Oddworld: Strangers Wrath Review for Xbox

Title: Oddworld: Strangers Wrath .............................................. Publisher: Electronic Arts .............................................. Developer: Oddworld .............................................. Release: Janurary 25, 2005 .............................................. Xbox Live: Yes .............................................. ESBR: Teen ..............................................

- Jacob Wulff, " Scene9 ", Editor In Chief

Thursday, January 27, 2005
Play this game and you'll love it. There's just no question about it. After playing the previous Oddworld series titles, I was quick to give the long awaited number four a try. Thank the gaming gods I did. You won't regret this fifty-dollar purchase one bit. It's a blast!

Gameplay
What more can I possibly say? Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath easily has to be one of the most beautiful, inventive and technically challenging games on any console, let alone the Xbox. Oddworld Inhabitants really showed their true skills with Stranger's Wrath - the studio has ventured out in a new direction, ditching the puzzle platforming of Abe for a FPS-like approach. You also have the option to play in the traditional third person mode, buy why? This game is mean in first person people.

Believe it or not, Stranger's Wrath resembles Halo before even Abe... Stranger features a new unique duel-wielding system that allows you to load and fire two different ammo types at once. What kind of ammo you ask? How about live ammo. Live ammo? Yes live ammo. You have the option to catch real life characters in the game and use them as weapons. Insane.

In Stranger's Wrath you manage different ammo types, which work in different ways depending on the situation - Chipmunks (to lure enemies to you), Bollomites (to capture them in webs) and Stingers (a type of wasp ideal for machine guns). It may sound a bit "odd", however "Oddworld" is the name of the game... besides it works well. Within an hour of playing you'll find yourself mixing and matching ammo combos to stun, kill or even capture your enemies.

You are also introduced to a new type of currency in the Stranger world as well. The currency also affects how you play Stranger. You earn money more for capturing enemies alive, and less for dead enemies. At sometimes this can be hard to manage in the heat of heavy shootouts, so juggling ammos and weapons gives your points, and will rack up cash at the same time - be warned, this can be addicting in an "NFL Street" kind of way.

As I mentioned earlier about capturing your "live ammo", this is another interesting feature that definitely separates Stranger from other more "normal" games on the Xbox. As you explore the huge, open-ended, free roaming world, you'll constantly be on the lookout for ammo just as much as enemies. You are also allowed to use the world's animals as ammo - this feature alone adds to the fames living, breathing feeling, as well as adds massive originality points. When looking for creatures to catch, be sure to check under and behind every rock, tree and bush... the world is that detailed and enormous.

Graphics
The graphics in Stranger are drop dead gorgeous. No doubt about that. While on the subject of the environments, let me note that the environments look spectacular. Not only in the colors, but the digital effects. These include lens flare, blurring at the right moments, advanced smoke & heat effects. Also, the game's pure size and total level design is amazing. The graphical awe begins as soon as the game launches. You begin your journey in the deserts... and they feel very realistic... it's huge. You can even feel that "empty" desert feeling. However it disappears about three hours later in the game when you enter the forest.

The trees and jagged textures in the forest look beautiful. Everything looks incredibly real. You catch a glimpse every so often of the sun gleaming through the trees in beams, giving the whole area a dangerously eerie feeling. It gave me chills every time. Oh and watch out for bullets... you'll see what I mean.

Simply put, Stranger looks incredible - which makes it easy to see why the PS2 version was canned. The forest section opens up eventually and gives way to a variety of wide-open plains, valleys, lake regions and later on, huge industrial complexes. The worlds are fully destructible in Stranger as well, making it possible for enemies to be thrown through windows and buildings explode in a torrent of lighting and smoke effects. Not to mention the animations in Stranger. The animations in Stranger are stunning.

Overall
The only real complaint I have about Stranger is the lack of multiplayer features. It would have been a blast to play Oddworld on Live or even split screen with a group of buddies. This feature alone, if added, could have added a few thousand of extra sales to the game. This could have been easily added to the Stranger formula, I just wish it was.

As you can tell, I love Stranger. It looks, plays & is a truly stunning game. Even with the lack of multiplayer, the game sits as one of my favorite games of all time. EA... I cannot stand you. However, EA... thanks for blessing me with this treasure I will cherish for the rest of my life. I recommend Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath to everyone with an Xbox.

9.8 Overall Score  Fun 9.5  Gameplay 9.5  Graphics 10  Sound 9.5  Replay 8

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Xbox Core Rating System