When I turned on Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty on my Wii U, a strong feeling of nostalgia hit me. The same face of Abe, our favorite Mudokon, looked at me the same way he did on the PlayStation 1 in Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee. It’s strange to see my old friend looking back at me after all those years. The setting looks the same but his face looks sharper and more detailed. Everything looks exactly the way I remember it after all those years, but better. Abe tells me to follow him and so our adventure in Rupture Farms starts over again.
Welcome to Rupture Farms
Our story starts in Rupture Farms, the biggest meat company of Oddworld. The company is known for its delicious snacks made of creatures of Oddworld. The company is all about profit, even if that means they need to extinct entire species. Mullock the Glukkon is the CEO of the factory and needs to find a solution for the low sales. He finds this solution in a new type of meat, meat of the Mudokon.
Abe, a loyal Mudokon working in the factory (he’s actually a slave like the other Mudokon), heard this conversation during his cleaning round and is, of course, shocked by this news. He doesn’t hesitate long and decides it’s up to him to save all other Mudokon working in the factory. Abe isn’t strong and he can’t actually fight or operate a gun, if he wants to survive and save as many others as possible, he’ll need to sneak his way past the guards.
Not an easy task
A noble goal but far from an easy task. As said before, Abe isn’t strong and he’s wanted in the entire facility. If an enemy spots Abe, he’ll immediately start shooting the poor Mudokon. Rupture Farms and the outdoor locations Scrabania and Paramonia are filled with deadly traps and enemies, all waiting patiently to kill you.
It’s up to Abe to be smart about how he approaches these enemies. Just like in the original game, Abe can give certain commands to other Mudokon. It often starts with a ‘hello’ followed by a ‘follow me’ or ‘wait’ command. Not only do you need to protect Abe from the enemies and traps, it’s also important to make sure you save as many Mudokon as possible. This results in a rather smart puzzle mechanism where you need to take your own safety and that of the others into consideration. Besides your vocal commands, you also have more spiritual powers.
Welcome back old friend
By meditating, Abe can control certain enemies such as the armed Sligs (walking flies with automatic guns). Taking over Sligs is a very important technique to survive. As a Slig, you can take out other guards but be warned, if you shoot the others, they’ll start shooting you as well. You gain this ability rather fast in the game so it’s a technique you’ll use a lot.
Besides that, you can also whistle, fart or throw bottle caps at enemies to distract them. It’s never easy however since the AI of the enemies is very strong and Abe is rather weak. It doesn’t take that many hits to die, resulting in another attempt to advance. If you don’t like dying, you won’t like Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty. Even with the addition of an easy mode, it’s still a very challenging game.
A better look and other innovations
It’s great to see all those iconic enemies and traps making a return in the New ‘n’ Tasty remake. The team remade the entire game from scratch, meaning everything you see is recreated entirely. The environments, enemies and objects are all rendered in full 3D images, resulting in this gorgeous game. The original game already nailed the mysterious art-style but thanks to the extra power of this generation, everything looks very sharp. It’s clear from the start; the gameplay of Abe’s Oddysee still feels modern nowadays. It’s still the same game but with way better graphics and sound effects.
Besides better sound and graphics, the game runs better on this generation. The original game was created using separated screens instead of the 2D side-scroller it is now. This means that this version runs way better and it feels really good to finally be able to walk from screen to screen without those loading times. That being said, changing to a full 2D scroller, had its negative results as well. Some of the classic surprises (read enemies popping up after a loading screen) are nowhere to be found in this version and it’s a shame they disappeared, to be honest.
Also, take note that the controls are reprogrammed for analogue sticks and they are very sensitive. Abe demands speed and precision to survive but since the controls are that sensitive, you’ll often miss your jump. The game still is very unforgiving when it comes to its platform segments, even if Abe corrects his jumping a little, you’ll still need deadly precision to get across the other side of the map. Meaning, you’ll die a lot in the game!
More checkpoints, more fun
The biggest complaint of the original game was the fact that there weren’t that many checkpoints and they were too far away from each other. Since you die a lot, it’s good to have a lot of checkpoints of course. The developers listened to the fans and added multiple new checkpoints on the map. This means that even if you die, you’ll never need to replay that much. As if this wasn’t enough, the game feature a similar quicksave option as the New Super Mario Games. Abe can create his own quicksave point now and those can really come in handy in the more complex areas. Some fans might say it’s cheating but we’re glad the developers added more saving options to make the product a little more enjoyable.
As far as the Wii U version goes, you can create those checkpoints using your Gamepad. Besides that you can also play the entire game in off-screen mode on your Gamepad, meaning you’ll always be able to continue your adventure even if somebody has to use your television screen.
Conclusion:
Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty is a brilliant remake that brings back a timeless classic. The adventures of Abe will definitely appeal the modern gaming audience since it’s filled with challenges and smart solutions. It’s never an easy game but it’s worth the struggle every time you advance just a little further. The game runs very smoothly on Wii U and even supports full off-screen GamePad mode so you can always continue your adventure. It’s been years since we’ve seen Abe in action but we’re glad he finally made the return he deserved. Now let’s hope we’ll see another new Oddworld soon.
8.5/10
