About psychological manipulations in Life is Strange: Before the Storm

Games about relationships always cause me a lot of emotions, because quarrels and conflicts in them remind of their own difficult life situations. I coped with some of them, stuffed cones on others and studied something;For this reason, I look at the problems of Chloe Price objectively, through the prism of accumulated life experience.

Charm Life is Strange: Before the Storm (BTS) the fact that players can not only observe Chloe’s mental torment from the side, as it was in The first part, They can influence the behavior of the heroine, incline her to the right actions and learn to make difficult, but adult decisions. Chloe is not yet an uncontrolled selfish rebel, doing everything contrary to the law and imposed rules: in BTS She is a vulnerable, 16-year-old girl with a sad background.

Chloe’s father died, her best friend betrayed her confidence, the heroine herself is in protracted depression and cannot find anyone with whom she could talk about what tormented her;Only a few wrong acts separate it from self -destruction. Chloe is vulnerable, unhappy and lonely, so the players are happy to grab onto the only lifebuoy, school familiar Rachel Emmber.

Girls create a wonderful duet, share experiences, joys and pass through a difficult period together. Reich does not always correspond to Chloe’s ideals, but she remains her only friend, so the players again and again unconsciously choose Rachel, who is always fun and interesting, and Chloe acquires happiness.

But was it the right decision?

About the one who lies well and plays games

Rachel is an ideal girlfriend, especially for Chloe, who is going through not the best times. She is able to instantly divorce her into an adventure, support with advice or dilute loneliness. But if the player manages to remove the tightly sticking pink glasses, it turns out that Rachel can be completely different: a selfish, uncontrolled and spoiled girl who is not used to hearing the word “no”. With the fifth passage BTS I already doubt that it is such a friend who deserves Chloe.

The girl-mystery took possession of the thoughts of players in the original game. We saw her only on posters and heard from the lips of other people, but we were absolutely sure that Rachel was a good person. She rotated in completely different circles and knew how to attract the attention of all people: the Snobs school club, guys geeks, skaters and artist outsider spoke positively about her. Behind Chloe’s back, Rachel spun an affair with an adult drug dealer and became a muse for Mark Jefferson – a similar ability to build a relationship with each person at least alarms.

Having learned Rachel a little more, you can understand that the atmosphere in which she grew up corresponds to her behavior: the presence of the father of the prosecutor and the family with cabinets, cursed skeletons, taught her Fly and smile, Hiding the true intentions.

According to the horoscope, Rachel Leo (it is very important that Rachel herself justifies this fact of its behavior) that differs selfishness and infantility. Rachel by nature leader, Therefore, he seeks to occupy the dominant role anywhere – in the school production, in study, in relations.

People like Rachel have a lot of acquaintances, but there is not a single real friend – they are superficial, they do not like to talk about themselves and prefer to draw maximum benefits from any person oncoming. Guess who I’m talking about? ABOUT manipulators.

“Sometimes, when despair and loneliness reach their peak, we give a chance not to those people,” Chloe says this to his mother, but does not even suspect that the wise thought is directly related to herself.

It is terrible to realize that Chloe met Rachel at the peak of her vulnerability: She needed a friend and did not even notice for her grief how she was drawn into Abuzive relations. As the player who is with Chloe in the same boat did not notice.

The main character says that “Rachel lies well and plays games” – their further communication, smoothly developing into strong friendship, suggests that Chloe considers herself a special. By someone who Rachel will not joke or manipulate.

Passing again Before the Storm, I want to share the found and talk about how Rachel Amber, with the help of psychological manipulation, forced to love herself, lifting both the players and Chloe into these abusive relations. It is important to know about this not only in the context of the game – you do not even suspect how many manipulators are next to you daily and what things they are able to knock out, using minute weaknesses.

Abugras, manipulators and other charming personalities

Entire articles write about such people, but we will limit ourselves to only a brief description (and then I will explain in more detail with examples).

Psychological manipulation – This is a type of social influence, during which one person tries to change the perception or behavior of another through deception, violence or concealment.

In other words, a good manipulator is able to force things that are beneficial to him, while the victim will be sure that he does so of his own free will.

There are many tools for such a change in perception of manipulators: they can use your weaknesses, play guilty, pity or fear. Such people have double standards, strive to tie a victim to themselves in all ways, and if the “experimental” rebels and requires explanation, the arrows will quickly and successfully, causing a familiar feeling of guilt.

These are unhealthy, exhausting relationships that benefit only the manipulator – And it was not easy for me to admit that Chloe (like myself) with easily fell on Rachel Embert’s fishing rod.

Unfortunately, only in theory everything sounds simple and understandable, as by a manual, but in fact to identify such a relationship and get out of them Very difficult. It is even more difficult to admit that your friend, the second half or even the parent allows himself an impudent Abuez. On the example of the relationship between Chloe and Rachel, it is very easy to show how manipulative tactics work and why we do not notice them.

Beautiful, but it hurts

Chloe meets Rachel on an abandoned sawmill, where the rock band holds a concert. From the first scenes, we understand how Chloe feels: it is closed, despises people, offends the world because of the father and Max and prefers to stay detached, secretly fearing that someone else wants to hurt her.

Chloe is studying with Rachel in one school, but never intersected with her until this night-she understands that the Golden Girl will never pay attention to someone like her. Tactics Price – snap and pretend that loneliness suits it. But Rachel bursts into her life completely unexpectedly: first she saves from drunken scumbags in the club, then drags to the Moshpit and in the morning publishes the first common photo on social networks.

Of course, the school students will be interested in Rachel’s new friend, Blackwell’s favorite. This allegedly friendly gesture Rach shamelessly leads Chloe to the forefront, makes the public a challenge and forces other people to discuss Chloe.

In the future, Rachel will do so constantly – without permission pull the chloa from the comfort zone, Without thinking about what a shy and closed girlfriend feels at the same time. Many introverts, by the way, will find themselves in this situation, because this happens at every step.

After a couple of hours, Chloe is at school, Rachel is falling out again and drags the price to the rehearsal of the theater circle by the hand, makes him express his opinion before the teacher. At this moment, Rachel does not care about either Chloe’s feelings or that a friend may have completely different plans.

The second important topic is raised in the theater circle on the example of Shakespeare’s “storm” characters. “The question is whether Miranda’s passion has instantly flashed to Ferdinand with the lack of experience and tragic events or she really met the love of her life?”

And Chloe is glad of this – Rachel her only friend, and Price is very afraid to lose her or hurt her with his refusal. She worries that after the night in the Rachel club, she will forget her, but rejoices at the “bread crumbs”, any attention, touch or look.

My suspicions can be considered far -fetched (believe me, I love Rachel Embert, but this does not mean that I can’t look objectively at her behavior) if not for Hidden motives Rachel. She does not try to continue communication or make friendship – on the eve of the girl read a message on her father’s phone and wanted to escape from the lessons to convict him in treason.

Who is better for the role of nonukcasinosites.co.uk/20-pound-deposit/ the accompanying? Loner and rebel, which will no one will talk about weakness and conflicts within the Embers family. Like Chloe, I really want to believe in the pure thoughts of Rachel, but the presence of a hidden motive does not speak in favor of the latter. So, Rachel persuades Chloe to escape from the lessons, ride on a freight train and then forces him to jump off him on command (and if the player refuses, he collides with him).

I did not “I wanted to know you better”, not “we put out cool”, not “it seems to me that we made friends”. Rachel is boring. To do this, she needs Chloe – an asocial rebel, not a drop like people in the world of the daughter of the prosecutor, where Rachel is boring.

Rachel and Chloe’s train meet a little better. All this time Chloe does not understand where and why it is getting involved, why Amber decided to turn her attention to it, which makes it special and most importantly – What to say, so as not to mess.

When Chloe agrees (because she is not left to the choice) to play the game “Two Pravda, one Lie”, Rachel receives a complete description of the psychological injury of Chloe.

All three facts about a new girlfriend are incredibly superficial and simple: Rachel Lev according to a horoscope and ambigstra, which was born in California. At the same time, Chloe approaches the game seriously, dumping the whole heap of his experiences on Rachel. She hates country, namely this music was adored by her deceased father;As a child, Chloe dreamed of becoming a pirate with her best friend Max until she abandoned her;Despite this whole image of rebels, the price is very smart and loves science.

Revelations flow from Chloe by the river, and it spits out everything to the unfamiliar person. Rachel does not even need to be asked.

What did we learn about Rachel Amber? Nothing. But what did we learn about Chloe Price? Those things that disturbed her more than anything: betrayal of the best friend and death of her father. Moreover, Rachel manages to bring Chloe to new revelations, about dislike of stepfather, problems in the family and the dead cat. Rachel manages to squeeze all this out of a small game, but when Chloe tries to ask the same tricky questions to a new friend, she is strikingly quickly leaves a direct answer, masks behind a new question and translates the conversation to a new topic.

This does not yet say that Rach is collecting information about Chloe in order to use it in the future: only that Ember is not used to trusting people and does not allow anyone to delve into his past. And also about the fact that she is terrible Likes to control conversations.

The next alarm bell was not long in coming: Rachel tied Chloe into the next game of espionage for people through a reviewed binoculars in the park, and when she found confirmation of his father’s treason, she instantly forgot about her new girlfriend. After that, Rachel gives an unexpected passage that the player notices, but does not notice Chloe.

“What are we doing? The last time, if I remember correctly, you were Chloe Price. We are already walking school for hours, but still have not drunk “.

Rachel is upset and does what is used to – Makes Chloe to doubt himself and puts it, printing the price by a stamp of a rebel and a truce. Despite the fact that it was Rachel who pushed her for absenteeism, and then made sure that Chloe was not so one -sided and simple. This is a favorite technique of manipulators and a way to make his sacrifice comfortable and obedient, such as an abuser wants to see her.

This is not the first emotional outbreak of Rachel and far from the last: at these moments, Chloe only wants to regret, since she sincerely tries to adapt to the pace of communication of a new girlfriend and does not understand what she did wrong. It is important that at this moment Chloe only blames himself, Not knowing about the background of Rachel and the betrayal of her father.

What does Rachel do with Chloe’s feelings? Nothing. Because Rachel’s feelings are more important.

Under the influence of a bad mood, Reich draws Chloe into a new game and makes you steal wine from a vacationing couple. The player, like Chloe, is not given a choice again, but, fortunately, you can refuse to drink with Rachel. Alcohol does not help, and the heroines get to the landfill.

Chloe continues blame yourself: She is trying to cheer Rachel and save her from a sudden attack of melancholy, offers to take a bat and start to destroy everything around, amuses jokes, but Amber behaves like any selfish. And when Chloe tried to apologize for her behavior (!) and find out what she did wrong, Rachel ruthlessly sews her.

“Sad Chloe is sad again,” says Rachel, wanting Take off and destroy the heroine as much as possible. -Maybe at least one damn times you will think about someone else?”

Amber used the same manipulative technique only a couple of scenes, trying to hint Chloe that the rebel should behave accordingly, having led Rachel into the world of truants and alcohol. Do not forget that Rachel is subject to mood swings (like many actors, Chloe speaks of this), and in her seizures she is most often inclined to forget about the feelings of others, concentrating only on herself. Chloe is injuring, she continues not to understand what she was guilty of, but Rachel does not want to explain or apologize.

Because of this, the heroine will quarrel for the first time-after the skirmish, Rachel leaves the landfill, and Chloe finds a broken car of his father, who died only two years ago in a car accident. Players understand how broken chloa, falling asleep on bare ground after a long hysteria. She spent alone until the darkness, but pride Rachel and her own grief did not allow her to return to support Chloe she left in tears. Amber waits until her victim comes true and returns to show sympathy. The main sign of manipulation is unilateral relations.

Unequal exchange

The second episode begins with the reprimand for absenteeism. The whole scene in the director’s office is a turning point in a relationship between Chloe and Rachel, so between Rachel and the player. The director raises the question of the expulsion of Chloe from school, because the heroine has a bad glory, and it is obvious to him that it was Price that persuaded the excellent student Rachel to walk classes.

Unable to withstand false accusations, Rachel decides to lie for the sake of Chloe and take all the blame on herself – at that moment she hopes that an impeccable reputation will withstand the only spot, and the director will forgive the first mistake. The Rachel’s edification is removed from the role in the school production, and then Chloe has a chance to fix everything to “”Restore justice“.

Passing BTS For the first time, I was bought by Rachel with giblets and stood up for her, like her minute earlier for Chloe. But only now the exchange of courtesy was unequal: taking the blame on herself, Price agreed with the deduction from school. Rachel could continue to fight for her, but did not. And it hurt me in the very heart. Together with the pain, an awareness came, which, unfortunately, Chloe did not suffer, thinking what was doing correctly. Because of this, she did not listen to the words of her mother, who sensibly reasoned that between her well-being and the well-being of the daughter of the prosecutor Chloe had to choose her own family.

Deduction or prohibition to participate in the school production? The exchange is unequal, especially if you recall that Chloe’s mother works as a waitress, their family lost a breadwinner, and Price herself studied at a black -stiffwall on a scholarship.

Having achieved an exception, Chloe completely connects himself with Rachel and becomes her defender, minion, victim. Friendship does not become equivalent up to the finals, and the echo of manipulations Rachel for a long time violated the mental balance of Chloe. After the death of Rachel, she realizes that her best friend took away many secrets with her to the grave. For example, she started an affair with a drug dealer and was afraid to talk about it to Do not lose influence on the price.

Rachel Amber – a bright and memorable personality, to which you want to be closer. But the creators BTS, Like the developers of the original game, they love symbols very much. And in their eyes, Rachel was not just a man, it was uncontrolled fire, a destructive element and the wind that spreads a forest fire in a mile. No wonder she got a role Prospero (sorcerer who called for a storm) in the school production of Shakespeare’s storm.

Between Chloe and Rachel incredible chemistry is unknown to what their relationship would lead to if it were not for the sudden, but quite expected death of Amber. The power of Rachel was destructive, and the use of this uncontrolled stream led to the fact that it destroyed herself, trying to fly up too close to the sun.

I do not leave hopes that behind the scenes in the relationship of Rachel and Chloe there was no such unhealthy connotation: they survived a lot, having traveled a long way from Abuez to strong friendship and teenage love. But a house, the foundation of which consists of lies, manipulations and selfishness, will never become strong. It is worth remembering this in real life – every dishonest accusation, lies or attempts to control may not be a change in mood, but an insidious scheme that you do not suspect about.

The best comments

It was nice to read the text. Even surprised how you can find the depth in the characters of a rather superficial (in my opinion) game. I really love the original and the prequel, but I do not find BTS really a creative product.

From the first (and only) passage, BTS has become interested in the question: how Chloe, being a “victim” in an abusive relationship, built like Max, but vice versa. The influence of Rachel is obvious, but where is that fracture?

PC from an expert in disputes with manipulators with:

And I immediately ate rachel. Therefore, many aspects of the game did not work on me. Did not drop only out of interest in Chloe. It was difficult to watch how it is on the most banal (in my perception) manipulation. I had to play with one hand, because the second was constantly hitting on the forehead.

It is very difficult for me to disagree with the author. I noticed many moments myself, but I just can’t about Rachel as a negative? character. Perhaps this is due to the fact that I idealize all the characters that I like, I live in works that have found a response in my soul. It’s just hard for me to think that Chloe was betrayed for the third time.

Rachel at the first passing appeared before my eyes as an older friend for Chloe, as a guide to a new life, good or bad I did not bother me. As I passed, it seemed to me that I found for myself the perfect friend not for Chloe, but for myself. Her actions and reaction to events were absolutely clear to me. But for me, the “storm” for the first time has discovered Shakespeare for myself. The recognition of Rachel that Chloe is important for her and the subsequent walk was a pleasant continuation.

And then the thunder struck. Of course, it was immediately clear to me that the woman with whom Father Rachel was not the cause of the betrayal of father Rachel, because there was no betrayal at all. It turns out that mother is not her mother Rachel, but a real mother is the woman that we saw in the park. Subsequent events were a little not predictable. Hacking of the house of the Amber family, and then the office of Father Rachel, an elliot who turned out to be a stained maniac (well, here not exactly, I did not delve into this character). Search for evidence of the one who betrayed the big drug dealer and then the conversation with Mom Rachel. Honestly, I am very interested in what Chloe felt during this episode, probably these were still emotional swings. And under the very finale, conversation with Rachel and her parents in the hospital. (Here I had to introduce beautifully that it doesn’t matter who gave birth to you, but it is important who raised you, but as for me specifically in the Rachel family, everyone and Rachel herself too).

Although the final of history I knew, it was painful for me to think about what final other participants in history expected at Rachel and Chloe. Of course I mean Naitan Pressure. As a member of the rich family, Neutan was not a representative of golden youth, well, more precisely, he was not the bastards as he was shown in the first LIS. He seemed to me a slightly intimidated and furious guy who has problems with self -esteem, apparently this was what helped Jefferson to make him his assistant, I can not judge this t.To. No knowledge in this area. I helped him and reduced with the girl who regretted him. And as a result, Neutan has changed under its influence and became kinder and better. In my eyes. It was so difficult for me to accept that this guy who had taken the way to the light would become the killer of the one who became my friend and an outlet from the real world.

If I wrote about BTS in general, I would have to write about Stef and two brothers and about other characters, but this is just a commentary on the post, so I will only mention casually that thanks to Stef and mini games in DND I fell in love.

I don’t know what I wanted to say that.

Jubi, thanks for the blog was interesting.

Ah, that’s what the material is from the author)

I am always amused by the question in such analyzes: when a rather comprehensive and stable image is made up of a deeper analysis of the character, how many of this was originally conceived? There is always a very rather big chance that all these details have developed absolutely by accident, from momentary solutions or some subconscious tips, and there is a rather big chance that the authors tried to show Rachel from the absolutely opposite side.

I vaguely remember very similar stories about the relationship of Max and Chloe in the original strange life, and here it seems almost a literal repetition of relations, only Chloe is now in the place, and on the site of Chloe – Rachel.

Registered to thank for the article! A very interesting conclusion. When I played in the original part, I already thought that Rachel was not so pleasant. And I liked that the authors from such an unexpected side reveal the characters, and not just “all the characters are good because they are good” or “the characters are bad because we need a villain”. Everyone has their weaknesses and their strengths.

For example, if in the first passage of the original game Warren seems very sweet, and in the second you notice that he is stalker Max (if you look out the window in the morning on some day, then he looks at the windows of Max and then hides). If you google his favorite films, it turns out that he is a lover of rather strange horror films, and if you play carefully, you can find a lot of similar points.

I love the first lis and prequel to him. Read with interest) I learned something new

It’s nice to see that at least one of the authors of SG remembers the road to blogs and is active. The rest completely forgotten.

Thanks for the material: D

From a scenario point of view, I liked the BTS much more: the events develop more rapidly in it and more intensity. This is partly due to the number of episodes, if the task was to accommodate everything in 3, there is no time left for fillers

It seems to me that the disappearance of Rachel sank Chloe greatly, and she completely pulled away from people. After all, Rachel promised that they would run together, but lied as before Max. On the other hand, in BTS, all Chloe’s thoughts are available to us and you can understand it. In the original LIS, all events are shown from the point of view of Max, so it is not always clear what is in Chloe’s head and what it is guided.

Wow, unexpectedly cool) I expected the spent of a beloved game, but everything is clearly and on the case. I love when games are analyzed from the point of view of psychology. Thanks for the article, it turned out exciting ^^

Nah, why a stalker, but not Warren, I refuse to perceive this comment that one

I love this girl (Rachel).Someone hooked me. Although it twists chloa, I feel chemistry how it is not strange more than Chloe with Max

Wow, really very useful information, I had not noticed something in lis before, from the manipulations. Open eyes’ 🙂

I do not leave hopes that behind the scenes in the relationship of Rachel and Chloe there was no such unhealthy connotation: they survived a lot, having traveled a long way from Abuez to strong friendship and teenage love.

I think that such a path of Chloe and Rachel actually passed, if only because in comics it is described (then impenetrable spoilers go)

When Max moves to one of the parallel universes, it is clear that Chloe and Rachel have everything and they are strongly relations. True, Rachel became a slightly more flat character, perhaps this is because “another universe”, where Jefferson is not a maniachy and all that, but this is another story, it’s easier to read.

I had a comic book somewhere in electronic version, if I should throw off

First there is dust, then waves

Damn, the article by the campaign was written by that peoples maniachil who rolled up the whole game to Chloe