Oddworld Inhabitants and Frima Studio revealOddworld: Soulstorm, an upcoming addition to theOddworldseries that is expected to see release in 2017.
Although the 1990s saw the release of a huge number of iconic video games, theOddworldseries is often a dark horse for the most beloved franchise of the era. BothAbe’s Oddyseeand follow-upAbe’s Exoddushave a special place in gaming history, finding a niche through enthralling gameplay, quirky humor, and a unique world. Now, it looks as though gamers are going to be able to revisit that world once more in the form ofOddworld: Soulstorm.
Named for a highly addictive drink in theOddworlduniverse, as well as the working title of the original game in the franchise, news of the existence ofOddworld: Soulstormwas revealed by series' developer Oddworld Inhabitants. The developer released a glut of information on the title via a new page onthe official Oddworld website, along with a mysterious, low-res image of Abe himself. Promising to reveal more of the protagonist if more Twitter follows are received, it’s unlikely to be long before Abe is fully revealed.
The website also revealed that Oddworld Inhabitants is working onOddworld: Soulstormalong with Canadian developer Frima Studio, and will take place directly after the events of2014’s rebootOddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty. Having overthrown RuptureFarms and freed a number of his workmates from the perils within, Abe and his fellow Mudokons are left stranded in the desert. Although they find solace in the titular Soulstorm Brew, the drink is set to have some serious ramifications for Abe and his people.
From the sounds of it,Soulstormis going to delve even deeper into the darkly comedic themes that theOddworldseries is known for, with the franchise’s creators aiming to work on the story that they truly wanted to develop for thePlayStationclassics. “There was a deeper, darker, and more sinister story that we never got to tell,” said Lorne Lanning, series creator. “Soulstormgives us the opportunity to flesh out more meat on the bones of an original spine, but re-tell the fable from a very different angle,” explained the creator, who suggested that the title will be a “much heavier” trip for Abe.
Although the title is going to be thematically similar toNew ‘n’ Tasty, once more dealing with ideas such as consumerism, addiction, and environmentalism, it looks like there are going to be some surprises for fans of the franchise. “We thinkOddworldfans are really going to dig what we’ve been brewing,” explained executive producer Bennie Terry. The producer continued to state that there will be some “great surprises in store this time around” that the studio is not expecting fans to predict, before concluding thatSoulstormwill have “twice the twisted flavor” of previousOddworldgames.
As of yet, however, not much is known about this upcomingOddworldgame. At this moment, the team over atOddworld Inhabitantshas not confirmed what platforms the game will be released on, and with the game not due for release until the latter half of 2017 there will be a long wait in store for fans. However, given the huge success ofNew ‘n’ Tasty, hopefullySoulstormwill continue the successful reintroduction of theOddworldfranchise.
Oddworld: Soulstormis expected to release in the second half of 2017.
