Out of This World

The Good
The bleak colour theme and music, even when Lester is in his laboratory in our own world. So I understand, Eric Chahi was playing the Amiga port of Dragon's Lair and got the idea for Another World. Dragon's Lair had cartoon death-scene cuts of course, but cartoonish as they were, I think there was something quite serious and effecting about them. Another World has some very effecting death scenes and other cut scenes. I also like that you're playing a character who is perhaps a bit of a loner, a science geek immersed in his experiments. He's forced into a world where he's even more alone, but forms a strange friendship with an alien rebel. The story of their friendship is mostly told through the graphics and gameplay, being there for one another in the other's time of need. I thought the ending suited the overall mood of the game too.

The Bad
As a platformer and problem-solver it's a pretty average game and there are some unimpressive puzzles that still take a lot of effort to solve.

The Bottom Line
Worth playing through to the end, for the story.

The Good
The best things about this game is its super-slick presentation; beautiful graphics, haunting music and stunning cut-scenes. The way it mixed these jaw-dropping cut-scenes with its gameplay sections was the most unique thing of all. Half-Life is praised for its sublime storytelling abilities, but Another World (aka Out Of This World) made the first step in creating the first fully cinematic, but still gripping and engrossing, game. Eric Chahi should be praised for making the leap from gameplay to storytelling seem so smooth to the player. Truly a milestone in gaming history for being the first game to manage to mix story and gameplay so effortlessly.

The Bad
Sadly the gameplay sections themselves are not that much fun to play. Each section is really nothing more than a basic sub-game and are often extremely annoying and fiddly. The mid-section of the game (where the hero must navigate catacombs) is so incredibly frustrating that I imagine most players gave up or simply cheated. The worst aspects of the gameplay have you repeating the same task over and over until you manage to pull it off perfectly.

The Bottom Line
Thankfully, through its poor gameplay and level design, Another World still manages to satisfy and frustrate is just enough equal measures to keep you coming back for more. The later sections of the game are particularly satisfying. In all, Another World might not be the most fun game to play, but it's certainly one you should experience!

The Good
Today's games are very impressive. Smart animation, lots of action and intensity. Games like Half-Life broke many records in the world of gaming. However, no modern or future classics will ever live up to hype that was Another World.

Another World took the gaming world by storm when released in 1991. It's fluid animation and atmosphere were something that gamers had never seen before. It was also the very first game that had animated cutscenes! These so-called cutscenes changed the way we play games, as they helped to continue the story.

Personally, I think that this game is just simply wonderful. Out of the three versions I've played, the amiga version is the best one by miles (the megadrive/genesis and SNES versions were the other versions of this game I've played - both of them are poor in comparison to this version). Thanks to the amiga's powerful graphic and sound chips the game looks, plays and sounds superb, pushing the power of the older generation amigas (A500, A2000 etc). Even when played on an A1200 or A4000, the game still looks impressive!

The gameplay didn't disappoint me either. Your character is easy to control, and responds in a very realistic way thanks to the fluid animation. All movements are done via a joystick, and are very well thought out.

Without a doubt, the best part of the game is within the cutscenes, as I find these both very interesting and entertaining to watch! The story itself is great, and blends in very well with the intense atmosphere.

As for music and sound, this is also another highlight. The sound effects make up for half of the intense atmosphere. There's wind blowing, distant rocks falling, monsters etc. Totally authentic stuff! The music in the amiga version has been cut down dramatically, due to the lack of space on the disks. This, however, improves the game over the other versions I've played since there is now a lot of ambience, making the game's atmosphere even more terrifying! The game's intro and ending remain in this version, and are without a doubt one of the most rememberable tunes I've ever heard on the amiga!

The Bad
Despite the fluid animation, the detail is actually quite low (especially for an amiga). Some of the backgrounds definitely needed more attention! The other graphics are fine, however.

Another downfall is that the game is far too short! Once you know the game off by heart (like I do), you'll complete the game in just under an hour.

One warning is that this game is not for the young or the faint of heart! It's a dark, scary and hair-raising experience that's enough to make any gamer jump out of their skins (It's not easy when a beast drops down from nowhere and chases you!)! You have been warned!

The Bottom Line
If you see this game up for sale on eBay, or even at a local charity shop, you must buy this slice of gaming history immediately! A true classic that stands the test of time! Amazing!