Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee - New 'n' Tasty! (Xbox One) Review

1997 was a long time ago, so here's a rough outline of Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty. The player controls Abe, a clumsy Mudokon (alien) who has unfortunately stumbled across his employers' terrible plan (hint: it involves turning the locals into various types of food and drink). Abe isn't a fan of this, and while trying to stealthily scuttle away, reveals that he was spying on this dastardly plan. The whole world is out to get him, but he has almost zero skills when it comes to defence, other than the occasional ability to mind control those blood thirsty guards and leading them to their death.

Abe is a brilliantly weird character stuck in a crappy situation. The goal is to help Abe and various other Mudokons that work at the factory to escape by commanding them to follow Abe and listen to his every word; otherwise they'll certainly be gunned down. Abe must open various portals scattered throughout the stages; however, this is an optional objective - the priority should be simply to avoid death.

What makes Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty so special is the type of puzzles encountered from the very start of the game. They're brutally tough, and may be thought of as unfair, but none of them involve cheap tricks, meaning beating a puzzle is unbelievably satisfying, albeit confusing as hell.

What may the lovable Abe stumble across? Almost everything that comes to mind. This world isn't to be toyed with, and around every corner are moving motion detectors that - if alerted - launch explosives in Abe's direction, guards who're extremely trigger happy, spinning blades, bottomless pits, and the occasional land mine here and there. It's just a matter of combining these to get a true sense of the obstacles ahead.

It's an insanely tough game thanks to its brilliantly created puzzles, and their will certainly be dozens and dozens of deaths. Therefore, it'd be really lovely if the game's auto save system worked consistently, especially when it comes to booting the game up after shutting the console down. It seemingly forgets where the last checkpoint was, forcing players to figure out all the puzzles ahead over and over again.