Why are oddworld forums full of avatars of ponies?
 

Is there some kind of a connection between abe and ponies that I've missed while playing the games?

(related to oddworld discussion because this is a discussion about oddworld avatar trends)

Didn’t you hear? Lorne Lanning is a horse.

Because everybody here is gay, and ponies are gay!

We're excited about the upcoming Hand of Odd, which is sponsored by Hasbro and as such will contain many little nods in the direction of their most popular line of merchandise (such as posters advertising MLP, an in-game player to watch MLP episodes on, an MLP-themed interface and a "Pony Rider" unit for the Mudokon team).

Not related to Oddworld Discussion because this is a thread about Oddworld Forums avatar trends.

And there's already one, which should answer your question.