Omikron: The Nomad Soul

30 years and tens of thousands of dollars in PC gaming equipment later can be traced directly to 3 games. Myst (obviously) Tomb Raider II. You know the one.. triangle boobs piloting a speedboat through Venice and Omikron: The Nomad Soul The game (along with a soundtrack by David friggin' Bowie) captivated me immediately. And I love it still. Awesome game.

Years before David Cage resigned his career to making virtual Simon Says, furniture dodging simulators, and "Press X to Jason!" he directed this little gem. Omikron is a mix of genres but it's largely an adventure game on a grand scale. You search for clues, discover your next destination, solve a puzzle or fight in an action sequence, and proceed through a unique story in a strange hybrid world of cyberpunk and magical fantasy. Omikron can be clunky and slow at times but there are few titles that can compare. It can be compared to Shenmue but it lacks the interactive diversions. It can also be compared to cult favorite Deadly Premonition but it lacks the endearingly campy writing. Omikron sits somewhere in the middle but it's a happy middle any adventure fan will love.

Back when this game was released for Windows and the Dreamcast, it was quite the unique experience. I never had the chance to play the full version though, only the PC demo. But I absolutely loved the atmosphere of it and how vibrant the city of Omikron was. The game's soundtrack is really good too, especially the tracks made by David Bowie that add even more to the game's unique atmosphere. And it mixes in third person exploration with first person shooting, hand to hand combat and puzzle solving with grace too.

The creepy David Bowie soundtrack (with equally odd singing avatar music video) alone makes this game worth it. The graphics are quite outdated now, but I have massive nostalgia for this game. It was the first truly immersive game I ever played. It's atmospheric, weird, and often frustrating. The story makes no sense. Still, I loved it, and will replay.

I don't recall Omikron from when it was released. I found it on GoG and gave it a go because the premise seemed cool and the person behind it is responsible for the most excellent Fahrenheit and Heavy Rain. The game begins when an extra-dimensional planet needs a hero from Earth to travel via soul projection to the futuristic dystopian city-state of Omikron. There, in the body of police officer Kay'l 669, the player investigates strange murders. The player has the ability as the Nomad Soul to jump into the body of whomever touches him/her after death. Certain people have compatible souls with the nomad and can be hijacked (souljacked?) at will without having to perish first. Some transfers are required to continue forward. I enjoyed the game for the most part but would hesitate to recommend it to a general audience. The nomad soul ability is cool but I wish that it had been executed better. The world rarely reacts to the player differently based on their current body. For example, I jumped into the body of a female thief who was described as "wanted" - yet I was able to walk through the front door of the police station and search through offices without anyone caring. One particularly bonkers series of events requires players to commit suicide by drinking toxic waste in order to force a touch transfer. The game unfortunately has an overall beta vibe and feels incomplete. The ending just sorta happens after the final boss fight. The player exits into the city and is told that the revolution happened and the good guys won. Time to go home. That's like surviving the WW2 landing at D-Day, fighting a boss in a bunker, then finding out that you missed the rest of the war. Allies win, now go home. Pros: Kudos for trying. City has a varied layout, neat fast travel mechanic. David Bowie made the OST and also voices a NPC. Nostalgic early Direct X look. Mystic/Sci-fi mashup. Cons: Main hook needs work, beta feel, janky combat. No setup for a sequel.