Review NaN of 3
Price Paid:
$50.00
from ebgames Summary:
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath is the fourth game told in the Oddworld universe, but is not part of the supposed "quintology" of Oddworld games that Lorne Lanning promised me(us). This game could very well be the last ever from Lanning, who has moved on to try and see if he could get his product out there in the form of movies and other media, since no one cares about the gems that he has created. Stranger's Wrath is one of more than a few games that the "casual gamer" has looked over, possibly because of poor advertising(Microsoft dropped the publishing rights to this game for some Odd reason, and later it was picked up the the evil empire known as EA), or maybe most gamers don't know a great game no matter how much it's being praised by all the reviewers and gamers who have actually played it. Who knows?
The first two Oddworld games(Abe's Oddessy/Abe's Exoddus) were more like 2-D puzzle games, and Munch's Oddessy for the XBOX(originally planned as a PS2 game) took the series into 3-D, but Stranger's Wrath breaks the mold in every way when compared to the previous entries in the series.
First and foremost, this game is a First Person Shooter. It does have the option to switch into third, but the offensive options are severly limited, only allowing Stranger to throw a short-ranged shoulder ram, or a spinning arm attack. Third-person view will mainly be used to position yourself against terrain and use the camera to see enemies that can't be viewed from the first-person perspective. An technique that comes in helpful when fighting bosses.
Second, you are pretty much alone throughout the whole game. Later on near the end, you get a little help from an unlikely source that gives you weapons and armor, but combat always consists of you versus swarms of creatures that have trigger fingers that are as fast as their mouths.
Third, there will be no rescuing of brain-dead Mudokens here. No rescuing of any kind. Stranger has one mission, and that's to take out goons for a cash bounty to fund an operation that Stranger needs. There is a twist about 2/3 through the game that slightly alters Stranger's plan, but the change is only for the better, and it makes it so the gamer must see this through to the end, not that you wouldn't want to anyways.
Fourth and funnest, this game is all action, almost all of the time. Sure, you can be stealthy and avoid more than a few enemies, or you can use the various environmental traps scattered throughout the world, but that obviously wasn't the intention of the developers, seeing how many different weapons you have at your disposal. Ammo is literally alive and everywhere, so when you're running low on shots, you can just pluck some out of the sky, or you can shoot a bunch of critters on the ground. You always have access to to a charge-beam type weapon that can be used to collect your ammo, and it's useful for draining agility on the bosses and enemies, if you'd rather knock them out instead of offing them all.
Though all of the elements that were once used in the older Oddworld games are gone, this game is still a fine entry to the series even if it's not part of the quinology. Lanning and crew have a knack for creating wonderful, original characters and worlds that you can feel for, either good or bad. Strengths:
Weapon variety- Although it may seem like most of the weapons are just knocks of other types of weapons used in other shooters, there is the fact that you can level up these items, giving them improved stats, or even altering the way they are being used altogether. Stingbess are your usual machine gun ammo, SniperWasps are for, well, sniping, Boombats are the explosive weapon(grenade launcher), and ThudSlugs are the typical boomstick shotty. There are exceptions such as the Chippunk, which when fired will start hurling insults to the nearby enemies, allowing you to sneak up on them, or the Stunkz who cause the enemy to vomit, rendering them pretty much useless for you to take advantage. Aother couple of weapons include the Bolamite, which is a spider that when shot, wraps its enemy in a web leaving them open for a kill or capture, and the Fuzzle(one of two creatures from other Oddworld games that make an appearance), which is a cuddly creature that eats its prey alive. Think Langoliers, and you'll have an idea.
level variety- the first 2/3 of the game takes place in a Western-type setting, complete with farms, ranch towns, and hicks galore. There are a few towns, and they are mainly used for collecting and recieving bounties, or getting items and upgrades. When you do get a bounty, you usually have to travel to some other area outside of town, leading most of the time to a stronghold protecting the bosses. Tons of enemies are always guarding the stronhold, and a few times, you'll have to clear out the whole turf to gain access to the boss. Once you put the smack-down, the devs find nifty little ways to get you back into town through alternate routes, so there's very little doubling back. Eventually near the end of the game, you find yourself battling amongst friends, working your way up to the top of the evil corporation for the final battle.
Another fantastic thing about this game is the environments. From indutrial-type areas to lush forest desert wastes, grand waterways and hidden temples there is always something new and interesting to look at, but never does the view seem out of place.
boss variety- who couldn't like a game where the names of the bosses are the likes of Blisterz and Boilz Booty, Jo' Mamma, Fatty McBoomBoom, Lefty Lugnutz, and Elboze Freely!? The ways to take them down are as fun as the names of the bosses are, allowing you to go in full force, or take your time widdling away heath, or doubling the effort to take them alive for the big bounty.
Voice acting is also tops, most of which is done by Lorne Lanning himself! This guy has Simpsons quality voice acting, and while most of the townsfolk sound alike(they all look alike, so I don't see the problem), there is large differences between the races that are represented.
story- one of the better tales out there. It's a tale of triumphs, failures, and how things can go bad in a hurry and for a long time if people never stand up for themselves. There is a lot less product placement in this game(mock of course) compared to other games in the series, but you can still see all of the little jabs that Inhabitants has put in towards the faceless money-hungry corporation.
sound- Nothing that really stands out. Soundtrack is minimalistic country western, and character voices while similar in sound, all have interesting things to say. Mostly smart-alecked comments, but sometimes they can be helpful. Sound effects are what they should be, with excellent noise for the individual weapons, and the Chippunks are always a blast to have around.
graphics- Despite what some might say, SW is one of the best looking games for this past generation. Excellent shading, lighting, and mapping. Some of the best textures on the XBOX. The characters also move like you would think chicken-men would.
I would still buy this game for fifty bones. Weaknesses:
The only weakness is that the game is a single-player experience and while the game is fairly long, there is really no reason to come back to it, since there are no hidden areas or special unlockables. That doesn't mean that you can't enjoy it more than once, because the weapon variety and environmental hazards make for interesting ways to put down foes.
Other than that, it's one of the best games that no one has ever played. What's weak is that out of millions and millions of XBOX owners, this game only solf a little over 125,00 copies. For shame, XBOTS! Report this review >>
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