About Oxenfree

Oxenfree is a much-anticipated adventure and story game developed and published by Night School Studio. Oxenfree is the first game to be released from the stables of Night School Studio. It is horror and mystery based and projects a supernatural setting. Oxenfree was first released in January 2016 for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Xbox. Later that year, versions were released for Linux and PlayStation. However, it was not until 2017 that Oxenfree was made available for iOS, Nintendo Switch, and Android devices.

Since its release, Oxenfree has received a substantial number of awards for its storyline, gameplay, and other notable aspects. The game is particularly noted for its flexibility and its immensely absorptive storyline, a characteristic that has hardly been met by other story and adventure games before it.

This game greatly borders on the supernatural, with the perfect touch of horror, adventure, mystery, and suspense that is prevalent in movies of this kind. Oxenfree has proved to be quite self-revealing and emotional in certain cases, given that the player portrays their own inclinations and behavioral pattern in character and faces the resulting outcome of their choices. Moreso, the producers of Oxenfree has adeptly portrayed the complexities of life and decisions using a variety of outcomes that can be altered with different choices. Simply put, Oxenfree is one of its kind.

Storyline And Gameplay

A girl named Alex is the main character whose role the player assumes. Her brother Jonas and about three or four more characters are also present in the game. The story begins when the group decides to go to a party on an abandoned military island called Edwards Island. Alex accidentally opens a mysterious door and tunes a certain radio she carries around to a strange frequency around the area, also by mistake. As a result, a host of mysterious creatures is let loose, and the team members pass out briefly.

On regaining consciousness, they are all scattered to different parts of the island, in one's and two's. This marks the beginning of the crazy experiences, and now they must all work together to escape the island. Unfortunately, the mysterious creatures are capable of possessing the characters and making them act out of their will, mostly to the team's detriment. Alex owns a radio, and with that radio, she learns that she can connect to the different strange frequencies in the area to communicate with spirits, creatures from another planet, and even alternate versions of herself.

Each team member undergoes life-changing experiences at different stages of the game, and Alex (you) is mostly in charge of the occurrences of this game. With her friends and brother, Alex has to figure out the paranormal force hanging around the island and how to free themselves of its grip.

Many adventure story games use cutscenes containing dialogue for the communicative aspect of their games. However, Oxenfree takes a different approach and eliminates the use of cutscenes. Instead, about two to three speech bubbles appear over Alex's head, and the player has to select that which they think is more appropriate to respond with. In addition, the dialogues do not slow down or halt the general gameplay, and Alex has unlimited liberty to explore every part of the island at every point of the game.

The dialogues are time bound, however, and you can decide not to respond by skipping. However, skipping does not do much for you because the game continues with or without. Only by making dialogue can you take control of the events around you and determine your outcome. The other characters can also react based on their decisions and actions. Your actions affect the people around you, the environment, and the final situation of your team.

Alex can also transport to different times in space, mostly the past, to redo her actions or gain an insight into her actions. Apart from the struggle to survive, you must be open-minded and receptive to your friends. This will help you to predict their actions and easily detect when paranormal spirits have overcome them. Your reaction to them can also strengthen your bonds and their inclinations to trust and depend on you.

Alex's radio holds the key to the survival and freedom of the group. With her radio, she eventually tunes in with the dead spirits who control the island and save the group. The group members also get into situations with the creatures and can be saved or destroyed by Alex's decisions. At the end of the game, the number of survivors left, the state of mind of the survivors, the type and bond of relationship between the characters after the event, and even their physical state are all a reflection of your decisions.

There are numerous outcomes, which all differ as your choices differ. Different players will arrive at different outcomes, and some may never even be able to manoeuvre the game to produce some outcomes because their actions cannot produce such results. Oxenfree does not have a win or lose system or a game-over situation. The only effect would be the final state of the team, and therefore will be left for you to decide how well you have handled the situation. However, you can play the game over and over again, trying a different string of reactions and choices until you arrive at a suitable ending.

Graphics And Sound

The graphics of Oxenfree are clear and concise, with 3D characters in a 2D environment. The environment setting is somewhat bleak, gloomy, and eerie to support the mysterious content. The background music is also sad in some parts, edgy and pumping in some other parts as the story presents itself. The sound effects are consistent throughout the game, and all combine to give the game the perfect visual and audio balance.

Conclusion

Oxenfree is a masterpiece, combining the thrill and drama of an adventure series with the leading and addictive storyline of a standard game. As a result, the game is generally intense and keeps you invested for as long as you play.

Players cannot get bored of the game because of the series of outcomes and adventure twists. It provides the perfect glimpse into the world of horror and mystery, with you completely at the helm of affairs. So brace up and rule your circumstances in your favour. Remember to take your hard-earned lessons with you.