Available on mobile, the current mission at hand is to stop those determined kids. Now, Oxenfree has always held a special place in my heart as one of my all-time favorite games. It effortlessly wove together engaging, conversational dialogue with a mysterious, eerie story that felt straight out of a spine-chilling podcast. The peculiar radio signals, unsettling ghostly figures, and the wonky nature of time and space—all seen through the eyes of witty teens on their last adventure before college—captivated me completely. I felt like I couldn’t urge enough people to dive into this unique experience.
Fast forward to 2023, and a sequel made its appearance. Yet, to my own surprise, I hesitated to play it. I feared it might not rekindle that initial magic, which had been utterly flawless for me. Additionally, Night School’s game from 2019, Afterparty, missed the mark entirely for me, adding to my reluctance. However, as I embarked on a brief holiday armed with only my Android tablet, craving a narrative-rich game, I remembered Oxenfree II was part of my Netflix subscription. And to my delight, it’s fantastic! Sure, it stumbles more than the original, and certain story elements don’t fit together as neatly—possibly due to choices I made. For instance, it doesn’t clearly explain why the main characters clash so much with teenager Olivia. But once again, it excels with top-notch voice performances and an engrossing, albeit somewhat unconvincing, storyline (let’s be real, radios don’t function that way!). I’m nearing the end and can’t wait to see how the story concludes. — John Walker
