Oxenfree II: Lost Signals

I'm so so happy with Oxenfree II. Oxenfree is my favorite game of all time, but playing this one was able to eclipse it. First of all, the design of the game is just wholly improved. Scenes look more detailed, there's much more atmosphere, conversations continue between locations, interrupted conversations come back later, the climbing mechanics are more involved, there's more little puzzles, etc. They just took the idea of oxenfree and expanded on it in a major way, adding a lot new mechanics to make the game feel much more fresh and, well, more like a game.

The lore is also important to note, as they expand VASTLY on the oxenfree universe. I have a better understanding of how the whole time loop works, and I enjoyed how they played with the ideas they've already used before to make them more interesting. Specifically, while Oxenfree had you going into the past to talk to Michael, Oxenfree II has you go to the future (won't spoil further). The choices you make in those time loops once again does determine what happens later and who you and someone else become as people.

The voice acting is really great. Jacob and Riley are excellent protagonists with really compelling backgrounds. I will say that I enjoyed the cast of oxenfree more than this one (besides Olivia, the teenagers are not extremely detailed characters), but the two main characters more than make up for that in chemistry and intrigue.

Choices matter a lot more in this one, and I enjoy how the utilize the relationships you've built to make certain scenes easier or more difficult based on how well you've been doing. There are consequences for failing sequences in this one, which I was glad to see.

Plus, all your time is filled with lots of Adler notes to find and read and plenty of people to talk to on the walkie. Oxenfree, for its many successes, did contain a lot of dead air, especially since you couldn't leave an area and continue a conversation. 2 definitely makes up for that, giving you lots of optional conversations with their own interesting through lines! I particularly enjoyed Nick and Shelley's stories, though everyone on the walkie is fun to talk to.

Thank you Night school for another beautiful game!