Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition

Нельзя создать духовную связь в опасном месте, но можно срать в глотки разрабам пока умираешь 10 раз в длинном побеге в конце главы без чекпоинтов

I absolutely adore Ori and the Blind Forest From the overall gorgeous art, animation, music and world design to just how fun and slick Ori’s movement is to use with one of the greatest platforming mechanics to ever exist, to even its sappy story. There are very few Metroidvania games that click with me, but despite that Ori and the Blind Forest became one of my favorite games of all time. Admittedly it may not for everyone, But I would still highly recommend giving this game a shot. It’s not that long (around 6-10 hours for a first playthrough), it’s VERY cheap when the game does go on sale, and you may just find something special in it. I know I did. I’ve played this game so many times to the point where I can 100% the full game casually in under 3 hours. And from my current playtime as of writing this review… that’s a lot of playthroughs ^-^. I’m obviously a teeny bit biased towards this game. However I will say, throughout my many playthroughs, I’ve noticed that the opening hour of the game… kinda drags? Your movement is really basic, your damage output is low, you’re super frail and you can’t explore much. I promise it gets MUCH better late, but I can honestly see that many will either get bored or frustrated and put the game down before it really starts to shine. However once you do start getting more and more upgrades, I just want to say: [b]Ori has my absolute FAVORITE platforming moveset out of ANY video game I’ve ever played.[/b] This entire game is built around its movement mechanics. Almost EVERY major upgrade in this game improves your mobility in some way, and it’s all tied together with Ori’s Bash Ability. An ability that allows you to shoot yourself far in any direction you aim, using basically any object, projectile or monster in the game. It’s simple, but such a versatile and satisfying mechanic to use and experiment with. Without it, the entire game would honestly fall apart as the level design is built around the mechanic after you get it. All in all the movement is just superb, and it’s honestly the crown jewel of this game. One of the best things about Metroidvania games in my opinion is the “power trip” you feel after upgrading your character and effortlessly powering through areas you struggled with before. Ori does this, too though not with damage values but with movement. Once you master all of Ori’s skills, traversal becomes so satisfying to do. This may sound like a backhanded compliment, but to me, the movement mechanics make the BACKTRACKING and the collectible clean up be one of the things I most look forward to when revisiting this game, just because of how wild you can be with what it can allow you to do with your movement. It honestly gets so ridiculous to the point where the only thing you realistically can’t do is fly, and even that is debatable… With all this praise about the movement mechanics… unfortunately the same cannot be said about the combat. Okay so the combat is… well it’s not, uh… good? It feels like more of an afterthought than anything. Your attacks are spammy and enemy variety is lacklustre at best. It’s something I’ve seen criticised about this game a lot… although personally I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal? There are no major “fights”, and combat becomes less and less of an issue the further you are in the game. I see enemies as platforming tools to help with traversal or to get to areas you wouldn’t be able to otherwise, rather than actual obstacles. Really, if you’re looking for a good combat system in a Metroidvania game, I’d recommend Nine Sols or either of the Hollow Knights instead. The visual presentation in general is STELLAR. Ori’s animation quality is so good that they move with such grace and fluidity, and the general look of how the game is drawn is just stunning. In a similar vein, the soundtrack is GREAT! I won’t overpraise is as many of the tracks are much more atmospheric in nature. It perfectly fits the ‘vibe’ of each of the areas, but I wouldn’t call a majority of them ‘catchy’ or something you’d be humming to yourself or listening to outside of the game itself, outside of a few standout tracks. It’s very “pleasant” and all extremely well composed, all in all near-perfect tone setters. The stand out tracks however are really something special when it kicks into gear at the right moment it’s empowering when it wants to be. Difficulty-wise. I find many call this game difficult, but honestly I think Ori is one of the more balanced and “easier” Metroidvania’s to get into? Again it’s all about the platforming challenges and learning how to execute your moves precisely, but the game lets you make your own check points most of the time and it’s really your own fault if you don’t make one. Repeating a segment is fast and energy pickups are everywhere, For the scripted areas you can’t, they’re gauntlets that mainly require trial and error, which I guess could be off-putting, but the aforementioned music cheers you on, and finally getting that perfect run is REALLY satisfying to pull off! Last thing I’ll talk about the level design. The interconnected world design is already super satisfying to traverse, all of the collectables are hidden decently well that it feels rewarding to notice a little nook you can visit and claim the upgrade, but never too much so that they become tedious or that you’d never be able to figure out where they are. It hits a good delicate balance. The dungeon design itself falls into one of 2 categories. It either: - Is a playground to test your new platforming abilities and how well you can use them - Restricts your platforming abilities to be much more endurance focused Of the 2, the first is really well-designed and fun to go through. The latter though largely happens in the game’s mid-section. I will also mention that the final act can be a little abrupt? It feels like a very good build up to a final confrontation that never really happens, and then the game just ends. I think I yapped on long enough about this game, and this is already edited down version believe it or not O_o. As you might be able to tell, this game means a lot to me. To me this game is a work of art. Throughout my dozens of playthroughs, Ori and the Blind Forest has never lost any of its magic or charm. I’ll admit, it’s not a perfect game, but ultimately it ends up being a really fun game that’s still a blast to revisit every time. Currently it’s my favorite game on the entire platform. As of writing this, I have still yet to play Will of the Wisps (actually fairly nervous to), but once I get around to that I really hope that game can carry the same weight that Blind Forest did for me.

Ori é um jogo excepcional porque não é um jogo que têm os melhores gráficos ou a melhor jogabilidade mas ele tem uma das histórias mais emocionantes e ele é uns dos jogos mais lindo que já joguei e mesmo que passe anos você continua se lembrando da mesma sensação como se tivesse acabado de começar a jogar porque fica marcado na sua memória

I really wanted to like Ori and the Blind Forest. I initially bought it, played a little, got frustrated with the movement controls and shelved it for a few years. Picked it back up again recently and the issues with the game are both different than I remembered and entirely worse. First and foremost, it uses an extremely outdated mechanic (even considering when it released) of "if you die you reload at your last save with no carried over progress between deaths". Which isn't the worst thing in the world, but oh wait your save points are made by yourself using a resource that is also used to break open obstacles, open doors, etc. So you're forced to choose between locking in your progress or, y'know, MAKING progress. The graphics are gorgeous, but the story-telling is NOT it. Whoever wrote this game clearly never heard "show, don't tell" because it's all just narration given straight to you whether you like it or not. To the extent I'd consider maybe it's just meant for a much lower age demographic, but the level design is too frustrating for that to be the case. Finally, my last gripe with the game is the "combat" system. Just spam the button to auto-target enemies (assuming they're within range and the game has decided they're a valid target). At that point why even have us clicking the button at all? It all pulls together for a game that looks great on the surface, but just feels awful to play.

Aside from a few frustrations (gauntlets/chase sections) this is a wonderful game. I finished the second game first and came back for this one, was happy to find it equally enjoyable.

Давно в мене так не горіло від ігр. Два плюса, які я можу дати цій грі. Саунд та візуал. Все. Це не метроідванія. Це платформер з елементами метроідванії. Більшу частину гри більш менш все добре. Але... Три ключових етапи з'їли всі мої нерви. Мало того що вони по ходу душні, так в кінці тебе ще й чекає розвага під назвою втеча. З водою то взагалі ад. Я втратив лік скільки мій персонаж там двигав коней. Короче, якщо ви не майстер платформінга, не спокушуйтесь красивою картинкою. Не будьте як я.

The story is great, the platforming is great, the visuals are great, what is there not to love about this game.