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While generally low profile and welcomed by everyone, new IP keeps the gaming industry fresh. While other publishers churned out sequel after sequel, new experiences, especially in the indie space, began to linger in our memory. Night School Studio did something memorable with his 2016 Oxenfree, but what if the chance to do it again fell on deaf ears? , the developers are back to what they know best. Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is a relatively safe sequel that hardly strays from its predecessor’s familiar path, but with a new cast and locations and a story that fans will love.
The party-going teens of Edwards Island have left, replaced by the more mature Riley and Jacob in the small coastal town of Kamena. You control the former and play the entire game, while the latter participates in the task of installing transmitters that analyze strange radio frequency signals. But when a portal opens in the night sky, the work takes on a whole new supernatural twist.
![Oxenfree II: Lost Signals Review - Screenshot 2/4](https://images.pushsquare.com/screenshots/137322/900x.jpg)
The gameplay is on the lighter side, so the story, the two main characters and the supporting cast do much of the heavy lifting. Through dialogue options and some actions, you can shape the story to your liking, making friendships and saving lives along the way. Your choices lead to different endings, featuring several different faces that are compelling, so the replay value is pretty high.
Walkie-talkies and radios are back from the first game, allowing you to expand your horizons a bit and interact with characters you wouldn’t normally encounter. This kicks off “Oxenfree II: Lost Signals” with more small side quests to complete and additional dialogue to reveal the history of the island and additional dialogue that delves into what’s going on elsewhere. It is included. Back in the real world, you’ll also find collectible letters that explore Kamena’s history.
All these optional stories come together to form a compelling narrative around a core plot. At nearly seven hours long, the small details surrounding the cast and supernatural beings make for additional playthroughs in this series. It’s not a completely standalone experience – veterans of the first game will definitely get more out of the Easter eggs and callbacks experience – but both newbies and experienced ghost hunters will have something to look forward to. .
![Oxenfree II: Lost Signals Review - Screenshot 3/4](https://images.pushsquare.com/screenshots/137327/900x.jpg)
Tying these stories together are helpful hikes and basic puzzles. While you have some freedom to roam around taking in the sights and attractions of Kamena, there is always a primary objective to work on. While not particularly exciting on its own, Riley and Jacob keep you engaged through consistent conversations that explore their personalities, personal lives, and hobbies. Dialogue selection allows Riley to be open or closed to chatter.
There are few brain teasers and most of the controls are just pushing the left thumbstick back and forth. However, when it comes to practical use, most people make good use of walkie-talkies and radios. Sometimes you may need to tune into a specific frequency in order to decipher the code or use your tears to travel back in time. However, there is one type of puzzle that is particularly annoying. The game of manipulating radio waves to make shapes never explains what you need to do, so aimlessly spinning the dials in the hope that something will work can be frustrating.
However, other than walking, talking, and the occasional puzzle, there isn’t much in Oxenfree II: Lost Signals. Like the first game, this is an experience focused on a core narrative and broader story surrounding the town of Riley, Jacob and Kamena. Luckily, there are some that are well worth the light gameplay fun.
![Oxenfree II: Lost Signals Review - Screenshots 4/4](https://images.pushsquare.com/screenshots/137324/900x.jpg)
In fact, it’s the dialogue system that the sequel made a big upgrade over the PS4 original. In the first game, it was very easy for different characters to have conversations with the main character on the radio and in real life at the same time, with multiple conversations starting to overlap each other. Essentially you had to micromanage your audio, but with Lost Signals this is no problem. Discussions flow more naturally, carry over seamlessly between loading screens, and have useful icons next to location names on screen.
the only problem teeth There are many loading screens. You should wait approximately 5-7 seconds between each area for the game to load. It doesn’t take a particularly long time to wait, but this loading screen pops up so often that it gets a little annoying. If you haven’t hit the rate limit yet, you’re given plenty of time to break the immersion and give Twitter a chance to distract yourself with a quick scroll.
Another enhancement that Lost Signals brings is significantly upgraded visuals and an amazing soundtrack that could have been ripped straight away. stranger things. The latter makes sense, as Night School Studio is now under the Netflix brand, and eerie, mysterious electronic music heightens the tension of his Oxenfree II’s supernatural themes. Combined with the static sounds of old-fashioned TV, the visuals keep your brain confused and excited. It’s his palette of graphics that look great on all characters and environments and represent a huge leap from the first game.
Conclusion
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is a pretty safe sequel that allows the story and new characters to do the heavy lifting. Through constant chatter between Riley and Jacob, the gameplay keeps you entertained enough to keep you occupied and keep the story in your head at all times. A few frustrating puzzles and frequent loading screens aside, Night School Studio has put together a worthy follow-up that fans and newbies alike will enjoy.