Stranger Things 3: The Game
A SHRUNK DOWN UPSIDE DOWN.
Free (Requires Netflix Subscription), iOS/Android
When it came to making a game based on one of the most popular television series in the past decade, Netflix took a slightly different route. Each season has been given pixel-based treatment, and with the introduction of Netflix’s new Games feature – where mobile games are offered free without ads and in-app purchases – the latest offering moves to a co-op adventure. Stranger Things 3 is based around “the mall”, where our young adventurers are continuing to understand the supernatural conspiracies that surround their town. The entire experience is beautifully detailed and designed, with plenty of interesting quests, easy navigation, a clever combat and exploration system, and lots of references for fans of the show. Each character has their own abilities and attacks, such as hacking terminals or blowing up boulders that open new pathways. Switching between them is simple, and when you aren’t directly controlling a character, the AI will follow you around, helping to attack enemies. The co-op system allows you to connect with a friend who can explore and complete quests with you, which helps on some of the more difficult missions and boss fights. Its seamless and the ability to explore different parts of the level separately is neat. Each player controls a particular character, so it’s required that both of you keep tabs in what needs to be done at each point. The quests largely relate to a supplementary story that winds around the outside of the Season 3 plotline. It does not spoil the show, although there are character motivations and relationships that may provide some very minor spoilers to plot points that appear later in the season. But the best part about this game is that it doesn’t require any knowledge or investment in the show. It’s a fun and interesting story, that can be easily picked up and played at any time, thanks to an intuitive saving system that acknowledges the mobile nature of the application. The lack of ads, in-app purchases and makes this an easy grab for fans of adventure games, although you will need to login with your Netflix account to play.