For the most part, Life is Strange: True Colors becomes a completely different game in Chapter 3: "Monster Or Mortal." Though the first part and last part of the chapter are more of what you've already done, the majority of the chapter is spent on the LARP that Steph set up for Ethan, temporarily transforming True Colors into a turn-based RPG where you have to worry about health bars and status effects and whatnot.
That doesn't mean there aren't inconsequential choices, though. There aren't as many as previous chapters, nor as many as in what is to come, but they are important all the same. Some will even lock you out of achieving the "good" ending. We've noted the relevant decisions you need to make below. As a final note: Chapter 3 is also where True Colors really starts hammering home on how Alex feels about music, herself, and Ryan and Steph. Be on the lookout for opportunities to dig into those areas.
More Life Is Strange: True Colors Guides
- Chapter 1: "Side A" Walkthrough
- Chapter 2: "Lanterns" Walkthrough
- Chapter 4: "Flicker" Walkthrough
- Chapter 5: "Side B" Walkthrough
Chapter 3: "Monster Or Mortal" Walkthrough
Distracting Diane [Mandatory]
After Alex and Ryan clue Steph into Alex's Empathy abilities and the trio decide to work together to stop Typhon, the group agrees that they'll somehow need to gather evidence from Diane. To that end, Ryan and Steph come up with a wonderfully stupid, yet hilarious plan: One of the two of them will flirt with Diane to distract her and then Alex can take the opportunity to steal evidence of Typhon's wrongdoings from Diane's bag. You have to decide who should distract Diane.
Either choice in this scenario works out for you. The major influence of this choice ties more into whichever romance you want to pursue (if you want to pursue one at all). You're not really picking who you think would be better to distract Diane, you're picking who you think is more attractive and thus more distracting for Diane. So if you want to romance Steph, pick her; if you want to romance Ryan, say that he should be the distraction.
Influencing Diane's Emotions [Mandatory]
When confronting Diane, you'll have to invoke the grief she feels over Gabe's death, either by appealing to her sadness or stoking her anger. Neither choice has an impactful effect on the ending of True Colors, though appealing to her sadness will seemingly rattle her a little bit more and she'll seem genuinely guilty about what she's done for most of the rest of the game.
Telling Riley About Eleanor [Missable]
During the LARP, you can stop into the flower shop to talk to Riley and check in on what's going on with her attempts to hack the USB drive you got from Diane. Though Eleanor doesn't want you to tell Riley about her condition, you can choose to tell her anyway.
Do not tell Riley about Eleanor if you want the "good" ending of True Colors. Doing so will prove to Eleanor that you're not a trustworthy person, and you need her trust to get the "good" ending. That said, going this route will ensure that Eleanor remains alone as Riley will go off to college, so prep some tissues.
Charlotte's Anger [Mandatory]
Alright, now we're getting to the heavy hitting stuff. For the most part, everything you've done leading up to Chapter 3 has been fairly inconsequential, but Chapter 3 kicks off a series of choices that will have large impacts on what type of ending you get for Alex (like telling Riley about Eleanor). One of the biggest divergences occurs at the very end of Chapter 3, where you have to decide whether to take Charlotte's anger away or let her keep it.
On the surface, this seems like a no-brainer. Charlotte's anger stems from the grief over Gabe's death, her disappointment in Ethan for having a part in Gabe's death, and her self-hatred at herself for blaming her son for the death of her boyfriend. She's contemplating suicide, so why not take that anger away?
The answer, as Alex puts it, is that doing so will fill Alex up with that rage instead. But there's a greater question at play here: As destructive as this rage is, isn't the act of feeling it just as important and valid as coping with it? Anger can be destructive, but it's an important part of healing too.
In this particular instance, taking away Charlotte's anger is the wrong way to go. It will make Alex so angry that she'll push away her allies, Ryan and Steph. More importantly, it will prevent Charlotte from fully grieving and achieving a healthy emotional equilibrium--removing her anger will transform her into a husk of a person. She will no longer aid you in your attempts to take down Typhon, locking you out of the "good" ending.
