Parents' Guide to Oxenfree

This mystery title is a fun, unique three- or four-hour adventure -- with an enjoyable story and characters to unravel -- but those with little patience won't likely appreciate the thousands of lines of dialogue to wade through. Some of the navigation is tedious, too, such as hopping over obstacles, climbing up or down rocks, or walking down twisting paths, as it all takes time, though it's likely required to let all the dialogue sequences play out. It's also strongly recommended that players use a game controller, because the keyboard and mouse controls aren't the most intuitive. The pacing is off, too, because some areas of the game are slow and drag on, while at other points some significant events take place in a short period of time.

Along with beautiful hand-painted 2-D environments, the real charm in Oxenfree is the character development. As Alex, you can decide what to say and how to act and choose the people you want to help -- interestingly, there isn't always a "correct" choice or one that doesn't have any repercussions. The music also adds to the atmosphere, but the voice acting is hit and miss (plus, teens don't talk like this). All that being said, if you're an adventure-game fan who likes slower story-based games, you should find Oxenfree an engaging sub-$20 download to play over a rainy Sunday afternoon.