Chronicler
Chroniclers on Oddworld are an industrialized race of accountants and lawyers.[1][2] They have not yet been seen in any canonical Oddworld publication, although their existence has been confirmed by Oddworld Inhabitants.
Appearance
Our knowledge of Chroniclers’ appearance comes mostly from the colour painting described below. In this image, the Chronicler is a tall and thin yellow-skinned characters with four arms, one leg, and a long, stoic face, with two small tentacles either side of its mouth. Its thin frame is a result of never getting much exercise, while its extra pair of arms evolved to make Chroniclers more efficient at office work.[2] It has been confirmed that despite this image appearing to depict Chroniclers as having a single leg, they do have two.[3]
Its two eyes are deep red in colour. It is dressed entirely in black and red: a stovepipe hat with a red hat band and open crown (through which its head protrudes), a red all-in-one forked cape and necktie, black boots with red laces and sock suspenders, and a black skirt. The Chronicler smokes a cigarette and carries a two-handled stark metal briefcase and a tall staff that is thought by fans to function as an abacus.[4]
Production
A Chronicler concept sketch by Steven Olds, dated 1994—the year Oddworld Inhabitants was founded, and three years before the release of Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee—was included in an early Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee press kit released in November 1999, which was acquired from Oddworld Inhabitants by souljah_73 of the Exoddus Club.[5] Unfortunately, this image was lost in March 2002, when Yahoo! Clubs, still in the process of merging with eGroups.com, became Yahoo! Groups, and the Exoddus Club’s photo gallery was deleted.[6] The Steven Olds concept sketch was later published in The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants,[7] although a computer file version has yet to be recovered. The sketch describes the creature as a ‘more evolved relative to the Oldger’ (‘Oldger’ being an early name for Glukkons)[8], and shows it with a more angular face and a tall crest atop its head.
The colour painting of a Chronicler by Silvio Aebischer was published by IGN in a preview of Munch’s Oddysee in March 2000.[9]. By this time, fans were fully expecting Chroniclers to appear in Munch’s Oddysee and were somewhat shocked when the final game did not include the character. The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants confirms that a Chronicler was intended to play a major role as a lawyer in Munch’s Oddysee,[2] probably as part of the storyline following the capture and trial of Molluck by Lady Margaret.
References
- ↑ souljah_73 (30 December 1999). ‘Re: That big tall thing’. The Exoddus Club. Yahoo! Groups.
- ↑ a b c Johnson, Cathy & Daniel Wade (14 September 2004). ‘Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee’, p. 230. The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants: The First Ten Years 1994–2004. Mylor: Ballistic Publishing.
- ↑ Lee, Matt (2 July 2007). Email to Zerox. Post 503 in ‘Oddworld Questions & Answers VI’. Oddworld Discussion. Oddworld Forums.
- ↑ Members of the Oddworld Forums (14–15 December 2001). Posts 4–11 in ‘To Max’. Oddworld Discussion. Oddworld Forums.
- ↑ souljah_73 (10 November 1999). ‘Re: That Munch Pic...’. The Exoddus Club. Yahoo! Groups.
- ↑ billy_squeek (2 March 2002). ‘Re: Looks keen.’ The Exoddus Club. Yahoo! Groups.
- ↑ Olds, Steven (1996). ‘More evolved relative to the Oldger’ concept sketch. In Johnson, Cathy & Daniel Wade (14 September 2004). ‘Inspiration’, p. 27. The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants: The First Ten Years 1994–2004. Mylor: Ballistic Publishing.
- ↑ Johnson, Cathy & Daniel Wade (14 September 2004). ‘Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee’, p. 62 The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants: The First Ten Years 1994–2004. Mylor: Ballistic Publishing.
- ↑ Lopez, Vincent (1 March 2000). ‘Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee’ preview. IGN.