Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath is the second game to be honored (and mourned) in our They Deserved Better series. The Oddworld series was the brainchild of game designer Lorne Lanning and was one of the original Xbox's landmark series. It's quirky, striking visual style and offbeat sense of humor helped define the new console and set it apart from Sony's Playstation 2.
Like previous honoree Beyond Good and Evil, O: SW was the end for the series, and in this case, for the developer itself. It was an especially cruel turn for Oddworld Inhabitants, who now produce movies, considering that O: SW was the best in the series so far. The game can't lay claim to being a financial success, but it can lay claim to being the finest meshing of many different game play styles to date.
The game is a first- and third-person perspective adventure. Hitman had the option of a first-person perspective, and Oblivion had the option of a third-person perspective, but both were afterthoughts and felt tacked on. O: SW fully incorporated both, and each reaped its own benefits.
Shooting was best controlled in first-person. Live-ammo, of a different sort, was used. You literally had to capture creatures from the environment and employ their form or personality to overcome opponents. "Fuzzles" are a highlight of this mechanic, distinctly non-cute creatures with a lust for blood; after being fired into the area they immediately start chomping through enemy flesh. There are others too. Some would distract, some would explode, and some would cocoon the victim. The ammo's different uses gave a tactical satisfaction when employed correctly, akin to the use of ammo in a much later game, Bioshock.
Movement and sneaking was best done in third person, where you were best able to judge your own location in the environment. This was especially useful during the platform-jumping periods of the game. Avoiding enemies would allow you first attack. If the landscape didn't give you a route to circumvent enemies, you could use any of the live ammo to distract and destroy. Ideally you would remain undetected, allowing you to assess the tactical situation and determine the appropriate course.
If you have played any previous Oddworld games you will be acquainted with the all-pervading humor the developers work into the game, and it's present here, even if somewhat hampered by the weak voice-work.
Factor in its pleasing wild-west art style, and you have a game with a truly unique feel.
If I have whetted your appetite with this taste of a gaming banquet, then go out and grab this overlooked gem. You may have a hard time if you have traded in your Xbox, as Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath isn't yet supported on Xbox 360 software emulation. Hopefully this will change in the near future.
When you get the chance, make Stranger a stranger no more.
Adam Montgomery
UPDATE - November 6, 2007 1:07AM: Lorne Lanning and his studio Oddworld Inhabitants is set to make an ambitious return to interactive entertainment with Citizen Siege, a new original property developed from conception as a CG animated movie and videogame.
The movie will be produced by John H. Williams, responsible for the Shrek series, and directed by Lanning himself. The game is currently being sought by a number of big-name publishers.
It's funny you mention Bioshock in this article. When I picked up that game for the first time I thought the similarities to O:SW were too striking to go unnoticed. Everything about it is uncannily similar, right down to the menu fonts for god's sake.
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