History TearJerker / LifeIsStrangeBeforeTheStorm

-->'''Chloe:''' "(...) I don't want to ruin this the way I ruin everything else in my life. (...) I guess it's easier to be alone if you decide it's a choice. I'm sorry. For whatever I did... or didn't do. Today was the best day I've had since...since my dad died. And I screwed it up somehow. Like I screw everything up. 'Cause I'm a fucking screw up. Please, I don't want to be alone anymore"

* Chloe's insistent to Rachel that with Max gone, she doesn't have any friends. This is despite her pleasant relationships with Mikey, Steph, Samantha, Justin, and Eliot. She ''does'' have friends, she's just too blinded by the grief of losing her father ''and'' Max to realize that these five people ''genuinely like being around her''l It's sad to see that her isolation is largely self-invoked and she's just in too much pain to realize it.

** Crossing over into heartwarming territory, the really sad thing is, for all her anger, Chloe REALLY misses Max and admits she'd welcome her back with open arms if she ever returned. Not only is this sad because it shows just HOW lonely Chloe is (Max really was her only friend), but it gives their relationship in the original Life is Strange a whole new meaning as upon encountering Max (not without some resentment) she does just that.
* A milder case, but whereas the original game shows us David as a violent control freak and an oppressive, negative presence in Chloe's life, in this game, though still a rather stern hardass, David is simply Joyce's boyfriend trying to build a positive relationship with his stepdaughter-to-be, only to (somewhat depending on your choices) have his efforts thrown in his face. Extra points when you consider that, as seen in ''Life is Strange'', Chloe NEVER did warm up to him (and things got even worse between them), but [[spoiler: through it all, David was, in his own way, a good man trying to protect her and the Blackwell kids, and he always loved Chloe like a daughter, as he proves when he goes APESHIT on Jefferson for killing her]]. For any stepfather, it can be sad that, no matter your intentions, despite your best efforts, your stepdaughter hates your guts.
** Worse, even if Chloe makes some effort to reciprocate his efforts, such as thanking him for the ride to school, David's own prejudices makes him unable to take it for face value. This only drives home how doomed David and Chloe's relationship was from the get go and helps explain why things later escalated between them.
* Chloe's insistent to Rachel that with Max gone, she doesn't have any friends. This is despite her pleasant relationships with Mikey, Steph, Samantha, Justin, and Eliot. She ''does'' have friends, she's just too blinded by the grief of losing her father ''and'' Max that she fails to realize that these five people ''genuinely like being around her.'' It's sad to see that her isolation is largely self-invoked and that she's just in too much pain to realize it.

* Joyce in general. Her behavior and texts make it very clear she cares deeply about her daughter and tries to help Chloe as best as she can. However, her efforts are constantly rendered moot due to Chloe's unwillingness to accept David in her life. In episode 2, her voice and facial expressions during the scenes she's in betray her desperation and sadness over the situation. Props go to her voice-actress for conveying these emotions in a heartbreaking way.
-->'''Joyce:''' "Chloe, can't you just forget about David for a second? Think about me."
-->'''Chloe:''' "Maybe I just need some space, ok?"
-->'''Joyce:''' "Maybe I just need my daughter back."
* When Chloe goes to clean out her locker she can take an old picture of her cat, who her dad rescued from an animal shelter before it died by getting run over. The bitterness in Chloe's voice is very stark and it's just more evidence of all the things she's lost in life.
* If Chloe does not tell [[NiceGirl Samantha]] to encourage Nathan before the play, Nathan will flub his lines and [[TheWoobie then start crying on the stage]]. Worse, [[JerkAss the audience]] [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown will mock him for it]]. This is doubly depressing because his [[AbusiveParent father]] warned him to not to look like a fool, [[ItsAllAboutMe lest it would damage his reputation]]. Poor kid...
* During the dream, looking at William prompts Chloe to say tearily "I miss him, so much."
* Chloe can backtalk Victoria into giving up the part of Prospero. If she succeeds, Victoria admits she really ''couldn't'' play the part and that she didn't know the lines or understand the play and didn't expect to actually end up on stage.

* Chloe's first dream sequence with William, which consists of a reenactment of the accident that claimed his life on the Blackwell stage (complete with an audience watching). The sequence ends with William being struck by a truck, with a ''trail of blood left behind''. Say what you will about Rhianna DeVries, but the way Chloe screams "DAD!" as she witnesses the carnage really drives home ''haunted'' Chloe is by the death of her father and how broken she truly is inside.
* The scene where David attempts to apologize to Chloe and tell her about his own experiences with loss and grief. The story of his [[spoiler: good friend Phil Becker, who died during their last mission]] is a reminder that David, with all of his own flaws, is quite the broken man himself. Turning down the [[spoiler: photo]] leaves him stammering, almost as if he could break down at any moment.

** If Mikey [[spoiler: ends up in the hospital after being assaulted by Damon]], he and Chloe can play another tabletop game where she has to convince Mikey to sacrifice her to save himself. While it's not tearjerking on its own, the conversation is ''massively'' HarsherInHindsight when one considers how Chloe [[spoiler: would later have to make the same argument to Max--for real]].
* As obsessive and demented Eliot turns out to be, Chloe ''does'' seem to regret things turned out this way with him. Should you fail the "Backtalk" challenge, when he accuses her of trying to knock him out, she tells him "no! You idiot." with a sorry tone, not sounding like her usual brash self (although she does resume the attitude right after). As much of a psycho he was being with her, he was still one of her friends and she had to witness him become a freak.
** Worse, Eliot mentions her dad's death and Max. Drives how truly entitled he has become if he's willing to bring out things Chloe opened up to him about to guilt her into listening to him.

* [[spoiler:Telling Rachel the truth about what her father did to Sera. Though the player is warned that telling Rachel the truth will destroy her family, it can still be heartbreaking watching the Amber family break apart after Rachel finally started mending her relationship with her dad.]]

%%Image removed via crowner in the Moments Images Cleanup Thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php?crowner_id=m2drivcx

%%Please start a discussion in Image Pickin' to replace the image.

** In a rather meta sense...it's also the last look WE'll get to take.

* As beautiful as it is, the relationship between Chloe and Rachel is certainly and sadly DoomedByCanon. [[spoiler: Not because Rachel is going to be accidentally killed, but because Rachel is canonically in love with at least two other characters by the time the original game starts. Rachel's offer to move out of Arcadia Bay with Chloe may not be genuine, as she makes [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/life-is-strange/images/f/f9/Rachel%27s_letter_to_Frank.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20151219205221 the same offer]] to Frank Bowers, whom she was in a relationship with without Chloe knowing. In addition to that, it is confirmed by WordOfGod in a [[https://m.twitch.tv/squareenix/v/24111126?desktop-redirect=true live stream]] that Rachel falls love with Jefferson after breaking up with Frank, and he is the special person she spoke about before disappearing]].
* Chloe's breakdown in the junkyard after Rachel breaks off their friendship, which ends with her collapsing on the ground in tears. It really highlights how, underneath her snark and tough-as-nails persona, Chloe is just an emotionally damaged girl desperate to feel loved.

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* Chloe imagining her dad being with her and having a conversation with him before driving up the burned out Mill for the [[spoiler: the final confrontation with Damon]]. She'll ask him if he ever lied to her, and he will ask her if she would love him any less if that had been the case. If you ultimately ask him for a direct answer to the first question, he'll say he simply does not know, because he's dead. The whole scene is a [[RealityEnsues painful reminder]] that all of the dream sequences and imaginary conversations with William are just made up by Chloe's mind. Her dad is gone and won't ever talk to her again.

** The worst part of that scene would have to be when Chloe discovers [[spoiler: her father's car, broken, rusted, alone in the junkyard.]] Chloe can only look at it in complete and utter sadness, as though it were her father's grave itself. There's no comfort here: no doe, no Max, no Rachel. Just Chloe, alone with her own sad, angry thoughts.

-->'''Chloe:''' "(...) I don't want to ruin this the way I ruin everything else in my life. (...) I guess it's easier to be alone if you decide it's a choice. I'm sorry. For whatever I did... or didn't do. Today was the best day I've had since...since my dad died. And I screwed it up somehow. Like I screw everything up. 'Cause I'm a fucking screw up."

* Chloe's insistent to Rachel that with Max gone, she doesn't have any friends. This is despite her pleasant relationships with Mikey, Steph, Samantha, Justin, and Elliot. She ''does'' have friends, she's just too blinded by the grief of losing her father ''and'' Max that she fails to realize that these five people ''genuinely like being around her.'' It's sad to see that her isolation is largely self-invoked and that she's just in too much pain to realize it.
** [[spoiler: Although in the case of Elliot, it turns out it's a good thing she's kept him at bay.]]

* Chloe's first dream sequence with William, which consists of a reenactment of the accident that claimed his life on the Blackwell stage (complete with an audience watching). The sequence ends with William being struck by a truck, with a ''trail of blood left behind''. Say what you will about Rhianna Devries, but the way Chloe screams "DAD!" as she witnesses the carnage really drives home ''haunted'' Chloe is by the death of her father and how broken she truly is inside.

** If Mikey [[spoiler: ends up in the hospital after being assaulted by Damon]], he and Chloe can play another tabletop game where she has to convince Mikey to sacrifice her to save himself. While it's not tearjerking on its' own, the conversation is ''massively'' HarsherInHindsight when one considers how Chloe [[spoiler: would later have to make the same argument to Max--for real]].

** [[spoiler: Additionally, the fresh dirt and shovel in the background of that scene, suggesting that Frank buried Damon]]
** [[spoiler: Also also, Frank pours one out for Damon as the scene fades.]]

* Max has trouble to break the news that she will move. If she tries to tell it right away, Chloe distracts her with the pirate treasure and if Max tells her the next time the occasion presents, Chloe admits she knows- their parents talked about it even though Max' parents agreed Max should be the one to break it to Chloe. Max then either ask why Chloe pretended to not know or continue to blame herself for not being upfront right away.

* A milder case, but whereas the original game shows us David as [[spoiler: apparently]] a violent control freak and an oppressive, negative presence in Chloe's life, in this game, though still a rather stern hardass, David is simply Joyce's boyfriend trying to build a positive relationship with his stepdaughter-to-be, only to (somewhat depending on your choices) have his efforts thrown in his face. Extra points when you consider that, as seen in ''Life is Strange'', Chloe NEVER did warm up to him (and things got even worse between them), but [[spoiler: through it all, David was, in his own way, a good man trying to protect her and the Blackwell kids, and he always loved Chloe like a daughter, as he proves when he goes APESHIT on Jefferson for killing her]]. For any stepfather, it can be sad that, no matter your intentions, despite your best efforts, your stepdaughter hates your guts.

** The argument between the two friends gets more [[HeartwarmingMoments heartwarming]] later on however when Rachel apologizes to Chloe for her behavior. But it veers straight back into TearJerker status when we find out what Rachel's earlier behavior was all about.

* As beautiful as it is, the relationship between Chloe and Rachel is certainly and sadly DoomedByCanon. [[spoiler: Not because Rachel is going to be accidentally killed, but because Rachel is canonically in love with at least two other characters by the time the original game starts. Rachel's offer to move out of Arcadia Bay with Chloe may not be genuine, as she makes [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/life-is-strange/images/f/f9/Rachel%27s_letter_to_Frank.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20151219205221 the same offer]] to Frank Bowers, whom she was in a relationship with without Chloe knowing. In addition to that, it is confirmed by WordOfGod in a [[https://m.twitch.tv/squareenix/v/24111126?desktop-redirect=true live stream]] that Rachel falls love with Jefferson after breaking up with Frank, and he is the special person she spoke about before disappearing]]. All that's left is to see how it plays out in this game.

** The worst part of that scene would have to be when Chloe discovers [[spoiler: her father's car, broken, rusted, alone in the junkyard.]] Chloe can only look on it in complete and utter sadness, as though it were her father's grave itself. There's no comfort here: no doe, no Max, no Rachel. Just Chloe, alone with her own sad, angry thoughts.

* Really, just the fact that despite what the player may want to do to make Chloe and Rachel's lives better, it still leaves the player down the path that leads to the first game where Rachel goes missing [[spoiler:and is discovered dead and buried]], leaving Chloe - who had enlisted Max to help her find Rachel - utterly heartbroken when she discovers what happened to her old best friend.

** Crossing over into heartwarming territory, the really sad thing is, for all her anger, Chloe REALLY misses Max, and admits she'd welcome her back with open arms if she ever returned. Not only is this sad because it shows just HOW lonely Chloe is (Max really was her only friend), but it gives their relationship in the original Life is Strange a whole new meaning as, upon encountering Max (not without SOME resentment) she does just that.

* Chloe must undertake a Backtalk challenge in order to get past Skip and into the dorms. Succeed and Skip will allow her to pass after he is called away. Fail the challenge and while Chloe will still be allowed to pass, Skip will deliver a bitter and heartbreaking speech on how he is pissed off at the fact that her and all of her classmates have constantly exploited him and his authority to get what they want. After Wells calls him on the radio, Skip tells him to go fuck himself and essentially quits his job on the spot.
* Joyce in general. Her behaviour and texts make it very clear she cares deeply about her daughter and tries to help Chloe as best as she can. However, her efforts are constantly rendered moot due to Chloe's unwillingness to accept David in her life. In episode 2, her voice and facial expressions during the scenes she's in betray her desperation and sadness over the situation. Props go to her voice-actress for conveying these emotions in a heartbreaking way.

* When Chloe goes to clean out her locker she can take an old picture of her cat, who her dad rescued from an animal shelter, before it died by getting run over. The bitterness in Chloe's voice is very stark and it's just more evidence of all the things she's lost in life.

** Trying to facilitate friendships between other characters and Chloe becomes this [[spoiler: due to the fact that none of these people, save Justin, are present in the main game. This implies a few things, the major one being that Chloe was so focused on her and Rachel's relationship that she never makes an attempt to contact the North brothers, Steph, or Samantha after episode three. Or she possibly shuts them out and isolated herself after Rachel's disappearance. Regardless, with the exception of Justin, she stops seeing them at some point and ends up alone again until Max appears... After which it's possible that she dies alone on a cold bathroom floor from a gun shot wound.]]
** Even her friendship with Justin is kind of sad in light of this game. [[spoiler: Not only does she seemingly loose the North brothers, Steph and Samantha as friends at some point over three years]] but her bond with Justin in the main game ''really isn't that strong'' and he canonically gets so stoned that ''he forgets her name if she isn't present'' by that point.
* Chloe's first dream sequence with William, which consists of a reenactment of the accident that claimed his life on the Blackwell stage (complete with an audience watching). The sequence ends with William being struck by a truck, with a ''trail of blood left behind''. Say what you will about Rhianna Devries, but the way Chloe screams "DAD!" as she witnesses the carnage really drives home home ''haunted'' Chloe is by the death of her father and how broken she truly is inside.

** It's possible for Samantha and Nathan's relationship to deteriorate in this game, despite Samantha's attempts to reach out to Nathan. One of the potential conversations in the hospital involves an argument between Samantha's mom and Sean Prescott, which reveals [[spoiler:Nathan broke Samantha's ribs. Sean dismisses her by saying that Nathan was protecting himself from unwanted advances]].
* Chloe imagining her dad being with her and having a conversation with him before driving up the burned out Mill for the [[spoiler: final confrontation with Damon]]. She'll ask him if he ever lied to her, and he will ask her if she would love him any less if that had been the case. If you ultimately ask him for a direct answer to the first question, he'll say he simply does not know, because he's dead. The whole scene is a [[RealityEnsues painful reminder]] that all of the dream sequences and imaginary conversations with William are just made up by Chloe's mind. Her dad is gone and won't ever talk to her again.

* Max and Chloe spend most of the episode following the leads they set up years ago to find the "treasure" [[spoiler: which turns out to be a time capsule, with some drawings, toys and letters their younger selves left for each other.]]. If this isn't emotional enough, we find out [[spoiler: William took the time to dig it up and put it in a protective container so it'd be properly preserved...and left a tape recording, in character as a pirate, telling them he's proud of both of them.]]. At first glance, this is a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming, but soon falls straight into Tearkerker territory when you realize [[spoiler: these are William's last words to Chloe...]]

* The episode lets you examine every nook and cranny in the Price household and Chloe's bedroom, and almost everything has some memory attached to it or ellicits a reaction or thought. Even looking at Chloe gets Max to think about her or even tell her how much he loves her. For Max, this isn't just any other day at Chloe's house, it's probably the last day she'll spend at the place where she's spent much of her life with her best friend, and for all she knows, it's the very last look she'll get to take at everything...including Chloe.

* Seeing the destruction of all plans Price family had for future - William was promoted and planned to paint the house, Joyce wanted to quit smoking and become a teacher and whole family was planning to go Arizona on a trip. All of that gone in blink of an eye.

[[/folder]]
* The game lets you examine every nook and cranny in the Price household and Chloe's bedroom, and almost everything has some memory attached to it or ellicits a reaction or thought. Even looking at Chloe gets Max to think about her or even tell her how much he loves her. For Max, this isn't just any other day at Chloe's house, it's probably the last day she'll spend at the place where she's spent much of her life with her best friend, and for all she knows, it's the very last look she'll get to take at everything...including Chloe.
** In a rather meta sense...it's also the last look WE'll get to take.

[[/folder]]

* Max' promise at the end to always be there for Chloe, which causes Chloe to break down in tears and hug the cassette player, is extra sad because we know this is not what happens - Max will soon stop writing and essentially abandon Chloe in her worst time.