Biography
Ashley "Ash" Brown is one of the eight main protagonists and a playable character in Until Dawn. She is portrayed by actress Galadriel Stineman. Ashley is described in-game as academic, inquisitive, and forthright. According to the companion app, she loves books, dislikes horror movies, and dreams of being an author.
Despite her strong feelings about what happened at the Washington Lodge a year ago, Ashley seems to be sweet, friendly, cheerful, and generally eager to be in the company of her friends. Her attendance and actions are partially motivated by her strong feelings toward Chris, whom she has an unexpressed crush on. She is shown to be very observant as, when she finds clues like the Hidden Camera and Faked Newspapers, she's able to recognize their greater significance. However, she does have a tendency to let her imagination run away with her; while Chris is incredulous, Ashley is quick to believe in an apparent ghost she sees and also misunderstands the magnitude of Emily’s bite wound. Compared with some of her more loose and laid-back friends, Ashley is rather polite, serious, and even a little hesitant; she doesn't use profanity often like other group members and tends to follow the decisions of others. Her tendency to be meek and timid outlines her lack of self-confidence, and as the night progresses she becomes increasingly distressed and scared by the life-threatening and seemingly supernatural events taking place around her. As such, she at times displays reluctance in looking for Sam when the latter goes missing, though Chris can usually convince her to continue and even show courage in the face of a potential threat. Still, when in actual danger, Ashley is not as quick on her feet as Mike or Emily. This is shown when she manages to stab the Psycho in the shoulder with a pair of scissors, but then fails to either follow up on this attack or escape.
Of all the protagonists, Ashley's personality can be shaped and effected the most by the player's choices. While Ashley did partake in the prank against Hannah, she had the least involvement of the participants, being a mere onlooker. Afterwards, she has the most chances express regret about participating in the prank if the player so chooses. However, the player can also choose for her to react dismissively and lay the blame with Hannah, claiming she overreacted. Additionally, depending on the player's actions, Ashley can be shown to possess a vengeful streak. If Chris chose to shoot her and save himself, she'll later refuse to let him into the lodge, leading to him being killed by a Wendigo. However, if Chris is made to do the opposite, Ashley will wait by the door for Chris to return and let him in just in time.