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This Article Contains Spoilers -
WARNING: This article contains major spoilers. If you do not wish to know vital information on plot / character elements in a story, you may not wish to read beyond this warning: We hold no responsibility for any negative effects these facts may have on your enjoyment of said media should you continue.
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| “ | I wish I could stay in this moment forever. I guess I actually can now... But then it wouldn't be a moment. | „ |
| ~ Max Caulfield. |
Maxine "Max" Caulfield is the main protagonist of the Life is Strange video game franchise.
She is a photography student who discovers she has the ability to rewind time. As she navigates her way through the northwestern town of Arcadia Bay, she reconnects with her childhood friend Chloe Price and unravels the mysteries surrounding the disappearance of another student named Rachel Amber.
Ten years later, Max’s powers resurface as she becomes entangled in a murder mystery involving her new best friend Safi, one that she must unravel by navigating through multiple timelines.
She is voiced by Hannah Tale.
Her Good Ranking[]
What Makes Her Admirable?[]
Life is Strange[]
Episode One: "Chrysalis"[]
- She used her Rewind powers to save Chloe after she was shot in the stomach during a confrontation with Nathan Prescott in the school bathroom.
- Despite Victoria previously antagonizing and bullying her, Max chose to comfort her rather than make fun of her when she got paint spilled on her dress.
- When her friends, Dana and Juliet, got into a big fight over Juliet believing Dana slept with her boyfriend, Max resolved their conflict by finding proof that the whole thing was orchestrated by Victoria, and the two girls made up.
- She stood up for Kate when she saw David needlessly harassing her.
- Unlike everyone else who believes Rachel is dead and thus dismisses Chloe’s claims that she’s still alive, Max was willing to listen and investigate Rachel's disappearance further.
- After having another vision of a large Tornado destroying Acadia Bay, Max warned Chloe of the impending danger.
Episode Two: "Out of Time"[]
- After Kate had an embarrassing video of herself making out with guys from the Vortex party while drunk leaked online, Max comforted her and did everything she could to prevent people from seeing the video.
- After Chloe accidentally shoots herself in the chest during target practice, Max rewinds and saves her.
- She saved Chloe from dying when Chloe got her foot stuck in the train tracks while a speeding train was approaching.
- When Kate stood on the roof of the dormitories, about to jump and commit suicide, Max attempted (and determinately succeeded) to talk her out of it, saving her life.
Episode Three: "Chaos Theory"[]
- She helped Chloe investigate Nathan’s involvement in Rachel’s disappearance, despite the risks it posed to her own safety.
- She warned Alyssa before a passing car splashed water on her.
- After discovering she has the ability to travel back in time using photographs, Max went back to the day Chloe’s dad William died and saved his life by convincing him to stay home, avoiding the car crash that would kill him. However, this backfired since the future changed so now Chloe was the one crippled due to a car accident.
Episode Four: "Dark Room"[]
- When Chloe asked her, Max retrieved her morphine shot and administered it, relieving Chloe’s headache.
- Realizing the mistake of trying to change the past, Max went back in time and let William die in order to prevent Chloe from having her life ruined.
- If Max managed to save Kate in the previous episode, she paid her a visit at the hospital.
- Max talked to several students around campus, trying to gather any intel she could about Nathan or his involvement in any suspicious activity.
- When Warren started beating Nathan senselessly after Nathan caught them searching through his dorm, Max intervened, stating he’s had enough.
- She managed to convince Frank to turn over any info he had in his codebook about Rachel, who turns out to be his drug customers.
- She managed to track down the location of the “Dark Room” , an underground bunker beneath an old farmhouse where Nathan would drug and kidnap girls to take pictures of them.
- After learning that Victoria was Nathan’s next target, Max visited the End of The World Party in an attempt to warn her. (Whether her attempt is successful depends on how Max has treated her in the previous episodes)
- She discovered the location of Rachel’s body, buried at the junkyard.
Episode Five: "Polarized"[]
- After being drugged and kidnapped by Mr. Jefferson, Max traveled back in time to warn David about Mr. Jefferson and the Dark Room, resulting in his and Nathan’s arrests.
- When she discovered that the Tornado vision she saw earlier was still coming to fruition, she willingly undid everything and allowed herself to be drugged and kidnapped, appearing in the Dark Room again.
- She saved David’s life when he was almost kidnapped by Mr. Jefferson by instructing him on how to avoid dying (due to her saving all possible outcomes with her Rewind powers).
- When David asked Max about Chloe’s whereabouts, Max lied, saying Chloe and her were separated. She did this to ensure that David wouldn’t lose his cool and kill Jefferson.
- As she made her way through debris caused by the impending storm, Max rescued several people using her powers, including preventing the Two Whales Diner from exploding.
- If Frank is still alive, Max can reveal the truth about Rachel to him.
- She hugged/kissed Warren, thanking him for all of his help and support, before using the picture she took with him at the party to travel back once more.
- She informed Chloe of everything that she’s experienced, alternate timelines included, and together the two alerted David to Jefferson’s scheme and made their way to the lighthouse in preparation for the storm.
- In the end, Max can choose to sacrifice either Chloe to ensure the survival of everyone in Arcadia Bay, or sacrifice Arcadia Bay (and possibly its residents) to save Chloe.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure[]
Chapter One: "Still Life"[]
- When Reggie accidentally spilled his drink at the bar, Max stepped in to clean it up while Amanda, the bartender, was away in the bathroom.
- After discovering that a prankster had flipped all the paintings in the bar upside down, Max took it upon herself to set them right again.
- She expressed concern for Safi's safety when she ran off alone and chose to follow her instead of heading home as she had originally planned.
- Over text, she showed sympathy to Chloe's mother, Joyce, on the second anniversary of Chloe's death (if Chloe was sacrificed in the first game).
- Max can write a heartfelt message for Safi on the memorial board in the administration building.
- She offered to retrieve Vinh's package from the mailroom and delivered it to him.
- She comforted Safi's mother and helped choose a photo for Safi's funeral.
- When she met Moses, Max apologized for ignoring his messages and brought him the hot chocolate he had forgotten.
What Makes Her Inconsistent?[]
- Like many other story-driven games, Max’s morality is dependent on player choice. She can make many morally-dubious decisions, such as not intervening when she sees David harassing Kate, mocking and antagonizing Victoria, not warning Victoria about Jefferson, getting Frank and his dog killed, going out of her way to not save or help others around her when she has the ability to, etc.
- She has a short temper, and can lash out at people on a whim. This trait can be more or less pronounced depended on player choice.
- She’s very mischievous and enjoys breaking the rules, particularly when she and Chloe broke into the school to retrieve files about Nathan. The two messed around and went skinny dipping in the pool. In Double Exposure, she and Safi snuck into an abandoned bowling alley to take photos, and although Max warned Safi not to touch anything in order to preserve the space as it was, Max herself disregards this.
- While it’s unconfirmed how many exactly died in the “Sacrifice Arcadia Bay” Ending, it’s heavily implied to be the majority of the people who live there, with the only confirmed survivors being Max and Chloe themselves, Kate, who’s in a hospital far from the town (if she’s still alive at this point), and David, who makes a minor appearance in the second game.
- Although it was entirely unintentional, Max is still responsible for the weird phenomenon that occur due to her Rewind powers, including the Tornado that can kill hundreds of Arcadia Bay’s residents.
Trivia[]
- She is one of the many IAs to be player-determinant. Other popular ones include Jesse from Minecraft Story Mode, Clementine and Lee Everett from Telltale's The Walking Dead, Bigby Wolf from The Wolf Among Us, as well as Connor & Markus from Detroit: Become Human.
- None of them can qualify as NPG due to their choices being dependent on the player.
External Links[]
- Max Caulfield on the Heroes Wiki
- Max Caulfield on the Life is Strange Wiki
- Max Caulfield on the Love Exalted Wiki