The opening scene can explain the story in less time and make it more entertaining than me. The Oddworld series (at least the two titles released for PSX) are probably the best platform games I have ever played, and if they are not, well, they come close.

With fixed scenes, we travel around different frames of the installations of rupture farms (and many other places), helping our clumsy friend Abe to escape. But nothing is easy here! Abe has nothing but his (your) wits to do so: he doesn't have weapons like the guards and the place is filled with bombs, lasers and all sorts of stuff that will kill our hero in the most dramatic ways.

Abe can jump, roll, sneak, throw rocks (if he finds any), release homing farts and all kinds of crazy stuff, but more important is that he can use voice commands to speak with NPCs.

These NPCs are nothing but your fellow Mudokon friends, who like you, are slaves in the meat grinding factory, and as they were born in slavery, they will do whatever you tell them to.

The game is incredibly simple, but very fun to play. By combining simple things as some levers and some traps we can dispose of guards and hopefully get our friends alive to an escape point.

FREEEEEEEDOM

Abe can for example blend with the shadows some objects produce to hide from guards and he can posses their bodies and use them at his will (At least when no enemy machinery is preventing us from doing so).

This game has no lives, no continues, no user interface, nothing. the instructions are within the game presented as flashing signs, TV ads and that sort of stuff.

Mudokons are fragile, and as a result (and the lack of health bars) you die on contact with anything hazardous between you and the next screen, be it a very long fall, a meat grinder, one bullet, a wild animal or a mine. You can hard save only at certain points of the game, though in Abe's Exoddus you can use a quicksave command that overwrites itself each time you use it, and acts as a check point while the power on the console is on.

There's two ways to play this game:

You can just go from one screen to the next and try to escape all alone or you can save your (very dumb) friends while saving yourself. The number of mudokons saved in each area is displayed on signs in the background like every piece of information in the game. Depending on the number of Mudokons we save, we get a different ending.

Both games are hard at some points but not impossible. The skills and movements Abe has at his disposal are very simple to use, but extremely versatile at the same time. Sometimes when a new screen is shown you sit for some seconds and wonder how the hell are you supposed to save the mudokons if they are surrounded by guards, mines, meat grinders and there's a flying guy shooting grenades at you, but there lies the beauty of the game. Simple to play, but very hard if we choose to save all the Mudokons.

The sequel has a number of differences besides the quicksave feature. In the second part fellow Mudokons have emotional states and status ailments that affect how they respond to our voice commands. They can be angry, wired, depressed, sick, or blind. If a mudokon is angry we have to say sorry to them or they won't follow our orders. If he's wired we need to calm them before they attract the guards or step on a mine, and so on.

Other changes include new voice commands, new traps and obstacles such as motion detectors and guard dogs, new enemies and the ability to control not only guards but wild beast and some other thing I won't spoil for you

The scenes are filled with black humor as comedic relief, or the story would be depressing :p. There's plenty of details on the screen at all times: from characters behaviors to animated backgrounds. The voice acting is pretty good to tell you how each enemy is. Music changes according to situations and there's always new things to do with the same abilities you start with. And I guess I could write two or three more paragraphs about good things the game has, but it will be faster telling you the bad things it has: nothing.

"delivers innovative, strategy-filled gameplay" said GamePro.
"balances its action and puzzle elements perfectly" GameSpot had to say.
"If you never played it, get a copy and do so right now" I'm telling all of you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckQSFcKMJ9k#t=5m1s
Gameplay of the first few screens of the first game

Poll: You should play this game...
(Vote): right now!
(Vote): only if you like the genre.
(Vote): never.

IntoTheWow

is awesome32274 Posts

January 06 2009 03:09 GMT

As a footnote: I never played the 3rd or 4th game in the series. I only saw some videos of them on YouTube and they don't look as fun as the first two. Anyone played them? thoughts?

SonuvBob

Aiur21549 Posts

January 06 2009 03:15 GMT

You know what's worth playing? Mega Man 2.

IntoTheWow

is awesome32274 Posts

January 06 2009 03:23 GMT

lol, you rated me a 1 son

feeeeeeeeedback

Raithed

China7078 Posts

January 06 2009 03:25 GMT

sigh. man, oddworld, abes exodus was so fucking good. i remember playing it with my best friend back in middle school and it was SO fucking tricky. you never die, you just restart @ the place you last die, it was amazing though..

SonuvBob

Aiur21549 Posts

January 06 2009 03:30 GMT

I didn't rate it.

Tropics

United Kingdom1132 Posts

January 06 2009 03:31 GMT

Both Abe games were excellent, munch's oddyssey wasn't that great, never played strangers wrath

after reading this im REALLY tempted to buy both abe games off steam right now...

Myrmidon

United States9452 Posts

January 06 2009 03:33 GMT

Hm so it's a kind of Lemmings derivative puzzle game in which you're trying to get hapless critters to the exit, except you control a main character that directs the others and does all the main interactions with the environment? How fast does the game play, how good is the interface, and what's the difficulty like?

This reminds me of the PSP/XBLA game, Exit in terms of concept. I'm sure there's plenty other examples out there, but I don't really know the genre.

IntoTheWow

is awesome32274 Posts

January 06 2009 03:46 GMT

On January 06 2009 12:33 Myrmidon wrote:
Hm so it's a kind of Lemmings derivative puzzle game in which you're trying to get hapless critters to the exit, except you control a main character that directs the others and does all the main interactions with the environment? How fast does the game play, how good is the interface, and what's the difficulty like?

This reminds me of the PSP/XBLA game, Exit in terms of concept. I'm sure there's plenty other examples out there, but I don't really know the genre.

The game itself without rescuing Mudokons is not THAT hard, though you will die plenty of times. Getting Mudokons out will need some planning sometimes, as blowing up something you needed to killed a guard mill make you suicide yourself in order to restart the area if you want to save 100% of the mudokons.

There's also secret areas (which sometimes are hard to find) where there's more mudokons. These areas are the hardest parts of all the game.

You can play the game fast slow o fast. I played it fast. Meaning, sometimes you can stay hidden while thinking what to do, but I prefer trying something quick and if It didn't work, run to that area again to try something else.

Except where you need to sneak because of sleeping guards, or where there are motion detectors, you can run or roll through scenes quick if you are good.

cgrinker

United States3824 Posts

January 06 2009 03:46 GMT

#10

On January 06 2009 12:23 IntoTheWow wrote:
lol, you rated me a 1 son

feeeeeeeeedback

Okay I made the same kind of comment six months ago everyone misinterperated it and then I was yelled off the website for a week and now everyone seems to be getting away with it. unfair

Oddworld is cool, though I feel like there are better adventure games out there.

QuietIdiot

7004 Posts

January 06 2009 04:15 GMT

#11

Sounds fun, will give it a try, ty <3

MrHoon

10183 Posts

January 06 2009 04:34 GMT

#12

fucking amazing game, would recommend this game to anyone who is a nostalgic guy and loves PSX games.

ramen247

United States1256 Posts

January 06 2009 04:39 GMT

#13

i have played abe's odyssey and i never finished.

* im up to the part were there are a series of giant bombs that prevent me from chanting and there are projectiles that prevent me from moving across the screen btw.
i just got to a point were i had a lot of other stuff to do and didnt have enough time to dedicate.

its a VERY good game.

Tekin

2711 Posts

January 06 2009 04:53 GMT

#14

Xenogears! Xenogears!

Pwntrucci[sR]

Canada1519 Posts

January 06 2009 05:25 GMT

#15

Those games are awesoum.

Lachrymose

Australia1928 Posts

January 06 2009 05:35 GMT

#16

wasn't a big fan i've got to say.

i think i was too young to appreciate the charm at the time.

Ethenielle

Norway1006 Posts

January 06 2009 06:00 GMT

#17

i LOVED this game when I was a kid, played it all the time.. I remember I especially liked the scenery once you got out of rupture farms, it really pulled me into that world