styggron: . The only thing I am worried about is reading around people say you will have it all finished in around 4 hours...............I was hoping more like 12+ at least..........

Niggles: I know people will say quality of the experience is whats important and i understand that, but this is one of the downsides of indie games imho.... gaming on the short side. Hope it isnt as im almost sure of getting this one soon myself

styggron: I do agree quality of the experience is important but so is longevity / replayability. The vanishing of Ethan Carter is an amazing experience but I finished it in 2 days which is a pity but very enjoyable. If something is short, I always wait for a big discount. If something has longevity and replayability, I tend to give it a little more leeway with cost.

I'll probably still jump in and get this one. Everyone says the immersion and experience is fantastic so I'll get this one in the next day or so before the discount ends.

Kunovski: so, I just wrote a tiny review, but it doesn't show up... anyways :)

here I am, finished the game now, it's 1:00 in the morning... I haven't done this in a VERY LONG time :D but I just needed to know how the story ends, it's like those TV shows that you can't stop watching until you get to the last episode, even though you're cold and your eyes hurt :D

if you like great stories and writing and don't mind a little cheesy teen drama background (which is really very far back), go for it :) now :)

groze: I had written a pretty lenghty post that apparently didn't go through, so I'll just say I bought this game and, only two hours in, I can safely say it's shaping up to be one of my favourite games of 2016.

At first I was afraid I had bought into the hipster-ish, tailor-made for tumblr stuff à lá Life Is Strange, as the game starts out as your typical "teen drama flick" full of stereotypes, and I really wanted to punch the "socially awkward funny stoner nerd guy" and the "mega sour mean b*tch", the same way I felt they had tried way too hard with the "cool smooth outsider smoker city dude" and the "nerd guy's love interest depressive hot shy girl", but the fact the playable character basically shapes everything around her based on our real-time conversation options soon made me "build" my own story and steer away from the -- very obvious initial -- cliché (that some are more than entitled to keep going for the entire game). For the record, even if I had kept feeding that kind of story, as soon as the game takes a turn for the "creepy", it does so extremely well, and it becomes an entirely different beast altogether -- I'll say this a bit during this post, but not many games accomplish that quite as good as Oxenfree.

I think comparing this game to a cult TV show such as Freaks & Geeks might be overdoing it a bit, as the writing isn't quite as good. As a game, though, it has definitely some of the best, most intriguing scripts I've come across. Let's just say that, two hours in, the same nerd guy I wanted to punch so hard is now in a predicament and I feel genuinely worried for him. Not many games manage to pull this off, and Oxenfree does it masterfully. Voice acting is nice, the art and sound designs are amazing.

I *really* feel like I'm shaping this story that I'm part of, the real-time timed dialogue options are an awesome mechanic that I must say adds a lot to the game and how the story unfolds. I'd never seen a mechanic such as this working so good. The puzzles seem to be interesting, so far; not too easy but not too hard, just the right balance so as to not disrupt the flow of the narrative, which I highly appreciate. The light platforming is easy to pull off, they basically assign every action to a context-sensitive key (Space, by default), which is how you jump, climb ledges, push and pull objects and interact with hotspots. I also like how flawlessly the devs incorporated 3D movement in what looks like a 2D game, at first. Everything is fluid, as much as that word is overused, these days. The radio tuning puzzles/anomalies are also a refreshing, unique mechanic, one I'd say sets this game aside just as much as the real-time conversation options. Everything is seamlessly integrated into the gameplay, and that ends up working wonders in favour of the game.

Sadly, my PC is utter crap, so the game, albeit completely playable, runs a bit sluggishly. Considering everyone out there probably has a decent machine (definitely better than mine), you should have no problems playing this game.

This is a game that, as soon as you start playing it, bears the unmistakable mark of a title that is the labour of love and dedication by its developers. I highly recommend it to everyone who is either an adventure fan (both point & click adventures or action-adventures with light platforming), a fan of great writing and interactive fiction -- i.e. "walking simulators", someone who loves great art and sound design or anyone who wants to try something new, intriguing and interesting.

Niggles: Just out of interest - those of you currently playing or just finished, how long is the game?.

theadam: 4-8 hours, depending on how fast you play and if you do a "sidequest" of collecting stuff and an island radio tour.

@reative00: have you tried playing with subtitles? They are color coded and easy to follow.

reative00: >be me
>be stupid
>don't check options for subtitles

Thanks man, you've saved my life :3