Oddworld is a comprehensive fictional universe presented in video game form, created by game developers Oddworld Inhabitants under the direction of Lorne Lanning. Throughout games set in the Oddworld universe, Oddworld's peaceful nature is in danger of being consumed by the industrial ambition of sadistic corporations. Oddworld, as a planet, is measured as seven times the size of Earth, a fraction of which has been featured in the games. The main continent is Mudos. The series has been released on various platforms like Playstation, Xbox, Playstation 3, and PC.
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The developers originally stated that the Oddworld series would be a pentalogy called the Oddworld Quintology, and that Abe's Exoddus and Stranger's Wrath games were bonus titles not counting toward the total of five. The Oddworld Adventures Games are handheld versions of Abe's Oddysee and Exoddus. The Quintology was halted after the first two games, when the company decided to redirect its efforts toward film production. There were also a few titles that were hinted at in interviews and press releases, but they were never developed.
At the beginning of this game, Abe is a happy, ignorant worker at RuptureFarms, a meat-packing plant.[1] Working late at RuptureFarms, Abe passes an advertisement billboard for the upcoming latest product in the Tasty Treats line of snacks, and eavesdrops the factory’s annual board meeting. Here, he learns that wildlife resources have become depleted, for which reason Abe's boss Molluck the Glukkon has decided to use the factory's Mudokon slaves as a ready source of meat.[2] After this epiphany, Abe panics and escapes from his workplace. At the end of the game's introductory sequence which is a retrospective voiced-over by Abe [3] Abe runs for his life.[1] The Mudokons’ spiritual leader, the BigFace, appears to the unconscious Abe in a vision, revealing that the Mudokon race once lived freely with nature before they were enslaved by the Glukkons, and that their sacred animals were the very same ones being slaughtered and processed to manufacture 'Tasty Treats'. Prophecies have foretold of a Mudokon saviour whose worth would be tested by a journey to relight holy flames that were extinguished by the Glukkons. Abe does this with the aid of his pet Elum and then receives mystic tattoos. Abe infiltrates RuptureFarms, killing its entire board of executives before being captured and taken to a holding cell, where he has enough time to pore over the last day before facing execution. Should the player save over a certain number of Mudokons, Abe's actions will have impressed the holy Mudokons, who rescue Abe and transport him to safety, where he receives a hero’s welcome from the Mudokons he rescued. Should the player not save a sufficient number, Abe will not be rescued and is executed by Molluck.
Abe's Oddysee was very popular, and the bonus game Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus was released the following year.[1] Abe's Exoddus begins where Abe's Oddysee ends.[4] Abe's abilities in this game were similar to his abilities in the first game,[5] with an expanded ability to communicate with other characters in the world using GameSpeak.[6] As he was celebrating his new celebrity status, ghosts of old Mudokons appeared before him[7] and told him that Necrum, a once sacred Mudokon burial ground, was being excavated by Glukkons, using blind Mudokons as slaves.[2] Abe again journeys to the Scrab and Paramite lands, along with Alf, Ben, Phos, Han, and Luke[8] to find a cure to the sickness the SoulStorm brew created from the excavated bones. Curing his friends, he then travels to FeeCo Depot, the main hub for many productions. He travels to Bonewerkz and the Slig Barracks to board the train to the Soulstorm Brewery - and eventually blows it up. If Abe actually tampers with the main boiler, Abe teleports from the explosion just in time and is greeted by all his saved Mudokon friends, one of which is Alf. If not, he is electrocuted by The Brewmaster.
A new character called Munch was added to this game.[5] Not long after the events of Abe's Exoddus, Abe helps Munch (the last living remnant of an amphibious race called the Gabbits) to destroy Vykkers labs and save Gabbit eggs from destruction. They prevent the Gabbits from dying out completely. This increases his status as a hero and also makes him very unpopular with the Glukkon queen, Lady Margaret.
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath is an action-adventure game published for the Microsoft Xbox in 2005. The game's main character is a bounty hunter called Stranger. The game utilizes both third and first-person perspectives and is less puzzle oriented than the previous three Oddworld games.[9] The game has a Wild West setting. It was later ported to the PC through Gamefly.
| Title | Year | Platforms | Developer | Publisher | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee | 1997 | PlayStation, Windows, PS3(2008), PSP | Oddworld Inhabitants | GT Interactive[10] | First pentalogy game. |
| Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus | 1998 | PlayStation, Windows, PS3(2008), PSP | Oddworld Inhabitants | GT Interactive[11] | Bonus pentalogy game and a sequel to Abe's Oddysee. |
| Oddworld: Adventures | 1998 | Game Boy | Saffire | GT Interactive Software Corp.[12] | Handheld version of Abe's Oddysee. |
| Oddworld: Adventures 2 | 2000 | Game Boy Color | Saffire | GT Interactive Software Corp.[13] | Handheld version of Abe's Exoddus. |
| Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee | 2001 | Xbox, Windows(2010), PS3(2012), PSVita(2012) | Oddworld Inhabitants, Just Add Water Ltd.(port) | Microsoft Game Studios[14] | Second pentalogy game. |
| Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee | 2003 | Game Boy Advance | Art Co. | THQ Inc.[15] | Handheld version of Xbox game. |
| Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath | 2005 | Xbox, Windows(2010), PS3(2011), PSVita(2012) | Oddworld Inhabitants, Just Add Water Ltd.(port) | Electronic Arts[16] | First-person shooter/Third-person platformer |
A future game was confirmed by Maxis co-founder Jeff Braun.[18] Speaking at Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada in 2008, Braun said of the team, "They're such a talented group of people and I really trust their ability to create compelling content." He went on to say that the upcoming game will have a cinematic quality on a one-to-one scale with CGI-based films.[19] He also noted, however, that a slow production schedule could make it years before the game is released.[20]
More recently (16 July 2010) Just Add Water announced that it is working on a new Oddworld title by releasing the following statement "While we cannot go into specifics right now, we can tell you that over the coming weeks and months we will be announcing these exciting projects starring all of your favorite Oddworld characters." Then, the team went on to say, "It’s almost symbiotic in that when something moves forward on any of the projects we just start chatting about new items, or what if we do this. We’re all extremely excited to breathe life into the Oddworld universe and indeed to let it breathe life into us."
It has since been announced that HD remakes of Abe's Oddysee (as well as possibly Exoddus), Munch's Oddysee and Stranger's Wrath have been planned for Playstation 3, PSVita, and PC release. Also, the next game in the series will be the completed Oddworld: The Hand of Odd real-time strategy game.
In 2009, the director of Oddworld, Lorne Lanning, announced that they planned to make an Oddworld digital download package for PC. This package contains Abe's Oddysee, Abe's Exoddus, Munch's Oddysee and Stranger's Wrath.
Oddworld Inhabitants unveiled their re-designed website on November 4th 2010, also declaring that the Oddboxx was still in development.[21] On December 6th, they announced that the Oddboxx would be released for the 2010 holiday season.[22] The European and U.S. prices were revealed on December 14th.[23] On December 17th, Oddworld Inhabitants announced Oddboxx release date as December 20th, with a 25% discount offer running until 9AM (PST) the following morning.[24]
On December 20th 2010, the Oddboxx was released on Steam.[25] Achievements have been added to the two 3D games - Munch's Oddysee received 30, and Stranger's Wrath gained 20.
On April 29th 2011, JAW announced at GameCity Nights that the Oddboxx will be coming to the PlayStation Network (with other platforms to be announced). Stranger's Wrath HD was released on Playstation 3 on December 27th 2011, with Munch's Oddysee HD and the Oddboxx collection to follow in 2012. When Stranger's Wrath HD and Munch's Oddysee HD become available on PSN, it will be the first time the whole Oddworld catalog is playable on a single platform besides PC.
Though first published by Microsoft, the HD remasters will not be released on the Xbox 360.
Abe is the strongly developed central character of the Oddworld series.[26] He can also use GameSpeak, a way of communicating with other characters in the game.[5] Along with Spyro the Dragon, Abe was one of the unofficial mascots of the PlayStation One.[27] Computer and Video Games described Abe as "a new platform hero"[28] and a "brilliant character."[29] Lanning, Oddworld's creator, has stated that its "characters are driven in a way that is fired by larger [moral] issues."[1]
In the Oddworld games, the GameSpeak feature allows the player to interact with the non-playable characters (NPCs). Examples of GameSpeak commands in the original game, Abe's Oddysee, are "Hello," "Follow me," and "Wait." Rescuing Mudokons and opening certain doors are all achieved through Gamespeak. Enemies possessed by Abe can also use GameSpeak, and one can use Glukkons to order subservient Sligs around, or use Sligs to call their Slog pets to heel. GameSpeak also included less essential actions such as burps and farts, which were added with intent of a comical effect.
The GameSpeak feature was modified in Stranger's Wrath, with a single talk button that caused the Stranger to say something appropriate to the situation. For example, when the Stranger needed to cash in a bounty on an Outlaw, pressing the talk button would cause him to say, "Best be gettin' to the bounty store." This context-sensitive GameSpeak also worked for questioning the Clakker and Grubb townsfolk. This change made the talk button more comparable to a universal-action button in Stranger's Wrath.
The Oddworld games have received more than 100 industry awards.[30] Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee received more than 24 awards and three nominations from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences over 1997 and 1998.[31] Oddworld also was nominated for a Grammy with the release of Abe's Exoddus: the Movie (a short film combined with cutscenes from Exoddus).
When Abe's Exoddus was released, the company had many types of merchandise which are no longer available.
In November 2011 before the release of Stranger's Wrath HD and Munch's Oddysee HD on the PSN, LittleBigPlanet 2 costumes of Stranger and Munch were released for purchase. A XMB Dynamic Theme of Stranger's Wrath was also released. [32]
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