- Publisher: Netflix , Netflix
- Release Date: Jul 12, 2023
- Also On: iPhone/iPad, PC, PlayStation 4, Switch
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Jul 12, 2023This slightly spooky sequel continues its tale of real people in strange situations, picking up the story and characters of Oxenfree and retaining its style and puzzle-adjacent gameplay.
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Jul 12, 2023Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is another narrative hit for Night School, delivering a slow-burn story that expertly weaves together supernatural horror with an introspective story of self-discovery. The sequel does find itself struggling with its own identity crisis though, as tedious interactivity leaves me wondering if the studio’s heart is more in movies or TV than video games.
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Jul 11, 2023Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is a fairly safe sequel that allows its narrative and new cast of characters to do the heavy lifting. Through constant chit-chat between Riley and Jacob, gameplay remains enjoyable enough to keep you engaged, allowing the story to always be at the forefront of your mind. A few frustrating puzzles and frequent load screens aside, Night School Studio has put together a worthy follow-up that fans and newcomers can equally enjoy.
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Jul 11, 2023All in all, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals provides an experience that fans of the original will no doubt love. With refined gameplay features and a truly stunning presentation, there’s a lot here to keep fans of the genre happy for hours…However, a few technical issues and new-generation oversights keep Oxenfree II from being a game that truly stands out from the crowd, which is disappointing given the rest of its potential.
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Jul 11, 2023It is no big deal that Oxenfree 2 mostly uses the same dye trivial gameplay mechanics as its predecessor. But the new characters do not reach the bunch of friends from the first part and the story itself suffers more from its partly trashy nature. As a fan of the original, you may still enjoy this short adventure. If the first part has already been an ordinary game for you, you should better steer clear of it.
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PLAYSep 17, 2023A misjudged leap forward. While refined and polished, its fresh ideas cannot disguise the fact that we’ve passed that one parked car on Edwards Island before. [Issue#30, p.95]
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Jul 18, 2023Oxenfree 2 is a smart, stylish but ultimately safe sequel to a modern cult classic. It unfortunately repeats many of the mistakes of its predecessor, and perhaps that’s the point, but there’s still plenty here for those looking for another dose of small town mystery drowned in spectral radio static.
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Jul 13, 2023Despite the disappointment that this didn't reach higher heights, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals is still okay, but doesn't reach past that except for a few points. It's mainly my personal experience with the game's story and how it's presented that is the biggest obstacle for this to reach the same kind of feeling I got from the adventure I took part in seven years ago. The predecessor simply felt much more memorable than this, which can be seen as a small failure.
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Jul 11, 2023It seemed like Alex was damned to wallow in limbo until the end of time, but it’s Oxenfree 2 that ended up being caught in a loop. Some of those replicated features work in its favor, like its fluid dialogue and cast of decently well-realized characters, yet it’s too heavily anchored to its predecessor. The aforementioned dialogue system is mostly the same and hasn’t been further streamlined or upgraded. Traversal is still too slow. And even though its narrative builds on what came before, it struggles to provide a comprehensive summary of that first game and contextualize those all-important events. All of these stumbles mean that Oxenfree 2’s signal isn’t lost, just full of unnecessary static.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 9 out of 17
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Mixed: 5 out of 17
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Negative: 3 out of 17
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Sep 7, 2023
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Aug 10, 2023
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Jul 31, 2023