Platform
Windows
Released
May 02, 2007
Perspective
3rd-person (Other)
Genre
Adventure
Gameplay
Puzzle elements
Description
Private eye Nalle Karhu, he needs to save the world and with some help from you, thus the story is told. All the townsfolk are acting strange, they lost a personal trait, you shall not hesitate or wait, ‘t is all for you to change.
Odot Tamat On, the chopped word for “unexpected” in Finnish, inspired by the film Hirttämättömät (1971), is an AGS adventure game that won the April 2007 MAGS competition. The theme was “unexpected” and games needed to start with a reference to a vegetable, a confusing console/menu screen, an abstract inventory item, a conversation that makes no sense to the player, and a confusing and unexpected ending.
The player controls private eye bear Nalle Karhu who needs to find out who stole personal traits from the other animals in town. The game is short, with easy puzzles, and shown from a third-person perspective. The graphics are bright, with black outlines. To comply with the MAGS guidelines, the control system is a little confusing. There are four actions: exit (shown when hovering the pointer over an area), pick up/use (click and drag the Nalle Karhu’s hand over an item), examine (click and drag the bear’s eye over an object or use the second mouse button) and a similar routine (using the mouth) to talk to other characters.
The entire game, especially the conversations, are told in rhyme. All the town’s inhabitants are animals, such as a turtle, a mouse, a cat, a monkey, a sloth, an elephant, a duck and two rabbits (“Something doesn’t seem to fit, you and Mrs are usually at it.”). Locations include a castle, a laboratory, a roller-coaster, a shed, a labratory and a few houses. The inventory is shown as a cloud in the top left corner of the screen.
From Mobygames.com. Original Entry
Another thing that really makes Odot Tamat On enjoyable for me is how it manages to stay interesting even after playing it multiple times. Many games feel repetitive after a while, but here, the experience still feels fresh because of the small details and different ways you can approach the gameplay. As you continue playing, you naturally start improving and understanding the mechanics better, which makes everything feel more rewarding. I also appreciate the balance the game maintains—it’s not too difficult, but it’s not too easy either. You can play it casually for a short break or spend longer sessions without getting bored. That flexibility is one of the biggest reasons why I keep coming back to Odot Tamat On. Overall, it’s the kind of game that doesn’t just entertain you for a moment, but actually gives you a consistently enjoyable experience every time you play.
