When you have a video game collection like mine, it can be hard to play all of the games. This is especially true when additions are made on an almost weekly basis. Still, I appreciate nearly every game I’ve accumulated for this reason or that. In the hopes of improving my writing through continuous effort and promoting ongoing learning of these games, I’m going to compose brief, descriptive articles.

Oscura: Second Shadow is a game I have yet to play. Like most of the games I have for Android or Steam, this one was acquired through a Humble Bundle, and remains untouched. Instead of personal experience then, I can only write about what I know of the game through quick research. Fortunately, the game’s website has a press kit that filled me in. The game takes inspiration from platformers from the 1990s, specifically the Super Mario and Rayman series of games. Stylistically, much inspiration is drawn from Tim Burton’s repertoire, and I’d also say Limbo. I’ll have to give it a shot sometime to see how it handles on a touch-based device, as I’ve not had much good things to say about platformers on such devices.

The game was developed by Ole Alfheim in conjunction with Chocolate Liberation Front. It was published by Surprise Attack Games, initially on iOS on June 26, 2014 and two months later (August 26, 2014) on Android. Per the game’s press kit, Ole appears to be an Australian and the brains behind this game and its predecessor.