Laughter. So much laughter. We've giggled so loud and for such a long period of time that one of our colleagues started searching for noise-cancelling headphones just to shut out the noise that we were making. We haven't had this much fun since we played the phenomenal Disco Elysium, and despite that not being very long ago, both games have brought joyous tears to our eyes, which says a lot.
Oddman is a fighting game where developer JoyPac has mixed elements from titles such as Loco Roco, Divekick, Brawlhalla and Stickfight. The player hops into the shoes of the titular character. Oddman is a pale pink sausage-like individual who's well trained in the art of martial arts. In the game, Oddman has to fight a whole world of yellow meanies who are threatening to sink his entire homeland. Each battle takes place on a small island and one loses by falling down into the piranha-infested waters.
The game mechanics are funny and simple. You fight by pressing your finger onto your foe, then swiping it up, down and to each side. Oddman jumps, levitates, evades and smashes the faces of the yellow bad guys at something approaching the speed of light and each match he wins spawns two more enemies to destroy. The tempo is incredibly intense. Pow-pow-pow. Next match. BAM! Next match. Splat! Next match.
Spread across the maps are bonus objects and secrets to find, which gives you more cash in the bank, and adds a dash of depth. The graphics are super simple and hand-drawn with little contours, like a mix between Rolando and Loco Roco, and the clean visual design is accompanied by a superb soundtrack and an overall fantastic presentation. Oddman truly impresses. Sure, there are microtransactions at play here, but this fact doesn't overshadow the game's overall appeal.