Abe

Abe (also known as Stitch Lips among fellow Mudokons) is the first primary protagonist in the Oddworld franchise. He is a Mudokon, the native race of the continent Mudos. He is recognized by his species as the Messiah of the Mudokons. Despite Abe's skepticism in being the 'chosen one', Abe managed to liberate a large portion of his species from Glukkon oppression. He is also known for liberating any form of life that is being oppressed by unethical businesses such as the Vykkers of Vykker's Labs.

Appearance

Abe is distinct in the fact that his skin is a shade of purplish blue, rather than the neutral green tone of his fellow Mudokons. Mudokons are chameleon-like in nature, their skin color reflecting their inner mood. Abe's blue skin is representative of his sadness for his race. His lips were sewn together as a child by his mother Sam, the Mudokon queen, because he often cried and would no doubt be killed for these disturbances^[1]. His stitches have since loosened, giving him the ability to speak, and he keeps them because they are so closely related to his identity.

He has one tattoo on his chest and two scars on the backs of his hands. The two Hand Scars on his hands were obtained after he completed his trials at the Scrabanian and Paramonian Nests. Each scar depicts the trial that he went through. The Scrabanian Hand Scar shows of a Scrab and the Paramonian Hand Scar shows of a Paramite. With them, he gained the ability to transform into Shrykull. The chest tattoo was granted to him by the Three Weirdos in order to heal Mudokons sick from SoulStorm Brew.

Abe's appearance has slightly changed with each of the three original games, for example: In the original Oddysee, his ponytail was somewhat curly and he had four fingers. From Exoddus, his ponytail was straight and his eyes were more yellow that they were in Oddysee. In New N Tasty, his appearance had changed mostly. His skin was purple and darker, his stitches were longer, his voice got deeper, he had teeth, even yellow-er eyes and the space in between and around his eyes and nostrils became jade in colour.

Personality

Abe is a clumsy, gullible, and naive, but good-hearted and gentle Mudokon. He has a very cheerful and optimistic personality, and is also somewhat desensitized from being a slave, as many horrifying concepts do not upset him. An example would be in Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus, where he encountered a blind Mudokon, and failed to notice his sewn shut eyes, and after accidentally killing him, Abe merely felt embarrassed. In-game Abe tends to react to accidentally murdering Mudokons with a mere 'oops'. Abe also laughs whenever he kills a Slig or Glukkon. Despite his flaws, Abe generally is an extremely caring and considerate fellow, eager to help others in need. Despite his ditziness, Abe can at times be a genius. Under his cumbersome, gawky demeanor lies a true mastermind, inconspicuously snooping around high-security facilities, and putting corporate big bads out of business, not to mention the fact he saved hundreds of slaves.

Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee

Abe popup1 — 'Wanted' signs posted after Abe's escape from RuptureFarms.

Abe began his life, as most slave Mudokons did, in an industrial establishment. Specifically, RuptureFarms, the biggest meat processing plant on Oddworld. Abe grew up more or less satisfied with the way things were, until he discovered the Glukkons in charge of RuptureFarms were faced with rapidly declining sales and planned to use Mudokons as a new kind of meat product. Horrified, Abe attempted to somehow escape from RuptureFarms, hoping to try and save fellow Mudokon workers along the way. During his escape, Abe discovered his inherent ability to possess other beings and take full control over their bodies. Using this new power to his advantage, Abe was able to free himself from RuptureFarms.

Abe soon learned of an aspect of Oddworld with which he was completely unfamiliar; the native side. He learned of the way things used to be, and was directed by Big Face, the Shaman Mudokon, to the harsh regions of Paramonia and Scrabania, where he faced the sacred Paramites and Scrabs.

Surviving these trials, Abe was endowed with two mystical tattoos, one on each hand. They granted him the power to channel an ancient Mudokon God, the Shrykull. With this power, Abe returned to RuptureFarms, rescued all 99 Mudokon workers (299 in the remake), and destroyed the factory.

Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus

Not long after, Abe learned of Necrum, an ancient Mudokon tribal burial ground, from a trio of tormented spirits known as the Three Weirdos. The burial chambers were being dug up by greedy Glukkon Industrialists, who sought to use the bones to make SoulStorm Brew, as is revealed in the opening cutscene. To make matters worse, blinded Mudokon workers were being used to dig up the bones. The Weirdos pleaded with Abe to try and save the burial grounds so that the spirits could rest in peace. In response, Abe set off on a trek to try and save the burial grounds, with a group of Mudokon followers in-tow.

Eventually, after crossing a vast desert, they reached the Glukkon establishment. Soon after, Abe discovered SoulStorm Brew, an addictive drink concoction that made anyone who drank it utterly addicted (coining the phrase "One is too many. A million is not enough".) Abe traveled to the Mudanchee and Mudomo burial vaults to free the spirits there and gain the power to heal Mudokons addicted to the foul brew.

Abe moved on to FeeCo Depot, a major train station. From here he traveled to and shut down Bonewerkz and Slig Barracks, and eventually shut down FeeCo Depot itself.

Abe was soon on his way to the infamous SoulStorm Brewery, where SoulStorm Brew was concocted. He sabotaged brew production by possessing various Glukkons and freeing Mudokons, and ultimately blew up the factory. On his own, Abe managed to liberate all three hundred Mudokons from the facility.

Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee

AbeMunchRun — **Abe** and Munch trying to outrun a Big-Bro Slig.

Some time later, Abe encounters The Almighty Raisin and learns about a Gabbit named Latamire Munch.The plan is to find munch and rescue him from the labs where he is being held captive by entering the big well but munch has already been freed by the Fuzzles, and they meet up to continue their journey. With Munch, he gathers a fortune for a pitifully poor Glukkon called Lulu, which they then used to win the last can of Gabbiar (a canned cuisine made of 150 Gabbit eggs), from Vykkers Labs. During Abe and Munch's collaboration, countless lives were saved, among Mudokons and Fuzzles alike. Abe is now an advocate of the Mudokon resistance. He is viewed as a hero by his peers and as a terrorist by the Industrialists. At the end of their journey, Munch thanks Abe for helping him get the Gabbiar, which surprises Abe since he never got a thanks for the good he has done.

Appearances

Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee ^{(First appearance)}
Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus
Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee
The Art of Oddworld Inhabitants: The First Ten Years 1994 - 2004

Trivia

In the March 2011 edition of Dear Alf, it was stated that Abe had blue skin instead of green as a result of tanning.^[2]
Abe is known for breaking the fourth wall.
Abe is named after Abraham from the Book of Genesis in the Bible. Similar to how Abraham from the Bible received a message from God to be a Father of Faith, Abe receives a message from his ancestors to be the Messiah of the Mudokons, both of which are known for putting an end to slavery.^[3]^[4]