Out of This World

The Good
The windows version of Out of This World (Another World if you prefer) released in 2006 is a straightforward remake of the classic 1991 game. The differences between the original version and this one are very insignificant so I'll fill them quickly. The graphics have been slightly updated (they are higher resolution), the menu has been brought to today standards, and the checkpoints are saved and can be restored without needing to type a password (I assume that method was used the old version). And above all, now the game is fully Windows XP compatible (and most likely Vista also). Nothing has been changed, only updated, and as a remake this edition of Another World is as good as it could get.

Enough about the remake, let's talk about the game itself. Another World is a truly unique and brilliant game, Eric Chahi did a great job making a solid game almost entirely by himself. The gameplay elements form different genres. It plays like a side-scroller, but the main purpose of the game is solving the puzzles like in an adventure game. The cut scenes are very well tied in the game, sometimes the transition is so fluid that you may not realize when you get the control on the character. Another amazing fact is that the game requires only five buttons, and four of them are the arrow keys. Those are the buttons that will serve not only the side scrolling part, but also in some different situations, like balancing with a suspended cage in order to loose the chain that ties it, and there are other moments but I won't spoil them.

The Bad
It tries to be original at any cost, and sometimes ignores the consequences. It's quite short and linear, and it's not the type of game you'd want to finish more than once, because the main attraction is discovering the story, the gameplay isn't to rewarding on it's own. In fact is rather demanding because it requires both quick reflexes, and some heavy thinking. You have only a way to bypass a situation and you have to get through all the wrong ways until you find the right one. This involves a lot of dieing and trying, and is the most frustrating aspect of the game.

The Bottom Line
It draws some of its inspiration from the good old Prince of Persia but this inspiration resembles to some gameplay mechanics. Anything else is completely out of this world.

The Good
I have to say the cutscenes in this game are some of the most stunning for the time period. The fact that almost all of Lester's deaths have their own cutscenes is novel on its own. (I love when the beast pops down in front of you in level 1...) The story is original. I love the challenge this game presents. The lack of text and dialogue thickens your imaginative room. The action goes from freakishly lonesome to interactive with other-worldly inhabitants. Unlimited continues is a dream come true, cuz the difficulty is perfect enough to be a challenge but not a headache. You're gonna love the intro, too. Another of my top 10 favorites of all time.

The Bad
Honestly, I've been criticized by all of my friends for being too forgiving, or too lenient. But all I can find wrong with this game are some minor gaming bugs (i.e. you THINK your foot touched that ledge or that you jumped far enough, but you didn't).

The Bottom Line
You HAVE to play this game. There oughta be a law that everyone in the world has to play this to pass high school (in Dr. Phil voice). One Love.

The Good
I loved this game so much I played it 6 times in a row. The alien who befriends you was such a wonderful feature that I am amazed that very few other games have picked up on this concept.

I have played many games since PONG and Asteroids first came out. This one has never been beat. Half-Life (not HL2, that major disappointment) and Unreal came close but not one of them ever matched the absolute sorrow and disappointment at the end of this game. The game is so good that the ending was ... I played it 6 times in a row.

The Bad
I did not like nothing about this game. It was, is, and will (most likely) always be the best game ever.

The Bottom Line
The game is an action adventure that puts you and your alien buddy through several scenarios: FPS, Traps, and Puzzles.

The Good
Out of this World is largely the work of just one man, Eric Chahi. He has managed to create a game that is more satisfying than nearly any modern game you will have played in the past five years, and perhaps more satisfying than any you have ever played. There were no games like Out of this World before it came out, and the later imitations can't quite capture the unique spirit of their inspirational source. It's simply that good. While the gameplay is nearly beyond reproach, the best traits of this classic are its imagination, its gorgeous design, and above all its trust in the player's ability to imagine, to commit to the alien world on its terms.

The beginning of the game shows you one major ingredient of the game's genius, when the primitive vector graphics are displayed in fully-animated glory during the opening cinematic. The crude shapes would seem cheap and disappointing if not for the precision and elegance with which they are employed--cinematic angles and an engaging trust in the player's imagination serve to make these primitive scenes interesting even today. Lester's fancy car squeals into view, and we are treated to some of the green hologram-like interfaces Flashback fans will be intimately familiar with as we watch a physics expert burning the midnight oil. Something goes wrong during particle acceleration, and suddenly Lester and most of his console disappear with a flash of blue sparks and light.

Immediately, you are thrown into the game. Lester must escape from the pool and the grasping tentacles or face what will likely be the first of many, many deaths. Once out of the pool, you can appreciate the appealing sparseness of the alien landscape. With pale, simple blocks of color, an evocative alien world is realized: misty pillars of rock trail off into the horizon below a crescent moon; a beast colored an impenetrable black lopes into view and looks at you with red eyes. And then a tentacle reaches for you from the heretofore calm pool surface and it's time to move again.

From this bleak, lonely landscape that emphasizes sheer scope and emptiness the player travels to a claustrophobic cage, to a deadly alien tank, and to a swingin' harem--all the while that cinematic touch to the scenery rarely fails to amaze. Enemies are more than dimwitted patterns that are learned and consequently no longer require thought--the cinematic design goes down to individual enemy behavior. The puzzles come down to how exactly to defeat the alien who is behind six energy shields and lobs energy bombs that can penetrate your own, or how to defeat two soldiers who come in at both sides simultaneously. All the while the story is being told by your actions, and those of your surprisingly expressive alien friend. After you attract the ire of the guard below your cage, when he fires his gun another guard appears to watch the action in the background. When you crush the guard below you with your falling cage, the prisoners in the background stop breaking rocks as you grab the gun and flee. At no point is there a rote procession of action that involves the same stale maneuvers used just a screen ago--nearly every enemy encounter presents a new and unique challenge, often a new wonder of art direction, and sometimes a diabolically difficult puzzle to be solved. When the game is finally over, its ending battle and cutscene are as cinematic, as boldly unique, and as cohesive with the game's tone as anyone could wish for.

What's the point of all this cinematic style? It makes you accept the world on its own terms. You don't think of Lester as an abstract object, running lifelessly around a gaming world distorted and simplified into a recognizable gaming archetype--you live and breathe the world along with him, because both of you are experiencing this exotic environment for the first time, and it is full of wonders and adventure rather than trite platforming cliches. This game asks the player's imagination to fill in the corners, to ignore the blockiness and palette limitations of vector graphics. All but the most closed of minds will happily go along with that request. Those that do will be richly rewarded by this game, because a lot of love has been put into it.

The Bad
Some of these puzzles are very difficult to figure out. It is quite easy to die, and even easier to wrongly dismiss some section of the game as unnecessary when it is integral to ultimate success. For example, unless you've climbed on some pillars and have plunged into the depths, you are not going to be able to finish the game. Some of the combats are notoriously difficult, although there are strategies to at least a few of the more dangerous battles that make them as quick as hitting the spacebar twice. The only other thing that can be mentioned, as I'm sure has been mentioned by others, is that the game is too short. It's a brilliant effort all around.

The Bottom Line
A revelatory platforming experience, that has faith in the player to commit his/her energy to both mastering the challenges of the game and to completing in the blocky colors of the game world with his/her own imagination. The gameplay is simple and direct, with only six or so keys to master. Run, jump, and kick for starters. With the versatile gun, the player can now fire normal blasts, create a shield, or fire a charged burst that shatters both thin walls and shields--all with the use of one button. What can be done with these simple controls is a testament to the ingenuity of the game's design--an artsy, imaginative platformer everyone should give a chance.

The Good
The most important thing with "another world" is, that the different level are not build from elements, but each level is different concerning both graphics and game play. So unlike many other games you cannot predict, what will happen next until all the end, which is really fabulous. Together with this point the very special graphics that concentrates and omitts unnecessary details contribute to an intense feeling of being lost which I have not experience in any game before or after.

I have first played the game in about 1993 and since that I play it every 1 or 2 years because it is simply so timeless and beautiful.

The Bad
At a first glance nothing

The Bottom Line
A game with an astonishing ambience, storyline and really flexible and everytime surprising gameplay.

The Good
This game is simply amazing. I first played it on my neighbour's Amiga and was stunned, then played it on a friend's 286 and was again stunned. This game rocks! Fluid, beautiful graphics (vector-based... not a novelty, but it does look excellent) and quite realistic animation... great storyline, amazing 4-channel music (one of the rare games in this period which used modules) and excellent gameplay.

The Bad
It's really, really difficult. I never completed it myself, but I know people who had and had seen the ending on numerous occasions.

The Bottom Line
A real classic, one which is simply a must-have.

The Good
Everything! The opening demo, storyline, graphics (at that time, they were unmatched), sounds, gameplay, whatever...

The Bad
It has been 10 years since I played this game. Even if there were any bad points, I do not remember any of them. So, this means, if there are any bad points, they are negligible. If there are any! (I do not think there are, by the way ;) ).

The Bottom Line
Perfect. Is this enough, or should I write more? :) It is an action adventure game. The adventure part comes from the storyline and the puzzles that you need to solve in order to proceed in the game and the action comes from the very well designed levels and encounters during gameplay. Some people think that the Flashback was the sequel to this game, but as far as I know, the real sequel, which was called Another World 2, was never completed and released. I wish, even after 10 years, a game developer picked up this game to make a sequel. I would love to go to "Another World" once more.

The Good
It invented the survival horror genre, although most people think it was Alone in the Dark. It had polygonal graphics...atmosphere...good story and classic gameplay. If you see it buy it.

The Bad
Hmmm well the main character's name is sort of queer. (Lester Knight Chaykin) And sometimes its frustrating sometimes.

The Bottom Line
Adventure-style sci-fi gameplay.

The Good
In the release time, this games was unique! Envolving, creative, amazing all I can desire for this game style! The history absorbs you in this parallel universe.

The Bad
Sometimes you get really stuck! Have to re-play an entire 'hard' sequence, because you forget a little detail - like open a door (guess to insight what is a key in this place...) 5 screens before you reach it.

The Bottom Line
Superb piece of imagination and gameplay.

The Good
OOTW is a truly groundbreaking game. The unique (for its day) graphics engine and a well thought out plotline combine to make one of the best adventures out there.

The graphics system drew everything, as opposed to using sprites. The result looked somewhat basic in terms of the detailing, but at the same time it didn't look like anything you'd seen before. The developer also took the time to make sure they put in lots of little details, in one instance you're in a room full of electric charge, and your hair stands on end. There are also a small number of "cutscenes" included, all drawn with the basic engine.

The game itself is basically a platform game, similar in many ways to Prince of Persia. However there are so many little details they added that make it work so well. For instance when you get captured at one point, you awake in a cage and below you is a guard. He's just arriving on shift it seems, because you can watch him take off his "jacket" before starting to walk about.

Timing is an important aspect of this game, and not in the traditional sense where you have to do things really fast. In OOTW you'll find that things happen on screens that you're not currently on - for instance in one case you need to protect your buddy while he opens a door (which takes a bit of time), and if you simply run off the screen while that's happening, he'll get zapped. So you walk over to another screen and hunker down while he works offscreen. In most games the entire world is on the screen you're on, not so in OOTW.

And somewhat surprisingly, considering the nature of the game, the story draws you in. This has always been the dividing line between good and bad games for me, Marathon might not have looked as good as Quake, but it was a lot more fun because of the story. Well OOTW delivers, even in what is a very small game, no mean feat.

The Bad
The only real problem I have is that the game is really really hard. This wouldn't be a bad thing on it's own but the game has no save feature. Instead each of the "areas" have to be played to completion, at which point you'll get a password to return to the new level you reached.

I found myself repeatedly trying a single level over and over trying to get past some specific problem, and half the time dying on some other problem I'd already solved. It could be very frustrating at points.

The Bottom Line
With a good walkthrough you can finish this in a day, and the Windows version (otherwise identical to the DOS and Mac versions) works great on everything, so go try it out.

The Good
The story line to this game was delightful, amazing and inspiring (well I wouldn't go that far). The vector graphics used for the cinematics were brilliant and inpressive for the time they were used back in 1991. And the opening to the game was fantastic and unpredictable, there is a sudden flash and then you appear in a middle of an alien lake trying to swim to the top before an occtopus like creature attemps to grab you.

Before long you end up in a cage as you were captured by Aliens, this is where you find your alien friend who also looks like he has been captured.

Obviously you escape dodging other laser's fired from enemie guns.

Towards the middle of the game you..... wait...... ahhhhh..... I won't spoil it for you your going to have to play it yourself, it was brilliant for it's time and is still brilliant today so go and get it my friend otherwise you will have an unfurfilled life!

The Bad
It would be sack religous to say anything bad about this game.

Tis Brill!

The Bottom Line
Other games should look among this and get down on their knee's.

The Good
For its time, the graphics and sound in this game were top-notch. The vector graphics were really done very well, and had the benefit of making the actual game itself have a very small space/resource footprint.

The game also told a good, believable story. When lightning strikes your particle accelerator, you're transported to an alien world, facing danger at every turn. While this game had no dialog whatsoever, it still managed to paint a picture of an alien world and characters with actual depth. Everything that happened in this game happened for a reason, and all of the areas and actions were explained by visual context, not words.

The sound and music, while minimal, also added a great deal of depth to the world. Even though this was a DOS game, it seemed to use a music system similar to the Amiga's. Instead of FM midi sound, it made use of digital audio samples. Granted, at the time I played, the PC only had one digital channel available (assuming you had a SoundBlaster), whereas the Amiga had four, and the actual sample quality of the sound was low, it was still much nicer than other games of the era.

The action was non-stop, and the game progressed seamlessly from one area to the next. There was also no visible onscreen interface; there didn't really need to be.

If you were watching over someone's shoulder as they played this game, and if they didn't die at all, it would almost be like watching a cartoon. (Assuming you ignore the player frantically banging away at his keyboard, that is).

The Bad
This game only really had two minor problems, but they combine, Voltron-like, to form One Big Problem.

One: In some areas, your timing had to be very precise. Some areas were jump puzzles, others were "shoot your gun at this moment"....

Two: The game would automatically save your progress as you went from level to level, although it never actually told you about it until you died and reappeared (no actual "game" interface to tell you that it's saving, remember). The automatic save points were few and far between in some tough areas, causing you to think "Wait, I've gotta go through all that again? Screw that, what's on TV?"

Those two problems combined could make dying a lot more frustrating than it should be.

But even so, these areas of the game didn't crop up too often.

The Bottom Line
I loved this game. Generally, I hate platform games, mainly because they all seem so cheesy and forced, but this game is an exception. With no dialog (or any text at all, for that matter), the player is free to draw his own conclusions about the game world and characters.

And besides, it was a blast to play, which is what's really important.

The Good
Truly an "art house" game if there ever was one, Out of this World is one of those rare gems that make you somehow proud of being a computer gamer, I mean... geez, what a game!

Well, actually, what an odd game! Loaned to me as a "sci-fi" Prince of Persia, this game belongs to an era when the technical constraints seriously limited the creative capabilities of the designers. Thus they had to work around that, and in that way ended giving us much better content than if they had free rein. Much like in the late golden era of Hollywood, when the use of the Hays code of censorship meant that the filmmakers had to insinuate all they couldn't say out loud, and generally work out the holes of the system and "smart it out". It is a pretty general conception that the main bulk of movies made in that period where much better than the loads of crap the studios started churning once the code was removed, and in fact, people like Hitchcock made their best movies in that period... I guess for all the problems they cause challenges bring the best in each one eventually, right? And that's exactly what challenges brought to this era of gaming and particularly to this game.

Want to see how to tell a really touching story about friendship when no voice overs, pre-rendered cutscenes or award-winning script writers are around? Play this game.

Want to see how to develop an engrossing gameplay experience relying only on 6 keys, no inventory, no health indicators, no nothing? Play this game.

Want to see how one can be transported to a truly alien world using nothing but what seems to be different shades of blue, and an early generation soundtrack? Play this game.

Want to bla, bla , bla... Etc, etc, etc? Play this game. Probably no other game screams so subtly the real power behind videogames. The real power to convey emotions that never sink to cheapness, to entertain with an actual content, to be so much a masterpiece of imagination as to ignite a spark that rivals a book's literary prowess (and mind you, I am most certainly NOT one of those fools that scream how videogames can be as good as any work of literature and the only thing they have ever read are Superman comics).

The Bad
I don't think I can objectively write anything in here. Out of this World was a real shock to me when I first played it as a kid. I had pretty much no idea what I was getting into, and it was only as the years went by that I fully grasped it and replayed it several times. I am still amazed at how still at that time, expecting to end the game jumping over some monster's head 3 times, or shoot some baddie in the ass I found myself mulling over the ending and even tough I couldn't grasp it all, I still thought to myself "Damn, this is special". Out of this World is one of the games that shaped my view of the videogame world, one of the few that showed me that you could take the same thing that gave you Mario, but make it into something much, much more engrossing (mind you, I am well aware that many games before and after did this, but at the time they were pretty obscure to me, and the few that were around really crossed the line for a kid my age. I mean, sure Wasteland came out earier, and was as mature (in the content-wise meaning of it) as Out of This World is, but I didn't give a flying fuck about realistic roleplaying, text parsers, or crap like that at that age! Say what you will of it, but Out of This World really grabbed me even then. It's a part of me by now. I can't really say anything bad about it.

... Tough on retrospect Lester really had a pretty gay name.... :))

The Bottom Line
Some people have Mario, I guess I have Out of This World. It takes a special game to brand someone like that, and this game does just that, it comes to you with the promise of being just another platformer, and it leaves much, much more. Get it. Now.

Hmmm... Wait a sec. I see now as I re-read this thing that I've done what I always hate when someone else does it: I waxed poetry and touchy-feely crap and I didn't really tell you why the game rules so! Ok, sorry for that, here it is:

Superb gameplay that combines simple yet silky smooth controls with excellent visual coordination and deduction puzzles. Incredible graphics with the best animation this side of Prince of Persia (and all done without any Hollywood stuntman wearing pin-pong balls) and a striking graphic design filled with jagged edges, weird formations and all sort of cool expressionist stuff, great sound and a remarkably touching story with one of the best endings in the history of videogames.

That's about it! Now go!

The Good
Oh my, you won't believe it until you experience it... a game of awful 16 color polygon graphics (and not even 3d!), without platforms without big mean guys, without inventory, and weapon variety, can impress you so much!!

The game is consisted by rich original puzzles which are solved not by commands or items but by your gun or combined moves!

The game 'narrative' is so brilliant that makes you believe you are exploring a whole new planet... the way of presentation, scenery etc is very atmospheric (notice the birds that fly in the scenery, or the buildings at the distance) and will make you believe that this otherwise simple game has a real depth..

I can't say why, but while playing you have the feeling that this Another World is a whole virtual world and you will be able to explore it.. but you won't because of the storyline limits!!

nothing more i can say.. the game is brilliantly designed!!

The Bad
look above!! the game managed to make pros out of its own cons!!

The Bottom Line
brilliant!

The Good
It was complex, intuitive, and straight-forward. There was something of a plot, and that was revealed in the beginning of the game. I am always one for a good story, and while the game was merely a vehicle for showing off new and remarkable graphics (there was even a hint of speech in this game, and load-time!), it accomplished its sole task - it was, for all practical purposes, entertaining.

The Bad
It was virtually impossible and utterly realistic...which is also why I liked it.

One thing that was difficult to handle was the controls. Slight pressing of directional buttons made Lester (the protagonist) move way more than you thought was possible.

Dying comes naturally (no joke). In fact, it is almost expected that you die every time you encounter an enemy. Ammo for your weapon is non-existent, unless you count the "recharging" area for your gun.

More energy was spent avoiding death than figuring out puzzles. Even though that could make a good and challenging game, I found it frustrating after about 15 minutes (and those 15 minutes were spent trying to make it through the first part of the game, which should have taken less than 5 minutes at most).

The Bottom Line
I would tell other gamers that, when they prepare to play this game, get ready for a long night of sighs and exasperated expressions. In total, the game should have lasted about 20 minutes, but it has taken me months to complete (I simply just haven't come across the time to finish it all in one sitting). It's fun, but check around on the 'net for information about it, because it could take you months (even if you are a seasoned gamer) to figure out where the gun is in the jail area (you'll see).

Good luck with it! Challenge is something it doesn't lack, and it certainly makes for a good conversation piece. Is it replayable? Perhaps, if you beat it once and want to do it again perfectly, sure.

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!

The Good
I liked the game for most part, because it DID get addicting. Also, I liked zoning out of the foreground and just STARING at the background. It was actually quite beautiful. The sound effects were OK--nothing really fancy but hey--this game doesn't NEED anything fancy. It's just.....great. One last note....the game was made with polygonal graphics--which is why the game characters run SO smoothly.

The Bad
I DIDN'T like this game simply because the sound got offish (when it was played on a Windows 95 computer, that is). Also, while playing on that particular computer, I noticed that when the character ran (aerobics style) to the left, the computer sound got screechy. (I discovered that when you press the "s" button twice, the screechy sound stops and the sounds continue playing normally). Some sequences, (such as blowing out that rock and the water gushing out in the cave and such), are almost impossible to complete. But, NEVER say you CAN"T do something. I mean, I played the game ALL the way through. Finally, the controls are a bit wacky. (In order to run aerobically to the left, you have to quickly press one key....THEN the other). They could have made the controls a bit smoother. Oh well....No other complaints.

The Bottom Line
A game worth trying out. Are you tired of pointless arcade games where the character just goes on and on into eternity and never reaches an ending point? Are you FLABERGASTED (REALLY frustrated) with those endless adventure games that have you guessing all OVER the place where a certain object is (Quest for Glory) and once finding that object, aren't you just upset with combining it with all your inventory and getting nothing at all? And lastly....Aren't you tired of walking around trying out your new inventory item with almost one hundred other items in the game and seemingly NEVER get anywhere and then you have to find a walkthrough in order to complete the game??? Well, this game has ONE purpose.....Using your brain, common sense, and logic to figure out one goal--leaving your destination by moving onto the next screen. Although it does remind you a bit of Prince of Persia, it isn't ENDLESSLY long, you don't really have to GUESS where everything is at, and finally, you don't fall through wimpy paths and three screens later go splat on the pavement or onto the spikes below. You usually have to almost purposefully kill your character. Parents....There are NO GORY SCENES or blood (and when there is blood, you can't really tell it--except when you get eaten by those HORRIBLE worms). You do shoot bad guys but when you do, they turn into skeletons and three seconds later, that skeleton, with a FLASH, bursts. And believe it or not, this game actually teaches friendship....How? Well, you'll just HAVE to get the game and see it for yourself. (And by the way folks, not many games nowadays teach you friendship).....If you're tight on the money, get the USED version for 4.95 at amazon.com!!!

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
I love everything in this game.

Controlling is good.

Sounds are excellent.

Story is perfect.

The Bad
It`s too short

The Bottom Line
Better than any other game!

The Good
Well, first of all the game is full of incredible animated cutscenes. They help develop the original storyline just like a movie. You play the game in cooperation with a native you encountered, so this is a really unique twist in the genre.

The controls are easy to grasp, and easy to use. You use only the cursor keys and spacebar. Finally the ambient sound effects you hear during the game are very atmospheric. It's even possible to use the PC speaker to play the digital soundtrack!

The Bad
Although there are level codes, some levels are really large and hard. Thus if you die in one of those levels, it may get really disappointing to repeat all the actions required again and again.

The Bottom Line
Just an incredible game in the history of computer gaming, which makes you feel as if you are really in an alien world.

The Good
Graphics. Graphics and more Graphics. Remember we're talking about 1991, when computer games offered very simple graphics, this was really a breakthrough. I remember being amazed from it. Excellent gameplay with very unique features for example finding a friend that will help you throughout the levels, picking up a weapon and more. All of this is packed with excellent music and sound effects which enhance the gaming experience of this game.

The Bad
Nothing I can think of.. really.

The Bottom Line
One of the best platform games created - great graphics, great sounds, excellent gameplay and a nice storyline.

The Good
At the time of it's release this game was a really big thing. Thinking about it, it's easy to see why. The fluid and cinema-style camerawork that is present in all sorts of games these days pretty much began here. It's use of flat vector graphics meant it could give more freedom than most games, namely the quality of the animation. Out Of This World has stunning animation which is very smooth; this became a trademark of Delphine Software with Flashback, which many people see as a sequel even though it isn't. This game is also EXTREMELY difficult, which is good. Games really needed skill back in 1991. Hard games are thinner on the ground these days because of the desire to push gaming into the mainstream. Out Of This World has some clever ideas, and the simple yet great graphics enabled Delphine to do all sorts of clever stuff like have your character chased by a large torrent of water. They also split the game into short scenes which each have a password, thus removing (some) frustration when you die again.

The Bad
It's very very hard. While I normally like this, many of the puzzles were centred around pixel-perfect jumping. Also the jump key is the space bar, (you may be able to change it I don't know), and that's probably the least durable and sensitive key because of it's size. Plunging down a pit which appears just as you move onto the next screen because you missed the moment by a picosecond, forcing you to play the scene again for the 378th time, is damn annoying. But I guess this is what these games, like Prince Of Persia, are about. If you don't like that, you don't like the game. Another gripe I've got is that the game is far too closed up. The first scene is great; you don't have a gun, you're in a large spacous outside area, you can run about, you can see things happen in the background, and you get chased by a huge beast. Most of the other scenes involve jumping over rocks in a cave, sometimes you have about 3 colours on the entire screen, and weird shapes that don't look like anything. It's depressing and you long for more of the great outdoors. Also our hero is a gimp. He doesn't have much of a character, but you do know he's a nerdy science dude with ginger hair and an odd name. Not really a major downer I guess; but if you're going to have some reason to go on, it would help if you were controlling someone that you could respect.

The Bottom Line
Personally, and I know most won't agree with me, I think this has been overshadowed by Flashback. Flashback is far more attractive, varied, and intelligent. There are more frames of animation, your character has a much better name (Conrad Hart as opposed to Lester Knight Chaykin), and shooting is much easier. You never feel hemmed in either. Anyway this game is still worth playing, especially if you want to test your metal as a games player. Or if you want to find a time when French developers weren't associated with the totally bizarre and actually had a name for themselves. I'd certainly like another Out Of This World

The Good
In the time of pixel art magic, one game made a rather unique move into the land of vectors and delivered us somewhat exotic title that felt a bit ahead of its time. With the lack of 3D graphic and special effects, this game uses math power to present a rather wonderful graphic in no more than 16 colors.

The opening cinematic is full of nice details and story keeps you intrigued as you constantly run for your life from the aliens whose culture seems a strange mix of Roman era and that of science fiction. Not so technologically advanced as simply being from Another World.

You soon befriend an alien inhabitant that shares the same fate as you, being imprisoned and all, and while not constantly accompanied by him, your paths cross every now and then. Seems like the two of you share the same goal, but go different way about it. The way it is presented gives a nice touch of player not being entirely alone, but having apart of a CPU on his side, even though it may all be pre-scripted.

Levels are versatile enough not to create the feeling of repetition, in fact, they are far from being repetitive, yet last too short. The fact this game does not feature dozens of enemy combatants on every screen makes it that much more realistic and prompts you to be cautious on each confrontation. The alien weapon you very soon come in possession of is rather useful, though sometimes annoying. It can create shields as much as fire laser beam of small or large destruction, and requires recharge every now and then... but levels where you can actually recharge it are very few. Luckily, most of the levels don't require direct confrontation as much as thinking your way out which adds a nice distraction to the genre.

The Bad
This game is certainly something unique, so one may understand why so many gamers think highly of it, but it is far from being one of the finest side-scrollers. The music, aside from intro and credits roll is non-existent. Sound effects, while fine, are very few at best, with no dialogs or even a talking text during actual gameplay. What little you can hear is from aliens that talk in their own language for which it would be nice to have some subtitles unless developers wanted us to feel as confused as our professor. And he may actually have a chance to understand them.

Many puzzles in the game can prove rather challenging, and direct confrontations are too hard. Developers didn't leave us much choice in our approach. The colosseum fight is one of the silliest things in the game and probably could've been done much better.

The Bottom Line
Was this game really something so special? I think not. Was it unique and fun experience? Certainly. And at a times with limited storage capacity and graphics it achieved something rather wonderful. If one game deserves being called a classic, this one tops it all.

Levels are very versatile and occasionally contain beautiful landscapes (and achieving that in so little colors is no small feat). You will squash fight deadly worms, run for your life from the huge beast, firefight your way our of prison, roll through the ducts, dash out of collapsing cavern, swim your way through the underground mazes, break into a girls only spa, and even fight in the colosseum, making each level an experience on its own, so using level codes is a fine approach to continue your game.

Platform games are plentiful, but very few could be called good. This one is. It's not from the same bunch and it does not feel like an arcade game.

The Good
Strong atmosphere, good story, excellent music, and fluid animations.

The Bad
Quite hard at places - though maybe that's a good thing as it makes the game longer and more challenging.

The Bottom Line
"Out of This World" is one of those classic games that really is a work of art; recomended to adventure and action gamers alike.

This is one of the sources that inspired the game Outcast; and its no less stunning, no less brilliant, and no less great than that game - actually at places; "Out of This World" is even better!

One can say this game really is out of this world, in every positive aspect of that line.