Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty
- February 25, 2015
- Just Add Water (Developments), Ltd.
- 14h median play time
In Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty, players control Abe, a Mudokon slave, as he tries to escape his former workplace, RuptureFarms, now taken over by a deranged owner. Using stealth and puzzle-solving, Abe must avoid capture while rescuing his enslaved Mudokon friends. This charming yet thought-provoking platformer features stunning visuals, challenging gameplay, and a darkly humorous storyline.
Reviews
- Beautiful graphics and sound that enhance the original experience.
- Faithful to the original game while introducing new features like quicksave and the ability to command multiple Mudokons.
- Challenging gameplay that retains the essence of the original, providing a nostalgic experience for fans.
- Poor controller support and unresponsive controls that can lead to frustrating gameplay.
- Performance issues, including lag and crashes, especially on certain systems.
- Loss of the darker atmosphere and tone of the original game, making it feel less immersive.
- graphics800 mentions
- 42 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics of "Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty" have received widespread acclaim for their stunning visual updates, vibrant colors, and detailed character designs that enhance the nostalgic experience of the original game. While many players appreciate the modernized aesthetics and fluid animations, some express concerns about the loss of the original's darker atmosphere and occasional performance issues, such as lag and graphical glitches. Overall, the remake is praised for its beautiful graphics that successfully bring the Oddworld universe to life, making it a visually engaging experience for both new players and long-time fans.
“The game's visuals are gorgeous, with beautifully designed characters, environments, and animations that bring the world of Oddworld to life in stunning detail.”
“With its stunning visuals, engaging gameplay, and thought-provoking storyline, it is a must-play for both fans of the original and newcomers to the series.”
“The graphics are vastly improved, while still keeping in line with the original style.”
“Graphics sure are better, but it lost the heart and soul of what made it great.”
“Despite this, we'll discuss the negative of the visuals since they end up looking a little too bright for this series.”
“The modern graphics make-over, while making the game brighter, pleasant to the eye, and giving it a pseudo-3D feel, work against the gritty and dark atmosphere set by its original predecessor.”
- gameplay530 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty" has received mixed reviews, with many praising its engaging platforming mechanics, challenging puzzles, and nostalgic charm reminiscent of the original game. However, some players have criticized the controls as clunky and less fluid compared to the original, with frustrations stemming from changes in mechanics and level design that may not align with the expectations of long-time fans. Overall, while the game retains much of the original's appeal, it introduces new elements that can lead to a frustrating experience for some players.
“The gameplay felt fantastic despite the developers taking some liberties with changes to mechanics and levels to make it work seamlessly in the modern era.”
“Gameplay-wise, New 'n' Tasty retains all the charm and challenge of the original, while introducing some improvements.”
“With its stunning visuals, engaging gameplay, and thought-provoking storyline, it is a must-play for both fans of the original and newcomers to the series.”
“Everything else though gameplay-wise is terrible.”
“Sadly, this forces my scoring to drop as a fairly small game released in 2014 should be able to support 60 fps gameplay at a minimum.”
“However, the gameplay of this remake is very slow, horrible for a platform game.”
- story358 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The story of "Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty" is a faithful remake of the original, featuring Abe's quest to save his fellow Mudokons from corporate exploitation, infused with dark humor and social commentary on capitalism. While the narrative is relatively simple and straightforward, it is delivered through engaging cutscenes and dialogue, enhanced by stunning visuals and a captivating atmosphere. Overall, the game is praised for its immersive storytelling and nostalgic charm, making it a must-play for both returning fans and newcomers.
“One of the standout features of the game is its storyline and characters.”
“With its stunning visuals, engaging gameplay, and thought-provoking storyline, it is a must-play for both fans of the original and newcomers to the series.”
“The story, gameplay, graphics, sounds and animations are some of the best I have ever seen in a platformer.”
“This game has no story.”
“Basically, all they did was expand the gameplay but not the story.”
“The story is largely the same with maybe a few tweaks that I noticed, but those feel more like things that the original game never patched rather than add-ons to the story.”
- music144 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising the remastered soundtrack for its improved audio quality and emotional depth, while others find it uninspiring or poorly timed in certain scenes. The sound design is generally regarded as exceptional, enhancing the game's atmosphere, though some players noted inconsistencies in volume levels and the occasional lack of music in specific areas. Overall, the soundtrack successfully evokes nostalgia for fans of the original while introducing new elements, though some choices, like the end credits song, have been criticized as mismatched.
“The game's sound design is also exceptional, with a range of beautifully crafted sound effects and an excellent soundtrack that perfectly matches the game's visuals and themes.”
“With its unique gamespeak, beautiful world, and great soundtrack, this new 'n' tasty doesn't disappoint me at all.”
“The soundtrack is great, it takes the old players back with the amazing themes from 1997, but this time with improved audio quality.”
“The soundtrack is uninspiring.”
“The song for the credits is a bad choice in my opinion.”
“Nice level design, but controls are poor, the music tries to be 'extra cool' and started to annoy me very fast.”
- humor144 mentions
- 97 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised, characterized by a mix of dark, slapstick, and absurd comedy, often highlighted through quirky character interactions and clever dialogue. While many players appreciate the shift towards a lighter tone, some feel it detracts from the original's darker charm. Overall, the game maintains a strong comedic presence, making it both entertaining and memorable for fans of the series.
“This game is hilarious, and just all around a great time.”
“Amazing platformer with clever stealth mechanics, memorable characters, and lots of funny moments.”
“The world is bizarre and the game has a very special kind of humor.”
“Silly and unfunny voices were implemented for the NPCs; they keep repeating the same silly lines over and over with an irritating voice and less than a 5-second delay.”
“What's not funny about a hippy blue alien-looking guy farting everywhere he goes while he gets chased by ugly green slugs with rifles?”
- atmosphere134 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting that while the modern graphics and sound design enhance certain elements, they often detract from the darker, grittier atmosphere of the original. Some appreciate the vibrant visuals and improved gameplay mechanics, but feel that the remake lacks the depth and emotional weight that characterized the earlier titles. Overall, while the game captures some atmospheric elements, it struggles to fully replicate the unique charm and intensity of its predecessor.
“The haunting melodies perfectly complement the game's atmosphere, enhancing the overall experience.”
“The lighting is really atmospheric and each location has its own lighting identity.”
“New 'n' Tasty captures all that I loved in the original — a cozy and memorable atmosphere and nearly flawless puzzle-platforming gameplay.”
“In terms of mood and atmosphere, it's kinda non-existent.”
“The modern graphics make-over, while making the game brighter, pleasant to the eye, and giving it a pseudo-3D feel, work against the gritty and dark atmosphere set by its original predecessor.”
“It seems with the current reboot though that the developers have lost sight of many of the elements from the original games that made them a success and have attempted to update them, and subsequently have completely ruined the gameplay and atmosphere.”
- optimization76 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 34 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant performance issues such as frame drops, stuttering, and poor controller support, making it unplayable for some. While a few users experienced smooth gameplay on high-end systems, others noted that even powerful machines struggled to maintain stable frame rates, particularly in certain areas and during cutscenes. Overall, the consensus indicates that the game requires substantial optimization improvements to enhance the player experience across various hardware configurations.
“In regards to optimization, Abe's Oddysee: New 'n' Tasty runs amazingly smooth and across the three workstations I've tested it on, each experience at their respective resolutions was simply magnificent.”
“All the clunky controls of the original have been updated and optimized, and the game itself is visually perfect and loyal to the original.”
“I'm a big fan of Oddworld and this was a great comeback with New 'n' Tasty. I ran it maxed out at 60fps with no drops. Great optimization! I give New 'n' Tasty a rating of 9.5/10.”
“They lack of optimization makes this game unplayable.”
“Frames drop to 20fps and stuttering.”
“Performance - I ran this on a powerful machine, with graphics set to low, and still experienced many fps drops.”
- stability52 mentions
- 4 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 96 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with many players reporting frequent bugs, crashes, and glitches that hinder the overall experience. While some users experienced only minor issues, others faced significant problems, including game freezes and unresponsive controls, leading to frustration. Overall, the game's current state is deemed unstable, prompting recommendations to consider the original version instead.
“No glitches or crashes experienced (for macOS at least).”
“No glitches or crashes experienced (for macOS at least).”
“I really want to like it, but it is a god awful buggy mess.”
“Wanted to leave a positive review as the game is actually great, but I just can't recommend this game given the current buggy state that they have left it in.”
“I've installed and uninstalled the game twice now, and spent hours troubleshooting, and it continues to surprise me with new ways to crash.”
- replayability32 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is viewed positively, with many players appreciating the challenge of uncovering hidden elements and completing achievements. While some note that the linear nature of the Oddworld series limits replayability, others find enough content, such as leaderboards and difficulty modes, to warrant revisiting. The updated graphics and character designs also enhance the overall experience, making it enjoyable for both new and returning players.
“This game is an excellent, challenging, replayable cinematic puzzle-platformer.”
“The replayability is huge - there are 99 people to save and they are hidden pretty well sometimes.”
“A decent and solid platformer that's been made with much attention to detail - it's fun, challenging (if you want it to be) with good visuals, and has some replay value if you miss the secrets the first time around.”
“Although the Oddworld games aren't known for their replayability due to their linear nature, they are still very much games that you would revisit from time to time over the years.”
“Replayability - 3/10 (mainly for achievements only).”
“Replay value is important in every game, and since New 'n' Tasty is just story-based, there are still some things you can do afterwards such as the leaderboards, achievements, trading cards, and even a hard difficulty.”
- grinding24 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience. While the ability to quicksave alleviates some of the tedium, many still describe the gameplay as repetitive and frustrating due to slow controls and a lack of variety in scenarios. However, the game is praised for its forgiving difficulty curve and optional puzzles, making it more enjoyable for those who can navigate its mechanics effectively.
“Control of your character is tedious at best or downright impossible at the worst.”
“I've always enjoyed the world these games have to offer, but found the gameplay to be horribly tedious and repetitive.”
“Not every moment of the game was like this, but I suppose I just didn't find the game fun anymore but more tedious and repetitive with different variations of the same type of scenarios.”
- emotional12 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game evokes nostalgia and a sense of childhood joy, with players appreciating its touching story and beautiful design. However, some fans miss the original's darker, more grim atmosphere, feeling that the new installment's brighter tone lacks the emotional depth they cherished. Overall, while the game successfully resonates with players' hearts, opinions vary on its artistic direction.
“The game is beautiful, fun to play, and the story is as touching as always.”
“A game for the game lovers at heart; it felt like a kid again playing this. They definitely don't make games like this anymore.”
“I have purchased this game because it made me feel like I was a kid again playing on this PlayStation classic.”
- character development10 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The character development in the Oddworld series is enhanced by imaginative designs and updated graphics, which contribute to a more engaging gameplay experience. Players appreciate the rich storytelling and atmospheric elements that make the characters feel genuine and integral to the game's world. Overall, the series is celebrated for its unique character designs and the depth they bring to the narrative.
“Since my early years, the Oddworld series has offered wild locales, curiously bizarre character designs, and breathtaking storytelling.”
“Aside from aiding the character development and gameplay elements, the other sounds in the game add quite a bit of atmosphere, making you feel that this world is genuine at every turn.”
“The Oddworld games are known for their rich atmosphere and character design.”
- monetization8 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game is criticized for its use of in-game advertising, which, while not overly intrusive, is seen as annoying and distracting from the overall experience. Additionally, the reliance on visual effects like bloom instead of detailed graphics detracts from the game's quality, leaving players feeling that it lacks depth and character.
“In-game ads are not intrusive but still annoying and distracting from the story.”
“Furthermore, blatant in-game advertising and an overuse of bloom effects instead of real lighting and detail gut this title of any soul.”
“There's random banners advertising other games too, which is indeed odd.”