Should you go on this odyssey once more?
Being a Nintendo-only gamer at the time, I missed out on the original Abe’s Odyssey. I played it a little bit round friends’ houses, but never got that far…the difficulty was off-putting, the controls were hard to get used to…but yet, I regretted not seeing it through. Luckily I have a new chance thanks to the remake that has hit the Xbox One, but is it still a cult classic?
First of all, the game has been completely redone by Oddworld Inhabitants and Just Add Water, the transition from areas mostly moves the camera around a 3D environment to the next area, which is a nicer touch than another loading screen. Apparently the difficulty has been toned down a bit, but honestly I still struggle with the game…I’ve died more times than I care to admit, but I guess everyone finds this game hard, right?
For those new to the game, you play as Abe who is a slave worker at RuptureFarms, he overhears that his bosses are going to turn the slave workers into the next snack at the company and Abe goes on the run, rescuing his fellow workers along the way…or not, depending on how you play. The game has a good and bad ending depending on how many you rescue, and there are trophies for both as well as rescuing every Mudokon on each difficulty.
You will tear your hair out at certain areas, the solution isn’t always obvious so you’ll get killed more times than not…and the rest is down to bad luck. There are checkpoints aplenty though, which is always nice as well as a chapter select for you to find any missing Mudokons. It’s not a game for the faint-hearted, the difficulty will drive you insane…unless you played the original and have a fair idea of what you’re doing, but even then you’ll still come across the odd area that frustrates you.
And yet, that’s the beauty of the original. It’s tough, unrelenting…but memorable all the same. It’s rare to find a game this challenging these days, which makes it all the more rewarding when I finally beat it. I still have a few achievements to nab like rescuing all Mudokons in under 3 hours, which looks insanely difficult…but I’m sure I’ll overcome it in time. The rest of the achievements are fairly simple, but there are some fun ones in there as well.
New ‘n’ Tasty has had a visual overhaul and looks stunning at 1080p, with a smooth framerate and small load times. Abe and his world look breathtaking and yet there’s a classic look to it that will please fans of the original. Sound effects remain faithful to the original, as does the music.
The Verdict
Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty is a great way to relaunch the Oddworld franchise for next-gen. It’s a true remake, not just an upscaled version of the original…there have been a lot of improvements to the controls, the visuals and it remains true to the classic version. Now buy it so they can make a new game in the series already!
