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Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee will get a reboot in 2013

Oh wow. That sucks.

Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.
 

Mad_Ban

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

Very nicely. :p
 

scitek

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

Sounds cool. What's the status of the PC update for Stranger's Wrath at this point?
 
Doesn't mean a lot at this point though, Stranger's Wrath HD was made for 360 but MS refused it. LOL.

Actually that's not true. we didn't MAKE the 360 version, we went through the various approval processes with MGS AT THEIR REQUEST for the title...

Then one by one they kept rejecting us...

First time:
"We don't think this title would suit the 360 Platform as it was already released on the XBox"

That confused as, since other titles had been released on 360 from older generations.

Second time:
"You need adhere to the following items before you can publish on GoD"
1. Must have Achievements (Ok so not a problem)
2. You must update the art (Again, not a problem we're doing that)
3. You must sell for no LESS than $20 equivalent in MS points. (That's a problem as our PSN price is $15).
4. You need to have sold more than 1m units at retail on Xbox (That's a problem as Stranger sold around 500k)

Third time:
1. We required a simultaneous releases with "other platforms" (We'd been talking to them for 15 months at this point with NO movement)
2. The original title must have a metacritic of over 80 (PS3 = 82, Xbox = 88, no problem)
3. You must have sold over 1m at retail (as above)

So we've tried our damnedest to get Stranger HD out on the 360, we even tried to get Munch HD on their and they were even LESS inclined :(

So we're talking to some 3rd party publishers to see if we can use one of their XBLA slots, so it's done final yet, and we ARE trying...

As for self-publishing it, MS have a rule that you MUST have self-published 2 titles at retail FIRST before being allowed to have XBLA slots.

So we've tried like crazy!

:-/

Stewart Gilray
CEO - JAW
COO - OWI
 
Sounds cool. What's the status of the PC update for Stranger's Wrath at this point?

We're DAMNED close, I was playing it this past week, looking GREAT, just got a few other things to tidy up on, then we'll get it PROPERLY tested this time before release ;-)
 

R1CHO

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

Sounds great, thanks for posting!
 

Squishy

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

This is the best news I've heard in a long time. Abe's Oddysee and Exoddus are two of the best games ever made, with by favouite character and world designs in any game. I would love a version with high definition pre-rendered graphics using the same assets as the original, but I certainly wouldn't complain about 2.5D.
 

KevinCow

Banned
The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

Does that mean it'll be sticking with the Prince of Persia style controls? I always wanted to love the Oddworld games, but that was always a pretty huge turnoff to me. Press the button, he takes half a second to turn around and another half a second to stop. Press another button, he takes half a second to jump. Never really cared for that.

I thought Limbo did a pretty good job at nailing that same kind of gameplay feel without the less responsive, animation heavy character control that always frustrated me about those kinds of games, so when I heard about this remake, I was kinda hoping you guys would do something along those lines.

Of course, I'm not gonna tell you you're wrong for making the game you want to make. I'm sure there's a segment of fans who would complain if you guys changed the way the game controlled. Unfortunately, it's something I've just never been able to get past.

Whatever the case, best of luck to you guys. I've always appreciated the Oddworld series, even if I've never really particularly enjoyed playing it.
 
Does that mean it'll be sticking with the Prince of Persia style controls? I always wanted to love the Oddworld games, but that was always a pretty huge turnoff to me. Press the button, he takes half a second to turn around and another half a second to stop. Press another button, he takes half a second to jump. Never really cared for that.

I thought Limbo did a pretty good job at nailing that same kind of gameplay feel without the less responsive, animation heavy character control that always frustrated me about those kinds of games, so when I heard about this remake, I was kinda hoping you guys would do something along those lines.

Of course, I'm not gonna tell you you're wrong for making the game you want to make. I'm sure there's a segment of fans who would complain if you guys changed the way the game controlled. Unfortunately, it's something I've just never been able to get past.

Whatever the case, best of luck to you guys. I've always appreciated the Oddworld series, even if I've never really particularly enjoyed playing it.

well we're making it more immediate and more fluid, thanks to animation blending, something the original just didn't have.
 

Goldrusher

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.
Well, you gotta admit this tweet was confusing:

cWkq0.jpg


It sounded like the "HD update" was cancelled in favor of a "reboot", "a NEW game".
 

Ocaso

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

You know, I'm conflicted about it. The one thing that made Oddworld stand out in the PS1 era was that it delivered the same kind of graphical "punch" that you received from something like Dragon's Lair in the arcades. Here was a game with a level of fidelity that far exceeded what was possible in real time rendering with that hardware.

Of course, real-time rendering has advanced greatly, but part of me still wanted to see what Oddworld would have looked like with a similar gorgeous pre-rendered approach in 1080p and with absurdly detailed character models all running at 60 fps. With this new approach, even with the more lively backgrounds, I imagine there will be compromises to the level of detail.

BTW Stewart, can we still expect a 3D/Move patch for the PS3 version of Stranger's Wrath?
 
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.

uAlXL.jpg
 

Nibel

Member
Back then I was too young to really appreciate this game. I will give it another try since I love the look of it. :)
 

TGMIII

Member
Good to see you guys are up to something brand new. I can't remember if I read this on the oddworld site a long time ago but you guys were doing CG movie stuff for a while, is that correct?
 
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

How does that grab you all.

*JackNicholsonNod.gif*

I loved the original Abe games on PSX, this is a dream come true! The more outstanding 2.5D HD games we get the better. Vita pretty please?
 

Goldmund

Member
Actually, that's totally wrong...

The new Abe title IS the HD remakes... However we didn't want to get people confused with just upscaled versions of the original titles, which is what we are NOT doing, never was.

We are making a 2.5D version of the title, with a physics based engine, which means we can make the anims and world seem much more dynamic.

The big thing I always wanted to do is to make sure that the gameplay was altered as LITTLE as POSSIBLE, yes there are some changes due to the fact we're scrolling and not flip screening anymore, but that's about it really.

The BIG difference with this one is the backgrounds, those non-interactive environments behind the gameplay are going to be teaming with life now.

The analogy I like to make is in Ridge Racer you just had a drift racer, but they had little events going off in the background that kept you looking away from the action.

We are doing the same with this, so where perhaps you saw a small 32x32 cycling animation of a barrel going past a window, now you'll have cranes moving in the background hauling barrels about all over the place, with spotlights patrolling around lighting up different parts of rupture farms.

How does that grab you all.
So it's one continuous scroll now (minus area swapping through doors etc.)? I actually really liked the screen flipping. It made each screen seem like its own little puzzle that, even when put in a sequence to constitute a bigger puzzle, wouldn't lose its independence.
 

gabbre

Member
Actually that's not true. we didn't MAKE the 360 version, we went through the various approval processes with MGS AT THEIR REQUEST for the title...

Then one by one they kept rejecting us...

First time:
"We don't think this title would suit the 360 Platform as it was already released on the XBox"

That confused as, since other titles had been released on 360 from older generations.

Second time:
"You need adhere to the following items before you can publish on GoD"
1. Must have Achievements (Ok so not a problem)
2. You must update the art (Again, not a problem we're doing that)
3. You must sell for no LESS than $20 equivalent in MS points. (That's a problem as our PSN price is $15).
4. You need to have sold more than 1m units at retail on Xbox (That's a problem as Stranger sold around 500k)

Third time:
1. We required a simultaneous releases with "other platforms" (We'd been talking to them for 15 months at this point with NO movement)
2. The original title must have a metacritic of over 80 (PS3 = 82, Xbox = 88, no problem)
3. You must have sold over 1m at retail (as above)

So we've tried our damnedest to get Stranger HD out on the 360, we even tried to get Munch HD on their and they were even LESS inclined :(

So we're talking to some 3rd party publishers to see if we can use one of their XBLA slots, so it's done final yet, and we ARE trying...

As for self-publishing it, MS have a rule that you MUST have self-published 2 titles at retail FIRST before being allowed to have XBLA slots.

So we've tried like crazy!

:-/

Stewart Gilray
CEO - JAW
COO - OWI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtEkUmYecnk

Can't wait for Stranger's Wrath HD on Steam
 
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