Description

About

Published: 26 January 2001
Host: MunchOnThis.com
Author: Paul O’Connor
Game: Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee
Format: Publised Online

The Designer Diary

A Passport to Oddworld itself.

It's been said that Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee is striving to be more than just a game, but a passport to Oddworld itself. Since we're always eager to travel abroad and visit strange and exotic locales, we decided to ask Oddworld Inhabitants Senior Game Designer Paul O'Connor exactly what this means for fans and interested gamers. Here's what he had to say.

"Part of the verbal fusillade I've fired off about Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee is that it isn't a game so much as a passport to Oddworld itself. This is because the game is so different that you can't really appreciate what sets it apart until you get your hands on the controls . then you'll have one of those, "Ah, I get it" moments, and your gaming universe will change forever.

"Until that time, I'll have to fall back on analogy. The difference between Munch's Oddysee and other games is like the difference between Disneyland and a traveling carnival. Both have rides, stuff you can buy, and things to eat. But that's where the similarity ends. While thrilling, the traveling carnival is a desultory experience, with none of the attention paid to the details of theme and fantasy experienced at Disneyland. At the carnival, you never forget where you are. A rollercoaster is just a rollercoaster. You never transcend the rides to believe that you're really on a trip into space, or flying above London with Peter Pan.

"We trust that Munch's Oddysee will be a transcendent game experience. All the thrills you expect will be there, but the attention to detail and life-like behavior of the Inhabitants will make you forget that you're playing a game, and draw you into the world itself. If you want to be a daytripper and efficiently complete each little mission . great, the game can do that. But if you want to really visit Oddworld, your exploration will yield depths and details that just aren't present in other games.

"So have your passports ready when Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee debuts on Xbox later this year."

Paul O'Connor
Senior Game Designer
Oddworld Inhabitants
26 January 2001