The Most Disturbing Stat in Episode 4 of "Life is Strange"

(This whole post is basically spoilers.  Don't read it unless you've played through all four episodes!)

Yesterday I played through the latest episode of Dontnod/Square Enix's excellent episodic story game "Life is Strange."  There were some serious cliffhangers at the end of episode three so I was pretty excited to see how the story was going to pan out.  Did Max's decision to save Chloe's dad mean sentencing Chloe to life as a paraplegic?  Why are all the animals dying?  Is the world really ending because of Max using her powers?  So many questions!  Luckily, episode four answers those questions and leaves enough of a cliffhanger to make us all chew our fingernails in anticipation of the final episode.

Do you do it or not?

One thing I enjoy are the statistics that pop up at the end of each episode.  It's kind of fun to see the decisions that other people made and see how you chalk up to other players.  Generally I find that I make similar choices to the vast majority of people--maybe there is hope for humanity...or myself.  Once in awhile though there is a statistic that really surprises me.  In this episode the one that shocked me was the one concerning Chloe's request for Max to administer an overdose and in effect kill Chloe.  My gut reaction was "no way!" but that single decision seems so debateable.  Would you be willing to kill your best friend if they asked you to?  Ooof.  That's a gut punch.  I was very shocked when I got to the end of the game and found that 45% did it.  Really?  Half of you would kill your best friend!  When I really got down to thinking about the scenario in the game it was a tough decision.  It's difficult because it's obvious that Chloe is in pain and her life bound to a wheelchair seems pretty sad.  Chloe's family is drowning in debt trying to cover the medical costs associated with taking care of her.  You also learn that her condition has taken a turn for the worst and that her lungs are failing--the reality is that she's dying a slow death.  Her death would ease the financial burden on her family and save her from a slow death due to respiratory failure.

On the other hand....Chloe's family seems like they are actually really happy.  Her dad is alive and loves her with all his heart.  Her mom isn't working as a waitress at the diner and seems to spend a lot of her time taking care of Chloe.  They've taken family trips to Paris and seem genuinely happy.  Who is Max to deprive the family of someone they love?  Even though Chloe's health is failing, who is to say how much time she would have left to enjoy the company of her family?  And on a much deeper, time travel-ly note...what if you kill Chloe in this reality and she ceases to exist in the other one?  Could that happen?

I opted to have Max refuse.  It might seem like the colder of the two decisions, but I felt like it was the right one (assisted suicide is legal in Oregon...just FYI).  The end of the episode left some serious cliffhangers to be resolved in the finale.  We finally learn who is behind all the ominous happenings at Blackwell Academy and it's a bit of a shocker.