I started playing the original game not realizing it had a sequel, but was delighted to discover so upon finishing and hopped into this one right away.

This game improves on a lot of the gameplay issues that I had with the first installment. I appreciated how the conversations you started in one location continued across loading screens, so you didn't have to wait around for them to finish before moving on. Load times and glitchiness were also improved, though I should note I opted to play this one on PS5 instead of Switch like the first one in an effort to avoid some of that lag.

I was happy to see the return of the radio mechanic, though it didn't feature as heavily as it did in the first game and I liked the additions of new gameplay features such as the walkie talkie.

The story was a worthy follow up to the first. I didn't love Reiley and Jacob as much as I did Alex and Jonas, but I still found them to be likable and compelling characters and was invested in their friendship and their quest.

My only real compliant is that I wish we'd gotten to see more of the characters from the original game. Since this is a direct follow up as I player I was invested in characters from the last chapter and was hoping to get a bit more of them then we did here. But hey, here's hoping we get an Oxenfree III.