Otto Matic

Otto Matic is a Video Game developed by Pangea Software and published by Aspyr Media. It was released in 2001, and soon afterward, was packaged onto certain types of newly-released computers. Otto Matic, along with Weekend Warrior, is one of Pangea's games that was published by a company other than Pangea itself. It was a hit for Pangea after it was released and is a fine example of the type of games Pangea is known for. It is noticeably similar to many of Pangea's other titles, and it bears the greatest resemblance to Bugdom. Otto Matic's graphics and gameplay will be easily recognizable to any gamer who has already played Bugdom. Otto Matic also contains elements used in Pangea's first major game success, Nanosaur as well as Weekend Warrior.

Controls

 * Arrow Keys - Move Otto
 * Option Key - Punch/Pickup
 * Command Key - Fire Selected Weapon
 * Space Bar - Jump/Stop Jump-Jetting
 * Space Bar Twice - Jump-Jet
 * Shift Key- Change Weapon Selection
 * Escape Key - Pause Game

Story
It is the year 1957, and the world has fallen under the evil eye of the Great Brain, who is the ruler of the Brain Aliens. It is the wish of the Great Brain that all humans be abducted via flying saucers and become his servants. However, there is one hope for mankind: Otto Matic, a robot who has been selected by a council of the other robots to save the humans from the clutches of the Great Brain and all of his evil followers. You are Otto Matic, as you probably have guessed, and you will journey to eight fantastic worlds in order to rescue humans and to bring order back to the galaxy. Eventually, you will face the Great Brain himself in a battle which will determine the future of the galaxy.

Gameplay
Otto is controlled by the keys described above, and is fairly easy to maneuver. His basic actions include jumping, walking, punching, and Jump-Jetting. He enters each level with one weapon, his strong fist. He is also able to pick up objects, and then to either store them or to use them. Otto can collect weapons, extra lives, and various Atom Powerups by smashing small cubic boxes called Powerup Pods open and proceeding to pick up whatever is contained inside. Punching can also be used to injure enemies.

Otto's most unusual action is the Jump-Jet. The Jump-Jet can be done only when Otto has at least one ring of Jump-Jet fuel displayed on his Jump-Jet fuel wheel (described below). By pressing the Space Bar twice, Otto will be able (as long as he has Jump-Jet fuel) to fly across long distances. This action is the Jump-Jet, and it is useful for crossing water, breaking down doors, saving humans in immediate danger and useful for many other things. Jump-Jetting into many of Otto's enemies will actually kill them. Some enemies are invincible to this tactic, but otherwise, this action can be a useful way to save ammunition.

Otto will be able to collect many different types of weapons on his journeys. There are guns, electricity-shooting batteries, and Darts. Even Otto's fist will come in handy at various times.

These are the laws regarding weapons:

1. Upon picking up a gun for the first time, Otto will also immediately add that gun to his inventory AND use it as his selected weapon, provided that he is not holding another type of gun already.

2. Upon picking up a weapon, regardless of if it will be in use or not, it will be added to Otto's inventory.

3. If Otto is already holding a gun and picks up another weapon of any sort, he will place it in his torso to store.

4. The shots contained in the extra weapons that Otto picks up will be added to any remaining shots for that weapon. The maximum number of shots Otto can have for any weapon is 99.

5. Certain weapons, namely Darts and SuperNovas, will ALWAYS be placed in Otto's torso upon pick-up. Neither of these weapons will ever become Otto's current weapon selection upon pick-up, either.

6. If Otto's current weapon selection is Darts, SuperNovas, or his fist, he will switch his weapon selection to the first gun he picks up.

7. Otto does not hold SuperNovas or Darts manually. They are contained in his torso. When either of these two weapons are selected, he will not be seen holding them in his hand.

8. Otto places his gun in his torso when that weapon is switched from being his weapon in use. He will take a gun out of his torso when that gun is selected as his weapon in use.

Otto begins nearly all of the levels by landing in his rocket ship, which will then take off and land at the end of the level. Within Otto's journey back to his rocket, he must try to save as many humans as he can. It is not required that he save any people, however. There is one necessity for the completion of a level. Otto must collect Blue Atom Powerups which serve as rocket fuel. When he has collected enough, he will be able to leave the level. On some levels, Otto will start with full rocket fuel, however.

On his way, Otto will collect weapons, Atom Powerups, and people. The people are very easy to rescue. Simply touch them, and they will be teleported to your rocket ship. Some of the people will stand still, while others will walk around. As soon as you approach a person, a Flying Saucer (described below) will also attempt to get to that person. If the Saucer reaches the human first, it will abduct the person with a red beam.

Otto dies whenever he steps into water. On Level 6, however, there is a type of red water which will only hurt Otto as long as he is in it.

Checkpoints look like satellite dishes, and all of the large levels have them. To activate these checkpoints, simply touch them.

On the top of the game screen, you will see two large wheels on the left, and one large wheel on the right. The wheel on the right displays how much rocket fuel Otto has collected. The wheel on the far left shows the amount of health Otto has. The wheel in the middle of the three displays Otto current quantity of Jump-Jet fuel. The health wheel will make a beeping sound when Otto becomes very low on health. When any of these wheels spin, however, it indicates that Otto has the maximum quantity of whatever is displayed in that wheel.

During your journey, you will need to obtain Atom Powerups which look like small, glowing atoms, which come in the colors red, green, and blue. The red atoms will give Otto health, the green ones will give him Jump-Jet Fuel, and the blue atoms will give him Rocket Fuel. Each additional Atom Powerup will add a ring to its wheel. Almost all of the enemies you will encounter will give some assortment of these Powerups to you when they are killed. Aside from dead enemies, Otto may also glean these Atom Powerups from Powerup Pods, but the easiest way to collect atoms is to kill enemies. It is also often impossible to get enough atoms just by opening Powerup Pods. Atom Powerups may be collected simply by walking through them.

When Otto reaches the end of the level and has collected enough Blue Atom Powerups (the spinning blue wheel indicates that you have obtained a sufficient amount), Otto will be able to walk into his rocket ship and to leave the level. This does not happen on levels which end differently, however.

Otto receives points for rescuing humans and saving weapons. However, he will only receive these points AFTER he has completed the level. The total score will then be added to the previous previous total score. When the scores have tallied and added up, Otto will be able to go to the next level. He will then be presented an option which will either allow him to save his progress or to simply continue. If you wish to save your game, you will be able to name it and to pick the place in your computer where you would like to store it. After this is done, you will continue to the next level. If you do not wish to save your progress, you will continue to the next level without creating a saved game.

Enemies
Among the charecters of the game are Enemies. Some occur in multiple levels, while others are native to one planet. Most will atempt to attack Otto. When destroyed, many will release atoms. Enemies are the primary source of atoms in the game.

Powerups
There are Items in the game that are found in powerup pods, huts, and some enemies. They include weapons, atoms, and tools.

Vehicles
These you need to jump into to ride.

Bumper Cars: These are used on planet Rennie. Be careful getting in, though, because the floor is electrified and will kill you if touched.

Turbo Sled: These are used twice, once on Rennie, and then on Deniz. These are always used to jump over an abyss, and you need to be careful not to lose control or you will fall.

Friendly Aliens
There are very few friendly aliens in Otto Matic.



On Planet Sulak, there are green turtles that Otto can jump on to cross lava or water.
 * Turtles


 * Robot Serpent

The Robot Serpent is found in Planet Snoth. Otto uses him to ski across Snoth's slimy oceans.

Trivia

 * Pangea Software considers Otto Matic to be their best game.
 * Otto Matic contains more sound effects that any other of Pangea's games.
 * Otto Matic is one of Pangea's games that was published by a company other than Pangea itself, along with Weekend Warrior.
 * Otto is featured in a cameo apppearence in Bugdom 2.
 * Several items in Otto Matic were featured in Weekend Warrior.