Out of all the images of last year’s E3, the one that still stands
out in my mind most vibrantly (well, except for the extremely talented bikini-clad
models who so expertly displayed their wares) is the excellent preview of the
opening cinematic from Oddworld: Abe’s Exoddus. Finally released in November
of 1998, Exoddus is not so much a sequel as a continuation of the critically
successful Oddworld: Abe’s Oddyssee. Both games employ the same platform-based,
side-scrolling atmosphere, and both employ the same colorful animation and humorous
characters prevalent in Oddworld. If you are a fan of the numerous variations
of Lemmings games or of The Lost Vikings, then you will want to
join Abe in his quest to save his fellow Mudokons.

Exoddus is billed
as an action/adventure game, yet it is anything but. The action sequences are
very few and far between. There are times when you will have to run and jump,
grab onto ledges, or even expel body gas (I can’t wait until we have smell-o-vision
for computer games), but for the most part the emphasis is on using your sense
of logic and your cognitive memory in order to proceed to the next level. This
is a feast for players who love puzzles without character depth, evasion through
stealth, and patience through timing.

In the first game, Abe had to shut
down a factory that was not only using his fellow Mudokons as slaves but also
using their body parts to make food products (shades of Soylent Green!).
In Exoddus, Abe must shut down the Soulstorm Brewery. The factory is using
the bones from an ancient sacred burial ground as the main flavor ingredient in
its brew. Abe must once again free the slaves and also put the disturbed bones
of the burial ground to rest. As is obvious, this is not a game that is heavy
on plot, nor is it meant to be. Still, if you are to promote yourself as an adventure
game. … Plot–C.

The puzzles are the crux of Abe’s world. The gameplay
starts simply, and as you progress through the levels, the difficulty and pacing
become marginally harder. The two most common puzzles in the game involve speech
and manipulation. The main goal of the game is to convince your fellow Mudokons
to follow you to freedom. Escape portals surrounded by doves are you goal as you
weave your way past traps and guards, always maneuvering a group of slaves to
their freedom. You must figure out different ways to unlock doors, activate equipment
and keep your multitude of Mudokons under control. Your most pressing problem,
though, is to convince the Mudokons, whose eyelids have been sewn shut, to follow
your lead, especially since you score points for each soul saved. This can be
accomplished in a variety of ways, including bodily possession, special treatment
such as a slap in the face or an embrace, or Gamespeak. Gamespeak allows Abe to
speak to his contingency by using varying tones of voice in order to obtain their
“blind” devotion. If there is a negative aspect to the puzzles, it would
be the repetition that is involved as you progress deeper into the factory and
the die-and-repeat-the-area procedure that is necessary in some of the regions.
To offset a lot of this repetitiveness, the developers have instituted a save-anywhere
option that is a blessing. Puzzles–A.

The graphics and animation
of Abe’s Exoddus are excellent, though there really is no noticeable improvement
from the first game of the series. As mentioned previously, the cut scenes and
opening animation are gorgeous. Each type of Mudokon has his own distinct look
and personality, with Abe and his carp-like face and moon-dog expressions the
highlight. Pre-rendered 2D scrolling backgrounds keep the pacing lively and colorful
with a nice assortment of shadows and hidden areas for Abe to slink, tip-toe and
hide in from his enemies. The animations are always fluid and lifelike and sure
to draw a chuckle or two. Overall, this is a splendid but not inspired effort.
Some deviation from the foreseen would have been a welcome and invigorating change.
Graphics–B.

The sound and music are both superb, but it is the voice
of Abe that truly shines. His exchanges with the slaves as he commands them to
“wait,” “follow me,” or “sorry” are always humorous
throughout the course of the game and never grow old. You will, in fact, find
yourself repeating certain phrases to the slaves just for the chuckle the responses
elicit. The music varies according to the location. It modulates in frequency
according to the severity of the situation; for example, as a guard picks up Abe’s
trail, the music quickens in pace until Abe has made a successful getaway. In
this way, it much more resembles a movie serial soundtrack than it does the typical
computer game with looping sound effects and music. Music, sound effects and
voices–A.

Abe is not for everyone, though everyone who plays it will
enjoy the experience. His is a world full of humor and peril, but in this age
of genre-crossing, Exoddus is not a game that fits simply into one category.
If you played the first, then this is more of the same. If you have wanted to
play a platform game that is not riddled with impossible action maneuvers, then
Abe may tickle your fancy. If you are a fan of Lemmings-like puzzles and
situations, then you and Abe may get along swimmingly. If nothing else, it can
be said that Oddworld: Abe’s Exoddus is truly a game for all players.

Final
Grade: B

System Requirements:
Pentium 166
Windows 95/98
16 MB RAM
32 MB free hard drive space

4X CD-ROM Drive