| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| PC | 8.70 |
| Overall | 8.70 |
|
Metroidvanias (why does castlevania get credit when castlevania SOTN was just a metroid like game, always confused me) are a dime a dozen these days which for fans of the genre is a good thing. It's important to find the standout games and Ori is absolutely one of the better ones in the last few years. Ori focuses on platforming more than combat and presents a thrilling adventure in a beautiful world with incredible artwork and great precise controls. I feel each game needs its own hook to stand out and with Ori it's the combination of traversal skills he earns as you play. It starts out very basic, you run, you jump and attack with a sort of honing auto attack button, no real need to aim. Soon you get the bounce ability that lets you bounce off enemies or enemy projectiles. The neat twist is that the game freezes when you activate the ability allowing you to choose the direction Ori will bounce BUT the projectile will fly off in the opposite direction. This mechanic changes the way you battle enemies and think of how you will reach secrets. At its more devilish trials you will need to combo jumps where you are bouncing projectiles a certain way, bouncing off a different projectile to reach the first projectile you previously launched and use that to reach something. Ori does a fantastic job of mixing this mechanic up for use in combat, exploration and puzzle solving. Other skills come into play like wall climbing, boost attacks, and slams but none feel as unique as this bounce which is feel is the signature ability of the game. I shouldn't have to explain the structure of the game, it's metroid (screw castlevania, I'm giving metroid all the credit now). There are three main objectives and in these areas you enter a sort of themed "dungeon". This is where the toughest challenges await including a boss and a great escape sequence at the end of each one. When outside these dungeons you are exploring for power ups and covering the game world for the ways to access these dungeons. Overall it's like a 6-8 hour game which is decent for a game like this. In recent years I feel Guacamelee and Outland have stood out as the best metroid clones (well AM2R is the best by far but you people don't want free metroid games) and now that I played Ori I can add it to that list. Now in terms of where it ranks I think I put it in the rear simply cause the action does not hold up. Combat is mostly busywork and the boss battles are not memorable or plentiful. The platforming is fantastic, the pacing is top notch which something new every few minutes. That said the core gameplay mechanic of bouncing is not as interesting to me as chaining attacks in guacamelee of the color phase shifting of Outland, so for those reasons I hold Ori back a little. On the technical side it's a gorgeous game with a really good heartfelt story. Like a good animated movie it tugs at the heartstrings with a tale of life and death, even the villain gets humanize in ways most games never try to do. The score is soothing and matches all the action perfectly. There are no bonus modes but you can battle the leaderboards for fastest time. Ori and the blind forest is a beautiful very well crafted 2D metroid like platformer that any fan of the genre should play. If you are like me and love platforming challenges and great pacing this game is for you. If you like the stories that are told in indie games like this, you will also love it. It's a great game and I cannot wait for the sequel. |
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Posted by Dvader Thu, 31 Aug 2017 15:25:48
Fri, 01 Sep 2017 10:19:09
I played a bit of this but lost interest quickly. Not sure why, it does look nice and seems to play well.
Tue, 12 Sep 2017 16:40:26
Would like to try it
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