Proof that the remaining 10% is worth rewinding time for here.
These are recommendations made by tropers for Fan Fics, all of which have been signed. After a few samples, you will be able to judge whether you might be interested in the 'fic, based on who recommended it. No-name recommendations will be zapped. Nobody would back up the rec. Discussion of the recommendation is welcome on the discussion page. As such discussion is important, do remember to add the discussion page to the watchlist, if need be.
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Authors and Sites
Mogatrat
- Recommended by: The Mountain King
- Comments: A genuinely great writer. Manages to balance discussion of serious issues of internalized bigotry and depression with heartwarming fluff. She already has three fics on this page, but everything she's written is worth checking out.
- Recommended by: Efeu
- Comments: Novel-quality, masterful prose, capturing perfectly Arcadia Bay's twinpeaks-esque uncanny atmosphere of hostility and violence seeping under your skin. I find truly commendable the way raycats struggles to remain true to canon as possible, just to end up with realer-than-original source, fully tridimensional human beings. Above all I would recommend full bleed, a character study of Victoria and Nathan from Victoria's perspective – a piece whose only critical aspect would be to put to shame Dont Nod for the treatment of two perfectly wasted characters.
General Fics
Stories focused on the family and the friendly relationships of the cast. Plot-focused stories or light day-in-the-life stories. Pretty much anything that isn't focused on romance.
All the Scars you Cannot See by Vengesim
- Recommended by: Texas Dex
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: It's been two weeks since Max made the choice to sacrifice Chloe. It was the right choice, rationally. It was the choice Chloe would have choose. It's just not the choice Max can live with.
- Pairing: Max/Chloe
Add Review- Recommended by: starlight456
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: You need time, huh? That's hilarious, coming from you. Time doesn't heal all wounds, Maxine. You dip***. Where the hell do you think scars come from? — Post Sacrifice Arcadia Bay, Max and Chloe are a couple attempting to move on and live as normally as they can together. Plenty adorable Pricefield moments intermixed with strife and deep-seated trauma that refuses to leave them be. Incredible story and absolutely worth your time.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price, Pricefield - Relationship, Maxine Caulfield (Life is Strange), Chloe Price (Life Is Strange), Stella Hill, Victoria Chase (Life is Strange), Other Max, Angst, Female-Centric, Femslash, Female Protagonist, Female Relationships, Bisexual Female Character, Guilt, Survivor Guilt
- Recommended by: Tsunoba, Corp Delta, Ahiijny
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Chloe has been dead for five months, and Max can no longer live with the choice she made. She's tried to go back, but her powers are gone. Or are they just dormant? Could she trigger them again with the right motivation? She can only think of one way to find out. Drama/Thriller with time-traveling mind twisters and tons of Pricefield. Inspired by KoetheKoethe and his awesome music.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: Time travel mind twisters, Regret and guilt, Badass Max, Spirit Animals, Oodles of gay love but no smut ya perverts
Fighting Chances by Lyta Halifax
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Completed
- Synopsis: Five years ago, Chloe watched helplessly as her best friend took a bullet meant for her. In all that time, she has struggled to comprehend that sacrifice. Now an alcoholic living in Las Vegas, Chloe wonders what life might be like if she could go back and change the past. A mysterious figure from her past will give her a chance to find out.
- Comments: Sacrifice Max, so it has a familiar start, but goes in unexpected directions and has a truly heartwarming ending. Chloe's characterization and the choices she makes are portrayed realistically enough for me to believe she would actually make them.
Saving Victoria Chase (again and again and again) by cinnamonsnaps
- Recommended by: Discar, Texas Dex
- Status: Completed
- Synopsis: For one snobbish perfectionist, Victoria sure does attract a lot of everyday accidents.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Victoria Chase
- Tags: Time travel, no storm, Chasefield
The Final Choice by Malgrain
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Completed
- Synopsis: Max had made her choice, to save Arcadia Bay she had to let Chloe die. She tells herself that its the only option she has. However, as time draws closer to the moment her best friend is murdered, Max realizes she cannot let Chloe die here.
- Comments: **Spoilers** Sacrifice Max will always be my preferred ending to Life Is Strange, and as of this writing I consider The Final Choice to be the best written example of that ending. Like the two canon endings, it is short and emotionally devastating, but ends on a hopeful note thanks to an unexpected comfort.
The Ground Beneath Her Feet by Sanction (aratron)
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Ongoing
- Synopsis: "Save the Incarnate and let her choose." Max agreed to the task; she would do anything if it meant Chloe would live. But what exactly had she agreed to? And if the truth lies in Rachel Amber, what of the consequences?
- Comments: Besides the story, which is impressive in its own right, I keep coming back to this fanfic because of the dialogue. The banter in this story (especially between the three leads) is incredibly well-written, among the best I have ever seen in any Life Is Strange fanfiction.
The Hospital Ending by Israel Blargh
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Completed
- Synopsis: Sacrifice yourself, see what happens.
- Comments: **Spoilers** A pseudo-Sacrifice Max ending, but this time everyone lives while still giving her sacrifice meaning. A short but superbly written fanfiction; Max's internal monologues and character interactions are spot on, to the point you would forget this is not one of the game's official endings.
there was another life I might have had, but I am having this one by theapplepielifestyle
- Recommended by: Scify, Arakhor
- Status: Complete (first in a series)
- Synopsis: Post-Episode 5. Max has made her choice, and now she has to live with it. Something of a study on regrets and how even if a choice is the right one, it doesn't mean living with it is easy.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: PTSD
- Recommended by: ThornheartCat, Red-Dead-Redeemer
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: After Max chooses to sacrifice Chloe, she finds herself determined to make this a new beginning, a timeline that won't be twisted for the worse because of her interference. Maybe this time, she might just be able to do some good. Nathan Prescott seems like the best possible - or worst - place to start.
- Pairing(s): Maxine Caulfield/Nathan Prescott
- Tags: Slow Build, Mental Institutions, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, Canonical Character Death, Eventual redeemed!Nathan because he got fucked over by that ending and I'll be forever mad about it
What If? The Comic by rowanred81, summerfelldraws, and koethekoethe
- Recommended by: Bosterm
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: A webcomic fan-continuation to Life is Strange, specifically to the "Sacrifice Arcadia Bay" ending.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: pricefield
- Final entry on the blog was uploaded August 15th 2017, in honor of Before the Storm. - hanwen1234
Alternate Universe
Stories where one fundamental aspect of the series is completely overhauled from its point of origin. by Dandybear by Denni by Mogatrat/Recourse by Mogatrat
- Recommended by: Sean Devine
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: Based off of: “I’m a newly-turned werewolf without a pack and i can’t really control myself well on full moon nights yet and you keep finding me passed out naked on your lawn” AU.
- Pairing(s): Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: Werewolf!AU, pricefield
by Dandybear- Recommended by: Sean Devine
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: adolescence is hard, you stumble and get hurt— you hurt others, especially the ones you love most. but, you learn and grow, and four years later you're a completely different person. AU Where Max stays in Arcadia Bay and William lives, but at what cost? Spans 4-ish years.
- Pairing(s): Maxine Caulfield/Victoria Chase
- Tags: Max Stayed in Arcadia Bay AU, Big Sprawling AU, Pricefield is Not the Main Pairing in This, Second POV, I Just Have a Lot of Feelings and Fanon, Autistic!Max
by Denni- Recommended by: Akromatic
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: Nathan doesn't know what he deserves—but it's not this. It's not a room full of people who aren't looking at him like he's a monster. (Or: Nathan saves Max and makes friends.) Takes place directly after episode four.
- Pairing(s): Warren Graham/Nathan Prescott, Maxine Caulfield/Victoria Chase
- Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Borderline Personality Disorder, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, POV Multiple, Slow Build, Mostly Gen, Found Family, Mental Health Issues, Time Travel
by Mogatrat/Recourse- Recommended by: Scify
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Chloe Price, the sorceress who was cast aside. Victoria Chase, the witch who casts no spells. Frank Bowers, the spell-seller with the pet dragon. Mark Jefferson, the monster hiding in plain sight. Rachel Amber has found all the magical curiosities of Blackwell Academy. With hopes of rising above them all, she weaves a web of love and lies. Until a single strand snaps, and everything starts to unravel.
- Pairings: Rachel Amber/Chloe Price, Rachel Amber/Victoria Chase, Rachel Amber/Frank Bowers
- Tags: Alternative Universe - Witches, Angst, Ambiguous Relationships, Depression, Mental Illness, Self-Harm, Body Horror
- Comments: First story of the on-going Book and Candle series. Fantasy AU that follows the beats of the original story without feeling like a retread. The second story (A Chronic Desire) focuses on the burgeoning relationship between Victoria and Max, which begins when Max comes to the Chase estate to start her apprenticeship with Victoria's father. The third (Presumed Lost) is about Chloe's time in the Wild, where she meets a young druid named Kate. The fourth (and, apparently, final) story (Specter's Bargain) seems to be the synthesis of the plot threads from the first three, and kicks off when Chloe finally arrives at the Chase estate.
by Mogatrat- Recommended by The Mountain King
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Maxwell Caulfield left Arcadia Bay, leaving a devastated best friend in the dark. Maxine Caulfield returns five years later, terrified that people will remember her, doing anything to avoid seeing Chloe again and having to explain herself; she just wants to be like any normal girl. But Rachel Amber picks her out of the crowd immediately, and seems unusually interested in getting to know Max, finding a place to fit her into her life, and Max is totally helpless before her substantial charms. Little does Max know about Rachel's ultimate plans for her...
- Pairings: Rachel Amber/Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Tags: Trans!Max, Trans Female Character, Polyamory, Bullying. Anxiety, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, No Mark Jefferson, Alternative Universe - Everybody Lives/Nobody Dies, mostly happy, Panic Attacks, Recreational Drug Use, Eventual Sexual Content, Dysphoria, Slow Burn, Date Rape Drug/Roofies, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Abortion, Internalized Homophobia, Mental Illness, Depression, Threesome
- Comments: An AU in which Max is a trans girl, Mark Jefferson does not exist, and Max's powers never manifest. First in the Perrenials series. Has a tropes page.
Statistics by https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainboq/pseuds/Rainboq Rainboq]]
- Recommended by Meshakhad
- Status: In Progress
- Synopsis: Chloe Price is a young trans woman just trying to survive. It isn't going very well.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price, Victoria Chase/Kate Marsh
- Tags: Trans Female Character, trans!Chloe AU, Alternate Universe - No Rewind Time Powers, CW Internalized Transphobia, cw transphobia, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Date Rape Drug/Roofies, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, descriptions of violence, Eventual Smut, past amberprice
- Comments: Starts off as a very stark depiction of life as a homeless trans woman. Things get better, thankfully.
- Recommended by Meshakhad
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: When Max returns to the future after deciding to do as Chloe asked, she is joyfully surprised to find that the result isn't what she expected. But as small clues pile up, Max must balance her nascent contentment against the seemingly impossible chance that her work is not yet finished.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Comments: Easily the best fanfic depiction of Max's powers that I've read.
Shipping Fics
Stories focused on the romantic relationships between the cast. by Valkyriav by unknown (orphaned account) by buzzbuzz34 and Seasons by midnight neverland
- Recommended by: Scify
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: After Nathan kills Max in the bathroom, Chloe is left alone in Arcadia Bay and spiraling down fast. Victoria inserting herself into Chloe's life does her no favors. At first.
- Pairings: Victoria Chase/Chloe Price
- Tags: Suicidal Themes, Sacrifice Max, Unhealthy Relationship, Abuse, Substance Abuse, Angst, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Verbal Abuse, Dirty Talk, Hate Sex, Masochism, unhealthy masochism, Masturbation, Suicide Attempt, Mental Illness, Depression, Healing, Angst with a Happy Ending
- Comments: First part of the We Shall All Be Healed series. Like most of Recourse's work, starts off very dark but gets lighter. Seriously, pay attention to the tags.
Gun, With Occasional Hella by GeneralIrritation
- Recommended by: Red Jade
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: In 2013, Chloe Price's life was saved by an old friend. In 2018, Chloe's in Arcadia Bay... and in a whole mess of trouble on both sides of the law.
- Pairings: Max/Chloe
- Part one of The Girls Who Broke the World . At first a reader could start to assume that this fic is a dark crime AU but it is a continuation of the game with the ending many wish was an option, one where Max tries to sacrifice herself in the bathroom instead of choosing between her and the town. The Arcadia Bay of 2018 is wonderfully dark and there is a lot of world building put into it, a lot of surprising but believable turns on where the charterers have ended up, but really the highest praise I can give this fic is that it actually made me like Nathan
by Valkyriav- Recommended by: Clato Lawa
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Post Sacrifice Chloe ending. After rewriting history again, Max is immediately thrust into the new present with Chloe's funeral the following morning. She has one small request for Warren before the funeral.
- Pairing: Max/Warren
by unknown (orphaned account)- Recommended by: Discar
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: An epilogue, takes place roughly over a year after the events of LiS.
- Pairings: Max/Chloe
by buzzbuzz34- Recommended by: Tropers/Clatolawa
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: After sacrificing her best friend, Chloe Price, in order to save the town of Arcadia Bay, Max Caulfield struggles to move on and accept the reality she now inhabits. Kate Marsh steps in to help her friend cope with the loss and eventually finds out that there is more to Max than she thought.
- Pairing: Max/Kate
and Seasons by midnight neverland- Recommended by: Clato Lawa
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Two series of drabbles taking place during the year after Chloe's death, told from Warren and Max's perspectives respectively.
- Pairing: Max/Warren
Crossover Fics
Fanfiction that combines elements, characters, etc. from two or more different franchises.
Closer Than Sisters by Theodur
- Crossover with : Dragon Age
- Recommended by: Sailor Tardis
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: When Chloe's life is endangered, Max's magic spontaneously manifests itself, saving her best friend's life. Unfortunately, her reward is to be dragged away by the templars and locked up in the Circle of Magi for the rest of her life. Will Chloe manage to find a way to be together with the most important person in her life?
- Pairing(s): Max/Chloe
Life is Strange: Together by queerlittlespacecreature
- Crossover with : Tell Me Why, Life Is Strange, Life Is Strange 2, Life Is Strange: True Colors, Life Is Strange
- Recommended by: hunter139
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: A girl with the ability to rewind time. A boy who could move things with his mind. Twins with telepathy. A girl with the ability to see and influence emotions. A boy who can disappear. They thought they were alone. They all had powers, baggage, and new lives they had forged. They had never thought they would meet up in pure coincidence, nor that they would need to team up with their friends to help one of their own. Can this group of near strangers work together on a road trip south of the border? Or, will tensions and interpersonal relationships be their downfall? And in the back of their minds, the question that none want to answer: what effects could the joining of their disparate powers have on reality?
- Pairing(s): Max/Chloe, Alex/Steph, Ryan/Alyson
- Comments: The definitive story if you want to see all the main casts from the Life Is Strange series together, including lesser known characters from the comics and borrowing from the thematically similar Tell Me Why. Everyone is in-character, the story is compelling, and really, it's the hallmark of what a crossover game of the series should look like.
Dark Fics
Stories focused on making the series darker, and/or exploring the darker aspects of the series.
Black Swan by Lyta Halifax
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: At age thirteen, Max's powers Emerged. Identified as a Special, one of a tiny handful of people with amazing abilities, she is forcibly recruited and studied by the government. Though her life grows ever darker, she clings to one hope: to someday be reunited with her best friend Chloe.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Chloe Price
- Comments: It is almost criminal that this fanfic is not on this list. Max's life and the things she goes through are even worse than canon, but her interactions with Chloe make it all worth it.
I Am The Storm by Urdnot Goat
- Recommended by: Euric 87
- Status: Dead; last updated June 2018
- Synopsis: Kidnapped soon after her move to Seattle, Max is thrown into a life of pain and abuse. Years later and free from her personal quest for vengeance, she finds herself near breaking point and hopes to find that 'young Max' that was lost so long ago. Luckily for her, Arcadia bay's resident punk princess is the foremost expert on all things Max.
- Comments: Despite a few rough edges, this story has a unique and intriguing premise that will make you want to read it again, and again. Perhaps the best thing about this story is how well the author is able to balance everything, from emotions to characters; Chloe does not feel overshadowed by her hyper-competent back-from-the-dead best friend, and Max's thoughts and actions are treated with awesomeness and horror in equal measure.
Letters From Tomorrow (tvtropes page) by Rick_Dangerous
- Recommended by: Discar
- Status: Dead (confirmed by author)
- Synopsis: Max's ruthless future self sidesteps the limitations of her focus power by leaving written letters in the past. Desperate to save both Chloe and Arcadia Bay's populous, she mercilessly manipulates the past in order to save the future. This story follows a past Max, Chloe and Victoria as they struggle to enact the instructions in these letters from tomorrow. A slightly satirical AU.
- Pairings: Maxine Caulfield/Victoria Chase/Chloe Price
- Comments: Not so much darker than canon as it starts at the game's darkest and stays there. Future!Max seems to be from a timeline that's worse than any we've seen, and is willing to do anything to prevent it. With one major exception, every change we've seen, no matter how far back it goes, is a result of future!Max meddling.
Life is Deranged by TheGouldenWay
- Recommended by: Morgisboard
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: A series of short parody comics that explore the implications of Max's ability to time travel and other aspects of the game and Before the Storm. Max becomes a psychopathic murderer and Chloe's chin grows with every painful pun she makes. Jokes, wordplay, and violence abound. Each strip is unrelated.
- Comments: Gut-bustingly dark and hilarious, if you find the games' drama a bit too much, this is a welcome diversion still grounded with plenty of references to things in-game.
