Play it on: Cell
Present purpose: Cease these rattling children
Oxenfree is one among my favourite video games ever. Its compelling mixture of naturalistic, banter-y dialogue and spooky podcast-like storyline clicked strongly for me, completely drawing me into its mysterious narrative. Peculiar radio alerts, ghostly apparitions, and time and house not behaving correctly, all skilled by way of the attitude of some smart-mouthed teenagers taking one final jaunt earlier than beginning faculty. I couldn’t suggest it to sufficient individuals.
Then in 2023, a sequel got here out, and I didn’t play it. I didn’t need to play it. I believe as a result of I used to be simply afraid it couldn’t recapture that second, and that second had been excellent. Additionally, as a result of developer Evening Faculty’s intervening sport, 2019’s Afterparty, didn’t work for me in any respect. However I’ve stopped being such an enormous foolish, and pushed by the will to play one thing narratively robust whereas on a brief trip this vacation, however solely geared up with my Android pill, I remembered Oxenfree II comes as a part of an lively Netflix sub. And it’s nice! It’s actually nice! It makes extra errors than the unique, bits of the story not fairly including up correctly (maybe due to selections I made, it actually fails to clarify why the 2 predominant characters are so antagonized by teenager Olivia), however it’s as soon as once more a triumph of beautiful vocal performances and an intriguing (if frustratingly unbelievable—radios don’t work like that!) storyline. I’m very near the tip, and look ahead to lastly discovering out the way it all wraps up. — John Walker
