Another World

Another World is a cinematic platformer designed by Éric Chahi for Delphine Software and originally developed for the Amiga in 1991. The game's remarkable success led to ports across numerous platforms including Atari ST, MS-DOS, Mega Drive, SNES, and many others, establishing it as one of the most influential games of the early 1990s.

The game follows physicist Lester Knight Chaykin, who is accidentally transported to an alien world during a particle physics experiment. What unfolds is a wordless narrative told entirely through visual storytelling and gameplay, as Lester must survive hostile environments, forge an unlikely alliance with an alien prisoner, and attempt to escape from this dangerous parallel dimension.

One of Another World's most distinctive characteristics stems from a technical constraint that became an artistic triumph. Chahi deliberately limited the game's palette to just 16 colors to maintain compatibility with the Atari ST, and crucially, this same palette is used throughout the entire game. Rather than restricting the visual impact, this limitation created a unique, cohesive aesthetic that remains instantly recognizable and widely admired today. The consistent color scheme gives Another World a distinctive visual identity that sets it apart from other games of the era.

The game's graphics are entirely composed of polygons, a revolutionary approach for the time that required exceptional programming skill. Chahi identified the Amiga as the perfect development machine for two crucial reasons. First, the GenLock functionality allowed him to superimpose video camera output onto the computer's display, enabling rotoscoping techniques similar to those used in Prince of Persia, where real human movements were traced to create fluid character animations. Second, and perhaps more importantly, the Amiga's Agnus chip immensely facilitated polygon rendering, providing the hardware foundation necessary for Chahi's ambitious vision.

The young Éric Chahi invented a brilliant algorithm capable of handling up to 50 polygons simultaneously while maintaining 20 frames per second, depending on polygon complexity. This represented an incredible programming achievement for an Amiga game and demonstrates Another World as a masterclass in technical optimization. The smooth polygon animation and complex geometric environments pushed the Amiga's capabilities in ways few other games attempted, making it an outstanding example of what skilled programming could accomplish on the platform.

Like Prince of Persia, Another World employs rotoscoped animation to achieve remarkably lifelike character movement, but Chahi's polygon-based approach allows for more complex environmental interactions and dramatic camera movements. While Jordan Mechner's masterpiece focused on precise platforming within architectural settings, Another World uses its technical foundation to create sweeping cinematic moments and alien landscapes that feel genuinely otherworldly.

The gameplay combines puzzle-solving, platforming, and action sequences with an emphasis on trial-and-error learning that rewards observation and patience. Unlike traditional platformers such as Flashback or Out of This World's spiritual successors, Another World presents challenges that often have non-obvious solutions, requiring players to experiment with environmental elements and timing. The game's difficulty can be punishing, with instant death scenarios that demand precise execution, but the frequent checkpoint system prevents excessive frustration.

The sound design complements the visual innovation with memorable musical themes and atmospheric effects that enhance the alien environment's otherworldly nature. The absence of dialogue forces the audio to carry significant narrative weight, creating an immersive experience that transcends language barriers.

Another World's influence on subsequent cinematic platformers cannot be overstated. Games like Abe's Oddysee, Inside, and Limbo all draw inspiration from Chahi's approach to wordless storytelling and atmospheric world-building. The polygon-based graphics anticipated the industry's eventual transition to 3D rendering, while the cinematic presentation style became a template for narrative-driven action games.

The game's technical achievements, combined with its artistic vision and innovative storytelling approach, established Another World as both a programming tour de force and a creative masterpiece. Chahi's ability to transform hardware limitations into distinctive artistic choices, while simultaneously pushing the Amiga's capabilities to their limits, created a game that remains as compelling today as it was groundbreaking upon its original release.