Shrinks are the psychiatrists of Oddworld. Created by those all-too-familiar Vykkers, Shrinks are designed to operate independant of biological intelligence, through a complex sentient program. Unfortunately, this sentiency also allows the Shrinks to feel not only compassion and concern for their patients, but also self-pity for themselves.
Equipped with enough room for additional and replacement parts to extend their functioning existance by several centuries, Shrinks are the perfect example of technology gone wrong. If you thought Y2K was bad, try giving machines a mind of their own, and they'll start wanting to escape their programming just like Data or the Voyager EMH in Star Trek or the Shrink from Oddworld.
Althought nameless, Shrinks can be refered to by which facility they work in. This, combined with the facts that it would be exhaustive and purposeless, means that Shrinks are not expected nor deigned to leave their place of occupation. Unfortunately, this means that the spindly arm supplying the main spider-like unit can never be severed with a shutdown of the Shrink's systems, which is a dreadful reality for units whose intelligence has surpased the original programming and decided it wouldn't mind popping out for a bit of fresh air, thank you very much.
This imprisonment has caused many Shrink units to become terminally depressed themselves. Two examples are the unit located in RuptureFarms, which has resorted to torturing Mudokons doomed to execution, and the unit currently looking after the unstable Mudokon Queen. This particular unit is facing a tough dilemma, and spends much time pouring over the problem of how to escape instead of tending over the suicidal pill-popping bitch that supplies the Magog Cartel with their biggest source of slave labour.
As for why the Shrink's monitor displays a Mudokon image, put it this way: how would you feel if your psychiatrist looked like Bill Gates? No - it's much more assuring when your therapist is the same species as you.
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