Life Is Strange: True Colors Chapter 2 Guide

In Chapter 2, Life is Strange: True Colors begins introducing puzzles that Alex will have to navigate to help the residents of Haven. The heavy-hitting ones are mandatory, though there are a few optional ones as well. Below, we go over all the major choices you’ll get to make in True Colors Chapter 2: Lanterns.

Quick note: Chapter 2 is when True Colors really opens up, allowing you to freely explore Haven and pursue tasks in whatever order you want. Alex will usually comment when she hits points of no return–in the case of Chapter 2, first telling Jed she’s done with work and then confronting Mac–so make sure that you’ve done everything you can before those moments.

More Life Is Strange: True Colors Guides

• Chapter 1: “Side A” Walkthrough
• Chapter 3: Monster Or Mortal” Walkthrough
• Chapter 4: “Flicker” Walkthrough
• Chapter 5: “Side B” Walkthrough

Chapter 2: Lanterns Walkthrough

Did Gabe Make The Call? [Mandatory]

At Gabe’s wake, Ryan will confront Mac, angrily accusing him of ignoring Gabe’s call to halt the scheduled detonation in the mine. To this, Mac will say he got no such call and Gabe must have made a mistake. Ryan will then turn to you for validation, asking you to support his claim since you heard Gabe make the call.

Of course, you didn’t hear the call. All you have is Gabe’s word that he made the call. Telling the truth isn’t the ideal way to go in this scenario, especially if you’re gunning for friendship or romance with Ryan. Side with Ryan and lie: Tell everyone that you heard Gabe make a call, thus accusing Mac of negligence.

Steph’s Grief Puzzle [Mandatory]

Similar to understanding Ethan’s fear, to understand Steph’s sadness, you need to empathize with her. Approach her and tap into her grief–this will highlight certain items around the apartment with a soft blue glow. Finding everything shouldn’t prove too difficult. You’ll know you’ve found everything relevant when Alex says that she has enough to go on to comfort Steph.

When you approach Steph, the subject you want to bring up is playing foosball. Goad her into playing. You’ll likely beat her the first time and then she’ll collect herself and dominate you in the second round, so prepare to battle it out in round three. It doesn’t matter too much whether you win or lose, but if you win, Alex will act like an entitled champ and Steph will be reminded of the fun she’s had with Gabe as a result. So try to win.

Signing The Typhon Agreement [Missable]

Once you’re free to explore Haven for the first time (during Alex’s search for Mac) quite a few optional choices open up to you. One of the most important involves Charlotte. Go to her shop, the marijuana dispensary, to speak with her. She’ll confide in you that she’s struggling with her own grief, helping Ethan, and dealing with Typhon–the mining company responsible for Gabe’s death.

Charlotte will tell you that Typhon has sent her a document for an enormous settlement, provided she agrees to immediately not press charges about Gabe’s death. It’s a super shady deal, but she could also use the money to support Ethan’s future. She’ll ask Alex what to do. Tell her to take the money–it sucks but it also shows that Alex cares about Charlotte and Ethan and wants their future to be secure.

Comforting Ethan [Missable]

If you head to the park, you can find Ethan. Though he isn’t really ready to open up to you, you can read his emotions to understand how he’s feeling and then let him know that you’re there for him. This will improve Alex and Ethan’s relationship. It will also unlock additional dialogue with Charlotte–you can go back to her now and tell her what’s bugging Ethan, improving your standing with her even more.

Boss For The LARP [Missable]

During this exploratory phase, you can also meet up with Steph at the record store. She’ll tell you that she wants to plan a LARP for Ethan and will ask Alex to pick which villain should be the final boss.

Your choice here will determine which of the two bosses that Alex and Ethan will fight during the LARP in Chapter 3. Both seem to be of equal strength so it really just comes down to which boss sounds cooler to fight.

Alex’s Name For The LARP [Missable]

Before leaving the record store, you can fill out Alex’s character sheet for the LARP. Before you do, be sure to read the second issue of Ethan’s comic–it is on the counter right next to the character sheets. Doing so will reveal that the protagonist in Ethan’s comic has a trusted companion by the name of Alwynn.

When filling out the character sheet, you can choose Alwynn, Alto, or Alexandra as Alex’s name for the LARP. Now that you know that the character that Ethan will portray has an in-universe companion named Alwynn, you should go with that. It will further solidify the bond between Alex and Ethan and more seamlessly insert Alex’s character into the LARP.

Eleanor’s Fear Puzzle [Mandatory]

When you search for Ethan at the flower shop, Eleanor will tell you that he left a while ago. Before you can leave, you’ll notice that Eleanor is deeply afraid. You can’t leave the shop without helping her.

Similar to handling Steph’s sadness, approach Eleanor and read her emotions. You’ll then need to find all the relevant objects–they’ll be glowing purple. In the room with Eleanor, there’s the sign on the door, flowers in storage, and the register. In the backroom, you’ll find the phone and a picture of Riley. Interact with all of them to understand why Eleanor is afraid.

You’ll then have to help retrace Eleanor’s steps. To do this, you’ll have to once again interact with the five objects but in the right order. Based on what you’ve gleaned from Alex interacting with each object, you have to try and use common sense to piece together Eleanor’s day up to that point. If you need help, we’ve outlined the steps below.

1. Interact with the sign on the door.
2. Interact with the phone in the backroom.
3. Interact with the picture of Riley.
4. Interact with the flowers.
5. Interact with the register.

After all that, you’ll be confronted with a horrifyingly daunting and tragic choice. It will hurt, but we feel that opting to tell Eleanor the truth is the right way to go. Neither choice will impact the ending of the game, however.

Helping Mac [Mandatory]

When you finally confront Mac, he’ll have a panic attack. You can either help him or just walk away and leave him to suffer. Neither choice impacts what ending you get–just decide whether he deserves to suffer through a panic attack alone.

Forgiving Ryan [Mandatory]

When you find Ryan at the end of Chapter 2, his grief will make him angry at himself. You have to talk him down, and ultimately tell him whether Alex forgives him for Gabe’s death, Gabe would forgive him for his own death, or that Ryan ought to forgive himself. These choices don’t seem to influence the overall direction of the story too much, though suggesting that Gabe would forgive Ryan makes the most narrative sense.

After that, Alex and Ryan will continue to talk and eventually you’ll have the choice of shaking Ryan’s hand or hugging him to seal the duo’s partnership. If friendship–and eventually, romance–is your aim, go for the hug. If you want to keep things strictly professional, then a handshake works.