Comparison

Life is Strange vs The Complex

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Life is Strange

Experience a choice-driven narrative adventure as a rebellious teen forming an unlikely friendship. Your decisions shape the story, leading to multiple endings. Engage in unique conversation modes, customize your character's appearance, and leave your mark on the world with tags and drawings.

Highlights
  • Choice and consequence driven narrative
  • Multiple endings
  • Risk/reward conversation mode
  • Witty tags and drawings
  • Outfit customization
  • Licensed indie soundtrack
Features
Read full description

"** Supported Devices: OS: Xcode 14.3 supported devices, iOS 12 or higher. All devices starting from iPhone X. ** Life is Strange: Before the Storm features Chloe Price a 16 year-old rebel who forms an unlikely friendship with Rachel Amber, a beautiful and popular girl destined for success. When Rachel’s world is turned upside down by a family secret it takes their newfound alliance to give each other the strength to overcome their demons. - Choice and consequence driven narrative adventure - Multiple endings depending on the choices you make - ‘Backtalk’ - A risk/reward conversation mode that allows Chloe to use her barbed tongue to provoke or get her way - Make your mark on the world with witty tags and drawings - Choose Chloe’s outfit and see how people react to your look - Distinct Licensed indie soundtrack & original score by Daughter"

About

The Complex

Experience a sci-fi thriller where your choices shape the narrative and lead to one of eight endings. Navigate a locked-down lab after a bio-weapon attack, managing relationships and your character's personality.

Highlights
  • Interactive gameplay
  • Multiple endings
  • Relationship tracking
  • Personality tracking
  • Branching narrative
Features
Read full description

After a major bio-weapon attack on London, two scientists find themselves in a locked-down laboratory with time, and air, running out. With interactive gameplay, your actions and your relationship with other characters will lead you to one of eight suspenseful endings. Having treated the victims of a chemical attack in the totalitarian state of Kindar, Dr Amy Tenant is a leader in the advancement of Nanocell Technology. Now, in London, news breaks of a blood-vomiting civilian whose identity is far from coincidental. Reunited with an old friend, Amy is trapped in an impenetrable HQ of laboratories—a womb of scientific advancement with a perilous secret. The Complex is written by Lynn Renee Maxcy, part of the Emmy award-winning writing team from The Handmaid’s Tale. The interactive movie stars Michelle Mylett (Letterkenny), Kate Dickie (Game of Thrones) and Al Weaver (Grantchester). Relationship Tracking Throughout the game you will interact with characters and — depending on your choices — will either strengthen or weaken your relationship. The relationship scores are calculated from the start right through to the very end and will affect certain scenarios as well as having major consequences in the concluding scenes. Personality Tracking For every decision you make, every interaction, your character’s personality is being tracked. At the end of each playthrough, you are rewarded with a Personality Score and a breakdown to see how you played the game. Discover the five basic dimensions of a personality; openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. Which of those will your character play?

Screenshots

Life is Strange4 screens
The Complex4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: The Complex at 4.4 against Life is Strange's 3.5. The Complex also leads on update cadence (every 3 months vs every 33 months) and review sentiment (46% vs 30%). Life is Strange's advantage is ratings volume (1.2K vs 187). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Life is Strange sells 7 one-off in-app purchases and The Complex sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

The Complex holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Life is Strange has 1.2K ratings behind it against 187, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 30% of Life is Strange's written reviews are positive against 46% of The Complex's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Life is Strange ships an update every 33 months, The Complex every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Life is Strange versus The Complex: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterLife is StrangeThe Complex
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (1.2K ratings)4.4 (187 ratings) — better
Positive reviews30.3% of reviews45.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.2K — better187
Update frequencyEvery 33 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.0 — better12.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.3 GB2.0 GB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperSQUARE ENIXWales Interactive Ltd.

Customer experience

Life is Strange

All ratings1,170 ratings
Positive56.8%
Neutral12.1%
Negative31.2%
Written reviews360 reviews
Positive30.3%
Neutral18.6%
Negative51.1%

The Complex

All ratings187 ratings
Positive82.9%
Neutral8.0%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews59 reviews
Positive45.8%
Neutral20.3%
Negative33.9%

Bugs and requests

Life is Strange

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Characters disappearing or glitching during scenes
  • Crashes and freezes, especially in later episodes
  • Inability to progress due to game-breaking bugs
  • Graphical issues like distorted textures and animations

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add controller support
  • Improve camera and movement controls
  • Optimize performance and stability
  • Provide more free content

The Complex

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

7 purchases

Life is Strange

One-time7
  • Bonus Episode$1.99
  • Episode 1$2.99
  • Episode 2$2.99
Show 4 more
  • Episode 3$2.99
  • Season Pass [Episode 3-4]$4.99
  • Season Pass [2-4]$6.99
  • Season Pass [Episode 1-3]$7.99
1 purchases

The Complex

One-time1
  • The Complex - Unlock Full Game$4.99

Questions

Is Life is Strange free?
Life is Strange is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is The Complex free?
The Complex is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Life is Strange or The Complex?
The Complex is rated higher. Life is Strange averages 3.5 out of 5 from 1.2K ratings, while The Complex averages 4.4 from 187 ratings.
Do Life is Strange or The Complex have ads?
Neither Life is Strange nor The Complex shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Life is Strange or The Complex?
Life is Strange ships an update every 33 months, and The Complex every 3 months. Most recently, Life is Strange was updated on September 29, 2026 and The Complex on October 1, 2026.

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