This game was released as Another World in Europe

My history with this game is complex. I played it upon release and it was just too much for me. I found it beautiful and absorbing, but I was just not prepared for the lack of hand holding and the fact that often you were not told what the heck you were supposed to be doing. It was also extremely difficult.

Flash forward about 5 years and I wanted to give it another shot, but during a move I had lost it. I couldn't remember the title. So I went on AOL (anybody remember America Online?) and went on what passed for a gaming message board back then and with a bare bones description, someone was able to tell me the title. So gamers could be extremely helpful and knowledgeable even back in the day

I was a Mac guy back then and I am fairly certain that is what I played it on

You play as a scientist and when an experiment goes wrong you find yourself on a alien world and are eventually captured

The game was extremely innovative with it's use of cinematic cutscenes. You've got platforming, action, puzzle solving, adventure and again the artistic cinematography was beautiful at the time and still looks great. What also makes the game terrific is that you can't just shoot your way out of many areas. The game requires some astute observation on your part to get through many areas. You have to plan things out

At some point in the game you get a weapon which, if I remember correctly, has three functions. You can use it as a standard weapon, use it to put up force fields, or to shatter other force fields and walls

You have an alien ally, but he will basically do whatever he wants. Death by you or him results in an end game.

There is absolutely no HUD. You are on your own. This helps with the immersion, but can lead to some frustration. The fact that the game never really clues you in as to what you need to be doing can still be annoying

You and your ally must escape, evade capture, travel through hazardous areas and battle aliens

The game is very short, but since you will be dying a lot and there is a a lot of trial and error, it really depends on your skill as to how long it will take you to finish it

It's a truly visionary game and a memorable experience

I usually don't comment about how a older game plays now. I don't feel that gamers should play a game solely for it's historical importance. For the individuals reading this, you know yourself better than anybody. If you've found that games from this era just can't hold your interest, this is probably not for you

However, if you'd like to try a game that was definitely ahead of its time, I highly recommend it

Preliminary: I'm quite excited for this but nervous cuz of usual Amiga platformer controls. And grrr so many copy protection questions

Wow the influence on Oddworld is so apparent right off the bat. The way you can see the enemy in the background, the fact I died before even realizing the game had started lol, and just well something about it. The controls are decent so far but nowhere near console games of its time. Oh wow and unlimited lives, just super hard gameplay and code system?! Oddworld indeed. Even the jump's animation reminds me of Abe's Oddysee

Day 1

I'm really enjoying this, the vibe the cinematic-ness the influence on later games, the absurd Look, etc. But unsurprisingly the controls are my biggest meh part. The jump has a delay, tho it does in Oddworld too I suppose. And I dunno it's just clunky and the enemy design is meh. But the concept, Look, and overall level designs are so good!

Bruh I dunno how much faster I can run from this enemy... Nice I finally survived... the first area loll. I wish there were a more interesting Sound. We shall see if I push through the whole game but this is definitely worth at least a 3 star.

Day 2

I wish I had gotten a screenshot of the first area cuz it sure was beautiful and soooo Oddworldy. I like how the gameplay is so integrated into the cutscenes/flow. Lol I know I keep saying this but so Oddworldy that when I blew up the barrier in the upper part of a screen, the guard at the bottom heard it and started reacting.

Sure is a lot of disk switching. Such a downside to personal computer gaming at a time when console games were just as exciting and expansive.

Day 3 This is very fast-moving when not dealing with Loading/disc control stuff and that annoying copy protection. When things flow, it flows very well! Lots of creative and intense deaths a la early graphic adventure games.

Some annoying control features and level design things where its clunkinress results in frustration (while the idea/concept of said part is great). Just hard to execute such a big idea I suppose. Like I swear I'm shot sometimes but it goes through me? I guess we take those. But it's actually creeping up to a potential 4 star despite its faults! Lots of ambition here.

Really cool ideas and impressive permanence within an area. And some really neat solutions to situations. It's really a quite short game, don't let the several days fool you (well, as long as you have a guide to reference after you die 10+ times in an area lol)

Day 4

Ugh I'm so close to the end it seems (tho apparently the guide I was referencing has additional scenes not in this original Amiga version?), but I'm having issues with a disc change part.

Ugh I was going to use the Cheat/Passcode feature to get to the point I'm at (literally the last scene, in the Bathhouse is how it's described lol, I was just shot out of the Rome-esque arena). But I'm not sure I wanna go through the copy protection process again.

Wow I even went back through the copy protection, and the disc switching issue continues. Ugh personal computer/non-console games. Some great aspects and ambition, lots of issues and frustrations. I guess it's time to just move on :(

Look: 8.5/10 The influence on Oddworld is palpable. It isn't as amazing in terms of Look as people made me expect, but especially the beginning and many parts of it are really cool and it has an amazing concept to the Look

Sound: 7/10 I mean, when the sound effects happen, they're great. But that's not enough, and it really could have benefited from music, even if only during cutscenes or something.

Play: 8.5/10 Some clunkiness is to be expected from Amiga platformers, but this actually does it really solidly for the most part. Plus, the ideas, level design, infinite lives with quick checkpoints is just so innovative I actually wound up boosting this .5 Nearby checkpoints is great and needed to be established in gaming.

Feel: 8.5/10 Brilliant, even if a bit clunky and wound up with technical issues.

Attachment: 8.5/10 The fact I'm still here, trying other ideas to get past the technical issue says a lot.

Overall: 8.2/10

Completion: To the Bathhouse segment

Playtime: ~2.5 hours

I really wanted to like this game, this game had the atmosphere, the music, the storytelling; and then I played it and I couldn't like it

I feel bad giving this game two stars

The game's atmosphere is well made, it is beautiful, it does feel like another world that could exist in theory due to how everything is colored and made is despite the aged graphics

The music is fanstastic, the tunes are beautiful, memorable and they really fit the atmosphere of confusion and wonder

The graphics despite being aged, they don't detract from the experience because the animations are really well done. The characters move smoothly and realistic

The controls are very clunky and limited, all of my deaths were caused by the controls screwing me over. You can accidentaly make Lester sprint when you don't want him to or shoot when you don't want him to; this should have used more keys, one for running and another for shooting, instead of having one key doing both

I didn't care that it didn't have save states; the game is very short, so adding save states would reduce the difficulty by a lot. The controls were my biggest gripe and that's what made me not be able to beat the game without using codes to skip the levels I couldn't beat; the game did nothing but anger me

The 2011 PC release of Another World: 20th Anniversary Edition is a remastered version of Éric Chahi’s 1991 cinematic platformer. It preserves the original’s minimalist storytelling and challenging gameplay while offering updated visuals and modernized controls. The remaster features enhanced graphics, and a nice feature allows you to switch between the original and updated visuals, giving a fresh perspective on the game’s iconic art. The soundtrack and sound design remain impressive, effectively setting the tone and immersing players in the game’s world.

As a pioneering title in cinematic platforming, Another World offers a glimpse into the evolution of video game design. However, its controls can feel clunky by modern standards, and the trial-and-error gameplay may frustrate some players. And this is a hard game to recommend to the average person, since it is a very niche genre, gameplay feel and overall vision of what a videogame can achieve in terms of narrative and story-telling.

It is especially more niche since this was one of the first games that had this implementation idea for narrative, but if you are into alternative games like this one, this is definitely a must-play, and a historical landmark in gaming history. The game’s high difficulty, with instant deaths and minimal guidance, can be challenging for newcomers, and its dated design may not appeal to everyone.

Overall, this Another World (AKA: Out of This World) remaster is a visually enhanced re-release of a classic game that retains its original charm and challenge. It is best suited for people interested in video game history or seeking a nostalgic experience, though its mechanics and difficulty may limit its appeal to a broader audience.