Oddworld at E3

[Phylum]

Now that I compared the shot from the opening to the original, I can see what I don't like about it. In the original the lighting was a warm, orange haze. RF needs to be foggier.

That screen of Scrabania is a fantastic start. The models and textures are all good. Now they just need to think about how to make it feel like a desert. Paramonia could afford to look that clean, but Scrabania needs to be dusty.

Also, the chant suppressor orb shouldn't be staring blankly forwards.

It's a good start

[Varrok]

I like the Scrabania shot.

Now that I compared the shot from the opening to the original, I can see what I don't like about it. In the original the lighting was a warm, orange haze. RF needs to be foggier.

This.

[Connell]

It looks so ps2-ish and aimed at 6 year old's, it's extremely jarring. I can imagine Bugs Bunny walking on screen at any moment in that Scrabania shot, and that's not a good thing for an Oddworld game. Those shots do not capture the atmosphere whatsoever.

What on Earth is the point in updating this game if it's going to be extremely below par to other games available today? Answers to my rhetorical question on a postcard please.

[Xavier]

I think this screen of scrabania looks realy good. Some dust or efect to make it look less "clean" would be nice of course.

[Phylum]

Also that slig is unnaturally reflective.

e: or maybe it's just that it goes from being really reflective to intense shadow. It would be amazing if the shadows out in the desert were yellowed out/less intense.

Is anyone else finding those cacti a tad on the green side? I know we have an unlimited colour pallet now, but they might be a bit over the top.

[Crashpunk]

People need to stop jumping onto the conclusion that this is what the game will look like. The Scrabania scene is clearly from a early, pre-alpha stage as it looks very unfinished. The lighting doesn't look like it's even been added yet, that's what's giving that over-brightness of the environment.

Anyway, Nice job finding these screens, Very exciting stuff indeed!

[Nate]

People need to stop jumping onto the conclusion that this is what the game will look like. The Scrabania scene is clearly from a early, pre-alpha stage as it looks very unfinished. The lighting doesn't look like it's even been added yet, that's what's giving that over-brightness of the environment.

Anyway, Nice job finding these screens, Very exciting stuff indeed!

JAW released those images. That means they were proud enough of them to show them off to the world. That suggests that they were reasonably well done. And that's slightly worrying. Promotional shots are usually the best that a game will look. Not the minimum quality or even the average quality.

I also hope the lighting is still at an early stage. It just looks too overexposed and bright.

[Crashpunk]

There is also the possibility that the scans made them overexposed?

[Phylum]

Even if it is early development, it's good for us to civilly outline what we think because there's a good chance someone from JAW will read it, even if it's Wil and he doesn't report it back to anyone.

[STM]

Yeah, there's no harm in constructive feedback but, 'wtf r u doing that looks shit' isn't really a valid method of relaying criticism.

I think it could do with a little touch up, basically what has been mentioned before by Nate and Crashpunk, but on a whole I really am glad at how it's coming together! Quite exciting.

[leocrow]

The news about JAW going to E3 and the iOS ports, brought some love to the Oddworld games in the neogaf forums: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=580805
If I was a neogaf member (it would look suspicious if i just made an account for that), I would try to keep that thread on top so I could help the Odd team

[Jordan]

I'm really liking Scrabania, but it looks slightly plain. The models and area look absolutely great, it just needs some extra touches, to give it a rusty, dusty sort of feel the original had.

[V_O_T]

I personally like it, but the time of day in scrabania needs to be set to afternoon. That brightness seems to kill the mood of that area slightly.

Thats the kind of brightness i'd prefer to see in paramonia, the part where the bees are chasing you, or the part just before you leave elum, where those sligs are at the jump.

Unless Jaw have gone ahead and added day/night cycles, then screw it all, i'm 100% fine with that.

Still, they have done a damn good job on everything else.

[MeechMunchie]

Can't wait until they've added all the bloom effects and lensflare.

[Varrok]

WHERE'S THE DAMN DATING SIMULATOR?!

[Manco]

People need to stop jumping onto the conclusion that this is what the game will look like. The Scrabania scene is clearly from a early, pre-alpha stage as it looks very unfinished. The lighting doesn't look like it's even been added yet, that's what's giving that over-brightness of the environment.

This was my thinking – to my eye, the 3D models are done and there’s some basic lighting, but I reckon they’ve yet to add the more complex shading and lighting effects.

JAW released those images. That means they were proud enough of them to show them off to the world. That suggests that they were reasonably well done. And that's slightly worrying. Promotional shots are usually the best that a game will look. Not the minimum quality or even the average quality.

JAW are generally more concerned with getting the message out than presenting finished-quality images – Abe HD was debuted with a pre-alpha gameplay footage and screenshots.

[Michael]

The models look great! I agree with the comments on the lighting, it'd be nice if the more purple hues of the original make a return- in my opinion they look more ghostly and alien. Scrabania always seemed very desolate and haunting to me, especially with the music.

[AvengingGibbons]

The slig looks like a weakling, and just not scary (would lowering its underbelly/underhead make it look bulkier and more menacing?). The colours are bland (just the same ornage tone used). If you look at scrabania screenshots, they use different colours together that compliment each other to set the mood (mainly purple and orange hues, with deep shadowy areas).

I think the released image looks promising, but I hope to god it's not the finished product.

[Strike Witch]

Good to see the game onstage at the Sony presentation.

[Varrok]

And screenshots

Explosions still suck balls. Lightning system as well. You can't really "hide" in shadows because the player sees everything, and that's completely horrible. Seems like Mudokons in RF still don't have hair. The gameplay looks ok.

Why does slig explode when he goes through the electric fence?A: Because JAW don't care of course

The mudokon at the end slides up while laughing


I overally like it.

[Nate]

Other than the lightning and the bird portal, I think it looks fantastic. Much better with proper lighting.

I like the new chant bell design, too.

My one other comment is with the way the camera turns to view more to the right at about 27 seconds. Will that make it difficult to judge precise jumps?

[Phylum]

The UXBs look less flashy in those screens and the vid than the one from the magazine shot. The chant suppressors look much more detailed, though.

Like I said before, the models and textures are good. This is a good start. The scrabs look a bit too small and bland, but they seem to be less finished than any of the other models so far.

My biggest criticism would be that the hop forward in that video looks too boring. I'm not sure why. Something just doesn't seem as interesting as the AO/AE hop. It might be the sound, or it might be because he seemed to leave the ground more in 2D.

[DarkHoodness]

Even if it's a little unpolished, I think JAW are doing a pretty damned fine job. I'm loving the new environment details - Most of all though I'm looking forward to getting a "OMG it's new! But it's familiar!" feeling that I got from Black Mesa, and I got a bit of that from the trailer.

Critique is good, but I hope people aren't going to be too unrealistic about it.

[STM]

A lot of those things are still place holders I Would have thought. So bearing that in mind, I think I just wet myself a bit from excitement.

[Bullet Magnet]

STOP EVERYTHING. The inflated bladder thing in Scrabania is gone. I distinctly remember specifying that it remain. I don't know what it is but it has always been essential.

[DarkHoodness]

I think I read in the book that it was a lamp of some kind... Perhaps they haven't added it yet or it's in a different location.

[squeak117]

I'm liking what I see for the most part but most of what's already been said in critique of it here is pretty spot on. I guess the way I'd summarise it to say it just looks too 'cartoony'.

But my biggest problem with it, though, is Abe's animation. Mainly the jumps and hops. They don't seem to have any weight them. That little hop he does over the mine at about 44 seconds looks strange. In fact, all of the running jumps don't look right. And, while I'm sure this has a lot to do with the lack of contextual music and sound effects in the trailer, the running from the scrab didn't seem nearly as desperate or scary as the original.

All that said, I love the way the camera moves; the way all the background elements pan is really nice (and the background elements themselves are beautiful). The lighting in the last farting shot is really nice as well. With a bit more dust and grime it would be perfect!

[AvengingGibbons]

The video footage if scrabania is so much better than the image from that magazine. Looks very promising indeed . I agree with somebody above about the animations, and Abe's hops not having enough weight to them, but like they said it is partly because there are no footstep sound effects. But the animations are definately too soft.

Does anyone else feel like some of the movement animations are too slow? Like pulling a lever, or jumping up a ledge, crouching down?

[SpAM_CAN]

Animations are too slow for my tastes and far far too floaty. The areas lack a certain uniqueness to them that they had in the original too, somehow...

But hey, this is still alpha according to the OWI Twitter page, and I'm willing to bet they've not got into colour correction yet. A tweak to the colours could fix the problems I have with the environments, and the animations are certainly not final.

Tweaks to the lighting to make it darker too are needed here and there, but again its alpha so this stuff is likely to change.

Oh, and why does that slig explode in the lightning barrier o3o

[Oddey]

I really like the trailer in many ways, but as said before, the lighting still doesn't look totally right, and the animations (specifically the fast moving ones) feel a little too slow in some ways, and not really weighty enough in others. I also think that the falling meat doesn't look like it's falling quite right. The cacti definitely feel just a little too green, but generally I feel that Scrabania just generally doesn't have that same distinct dark orange tone that I always loved in it.

I really like the camera movement though. And the rocky landscape in Scrabania actually looks really good in my opinion, aside from not being red enough.