I have been in IT management for 15 years and I know that there are times when one of the greatest systems will be a system which takes a totally novel approach. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee was a game that took a unique approach to the puzzle platformer, an extremely standardizing category. You play as Abe, a Mudokon, attempting to get away from a facility that hunts your kind for food. You run, you jump, you talk to other creatures, you possess creatures, and use their skills to advance. At no time prior to Oddworld did any game have these features, and since then very few have done so again.
I am impressed by the total commitment to originality by Oddworld, and I am not simply referring to originality for its own sake; I am referring to originality to create a completely distinct experience. Oddworld is aesthetically unique. Oddworld is mechanically unique. Oddworld is vocally unique. Oddworld is uniquely all of these things, and Oddworld respects that uniqueness.
What Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee Actually Does
You are Abe, a Mudokon, who can speak telepathically to other creatures. You are trying to escape a facility that is hunting your type for meat. You move forward by running, jumping, and most importantly, by speaking to other creatures. You may possess creatures. You may lead creatures. You may use the skills of the creatures to solve environmental puzzles. The ultimate goal is to save as many of your type as possible.
The control system is simple – movement, jump, and talk. However, the puzzle design is incredibly innovative. You will need to examine your surroundings. You will need to understand what creatures exist in the area. You will need to determine how to speak to the creatures. You will need to apply their skills creatively to solve the environmental puzzles. Some creatures can climb. Some creatures can turn on machines. Some creatures can carry items. You will continue to solve puzzles by determining what each creature can do and utilizing that knowledge.
Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee is a dark game. The facility is industrial and hostile. Your type is literally being hunted. But Oddworld has dark humor throughout the game – the absurdity of the situation. The personalities of the characters. The ridiculousness of some situations. The game is tense, yet never grim.
Why Originality Matters
Here is what Oddworld knew that many games fail to recognize – originality is not merely about being different. Originality is about having a unique vision, and being completely committed to that vision. Oddworld did not simply have unique mechanics – it had a unique look. Unique voice acting. Unique dialogue. Unique everything. Oddworld is completely internalized in terms of its originality.
The hand-drawn animation is charming and expressive. Abe communicates emotions through his facial expressions. Other creatures have personalities through their animations. Movement in the game feels heavy and character-based, rather than purely functional.
The voice acting in Oddworld is truly exceptional. Abe has a distinctive and personality-filled voice. Abe is scared when he senses danger. Abe is hopeful when he sees a way to escape. The other creatures have personalities through their audio cues. The combination of the two provides characters that you can care about even though they do not say much.
The Design Philosophy Behind the Uniqueness
Technically, what impresses me about Oddworld is how it accomplishes complexity by simplicity. The basic mechanics are simple. The depth comes from how those mechanics combine to create complex environmental puzzle-solutions. You are not learning a lot of new systems – you are learning new ways to solve relatively simple problems.
The difficulty is well-balanced. The puzzles are difficult, but solvable through observation and experimentation. The platforming is precise, but not overly difficult. Together, these elements create a sense of challenge that does not result in frustration.
The pacing is also great. The tension builds slowly. Safe zones give you relief from danger. Areas that are dangerous create real threats. The emotional journey is as intense as the mechanical journey.
Is Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee Still Relevant Today?
Yes, absolutely. The hand-drawn animation is timeless. The voice acting is still excellent. The puzzle design is still intelligent. The originality is still surprising. The atmosphere is still captivating.
The controls feel quick and responsive. The collision detection is fair. The platforming is intuitive. The puzzle design is still challenging. As I play this today, you can see why people still celebrate this game.
While the graphics have aged, the aesthetic transcends the technical quality of the graphics. The creatures are memorable. The facility is a believable place of danger. The atmosphere is thick and immersive.
Why Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee Matters
Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee showed that originality mattered in an industry that was increasingly homogenizing itself. In a time when platformers were becoming increasingly similar to each other, Oddworld said, “We are going to be entirely different,” and succeeded in doing so.
The game has changed how developers think about originality. It demonstrated that a unique vision could create interest. It demonstrated that a developer could create charm by committing to odd ideas, rather than by refining established conventions. Modern independent game development recognizes this lesson, in part, because Oddworld demonstrated it on a large-scale AAA budget.
The Conclusion
Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee is a puzzle-platformer that shows that originality matters. Oddworld is unique in aesthetics. Oddworld is unique in gameplay. Oddworld is unique in voice-acting. Oddworld is unique in everything, and together these elements create a completely distinct experience that continues to resonate decades after it was first released.
In Oddworld, every element exists to serve the original vision. You are not playing this because it refines or improves upon an established genre. You are playing this because it establishes something completely new. And that newness, executed as well as Oddworld was, creates interest that would be difficult to obtain using conventional methods.
If you have never played Oddworld, go find it and experience something completely unique. If you develop video games, use Oddworld as a model of how commitment to a unique vision creates something memorable.
Rating: 9/10 – A game that proved that originality and excellence are not mutually exclusive.
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John grew up swapping floppy disks and reading Amiga Power cover to cover. Now an IT manager in Manchester, he writes about the glory days of British computer gaming—Sensible Soccer, Speedball 2, and why the Amiga deserved more love than it ever got.
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