Thaumaturgy. Have you heard of it? Strange Antiquities is all about it. It\u2019s to do with imbuing items with powers and using magic to change things, in a nutshell – then in the game, you sell them to local townsfolk. If you\u2019re not a fan of weird, wonderful, and likely cursed items, turn back now.<\/p>\n
I first began my foray into the occult retail life in Strange Horticulture, Bad Viking\u2019s delightfully gloomy indie game from 2022, where you run a plant store in a Cumbrian town. The plants on offer are mostly poisonous and out of the ordinary, which sets the premise for both of the Strange games. While Antiquities is a sequel, they\u2019re not directly related, and you can play it separately if you want. Whichever you play first, there are mysterious goings-on that you need to help unravel through talking to the locals and collecting clues in both games.<\/p>\n
Strange Antiquities reprises your role as part-detective, part-shopkeep. You\u2019re tasked with looking after the store for a few days while your boss goes off to do something super secret. The issue is that none of the odd items on the shelves are labeled, but you have a few books to help with symbology and gemstones. There\u2019s a half-filled handbook that vaguely tells you what each item is, too. What are these four different pointed metal things? What\u2019s that human heart-shaped curio? You have to find out.<\/p>\n