Oddworld: Stranger's Retribution

Oddworld: Stranger's Retribution
Original title	Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath
Studio	Oddworld Inhabitants
Publisher	Electronic Arts Oddworld Inhabitants
Senior Developer	Lorne Lanning
Erstveröffent- lichung	January 25, 2005 (Xbox) December 20, 2010 (Windows) March 9, 2015 (Mac App Store)
platform	Original: Xbox , Windows HD: Windows , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation Vita , iOS , Android , MacOS , Nintendo Switch
genre	Action game
Game mode	Single player
control	Game controller , keyboard & mouse
medium	DVD-ROM , download
language	German, English, French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese
Age rating	USK PEGI

Oddworld: Stranger's Retaliation is an action game by the US computer game developer Oddworld Inhabitants and the fourth title in the Oddworld series. It was first published for Xbox in 2005 by the US publisher Electronic Arts . In December 2010 the title was ported to Windows as part of the Oddworld game collection OddBoxx . In 2012, a graphically revised HD remake was published for Windows, PlayStation 3 , PlayStation Vita , and later also for iOS , Android and MacOS . On January 23, 2020, the game was also released for the Nintendo Switch in the Nintendo eShop , and a physical version is to be released on May 26, 2020.

action

The central character is the eponymous bounty hunter Stranger, who needs money for a life-saving operation. In order to be able to finance this, he works as a criminal hunter. His journey takes him to New Yolk City and the area of ​​the former Mungo River. Its inhabitants, the chicken-like Clakkers and the salamander-like Grubbs, have been tyrannized by a demon since the former protectors of the city were wiped out from the Steef race.

When Stranger arrives, the entire region suffers from a lack of water after a certain Sekto has caused the Mungo River to dry out by building a dam. Sekto is also responsible for wiping out the Steef. However, since he is convinced that more Steef exist, he continues to search for survivors and offers a large bounty for killing each Steef. Sekto suspects Stranger of having information about the whereabouts of the rest of Steef. So he sets the gangster D. Caste Raider on him to arrest and interrogate him. During the interrogation it turns out that Stranger is himself a steef. But Stranger manages to escape with the help of the Grubbs and return to New York City. However, the local residents hunt him because of the high bounty. Stranger is cared for by the Grubbs. There he is asked to defend the city "Last Hole" from Sekto's henchmen, the Wolvarks.

Stranger learns from the leader of the Grubb population that Sekto is the demon. In the final confrontation with Sekto, the dam is destroyed and the hiding place of the criminals flooded. While Sekto is dying, it becomes clear that he is also a steef who was once possessed by a demon. However, this leaves the body of the dying person and escapes across the river.

Gameplay

The game combines elements of action adventures and first-person shooters and is set in a wild west scenario. The game is played either from a pursuer or first person perspective . The player completes various tasks that are available at the city's bounty hunter office and that include the delivery of various criminals. A special feature of the game is the live ammunition that Stranger uses for his crossbow. It consists of small animals that can be collected within the game world and have different damage effects, such as bite attacks, explosions or the spinning of opponents. The crossbow can be equipped with two different types of ammunition at the same time, which are triggered with different action buttons. Alternatively, the player can defend himself against enemies with a fist fight, headbutt or a ramming attack. Gangsters can be killed or stunned and trapped with the help of a vacuum cleaner. In the bounty hunter's office, Stranger receives a bonus for this, which is higher for bandits delivered alive.

reception

Rating mirror

Xbox
publication	Rating
4players	88%
Gamona
GamePro	88%
Games world	87%
Looki	89%
1UP	B +
Edge	9 of 10
EGM	8.5 out of 10
EuroGamer.net	7 out of 10
Game Informer	9 of 10
GamePro (US)	4.5 out of 5
GameSpot	8.5 out of 10
GameSpy	4.5 out of 5
Gaming Age	A-
IGN	8.8 out of 10
Meta-ratings
GameRankings	87.04%
Metacritic	88 of 100

Stranger's retaliation received mostly positive ratings ( GameRankings : 87.04% / Metacritic : 88 out of 100).

"With its clever ideas and impressive graphics, Oddworld is tremendous fun for a while, although it lacks the depth and varied gameplay of recent action games like Half-Life 2 and Resident Evil 4. "

"With its clever ideas and impressive graphics, Oddworld offers a lot of fun for a while, although it lacks the depth and variable gameplay of current action games like Half-Life 2 and Resident Evil 4. "

- Charles Herold : New York Times

Stranger's Wrath is a puzzling departure for Oddworld but the finest in the series. Few games are this fresh or entertaining. […] The gripping story is often hilarious and features clever twists. The game's closing stanza is action-packed with exhausting battles against swarming opponents across spectacular locations.

“ Stranger's Retribution is a startling new direction for Oddworld , but the best of the series. Few games are that fresh and fun. [...] The captivating plot is often hilarious and had clever twists and turns. The final act of the game is full of action with grueling battles against swarming opponents in spectacular locations. "

- Charles Herold : The Sydney Morning Herald

The development was overshadowed by quarrels between Oddworld Inhabitants and Publisher Electronic Arts . Among other things, the publisher canceled the previously guaranteed porting to PlayStation 2 . Despite positive reviews the game was therefore not a financial success, since instead of to achieve the break-even necessary 1.6 million copies were sold only 600,000, after the sale of the first batch, no units were more reproduced according Lannings. The poor sales result meant that Oddworld Inhabitants posted losses.

Follow-up projects

Oddworld: The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot

In April, Oddworld Inhabitants announced the development of another Oddworld game. It should continue the atmosphere that had become darker with Stranger's retaliation and deal thematically with enmity between dogs and cats. Due to the financial failure of Stranger's retaliation and the dissatisfaction of company boss Lanning with the publisher financing model, the development of the successor game Oddworld: The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot, announced in cooperation with Majesco Entertainment , was canceled shortly after the announcement. In April 2005, Lorne Lanning announced that Oddworld Inhabitants had moved its headquarters to Berkeley and at the same time stopped working as a game developer.

Oddworld: Stranger's Retaliation HD

In July 2010, the British development studio Just Add Water announced that it would work with Oddworld Inhabitants to revive the Oddworld universe. After the republication of all Oddworld titles via digital distribution , a revision and republication of all previous titles on other platforms was announced. It all started with Stranger's retaliation , as it was on the one hand the youngest and, according to own statements, the fastest realizable title; on the other hand, the game was based entirely on Oddworld Inhabitants' own technology, which was therefore completely available. Oddworld: Stranger's Retribution HD was released in December 2011 for PlayStation 3 and on December 19, 2012 for PlayStation Vita , both as downloadable titles via PlayStation Network . The PC version was released on September 14, 2012 as a free upgrade to the download version of the game ( OddBoxx ). In terms of numbers, the sales of the digital republication exceeded the result of the first publication. By March 2014, around 600,000 copies had been sold.

literature

• Cathy Johnson, Daniel Wade (Eds.): The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants: The First Ten Years 1994-2004 . Ballistic Media, Mylor, South Australia 2004, ISBN 1-921002-02-6 .

Web links

• Official Oddworld site (English)
• Stranger's Wrath at MobyGames (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Markus Pilzweger: Review: Oddworld Stranger Wrath. In: PC world . IDG , March 18, 2005, accessed January 1, 2013 . 
2. ↑ The Cincinnati Enquirer ( Memento of May 11, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
3. ↑ http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht/XBox/Test/4536/3460/0/Oddworld_Strangers_Vergeltung.html
4. ↑ http://www.gamona.de/games/oddworld-strangers-vergeltung,test-xbox:article,138646.html
5. ↑ http://www.gamepro.de/xbox/spiele/xbox/oddworld-strangers-vergeltung/test/oddworld_strangers_vergeltung,38041,1292703.html
6. ↑ http://www.gameswelt.de/oddworld-strangers-vergeltung/review/seite-1,387
7. ↑ http://www.looki.de/oddworld_strangers_vergeltung_test_a1722_1.html
8. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from March 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
9. ^ Edge (February 2004), p. 72.
10. ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly (February 2005), p. 121.
11. ↑ http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/r_oddworldstranger_x
12. ↑ Game Informer (February 2005), p. 110.
13. ↑ Star Dingo: Review: Oddworld Stranger Wrath. In: GamePro (US). IDG , January 27, 2005, archived from the original on July 4, 2008 ; accessed on December 31, 2012 (English). 
14. ↑ Jeff Gerstmann: Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath Review. In: GameSpot . CNET , January 24, 2005, accessed December 31, 2012 . 
15. ↑ http://xbox.gamespy.com/xbox/oddworld-4/581902p1.html
16. ^ Brian Peterson: Oddworld Stranger's Wrath. In: Gaming Age. Archived from the original on January 28, 2008 ; accessed on December 31, 2012 (English). 
17. ↑ Douglass C. Perry: Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. In: IGN . News Corp. January 24, 2005, accessed December 31, 2012 . 
18. ↑ ^{a b} GameRankings : Average rating of the game , based on 68 ratings. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
19. ↑ ^{a b} Metacritic : Average rating of the game , based on 65 articles. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
20. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/17/technology/circuits/17game.html?ex=1109307600&en=c4214af930777332&ei=5070&_r=0
21. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/news/Games/Fresh-entertainment/2005/03/16/1110649212735.html
22. ↑ ^{a b} Matt Martin: Oddworld: Spending $ 30m on games, not Ferraris and private jets. In: Gamesindustry.biz . Eurogamer Network , October 1, 2012, accessed December 17, 2012 . 
23. ↑ ^{a b} Jeffrey Matulef: New 'n' Tasty needs to sell 500K to fund an original new Oddworld game. In: Eurogamer.net . Eurogamer Network , March 18, 2014, accessed March 24, 2014 . 
24. ↑ Ben Reeves: The Oddworld Game That Never Was: The Brutal Ballad of Fangus Klot. In: Game Informer . GameStop , November 19, 2010, accessed December 17, 2012 . 
25. ↑ Nich Maragos: Oddworld Inhabitants Downsizes For Bay Area Move. In: Gamasutra . UBM, plc , March 30, 2005, accessed December 26, 2012 . 
26. ↑ David Jenkins: Oddworld Inhabitants Confirms Game Industry Exit. In: Gamasutra . UBM, plc , April 18, 2005, accessed December 26, 2012 . 
27. ^ Andrew Yoon: New Oddworld games in the works at Just Add Water. (No longer available online.) In: Joystiq . AOL July 15, 2010; archived from the original on November 7, 2012 ; accessed on December 17, 2012 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
28. ↑ Kris Graft: Interview: Going Back To Oddworld. In: Gamasutra . UBM, plc , September 13, 2010, accessed December 27, 2012 . 
29. ↑ Michael Krosta: When is the remake coming? In: 4Players . freenet AG , December 8, 2011, accessed December 27, 2012 . 
30. ↑ Tom Sauer: Oddworld - Stranger's Retaliation HD: PS Vita version will be released in mid-December. In: Games Aktuell . Computec Media Group , December 2, 2012, accessed December 27, 2012 . 
31. ↑ Thomas Held: HD update for PC version released. In: Gamona . Webguidez Entertainment, September 14, 2012, accessed December 27, 2012 .