1/21/2024 0 Comments Oxen switch reivew![]() ![]() It certainly won’t be a game for everyone, but its punchily paced paranormal parable respects its players’ time, and by the existentialism of the end credits, it will certainly have you reflecting on how you want to spend yours.Riley wakes up on a bus stop in her hometown of Camena, eyes flicked open from the surprise of walkie-talkie static, a chilling hiss that’s now a calling card for developer Night School Studio. Fitting, really, considering that the monolithic streaming platform coughed up to publish this sequel. This, then, is the playable equivalent of curling up under a duvet and binge-watching a Netflix series. Although you’ll leap across clifftops, and hop in and out of portals, this is a story first and a video game second: the antithesis of booting up FromSoftware’s Elden Ring for a reflex-testing romp. Oxenfree II is very much a chin-stroking indie game, a refreshingly slow-paced adventure that lends itself to being played in hour-long bursts as the sun sets and the darkness draws in. At its core, this is a tale about coming back from tragedy, about snapping yourself out of a seemingly impossible rut and rediscovering your lust for life – only with more cults, ghosts and world-threatening portals. While it’s unlikely to win over anyone who didn’t like the original, Oxenfree II succeeds by being a surprisingly human experience. ![]() We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. For more information see our Privacy Policy. Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. ![]() As well as using it to communicate with your boss at the environmental research agency, your reliable radio transmitter can close interdimensional portals, stave off spectres and even prise open frequency-sealed 20th century doors. Gameplay-wise, there isn’t a whole lot to Night School’s long-awaited sequel, with that aforementioned magic walkie talkie forming the basis of Oxenfree II’s puzzling. Developer Night School effortlessly flits between channelling that foreboding feeling of being lost in the woods after dark and the existential wave of calm that comes with a daytime hike. It’s this balance of the mundane and the supernatural that makes Oxenfree II such a pleasingly peculiar proposition. Much like in real life, your little off-kilter comments all add up in Oxenfree II, and ultimately, how you choose to respond to conversations determines whether Jacob even deigns to join you for the final portion of your adventure, or how you’re treated by Camena’s mysterious poltergeist-worshipping cultists. Thanks to some wonderfully naturalistic voice acting, each of your seemingly innocuous dialogue choices plays a pivotal role in determining the events that unfold. ![]() Unlike its predecessor’s cast of peppy teens, reluctant heroine Riley and Jacob are far more jaded leads, with these mid 30s burnouts struggling to come to terms with their respective pasts and wearily attempting to determine their increasingly bleak-looking futures.Ĭheery stuff, eh? Thankfully, you get a say in how Riley’s story pans out. While you roam Camena’s cavernous underbelly, or trek across its sleepy mountain range, you’ll find yourself constantly nattering to fellow environmental scientist Jacob. Important but innocuous dialogue … Oxenfree II: Lost Signals. But unlike the pulse-pounding action of the recent indie-led metroidvania revival, this is a story told through a leisurely sci-fi-tinged, seaside stroll. Roaming the sleepy seaside town from a zoomed-out perspective, Oxenfree II’s handsomely drawn felt-like forestry recalls a 90s sidescroller. Yet as this twisting twoquel’s narrative threads start to unfurl, its haunted hallmarks reveal an expertly woven and surprisingly poignant tale. Treacherous hikes punctuated by sass-filled conversations and magic walkie talkies? All present and correct. As you amble across idyllic landscapes in the American midwest, there’s a clear checklist of Oxenfree stalwarts being met. To players of the original, this will sound incredibly familiar and, initially at least, that familiarity breeds contempt. Part walking simulator, part branching-dialogue talk ’em up, Oxenfree II blends the paranormal with the interpersonal, seeing players fend off vengeful ghosts while carefully navigating the ever-perilous minefield of human relationships. ![]()
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