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The Cougar is an animal that resides in Willamette National Forest. It makes its first appearance in Episode 2 of Life is Strange 2.

Personality[]

Not much of a personality is shown. Based on what little is seen, the cougar is shown as a stereotypical predator hunting out of instinct. If Sean and Daniel Diaz examined the animal traps or the rabbit burrow around the cabin, their comments suggest a slight suspicion of an unknown larger creature nearby, but the cougar remained hidden until it encountered their dog, Mushroom.

Appearance[]

The cougar is no different from any other, having a tan coat with white fur on the belly and black around its nose and paws. It appears to be of abnormal size, but this is primarily due to Daniel's size in relation to the cat's.

Episode Two - "Episode 2: Rules"[]

While preparing for their trip to the Reynolds home, Sean or Daniel lets Mushroom out of the cabin to use the restroom. There, the cougar catches and preys upon Mushroom before dragging her into the forest. Daniel follows the blood and paw prints to find the cat standing over Mushroom's corpse. Sean follows soon after, right as Daniel tries to use his power to finish off the feline. Depending on Sean's decision, Daniel may kill the puma as an act of revenge, and Mushroom can be buried; or Sean intervenes and scares it off, allowing the cat to be able to take Mushroom's body away to feed on it.

Episode Three - "Wastelands"[]

Sean can choose to discuss the incident at the drifters' campsite during "Campfire Tales", and optionally talk about the choice he made to scare it away or let Daniel kill it (though Sean hides Daniel's involvement). If Sean admits to killing the beast, Finn will be surprised, saying "You killed a living creature... Not sure it deserved it...". Otherwise, if Sean does not talk about his actions, Cassidy will explain it as the "Laws of Nature, beautiful creatures, but super scary".

If Daniel is left to talk during "Campfire Tales", he will just make a remark that Mushroom was killed and taken away by a puma, or just killed, and so they had to bury her.

Trivia[]

  • Episode 1 shows a poster with humorous graffiti, which can be interpreted as dark foreshadowing. The sign depicts advice in how to handle a black bear, while the graffiti states "In case of cougar attack, throw a 20 year old male".[1]
  • The terms "Cougar" and "Puma" are interchangeable; the player is introduced to this beast as the cougar in the final choice screen, but Sean and Daniel will call it a puma in Episode 3.
  • Judging by the animal's behaviour, the cougar is more likely to be female since the females are more likely to hunt small animals. The next scene is a bit more ambiguous; cougars will will bury their food for later consumption as part of an instinct called "cashing", cougars will also provide small animals for their kittens to hunt or eat. Which leads to the possibility that the cougar is a mother trying to provide food for her kittens.
  • The only animal antagonist in the game, as well as the only antagonist who has no ill will.

Gallery[]

References[]

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