I have played a lot of indie games in my time. Limbo, Firewatch, Journey, Flower, The Unfinished Swan, What Remains of Edith Finch, Adr1ft, Year Walk, Abzu, The Witness, Rime, Everyone has Gone to the Rapture, etc. Oxenfree is different though. To preface, I love this game. I think Oxenfree is the best story I have been told in an indie game, and that is why I put it on a pedestal. Now that is not to say that the games I listed all had bad plots, some were excellent as well. However, very few ever created characters that I really cared about. Oxenfree is a classic story of teens being teens and stumbling upon a mystery while having a party. We have seen this before, and speaking of Oxenfree being an indie game, the plot itself would translate to being an indie movie as well. While some may be annoyed with teen problems like "I am going away to college" or "I wonder if this person likes me", I loved the authenticity of the relationships all the characters shared. These felt like teens, and they felt like real people instead of caricatures. I will not spoil the mystery of the game, as it is very integral to the plot of the game and will bring about a number of surprising moments. But I will say that this game's antagonist is done extradordinarily well for a 2D stylized narrative-based indie game. They are sympathetic, their motivations make sense, and there are some instances where they genuinely creep you out. By the end of the game I had no idea how I would beat the villian, and throughout the journey I grew to worry for the characters and hoped that they would not die. There are multiple endings to the game and in my first one a relationship with one of the characters and the protagonist ended. I felt genuinely bad for it. With that said, this is not a game for the masses. Only a specific crowd will derive the same amount of enjoyment out of this game as I did. If this review piques your interest, I say give it a whirl.
I have had this game for a couple of years now and can honestly say it has not aged one bit. Torchlight II finds a way to indirectly challenge and beat Diablo at it's own genre. Diablo II has certainly aged at both visually and mechanically, where as Diablo III does nail the smooth gameplay but suffers from a slower pace. Torchlight II has fast-paced combat and will constantly pit you against large swarms of enemies, yet it will never feel frustrating because the combat system is so well implemented and each class is so capable on their own that anyone familiar with this genre will quickly become proficient. Torchlight II hooks you with the pacing, Things happen quickly, and when the game does slow down at hubs it is satisfying since it gives the player a chance to relax and focus on their stats. The randomized areas keep things interesting through multiple fresh or new game plus playthroughs. The art style is distinct and pleasing to the eyes. I personally always like the stylized approach to the graphics in a game, since they don't age as badly as graphics that attempt realism. Enemies do become bland over time. There are a number of different enemy types, and new enemies are introduced fairly often, but in the end they are all fodder. With that said, the boss fights are well done. They are the most challenging part of the game and for good reason. They also are in a good middle area between being too easy and just being a damage sponge. Overall, this is an excellent game that deserves all the praise it receives. Here is hoping for a Torchlight III some day.
