But in those few years the shape of the world changed drastically. Brexit and Trump all highlighted the divided globe we live in, where isolationism has become a growing mantra in parts of the West. While a quick scroll through Twitter underscores how quick people can be to put up barriers which divides themselves from others.
And it’s into this fractured world that DONTNOD has released LiS 2, which isn’t afraid to call out issues that plague the modern world.
In Life is Strange 2 you take control of Sean Diaz, son of a Mexican immigrant living in Trump’s America.
The teenager is forced to go on the run with his younger brother Daniel after a tragedy shatters and destroys the life they had been living.
By swapping Chloe, Max and Arcadia Bay for new characters and locations it allows DONTNOD to delve deeply into issues that affect the world today.
Racism, xenophobia, homophobia are among the pressing issues highlighted in a game which emphasises the impact of the way you treat someone.
Player choice has always played a big factor in the Life is Strange series, with decisions you make having a major impact on how the story unfolds.
This is still the case in LiS 2, with even more permutations for the story coming as a result of actions you take.
But your choices and the way you react to what unfolds has a huge impact on Sean’s nine-year-old brother Daniel.
It’s not too much of a spoiler to say Daniel is special, with the youngster early in the game gaining telekinetic powers.
This is a huge power to place on the shoulder’s of a young boy, and the decisions you make has an impact in shaping how Daniel turns out.
If you try to set a good example to Daniel over the course of LiS 2’s five episode run then he too can turn out to be an empathetic soul.
But, if the viciousness of people you encounter on your journey turns you bitter then that risks turning Daniel into an angry person.
And the combination of that much power and bad feeling is surely a recipe for disaster.
This theme of cause-and-effect, and how you let the world affect you seems perfectly in keep with the way LiS 2 looks at and comments at Trump’s US.
It is hugely impressive that Life is Strange 2 offers so many diverging routes and the French-based devs should be commended for that.
But arguably what they should be most commended for is being brave enough to create a game which speaks out on the political landscape of the world.
In this day and age you can incur the wrath of tonnes of people on social media for voicing a different political opinion than others.
And that was a risk DONTNOD took with LiS 2, creating a story that is a strong rebuke to Trump’s America.
But the game they have created shows the human cost of what happens when you batten down the hatches and only care for a certain sect of people.
When the credits roll on Life is Strange 2 you may not get the gut-punching decision that Max was faced with at the end of the original.
Sean and Daniel’s adventure won’t linger in your mind for that reason.
And that’s okay. What you will take away is the way LiS 2 shines a mirror to the world, and asks what kind of person you want to be in it.
It asks questions few games dare to raise, and presents issues that not all of us will face in our lives.
But in doing so it asks us to be empathetic to those from all walks of life.
And for that, considering where we are in the world right now, Life is Strange 2 is one of the most vitally important games around.
VERDICT: 4/5