I haven't played an Oddworld game since the playstation 1 game Abe's Odyssey and the one thing I remember the most about that game was just how clunky the movement felt. For a puzzle platformer, movement is a key thing to get right and I distinctly remember delayed inputs with that game. Jumping would happen slightly later than I expected, climbing up and down ledges would not only have to be incredibly precise but also suffered from the same input lag that jumping had.
As a result, I never really liked Oddworld.
Now 20-something-years later Oddworld Soulstorm is out for the Playstation 5, for free with PS+ or for $40 bucks if you just buy it. So already this isn't a full $60-70 dollar game which is good because it is only 12 levels long and each one can be beaten depends on skill, patience, and willingness to explore for secrets. Addtiionally there are 2 secret levels that unlock if you save enough people. All told you can beat this game in probably 10-14 hours depending on completetionist desires.
And if you can deal with the bullshit.
For a game designed for Playstation 5 as an exclusive title, this game is going to be very hit or miss for people. I know Oddworld has a fanbase and I think those people are going to be incredibly happy. For those who never played an Oddworld game but are fans of the puzzle-platformer you got a 50/50 shot at enjoyment here.
OS has a few issues right out of the gate that instantly put the game on my bad side. Number one being that input lag that I mentioned above from the PS1 games. It feels like it is still here, I press buttons to time jumps and Abe falls and dies because the jump happened later than I expected it to. This time it isn't so much that the buttons lag as maybe Abe has too many start-up frames of animation before the move comes out which means he takes extra steps or has extra motion to his movements before actually jumping or whatever. Which will fuck your timing for a while. Admittedly you can get used to it and once you learn to compensate it get easier, but the fact that you do have to compensate for something that should be responsive is stupid.
Add to that sluggish responsiveness the fucking annoying control scheme. Hold L1 to sneak, aim with the Right Stick, throw with R2. But don't hit L2 when you want to L1, because L2 is chant and chant will instantly alert every fucker on screen to your presence, also you better hope your finger doesn't slip because if you even tap the L2 button, Abe will chant and you're fucked. Top that off with HOLD triangle to bring up your throwable selection wheel, but TAP it to bring up the crafting menu. Why? I dunno because Start is pause i guess, dunno why the inventory screen couldn't double as a pause but whatever i guess. Every button on the control does something, and trying to remember it all is a long process, let alone trying to remember doing four things at the same time to get through certain spots. It's too much imo, and might frustrate people.
My other complaint is that for a game that was put exclusively on the PS5, I expected this game to do something with the controller. But there doesn't seem to be any trigger resistance in place, the haptic feedback is unnoticeable if there at all, and the only thing it seems to do is put Abe's voice commands to your followers through the controller speaker.
Other than that strange clunky stuff, Oddworld Soulstorm is pretty interesting. Oddworld in general always had an interesting art style to me and the characters, levels, backgrounds, all look amazingly Odd. I really like the way this game looks, and while it isn't the best looking game on the system (Demon's Souls still holds that award imo) Oddworld still looks better than almost every PS4 game. The frame rate is a smooth 60 even when shit is exploded around you, and your ass is on fire and the level is crumbling around you. It's got pretty great presentation.
The level design itself as well is interesting and each section does a good job of making you think about how to get through it using the tools the game gives you. Soulstorm also adds a looting and minor crafting aspect that allows you to create different things you can use or throw to either put out fires, cause fires, distract enemies, heal, etc etc. So the levels are pretty creative and I genuinely have gotten quite stuck for some sections because I am a dumb dumb like Abe.
That's it really. I wish there was more to really say about the actual game, but it's a fairly straightforward budget Puzzle Platforming game. It has quite a bit of clunk that I don't think should be there in a 2021 game, but somehow I think it's purposefully there to fit the theme of the game. Abe isn't a super hero, he really isn't even a special Modokin compared to all his people. He just stumbled into saving people and now they just kind of expect it from him when it was always just an accident from the beginning. So thematically it makes sense for Abe to control a little sloppily because of that. However this is a game and while it makes sense, it doesn't exactly feel great to play. I think they could have done other things to make Abe's stupid normality come across better than having him control like shit. He has a voice, have him say stupid shit while running around the levels, have him misdirect the player during puzzles by offering bad advice or irrelevant advice.
Whatever though. Oddworld is ok if you can forgive the janky controls and the game isn't very long so even if you get too annoyed by the end, you haven't lost too much time from the whole thing. Get it for free now (even if you don't yet have a PS5) or get it on a $15-20 buck sale.
As a result, I never really liked Oddworld.
Now 20-something-years later Oddworld Soulstorm is out for the Playstation 5, for free with PS+ or for $40 bucks if you just buy it. So already this isn't a full $60-70 dollar game which is good because it is only 12 levels long and each one can be beaten depends on skill, patience, and willingness to explore for secrets. Addtiionally there are 2 secret levels that unlock if you save enough people. All told you can beat this game in probably 10-14 hours depending on completetionist desires.
And if you can deal with the bullshit.
For a game designed for Playstation 5 as an exclusive title, this game is going to be very hit or miss for people. I know Oddworld has a fanbase and I think those people are going to be incredibly happy. For those who never played an Oddworld game but are fans of the puzzle-platformer you got a 50/50 shot at enjoyment here.
OS has a few issues right out of the gate that instantly put the game on my bad side. Number one being that input lag that I mentioned above from the PS1 games. It feels like it is still here, I press buttons to time jumps and Abe falls and dies because the jump happened later than I expected it to. This time it isn't so much that the buttons lag as maybe Abe has too many start-up frames of animation before the move comes out which means he takes extra steps or has extra motion to his movements before actually jumping or whatever. Which will fuck your timing for a while. Admittedly you can get used to it and once you learn to compensate it get easier, but the fact that you do have to compensate for something that should be responsive is stupid.
Add to that sluggish responsiveness the fucking annoying control scheme. Hold L1 to sneak, aim with the Right Stick, throw with R2. But don't hit L2 when you want to L1, because L2 is chant and chant will instantly alert every fucker on screen to your presence, also you better hope your finger doesn't slip because if you even tap the L2 button, Abe will chant and you're fucked. Top that off with HOLD triangle to bring up your throwable selection wheel, but TAP it to bring up the crafting menu. Why? I dunno because Start is pause i guess, dunno why the inventory screen couldn't double as a pause but whatever i guess. Every button on the control does something, and trying to remember it all is a long process, let alone trying to remember doing four things at the same time to get through certain spots. It's too much imo, and might frustrate people.
My other complaint is that for a game that was put exclusively on the PS5, I expected this game to do something with the controller. But there doesn't seem to be any trigger resistance in place, the haptic feedback is unnoticeable if there at all, and the only thing it seems to do is put Abe's voice commands to your followers through the controller speaker.
Other than that strange clunky stuff, Oddworld Soulstorm is pretty interesting. Oddworld in general always had an interesting art style to me and the characters, levels, backgrounds, all look amazingly Odd. I really like the way this game looks, and while it isn't the best looking game on the system (Demon's Souls still holds that award imo) Oddworld still looks better than almost every PS4 game. The frame rate is a smooth 60 even when shit is exploded around you, and your ass is on fire and the level is crumbling around you. It's got pretty great presentation.
The level design itself as well is interesting and each section does a good job of making you think about how to get through it using the tools the game gives you. Soulstorm also adds a looting and minor crafting aspect that allows you to create different things you can use or throw to either put out fires, cause fires, distract enemies, heal, etc etc. So the levels are pretty creative and I genuinely have gotten quite stuck for some sections because I am a dumb dumb like Abe.
That's it really. I wish there was more to really say about the actual game, but it's a fairly straightforward budget Puzzle Platforming game. It has quite a bit of clunk that I don't think should be there in a 2021 game, but somehow I think it's purposefully there to fit the theme of the game. Abe isn't a super hero, he really isn't even a special Modokin compared to all his people. He just stumbled into saving people and now they just kind of expect it from him when it was always just an accident from the beginning. So thematically it makes sense for Abe to control a little sloppily because of that. However this is a game and while it makes sense, it doesn't exactly feel great to play. I think they could have done other things to make Abe's stupid normality come across better than having him control like shit. He has a voice, have him say stupid shit while running around the levels, have him misdirect the player during puzzles by offering bad advice or irrelevant advice.
Whatever though. Oddworld is ok if you can forgive the janky controls and the game isn't very long so even if you get too annoyed by the end, you haven't lost too much time from the whole thing. Get it for free now (even if you don't yet have a PS5) or get it on a $15-20 buck sale.
