Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath, while not a household name, is still a very much cherished and beloved fan-favorite in the series. Abe’s Oddysee and Exodus were fairly big hits on the PS1 and the new generation of consoles had fans very eager for the series’ future. Rather divisively, Munch’s Oddysee was released for the original Xbox.
Making a huge leap from a 2-D side-scroller to a fully 3D platformer, fans had huge expectations. Unfortunately, they were not met, as Munch’s Oddysee profoundly underperformed. Criticisms included shoddy controls, unpolished feel, bland environments, and all-around rushed development cycle. Needless to say, Oddworld needed to take the series in a new direction. In the early 2000’s, Halo, Doom 3, Half-Life and Red Faction were taking the industry by storm ,leading to the FPS phenomenon of the era(this game was actually the first FPS I ever owned). Taking notes, Director Lorne Lanning witnessed this trend and thought, why not take it and make it …..odd?
Stranger’s Wrath takes place in a completely different region of Oddworld, Western Mudos. This is a frontier region where settlements and industrialization are still in its infancy. Life for the locals is becoming increasingly difficult as crime and corruption are rife. A bounty-hunter simply known as Stranger, comes along and offers to lend a helping hand, for a price.
Right from the get-go, Stranger is a stark contrast to our previous protagonists. Abe (who doesn’t even appear in this game) was a fragile and physically weak character relying on stealth, wits, and possession . Stranger opts for the direct approach. Armed with a double-barrel crossbow, Stranger has an assortment of ammunition types that are unconventional to say the least. Utilizing literally living ammo such as- Armored slugs for a shotgun blast, live bees for machine gun fire, and alien skunks to make foes puke their brains out.
Gameplay is a slightly clumsy but functional blend of third-person-platforming and first-person-shooting. Odd choice for sure, pardon the pun, but it works smoothly enough and doesn’t take too much effort to get the hang off. Stranger moves around gracefully- running, jumping, swimming and climbing across gaps on a tightrope. Certainly the most player friendly of any Oddworld title released thus far.
Capturing outlaws is the name of the game. Enemies are able to be captured dead or alive but alive enemies are worth more. To bounty an outlaw, you have to press a button and you suck them up into a capture-can (don’t ask where he got that). This mechanic is fine, but amidst the shootouts, it interrupts the pacing and can become a tad repetitive. Having this exclusively for the main bosses would have been a better design choice.
The look of this game is peak Oddworld. The Western Mudos region, as stated above, is a young civilization with a lovingly spaghetti-western feel. While all locations are well designed and presented, the levels themselves are very narrow and linear. Creature designs in this game have their stamp of the series’ creativity. Slack jaw yokel talking chickens, frog-like outlaw gangs, and walking salamander natives are welcomed weirdos to the Oddworld lore.
Sadly, while well-received, due to extremely poor advertising, (thanks EA) sales were lackluster. The commercial failure of Stranger’s Wrath is what made Oddworld Inhabitants cease operations. Thankfully, an HD port was released in 2011 and garnered praise and high sales. In a roundabout way, this game is what both killed and saved the series. Even still Stranger’s Wrath is a fresh and unique take on the FPS genre. While the mechanics might seem somewhat dated, it’s an interesting novelty item for anyone that’s a fan of the early 2000s game scene. Grab your bow, take on a bounty and earn some moolah.
Much odd-bliged,
Fil
Verdict: 8/10
https://opencritic.com/game/8891/oddworld-strangers-wrath-hd
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oddworld:_Stranger%27s_Wrath
