Month: August 2019

World of Warcraft Classic, the re-release of Blizzard’s MMO, brings players back in time to replicate the WoW experience as it was more than a decade ago–and that includes warts and all.

Blizzard has now published a “not a bug list” that covers things that appear to be a bug but are actually accurate and representative of WoW as it was years ago. “The nature of WoW Classic sometimes invokes different memories for different players, and this leads to certain misconceptions for some about what is or isn’t working as intended,” Blizzard said in a blog post.

One example of something that might look like a bug but is actually working as intended is how pet aggro works–the aggro radius very inconsistent, and that’s exactly how it was in the vanilla WoW. Additionally, WoW Classic players may notice that available quests don’t appear with a “!” on the mini-map, and that’s not a bug. Additionally, quests with long descriptions don’t have text wrapping, and that’s how it’s supposed to be. On top of that, quest objectives and points of interest are not shown on maps, but that’s the way it was for the original WoW.

You can see the full “not a bug” list below, as written by Blizzard.

WoW Classic does have some real bugs, however, and these span almost all aspects of the game. These issues were detailed by Blizzard in a separate post, and you can see a roundup of all the known WoW Classic issues here.

WoW Classic is proving to be extremely popular, so much so that players are facing lengthy server queues, even though Blizzard added an additional four servers ahead of launch.

WoW Classic, as its name suggests, is a re-release of the original genre-defining MMO from 2004 with some functionality changes. It’s free for existing subscribers of WoW. For more, check out GameSpot’s rundown of everything you need to know about WoW Classic.

WoW Classic “Not A Bug” List:

• Tauren’s hitboxes and their melee reach is slightly larger than other races.
• Being critically struck while using /sit to sit does not cause abilities like Enrage, Blood Craze, and Reckoning to activate.
• Using the “Automatic Quest Tracking” option does not auto-track newly accepted quests. (It instead will start to track an existing quest once progress towards an objective is started.)
• Warrior health Regeneration is working at the expected rate.
• Quests objectives and points of interests are not tracked on the map or minimap.
• Completed quests are marked on the minimap with a dot. (and not a “?”)
• Feared players and NPCs run fast.
• Standing on top of other players while facing away allows spells and attacks to be used.
• Creature respawn rates are much slower than in Battle for Azeroth.
• NPCs which offer multiple quests may inconsistently display them as a dot or a “!” on the available quests list. They were inconsistent in 1.12, and we’ve reproduced the exact inconsistency they had back then.
• Quests that are too low level for do not show up as a “!” in the game world.
• Available quests do not display a “!” on the minimap.
• On level up, the message: “Your skill in Protection increased to 15” was added in 1.12.1, and we’re intending to keep that.
• You are unable to Polymorph enemy targets that are tapped by players with whom you are not grouped.
• At all levels of player characters and enemies, aggro radius is set to the intended distance.
• Long quest objectives don’t have text wrapping.
• Fall damage is equivalent to expected and verified values.
• Broadcast text can be seen multiple times if multiple players interact with the same NPC.
• WANTED signs do not have “!”, and are also not highlighted.
• Player characters do not animate when looting/interacting with quest objects (e.g. collecting pumpkins).
• Gnomes and Taurens are the correct size.
• “Melee leeway” is working as intended in both PvE and PvP.
• Cone of Cold is behaving consistently with the reference client.
• Arcane Missiles does not put the caster in combat .
• A Hunter’s Frost Trap ground effect will break Rogues out of stealth.
• The Berserking Troll racial ability is behaving as expected and matches the reference client.
• The pet that a Warlock has when initially logging into the game world does not restore a Soul Shard when dismissed by taking a flight path or moving out of range.
• The trigger range on Hunter’s traps are reduced by Stealth when the stealthed player is a similar or higher level than the Hunter.
• Soul Link cannot be dispelled by dispelling the Warlock’s pet.
• A Warlock’s Succubus and Felhunter pet cannot cast spells if they are out of line of sight of the target.
• Manually cancelling Stealth after using Vanish will remove the Vanish buff as well as the Stealth buff.
• Escape Artist has a very small chance to fail when used to escape an effect that has a decreased chance to be dispelled (e.g. a Rogue’s Vile Poisons talent).
• Rogues are not broken out of stealth by Blizzard until they take damage.
• Taunting Hunter pets that are set to Aggressive or Defensive mode will cause them to attack the taunting player.
• The threat generated by Battle Shout is not capped at 5 party members and is increased when affecting targets such as Hunter and Warlock pets within the same party.
• The chest at the end of the encounter with The Seven in Blackrock Depths does not prompt a loot roll. Beware of Ninjas!
• Other players do not see a Hunter’s quiver on their back.
• Shield Slam and other off-hand abilities does not proc extra attacks from Windfury.
• Logging into World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth while playing WoW Classic on the same game account will disconnect you from WoW Classic. This is true in reverse as well.

Hunter concerns:

• Hunter “dead zone” is working as expected and is consistent with the Reference Client.
• A wolf pet’s Howl buff is consumed by anything that causes damage, even if it does not benefit from the buff.
• A Hunter pet’s Bite and Claw ability damage will not change in the tooltip based on the happiness of the pet. The tooltip will always display the damage as if the pet were Content (yellow). This is consistent with the Reference client.
• Traps can sometimes not be triggered if a player moves over them very quickly (i.e. a Warrior’s Charge ability). This behavior is consistent with the Reference client.
• Auto Shot does not make a sound when cast during the animation of Hunter’s Mark and certain other abilities.
• Scatter Shot, Wyvern Sting, and Freezing Trap share diminishing returns.
• A Hunter’s Frost Trap ground effect will break players out of stealth.
• The rate at which pet focus regenerates is not always consistent.
  • Note: While the actual amount of focus that can be generated per tick is inconsistent, the total amount generated over time is flat and consistent. There are slight variations in the time between ticks that cause this to display inconsistently.
• Pet aggro radius is working properly and as expected. This is to say, it was extremely inconsistent in original WoW, and it remains inconsistent in WoW Classic.
• Pets “remember” targets that they have been instructed to attack previously and when sending a pet to attack a different target, the pet will return to attack any remaining targets they were previously instructed to attack when the currently engaged target dies.
• Pets that have been instructed to attack dead targets with a special ability or attack will attempt to approach and attack the dead target, but will return to the hunter’s side when the ability fails.
• Other players do not see a Hunter’s quiver on their back.
• Hunters can sometimes experience a slight delay before recasting Auto Shot after moving.
  • Note: There is a hidden “retry” timer that occurs if the hunter is moving when the normal swing timer finishes. This timer checks for hunter movement before trying to resume auto shot, and this timer refreshes every 500ms when the hunter is moving. This means that if a Hunter is moving and stops moving just after this timer refreshes, you need to wait until the retry timer checks again to validate that you are no longer moving and can resume casting auto shot. This is not a result of spell batching or server heartbeats, and is specific to the functionality of a Hunter’s Auto Shot. This is consistent with Auto Shot functionality on the Reference client.

World of Warcraft‘s much-anticipated “Classic” edition–which lets you experience the MMO as it was a decade ago–has finally arrived. The release wasn’t without problems, however, as Blizzard has now disclosed a long list of “known issues” for launch.

In a blog post, Blizzard said it hopes to fix these problems in due course, but the company also acknowledged that it can’t say when or even if any individual bug will be addressed. The known issues span a number of different aspects of WoW Classic, including art, animation, and sound; combat; creatures and NPCs; UI; and spells, buffs, and talents.

You can see a list of all the known issues below; they’re accurate as of August 26. Additionally, Blizzard said the list is not comprehensive, but instead it is a “sampling” of some of the issues it anticipates players may experience “with some regularity.”

Importantly, this list of known issues for WoW Classic is separate from another list of “not bugs,” which are things that might look like bugs but are actually accurate to the Classic experience.

WoW Classic, as its name suggests, is a re-release of the original genre-defining MMO from 2004 with some functionality changes. It’s free for existing subscribers of WoW. For more, check out GameSpot’s rundown of everything you need to know about WoW Classic.

Launch is just the beginning for WoW Classic, as Blizzard plans to release new features and activities including the raid Blackwing Lair, the PvP battleground Warsong Gulch, and server-wide events like the Scourge Invasion, among other things.

WoW Classic Known Issues (as of August 26)

Art, Animation, and Sound

• The Warlock’s Imp pet is using an incorrect spell casting animation
• Some belts are displaying extra textures on non-belt areas of the body
• There are multiple display issues with the Egan’s Blaster quest item
• The quiver model is not displaying on the Hunter’s back if you have an ammo pouch in your bags
• The player character’s upper torso/head is locked forward while strafing left and right with something targeted
• Players can become stuck in a ready animation when activating Shoot or Auto Shot more than once in rapid succession
• Characters will rotate their lower body too responsively while in the combat ready stance
• Food and drink objects do not fade correctly when a stealthed character is eating or drinking
• Casting Shoot immediately after casting another spell can cause the wand animation to become delayed
• Noggenfogger Elixir does not retain the skeleton model on a shapeshifted Druid
• A Hunter’s Auto-Shot does not animate, display a missile, or play a sound when it fires immediately after Aimed Shot or Multi-Shot
• Several spell visuals for Hunter, Warlock, and Paladin abilities will incorrectly continue to loop after the initial spell cast or impact
• A Hunter’s Freezing Trap is missing a ring visual above the trap
• The Warrior skill Recklessness has a persistent visual throughout its duration, which did not occur in Original WoW
• Several player spells and abilities can occasionally play additional overlapping sound effects when used
• Sheathing and unsheathing weapons does not play a sound.

Combat

• Hunter Pets may occasionally get stuck on Follow if the command is issued during Feign Death
• Extra attacks stored by Reckoning do not expire when the player mounts
• A Hunter’s Multi-Shot ability can chain more than 10 yards from the primary target
• A Warlock’s Drain Soul spell does not appropriately deal damage when the channel time is shortened via spell pushback

Creatures and NPCs

• Loot sparkles do not scale up with creature size
• Creatures that are affected by a Rogue’s Distract ability do not turn quickly enough
• Creatures that are affected by a Rogue’s Gouge ability will occasionally turn to face a different direction
• Battle Companions such as the Battle Chicken may occasionally become frozen after combat and fail to follow the player
• Gordo may occasionally wander through the side of a bridge and get stuck inside of a tree in Tirisfal Glades
• The dragon Gyth has multiple animation issues during the Rend Blackhand encounter in Blackrock Spire
• Taking a flight path from Nethergarde Keep to Morgan’s Vigil will cause the taxi to clip through a building shortly after taking off

Engine and User Interface

• When within detection range of a friendly stealthed unit, the stealthed unit’s name is incorrectly visible
• SSAO does not render correctly in Windows 10
• Macro tooltips do not load in when you first load into the client
• Some area of effect debuffs like Explosive Trap do not display a duration
• Several ranks of Warlock and Shaman spells do not display damage variance in their tooltips
• If Dual Wield is known, One-Hand weapons may be erroneously equipped to the Off-Hand slot if dragged into the Main Hand slot while a Main Hand weapon is equipped
• The default raid frames do not hide long-term buffs like Power Word: Fortitude while in combat
• Macros that cast Pet abilities without specifying the rank do not update when the Pet learns a new rank of the ability
• There is a conflict with some overlays such as Discord and Shadowplay that causes the client to crash when some video settings are adjusted
• The chat messages that indicate a player’s inebriation level are incorrect

Spells, Buffs, and Talents

• Players can mount on transports
• Cleansed Songflower, Cleansed Whipper Root, and Cleansed Night Dragon cannot be simultaneously looted by multiple players
• Players are not forced to re-purchase ranks of talented abilities that they have bought at least once before

Marvel Studios took to Disney’s D23 Expo to give fans a first look at several new costumes for Natasha Romanoff in her upcoming solo movie, Black Widow, as well as our first sneak at two new MCU characters in costume for the first time. A poster handed out on the show floor featured both Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova and David Harbour’s Red Guardian, suited up for the very first time.

We’ve covered where Yelena fits into the Black Widow pantheon, so that leaves Red Guardian. Who, exactly, is he? Why does he matter in Natasha’s story and, more importantly, what will his introduction mean for the MCU?

The answer to these questions are, unsurprisingly, pretty complicated, given Natasha’s strange comic book past as well as her current position within the MCU, and how both of those things play into real-world history. Let’s break it down.

Meet Alexei Shoskatov

Originally introduced back in the early 1960s, the second Red Guardian, known in his civilian life as Alexei Shoskatov was, unsurprisingly, a pretty stereotypical product of the Cold War era in superhero comics. Marvel, specifically, was heavily reliant on current events to bring a sense of realism to their stories, so themes that revolved around a cartoonishly overblown Russian threat to the American Way were more than just commonplace, they were Marvel staples–especially where Natasha, the Avengers own Russian femme fatale, was concerned.

But naturally, comics needed more than just spy-vs-spy style action, especially when superheroes were involved, so these topical stories were often peppered with healthy servings of soapy melodrama. Alexei’s first appearance features a real bombshell: He’s actually Natasha’s long lost husband! Gasp!

Of course, it’s important to remember that in the 1960s, virtually everything about Natasha, from her origin story to her character design, would be basically unrecognizable to modern fans. This was before the concept of the Red Room had been introduced and the idea that Natasha was anything more than a somewhat duplicitous Russian spy who worked for SHIELD and that the mantle of Black Widow was anything more than an arbitrary code name was still a long, long ways off.

Using what little backstory Nat had in those early days as a very loose framework, it was explained that Alexei was a famous Soviet World War II hero who had married Nat during her very successful ballet career in the USSR. However, not long after their marriage, and as the Cold War began to roll in earnest, the KGB decided that Alexei’s skills as a soldier were too useful to waste. He was sent out on a mission where he was forced to fake his own death and sever all contact with his private life so that he could dedicate himself to becoming a symbol of Soviet power and prosperity as Red Guardian, similar to the way Captain America functioned as a symbol for the USA.

Naturally, Natasha was predictably distraught to hear that her husband had “died,” and in this early version of her origin, her mourning actually inspired her to join the KGB as well, to train as a spy–which is how she became Black Widow. You know, like you do.

All told, Alexei’s early days in Marvel lasted a scant two issues before he was defeated by Captain America and “died” under a heap of molten lava. In the years following his death, he became a sort of staple of Natasha’s ever-shifting backstory as she mourned for her late husband. Despite the fact that he went out a villain, she still believed him to be a good person at the core.

He came back a few times–both as a faux-zombie (don’t ask) and as a life-model decoy robot, or LMD, before being officially resurrected in the early 2000s. By then, however, Natasha’s origin story and circumstances had drastically changed into something we’d consider more familiar, so the story of a fake-dead KGB brainwashed husband didn’t quite land the way it did back in the 1960s.

With the emotional stakes of his story significantly downgraded, Alexei was largely downgraded to C or D list villain after that, taking on the mantle of Ronin for a time and working as an ultimately forgettable villain for Natasha to fight every now and again. The fact that he’s still, technically and despite all the origin story changes, Natasha’s ex-husband rarely comes up.

So, he’s a super soldier?

It’s tempting, given the Captain America comparisons, to assume that Alexei had his own knock-off version of the super soldier serum we associate with Steve Rogers–but that’s actually not the case. Alexei’s origin took place in an era of Marvel before Steve Rogers was given the backstory we now consider ubiquitous with him–back in the 60s, Steve was just a regular guy who got very strong the regular way. That was the case with Alexei as well–no powers, no healing factor, no abilities outside what the Marvel Universe considered “standard” for human superheroes.

What Alexei did have, however, was his own answer to Cap’s shield. Sort of. He wore a circular, magnetized belt buckle that he could throw and have return to him.

No, really. That was his main weapon.

Alexei never actually got the origin story overhaul that Steve did–he had long since faded into relative obscurity by the time the idea of the serum had really crystalized into Steve’s history–so even in his more modern appearances, he remains just a very fit but ultimately totally normal guy.

Other characters to take on the Red Guardian name in Alexei’s wake got less ridiculous weapons, including their own full-size Captain America style shields (usually solid red with a white star) and powers that were more in line with Steve’s modern incarnation.

How will this work in the MCU?

That’s the real question. It’s difficult, given just how much the MCU has modified or otherwise updated Natasha’s story, to see just how a relic of her oldest comic book past will fit into the puzzle. It’s unlikely that their marriage will cross over, given the way MCU Natasha has canonically been trained in the Red Room since birth–though her time between the Red Room and joining SHIELD remains mysterious, so maybe there was time for a brief affair in there somewhere.

Also, given how the timeline of events works in the MCU, and the fact that Alexei has never been known to be frozen, cryogenically or otherwise, it seems very likely that the World War II components of his past are going to be modified. David Harbour is 44-years-old, so it would be tricky to justify him as a vet of any Cold War-era conflicts, much less a hero of the USSR. However, there’s plenty of cryo-tech laying around the MCU–just ask Bucky Barnes–so maybe he’ll be getting a major update to his backstory that way, rather than a proper modernization.

In fact, given how the MCU incarnation of Steve Rogers features the super serum so prevalently, and how organizations like Hydra were definitely trying to duplicate it during the 1940s, it’s totally possible the live-action version of Alexei could be more of a Captain America clone than ever before, borrowing more from the other Red Guardians in Marvel history rather than Alexei himself. That could certainly make things interesting.

We’re certainly not short on new game releases this week, and the reviews for many of these games are already beginning to roll on in. One, Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey, is seeing a bit of an indecisive divide, with some outlets praising the survival game while others haven’t been as positive.

In Ancestors, you take control of a clan of apes in 10 million BC Africa and you must try and survive long enough for your lineage to endure until 2 million BC. You do this by eating, drinking, sleeping, reproducing, making mistakes, experimenting, and learning long enough until you can evolve and pass what you’ve acquired onto the next generation. The process is slow and dangerous, with both physical ailments and hungry predators repeatedly getting in your way.

Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey launches for PC via the Epic Games Store on August 26. The game is also scheduled to release for Xbox One and PS4 in December. Below, we’ve compiled a list of some of the reviews that have already gone live for Ancestors, including our own. For a wider look at Ancestors’ critical reception, visit GameSpot’s sister site Metacritic.

• Game: Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey
• Developer: Panache Digital Games
• Platform: PC, Xbox One, PS4
• Release Date: August 27 (December on consoles)
• Price: $40 USD

GameSpot — 4/10

“Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey lingers for far too long on its most toilsome aspects. The game does reward initial experimentation, but then asks you to repeat processes over and over again without any means of securing your legacy. It’s an absolute grind to reach the closest that Ancestors has to an endgame goal–survive for eight million years–and one costly mistake, whether the game’s or your own, can erase everything you’ve accomplished. What small satisfaction the game does provide is consistently ruined by violent predators, though the threat does lessen once you make it far enough into the neurological network’s expansive skill and perk tree. But as it stands, investing in Ancestors’ journey demands too much effort for too little reward.” — Jordan Ramée [Full review]

PC Gamer — 5.8/10

“Alas, the lineage of the Chunky Monkeys were wiped out about million years later after losing a few fights and running out of fertile females, and my next two clans didn’t fare much better. Starting Ancestors over again from the beginning is a major drag, having to re-discover every leaf and plant I’ve already long since grown tired of gathering, sniffing, and tasting—not to mention repeating all those endless, ulterior backrubs. I haven’t completed Ancestors yet, but I’ve definitely had enough of it.” — Christopher Livingston [Full review]

Rock, Paper, Shotgun — No Score

“I wrote most of this review, then felt maybe I was being too harsh. So I took a break and went back. I wanted to enjoy it. This time I’d play slower, explore a bit, find new foods, new tools and places. For a while I did that, and thought: maybe this is just a game that rewards people with more patience. But it was not long before I was being devoured by a forest lion because of the crap dodge mechanic. That ape was the last primateperson of my lineage, and although I could continue by going back to the main menu and trying again from a checkpoint, I decided to let the future human race die out. In many ways, it was a relief to be so thoroughly digested. Thank you, big cat. You can keep this jungle, I don’t want it.” — Brendan Caldwell [Full review]

Polygon — No Score

“Trying to break down Ancestors’ many systems would be a mighty task for a review, and to be honest, I don’t understand enough of them to try, even with about 10 hours’ worth of play under my belt. The strongest motivation I found to try new things was boredom — and I mean that in a flattering way. I could stay near my clan, and eat and drink and sleep as a contented hominid for as long as I’d like, but why would you play any kind of game if you didn’t want to go on an adventure?” — Ben Kuchera [Full review]

VG247 — No Score

“Ancestors feels wilfully stubborn. Even after developing my memory neurons, form recognition and sense of smell, my avatar was still forgetting what a dead branch looked like every 50 feet, or the sound of a hissing snake. It doesn’t really feel like it’s about evolution at all, as each generation only remembers the skills you’ve reinforced and will forget the rest, which means you need to repeat the same actions for millions of in-game years. There is a direction of sorts – expand and evolve – but the lack of colour, repetitive noises and actions all blend into one. It’s initially interesting, but its bundle of ideas and systems stumble between clever and stupid, intuitive and clunky. Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey needs more time to evolve.” — Lauren Aitken [Full review]

IGN — 7/10

“Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey’s greatest challenge is working out – or simply Googling – how its basic survival, crafting, and combat mechanics work. Once you understand them they become mostly trivial, and the main appeal becomes appreciating the exploration of the huge and lush prehistoric African map. Evolving your tribe’s abilities feels artificially drawn out, but it’s hard not to develop a soft spot for these disposable apes because of their authentic animations.” — Dan Stapleton [Full review]

Overwatch may be coming to Nintendo Switch. There’s been no confirmation, but a leak via Amazon could suggest an announcement of a Switch port might be coming soon.

Reset Era user Lady Bow discovered an Amazon listing for an Overwatch-themed Switch protection case. The listing has since been pulled, so we’ve reached out to the supposed creators of the case, PowerA, and Overwatch developer Blizzard, to determine its authenticity.

Alone, this might be very little. But in an interview with GameSpot last year, Blizzard senior producer Pete Stilwell said that the studio used the process of porting Diablo III to Switch as an opportunity to familiarize itself with the capabilities of Nintendo’s current hardware. At the time, Stilwell was adamant that Blizzard came away from the experience deciding to only work on a Switch port for Diablo III. However, he did go on to say that a Switch port for Overwatch is “feasible,” unlike StarCraft II.

An Overwatch-themed Switch case might be made without a port–especially since Amazon has a history of leaking products by listing tie-ins early–but it’s also totally possible. The leak could also just be fake, so take our speculation with a grain of salt. However, these clues do seem to at least suggest it’s possible Blizzard might be getting ready to announce a new Overwatch Switch port at BlizzCon 2019. The next most opportune venue for a big announcement such as this would be BlizzCon 2019, which is scheduled to begin on November 1. That’s just close enough that Blizzard may have already reached out to third-party vendors like PowerA to begin production on a Switch case to go with the new port.

Or maybe Nintendo will just announce that Tracer is coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Who knows?

Overwatch is available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. In GameSpot’s Overwatch review, Mike Mahardy wrote, “Overwatch encourages a more tangible sort of progression: that of filling a critical role on your team and understanding its intricacies the more you play, adapt, and grow. There is a genuine learning process here. There is real value to the time you spend understanding these overlapping systems. It’s that intoxicating path of discovery that makes Overwatch so varied, so rewarding, and ultimately another seminal release from developer Blizzard. Overwatch is an intelligent cascade of disparate ideas, supporting one another, pouring into one another, and coiling around themselves as they flow into the brilliant shooter underneath.”

Life Is Strange 2‘s most compelling moments revolve around the unconditional love between Sean and Daniel Diaz. The road from Seattle to Puerto Lobos has been a long one, but watching the brothers adapt and ultimately thrive together regardless of their circumstances is a satisfying constant within the series so far. Enter Episode 4, where Sean finds himself alone in a hospital bed just a day away from being sent to a juvenile detention facility for something he didn’t do. While the central plot stumbles with some overwrought villains and an uninspiring environment to explore, Sean’s genuine characterization and relationships with nuanced characters continue to elevate the narrative. His singular drive to find and rescue his brother propels him, and you, forward in the chaotic penultimate episode of Life Is Strange 2.

Reality comes crashing down right out the gate in stark contrast to last episode’s trundling pace. The ramifications of the brothers’ fatal encounter with a Seattle police officer have caught up with them, but the more pressing issue is Daniel’s absence. This is as much a problem for Sean as it is for the dynamicity of the plot. With Daniel taking a backseat, his character development takes a hit, and the episode’s interactivity suffers from your inability to use his powers. Additionally, there’s less general decision-making, and there are only rare occasions where problem-solving is required, which is a shame for the puzzling-inclined.

As expected, Episode 4 pulls on the heartstrings just as much as its predecessors. One encounter features Sean facing off against an angry racist landowner, demanding to know why Sean is parked on his property. What transpires is unsettling and heartbreaking. Sean once again has to choose between his safety and his self-respect, and either decision will result in him screaming as he speeds away with tears streaming down his face. It’s a heart-wrenching moment, made all the more painful by the consistently stellar voice acting of Gonzalo Martin.

This event is followed by one where you must make a choice: trust a truck driver to give you a ride or continue Sean’s painful trek on foot. The choice is inevitably informed by Sean’s fractured trust in people, which you find yourself sharing as a result of his immensely sympathetic character. Life Is Strange 2 continues its theme of the best and worst of humanity living side by side. The grander implications of racism, politics, and what’s to be done about either aren’t questions the game attempts to answer (nor should it)–but seeing the impact on someone trapped in a hostile and divided world continues to be an illuminating and empathy-inducing experience.

While these plot moments are strong, the central storyline revolves around an evangelical cult that Daniel has become caught up in. The figures who head up the church–a manipulative, science-averse Reverend and her brainwashed muscle–are irritating and two-dimensional. The cult plotpoint feels oddly out of place from the road trip you’ve been taking so far, and it’s over almost as soon as it begins. Aside from serving as the impetus for some great character-building moments for Sean, it feels like a pitstop we didn’t need to take, bringing the narrative progress to an unnecessary halt.

The episode shines brightest in its well-written interactions between fascinating characters. These explore themes of independence, family, religion, and fear with the deft touch we’ve come to expect from the series so far. While many lack context, these interactions are delivered beautifully, and what they inform about the central characters is worth the bizarre circumstances that brought them about. One hugely important character drops into the story suddenly and without any kind of foreshadowing, for example. They kick off an important emotional turning point for Sean, but it’s borne out of such an absurd situation that the moment doesn’t carry as much weight as it would have under more sensible circumstances. The result is a series of truly engrossing conversations without the interlocking threads to weave them seamlessly into an equally engrossing larger narrative.

Unlike from the villains, the new characters and their backstories are compelling and authentic. This is also because the impact of choice takes a backseat–there is only one major moment this episode that will change as a result of your decisions in the story so far. This is equally delightful and frustrating. While only be able to make choices within the framework of how Sean would act can be disappointing, it ultimately allows the characters and their personalities to shine more, and that makes for a better story overall.

Life Is Strange 2 illustrates how self-interest can trump family values, good people make bad choices, and no matter how you feel about someone, you can’t control the person they are doomed or destined to be as a result of their choices. That goes not just for people around Sean, but Sean himself. It’s a palpable and universal message that Life Is Strange 2 continues to convincingly deliver on a mechanical and thematic level.

The supernatural collides with reality under the guise of radical religion in a way that feels too cliche, but spending more time with Sean and his confidants remains a delight. Whether you’re heading into the final episode in much the same place you were at the beginning–or under the chilling implications of a certain late game choice–watching Daniel wrap his arms around Sean in either circumstance exemplifies what makes the series work so well. Your Sean can be kind or standoffish, thieving or righteous, but your actions don’t change the love and adoration between the Diaz brothers–and that love is still the heart and soul of Life Is Strange 2.