Of all the games I've played in 2024, my current favorite is Animal Well. Ethereal, colorful, and absolutely fiendish, it reminded me of why I love puzzle games – sometimes, it's nice to down weapons, close League of Legends, and just vibe. While Animal Well is my 2024 favorite (so far), Strange Horticulture was my staple relaxing game back in 2022, incorporating the witchy aesthetic that I love with, well, a lot of planets. Now, Bad Viking has announced that it's getting a sequel, Strange Antiquities, and I am far too excited.
Undermere is filled with secrets. In Strange Horticulture we see everything from murder to a hermit summoning spirits and dangerous entities, but how those best laid plans play out is dictated by your choices. In a similar vein, Strange Antiquities takes place several years after its predecessor, and casts you as a purveyor of curiosities, oddities, and all manner of magical objects.
In this instalment of the puzzle game saga, you are the Thaumaturge's apprentice, and you've just opened your new (yet somehow dusty) antique store. Things, however, are not as they seem, as hundreds of ravens have begun to circle over Undermere – a symbol of grim tidings.
Occult scholar extraordinaire Verona Green soon gets in touch, inquiring about the situation, but before she gets to your store, Bad Vikings tells us that "things take a sinister turn…" That doesn't sound good.
While we don't see a lot of gameplay in the trailer above, Strange Antiquities will likely play similar to its predecessor, with perhaps a more prevalent overarching story thread instead of branching narratives. Either way, Strange Horticulture currently sits at 'overwhelmingly positive' on Steam, rating 95%, so even if Antiquities is more of the same, I have a feeling people will love it.
Plus, Strange Antiquities introduces a brand new cat for all of your cuddling needs. If nothing else has sold you on it, that absolutely should.
Strange Antiquities doesn't have a release date yet (just the above teaser trailer). However, as someone who just can't get enough of Horticulture, I'm hoping it drops later this year – I'm overdue a trip to Undermere.
As we wait for that fated day to arrive, however, we have a list of all the best PC games we know about for 2024 and beyond.
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