What The Critics Are Saying About Oddworld: Soulstorm
Oddworld: Soulstorm launched on April 7 for PS5, PS4, and PC. The new game retells the story of 1998's Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus, adding in some new features, including a crafting mechanic. While some people are already playing the game and leveling up Abe's Quarma, other fans may still be waiting to see what the critics make of Oddworld Inhabitants' latest adventure. Unfortunately, it ended up taking a bit longer than usual for any reviews of the game to be published.
As explained in a review from Game Informer and a report from Metro, many outlets did not receive review copies of Oddworld: Soulstorm until extremely close to launch. This resulted in many reviews not being completed by the time the game was available for purchase. Even so, first and full reviews impressions of Oddworld: Soulstorm have been released by several publications, so it's time to dive into the reviews. Here's what the critics (and fans) are saying about Oddworld: Soulstorm.
Soulstorm is impressive critics on the PS5
The PS5 version of Oddworld: Soulstorm was one of the first versions of the game to receive a decent number of complete reviews, and critics seemed to be quite pleased with Abe's latest adventure. Writing for Video Chums, reviewer A.J. Maciejewski commended the game for its difficulty curve and its non-linear progression system, which Maciejewski felt kept the game from becoming stale.
Destructoid's Chris Carter praised the PS5 version's attention to details and its "snappy" gameplay, favorably comparing the platforming to the mechanics seen in the original Oddworld games. However, he also acknowledged that some of the puzzles were a little too "esoteric" for his liking.
In a more lukewarm response, VGC's Jon Bailes felt that the game was a bit inconsistent in how it punished players, which could make for a frustrating time. Bailes wrote that players are likely to die "because something or someone acted in a way they weren't supposed to." Nevertheless, Bailes felt that the new installment was "an advancement on previous games in the series in every way."
Soulstorm's PC and PS4 releases need some work
While Oddworld: Soulstorm is receiving solid reviews on the PlayStation 5, more than a few in-progress reviews have indicated that other platforms may not have fared so well. In Dexerto's mostly positive review, it was noted that the PC and PS4 versions of the game contained numerous bugs at launch, including one that traps Abe in an endless loop when he falls from a great height and another that sends players to the menu screen.
Dexerto's review noted, "While we didn't encounter these bugs on our playthrough, there were a couple of occasions where Abe simply froze in place and couldn't move. The only way to fix this was to exit the game and load it up again." Oddworld Inhabitants has already issued patches for some of these issues, so hopefully fans will have an easier time than some critics did.
On Metacritic, user reviews of the game seem to hammer home a few more of Soulstorm's issues on platforms other than PS5. PC gamers have complained about unresponsive and clunky controls, while players on both PC and PS4 have complained of glitches that have kept them from progressing. At this point, it seems like the PS5 version of Soulstorm is the definitive experience, and the one being recommended over others.