to stay and figure out what's wrong. Upon entering Eleanor's fear nova, Alex discovers that Eleanor has been suffering from dementia, and takes the time to help her figure out an order Jed had made earlier that she had forgotten. Afterwards, Eleanor thanks Alex for helping her, but soon starts wondering why Jed needs so many lilies as they're traditionally for funerals, and Alex soon realizes that Eleanor has forgotten about Gabe's death. If the player chooses to remind Eleanor about Gabe's death, she becomes extremely distraught and bursts into tears, apologizing to Alex for missing his wake and rushes into the back room. If Alex didn't tell Riley about Eleanor's condition (or if she didn't find out if Eleanor wasn't reminded about Gabe's death in chapter 2), Eleanor will believe Alex at the council meeting in Chapter 5 and remark how she's always found Alex to be a very trustworthy person. If you didn't keep Eleanor's confidence, she will turn her back on Alex at the council meeting and believe that Alex's mind is simply playing tricks on her.
- Reginald McCallister III - Alex meets Duckie during her first shift at the Black Lantern in chapter one. Duckie formally introduces himself and Diane, then proceeds to give Alex his order. After Alex gives the order to Jed, he instructs her to find Duckie's special whiskey. Once Alex finds the whiskey and returns it to Duckie, he graciously thanks Alex and asks her to share a drink with him. In chapter 4, Alex can find Duckie sulking in the Black Lantern away from the Spring Festival, mourning his deceased wife Tabitha. After entering Duckie's nova of sadness, she can choose to dance with him. Doing so will have Duckie comment on how grateful he is that she would take the time to do this for him, and happily joins the Spring Festival afterwards. In Chapter 5, if Alex danced with Duckie he will stand in support of Alex, claiming that she has become "one of us" and that she deserves an investigation into her claims against Jed. He will also meet Alex at the bus stop to see her off if Alex chooses to leave Haven Springs. If Alex didn't dance with Duckie however, he will stand in support of Jed and comments how he doesn't know Alex as well as he thought, and that he's disappointed that she would accuse his friend of such terrible things.
- Charlotte Harmon - Alex and Charlotte first formally meet in the Black Lantern as Gabe is tended for his injuries after being beaten by Mac. After Ryan takes Gabe to the infirmary, the two have a short conversation where Charlotte asks Alex how her first day in Haven was, and can even thank Alex for warning them about Ethan going up to the mines (if the player chose to tell Gabe earlier in the chapter). In chapter 2, Alex can visit Charlotte's store and ask her how she's holding up after Gabe's death, with Charlotte simply stating that she's trying to keep it together for Ethan. Charlotte then informs Alex about Typhon wanting her to sign an affidavit which would grant her a great deal of money as long as she doesn't decide to press charges for Gabe's death. After asking Alex what she should do, the player is given the choice on whether or not she should sign. In chapter 3, if Alex told Charlotte to sign the affidavit, you can see a sculpture Charlotte made for Alex in her apartment modeled after her rising star tattoo, which was given to her as a gift. Later on however, Alex soon learns that Charlotte has been harboring a deep seated anger and hatred towards Alex, blaming her for Gabe's death and wishing she never came into her life. If Alex leaves Charlotte's anger, the two will have a bittersweet conversation in chapter 4 after Alex's performance, with Charlotte professing how she was sorry for being horrible to Alex earlier and reflects on how excited she was to be Alex's friend before Gabe's death. In chapter 5, Charlotte will stand up for Alex at the council meeting if the player didn't take her anger away, and the two go on to have a seemingly strong friendship afterwards, with Charlotte and Ethan going to see Alex off if she decides to leave Haven Springs. If Alex takes Charlotte's anger however, Charlotte won't stand up for Alex at the council meeting and sites her as the reason for everything going wrong in her life. After Jed confesses to everything, Charlotte apologizes to Alex for not believing her via text, but doesn't respond to any of Alex's follow up messages, indicating that their friendship has deteriorated.
- Jason Pike - Alex and Pike's relationship start off on an awkward note, with Pike pulling a prank on Alex during her first shift at the Black Lantern by making her think that he was going to take her in for questioning after the situation with Mac from beforehand. In chapter 2, Alex can encounter Pike on Main Street where he asks how she's holding up after Gabe's death, and then reminds her that he'll eventually have to get her statement for the investigation. In chapter 4, after Alex steals Diane's USB drive and finds incriminating evidence against Typhon, she calls Pike and tells him to meet up with her in order to give him the drive. Later on, Pike finds Alex and asks her to come with him to the station, much to her surprise. At the station, Pike reveals that Diane is pressing charges against Alex for stealing her USB drive. He then gives Alex an affidavit that Diane is offering to her as a way to make the situation go away. When Alex initially refuses, Pike starts becoming filled with fear and shows Alex all of the files Typhon has on her and her friends. It's here where Pike tells Alex how much he cares about her and doesn't want Typhon to come after her. Alex is then given a choice on whether or not to take Pike's fear away or sign Typhon's agreement. In Chapter 5, if Alex signed the agreement, Pike won't support her at the council meeting and tells her to simply give up her case against Jed. If Alex took Pike's fear away, he will stand up and present the evidence Alex gave him in the previous chapter to the council. Pike will also be present if Alex decides to leave Haven in order to see her off.
Enemies[]
- Jed Lucan – Initially, Alex admired her new boss in the Black Lantern and saw him as a hero. Jed is patient, kind, and helpful towards her as she settles into Haven, almost becoming something of a father figure to her, which he himself admits was his intention later on. He also offers her a job in his bar and allows her to live in Gabe's old apartment after his death. However, after Alex comes close to discovering the circumstances behind Gabe's death, Jed reveals himself to be a cowardly imposter pretending to be a hero in order to cover up his mistakes. It's revealed that he was the one who caused the flooding in his old mine, leaving several of his men to die (including Alex's father), and he made a deal with Typhon Mining to cover up his actions and retain his reputation. Alex is demoralized by Jed's true nature, and he proceeds to shoot her into an old mine shaft and leaves her for dead. Alex however survives this encounter and manages to reach The Black Lantern as the council meeting is occurring in order to expose Jed as a fraud and Typhon as a corrupted business. Using her powers, Alex can either forgive or condemn Jed to reveal his secrets and turn himself in.
- Diane Jacobs – Alex and Diane start out on friendly terms, both meeting in the Black Lantern on Alex's first day in the town. However, after Gabe's death and confronting Mac, Alex starts suspecting Diane after seeing her with a aura of fear at the lantern ceremony for Gabe at the end of chapter 2. Although Diane never directly antagonizes Alex, she does do whatever she can to keep Alex from interfering with Typhon's operation, such as trying to throw her off by making it seem as if Typhon is committed to a full investigation into Gabe’s death, as well as threatening her into silence with an affidavit after Alex steals her USB drive. These attempts prove unsuccessful, and in a last ditch effort Diane proceeds to try and gaslight Alex and turn the council members against her. Her efforts were ultimately futile as Alex managed to get Jed to confess about everything, resulting in Diane's arrest and Typhon's collapse.
- Mac Loudon (Determinant) - Alex and Mac's relationship starts off on a bad note, with Alex's first encounter with Mac being when he attacks Gabe in his apartment, to which Alex, fueled by Mac's own anger, retaliates. After being beaten, Mac calls Alex "a fucking psycho" and storms out of the apartment. Later in the Black Lantern, Mac tries to apologize to Alex for his actions earlier, to which Alex can continuously shoot down. Mac then starts begging Alex not to tell Riley about what really happened, fearing that she'll break up with him. Once Riley arrives, Alex is then given a choice on whether or not to tell her what really happened. If Alex tells Riley the truth, she promptly breaks up with Mac. In chapter 2, Alex immediately suspects Mac of having something to do with Gabe's death, and goes out to search for him. After talking with Riley and learning that Mac plans to skip town, Alex confronts Mac about this, causing him to panic and quickly run away. After catching up to him (and learning that Typhon is forcing him to deny that Gabe ever called the safety team after entering Mac's fear nova), Alex can accuse Mac of still playing a part in her brother's death. Mac then goes on to explain that Typhon told him to pretend that there was never a call and states that while he and Gabe didn't always get along he would never try and get him killed. Mac eventually starts having a panic attack, to which Alex is then given a choice on whether to calm him down or walk away. If the player choses to walk away, Alex goes on to berate Mac and tell him that he always had a choice in stopping Gabe's death and that he could have said something earlier. This causes Mac's fear and anxiety to increase, and a few weeks later in chapter 3, it's revealed that he left Haven Springs.
Romantic[]
- Steph Gingrich (Determinant) – Steph and Alex's relationship in Life is Strange: True Colors is determined by the player. Alex has the ability to flirt with and show interest in Steph throughout the course of the game, such as playing the jukebox game with her in the Black Lantern, expressing interest in women when Steph asks after Gabe's wake, and asking for her hand in marriage during the LARP. During the fourth chapter of the game, the player is able to begin a romance between the two characters by choosing to give a rose to Steph during the Spring Festival. Steph then asks Alex to meet her on the rooftop of Alex's apartment after the festival, where the two may share a kiss. In the fifth and final chapter, Alex must choose whether to remain in Haven or pursue a music career around the world; regardless of her choice, Steph will stay with her if they are in a relationship.
- Ryan Lucan (Determinant) – Similarly to Alex and Steph, Alex's relationship with Ryan is also determined by the player. During the fourth chapter of the game, the player is able to begin a romance between the two characters by choosing to give a rose to Ryan during the Spring Festival. After the festival is over, Alex meets with Ryan on the rooftop of her apartment, where the two may share a kiss. In the fifth and final chapter, Alex must choose whether to remain in Haven or pursue a music career around the world; regardless of her choice, Ryan will stay with her if they are in a relationship.
- Isaac (Hook-up)- While not entirely clear what Alex and Isaac's relationship was, as shown in Alex's text message history the two had some sort of romantic and/or sexual relationship. When Alex was still in the foster system, their relationship deteriorates following a particular night, heavily implied to have ended in sexual assault. Alex claims that she "wants to hold off on sex for a while," and that she "wasn't in the right mindset," while Isaac calls that night "incredible". Alex soon after blocks Isaac's phone number. Based on Alex's power of emotion, it's likely she thought she wanted Isaac because Isaac wanted her.
Symbolism[]
Spirit Animal[]
Alex's spirit animal seems to be that of a yellow canary that is present on her default outfit at the start of the game. Canaries usually symbolize joy and freedom, with yellow being the color of joy when Alex uses her powers. They are also songbirds, which ties into Alex's talent of being a singer/musician.
Memorable Quotes[]
- Main article: Memorable Quotes
- "For the first time in years, I really let myself believe."
- — Alex in the reveal trailer
- "Jed... Why are you sad?"
- — Alex to Jed
- "Jed... What are you doing?"
- — Alex to Jed
Trivia[]
- Alex's singing voice is provided by singer-songwriter and Twitch streamer mxmtoon, who is a self-described Life is Strange fan.
- The pre-order bonus outfits for True Colors indicate that Alex's favorite animals may be cats.
- The deluxe edition for True Colors includes clothing inspired by Chloe’s Misfit Skull, Sean’s Wolf Squad, Daniel’s Space Mission, and Max’s Jane Doe outfits.
- With Gabe's death, Alex is the only surviving member of her family.
- In Chapter 4, one of Alex’s optional outfits is a Hawt Dawg Man t-shirt.
- Alex's guitar seems to be based on Fender and Gibson guitars. The brand inscription looks very similar to the Fender logo appears to read "Gender", which may be a mix of the two brands.
- Alex is the second oldest playable protagonist in the series so far, being 21 years old throughout the events of the game. Steph Gingrich is the first oldest, being 25 years old. Max Caulfield is the third oldest, being 18 years old in her respective game. Chloe Price is the fourth oldest, being 16 years old in her respective game. Sean Diaz is the fifth oldest, being 16 years old in his respective game. Chris Ericksen is the youngest, being 9 years old in his respective game.
- Unlike Max Caulfield and Daniel Diaz, Alex had discovered her powers prior to the game's events. As implied by the flashbacks in chapter 5, Alex's abilities manifested through tragic circumstances, similar to how Max and Daniel's did.
- She is the third protagonist that can channel her power through her hands along with Max and Daniel.
- Similarly to the previous Life is Strange protagonists, with the exception of Chloe Price, Alex is bisexual as well, being able to romance with both men and women and chooses the person depending on player choice.
- Alex's zodiac sign is the Cancer.
Gallery[]
Promotional Screenshots[]
Other[]
Videos[]
References[]
- ↑ As seen in-game on the Typhon Mining Security threat evaluation papers
- ↑ Alex's birthday
- ↑ Steam page description
[]
True Colors Characters
| |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Major Characters | |||||||
Alex Chen · Gabe Chen · Steph Gingrich · Ryan Lucan | |||||||
Chen Family | |||||||
John Chen · Wendy Chen | |||||||
Harmon-Lambert Family | |||||||
Charlotte Harmon · Ethan Lambert | |||||||
Lethe Family | |||||||
Eleanor Lethe · Riley Lethe | |||||||
Citizens of Haven Springs | |||||||
Ann Lucan · Diane Jacobs · Duckie · Mac Loudon · Jed Lucan · Jason Pike · Hector Gonzales · Jesse Whitaker · Josh Hopkins · Julia Crowe · Sonny and Angela Anderson | |||||||
Others | |||||||
Dr. Lynn · Izzie · Valkyrie |