Game Review: ‘Ori and the Blind Forest’ spellbinds as it tests your limits

The side-scrolling platformer has come a long way since Super Mario Bros. spearheaded its boom in the final two decades of the last millennium. The genre has gradually eschewed personality-less mascots for characters we can actually feel for, telling tales with more meat than just “saving the princess.” More recently, it has become a vehicle through which smaller studios have showcased a level of artistry that would make even the industry’s most jaded naysayers blink.

 

“Ori and the Blind Forest ” may spellbind with its incredible presentation, but what makes it truly special is that, at the end of the day, it knows exactly what it is: a video game. Unlike others of its ilk, it doesn’t sacrifice gameplay for garnish, giving players an experience that is as joyous to play as it is to behold.

 

 

A timeless fairytale

 

Ripped from the Spirit Tree by turbulent winds, a shimmering leaf is cast down into the moonlit forest below. Her curiosity aroused, the gentle, lonely Naru approaches the leaf, only to witness its transformation into a strange, luminous creature. This is Ori.

 

Naru comes to love Ori as her own child, and for a while things are perfect for the pair. But then catastrophe strikes. The forest, once vibrant with life, succumbs to darkness and decay. Banished from the only happiness he has ever known, Ori is thrust into an alien wilderness, where every corner is teeming with peril, and every step can mean a swift and merciless demise.

 

Told through short, cryptic verses uttered by a disembodied voice, and the characters’ exquisitely animated body language that expresses emotional depths more than words ever will, it’s a crushing prologue worthy of genuine sorrow. When Ori’s quest to renew the withering forest begins, you’ll have already invested yourself in the character and the enchanting world surrounding him.

 

It’s true that the game leans heavily on the “saving the world” trope. And like all platformers, Ori jumps, dodges enemies, and acquires abilities that anyone with a smidgen of experience with the genre will find familiar. But what it lacks in innovation, the game makes up for with three things: the excellent interplay between Ori’s skill set and ingenious level design; fantastic visuals and music that are as poignant as they are a pleasure to the senses; and a simple yet heartwrenching story that has all the makings of a timeless fairytale.

 

 

Lost in the forest

 

As Ori, you’ll start the adventure a weakling. When you meet the tiny globule of light, Sein, you get your primary attack: the Spirit Flame, a mid-range projectile that you can bombard enemies with.

 

You’ll need the weapon, because the realms are populated by voracious, pustule-ridden slugs; spidery critters that hunt you down on sight; and bulbous, pulsating plants that lob acid balls at you. Unfortunately, they’re not all you have to worry about. Spikes, the platformer’s bane, are everywhere in “Ori and the Blind Forest .” And while walls crawl with spiny brambles and spinning contraptions seek to impale you, other environmental hazards, such as fiery geysers and toxic waters, promise yet more ghastly ways to die.

 

“Ori and the Blind Forest ” is a challenging game that, while rarely unfair, does include a number of moments that’ll make you want to smash your console against the wall. Some of the best sequences, including those that have you fleeing rapidly swelling dangers, will throw everything the game’s got at you. Precision and timing are paramount. There will be lots of trial and error, true; but the exultation you’ll feel at beating impossible odds is irreplaceable.

 

Therein lies the game’s genius; it’s never too difficult to encourage surrender. This is in part due to the wonderful set of skills you’re awarded as the game progresses. One lets you fling yourself from enemy to enemy, killing them while simultaneously allowing you to sail across the screen. Others let you bounce up walls and detonate barriers. Later in the game, you’ll even be spitting in gravity’s face by walking upside down on ceilings. Previously unreachable areas become accessible thanks to newfound abilities, so backtracking is hardly ever a chore. The forest’s interconnected regions gradually open themselves up to you, Metroidvania-style.

 

The world evolves as Ori does; as soon as he learns a new ability, the obstacles become specifically tailored to match it. Your own reflexes and skills – especially your capacity to fluidly combine Ori’s abilities to meet the demands of the game’s rising difficulty – will be continually tested.

 

Your brain will also get a workout thanks to the game’s puzzles. Some are of the key-fetching and pushing/pulling-of-objects variety, but many more are cleverly incorporated into traps and even enemy encounters. Quick thinking is just as necessary as quick fingers.

 

It helps that “Ori and the Blind Forest ” has a unique saving system. Spending Energy creates a Soul Link, allowing you to save your progress at any checkpoint of your choosing. You can even level up your skills, enabling the enhancement of attacks, the facilitation of resource gathering, and more.

 

 

Breathtakingly beautiful

 

The platforming ties in neatly with the breathtaking visuals. The forest is no mere obstacle course created from a mishmash of random shapes, but a lived-in, living world – albeit one on its dying breaths. Everything is gorgeously animated, from the flowers rustling in the breeze in the foreground, to the softly swaying flora in several layers of background. Glowing blue mists carpet the forlorn earth. Streamers of faint moonlight pierce veils of shadow, turning motes of dust hanging in the emptiness into fireflies. The generous use of shadows – seen often in the deep purples of twilight – is beautifully offset by Ori and Sein’s luminescence, as well as the numerous glittering creatures and objects found throughout the world. The game succeeds at creating an ethereal atmosphere that is as intoxicating as it is desolate.

 

The level design is itself an art, as visually striking as it is fun to traverse. There are plenty of unforgettable areas that you will want to replay more than once, for the opportunity to soak up the dazzling scenery, as well as the exhilaration of besting a particularly well-crafted challenge.

 

The music is as somber and low-key as the visuals. Ever so gently it will play with your heartstrings, taking you on an emotional journey as Ori himself scales mountains, delves into dank, forgotten caverns, and plunges into the heart of the forest.

 

 

A magnificent gem

 

Ori’s quest takes roughly 10 hours to finish – a little more if you want to uncover every secret. The steep difficulty occasionally frustrates, and there are bugs cropping up in the console version. But these are not heavy enough issues that should discourage you from picking up such a magnificent gem.

 

“Ori and the Blind Forest ” is the natural evolution of the sidescrolling platformer, employing elegant visuals and music that are matched only by superior level design, invigorating gameplay, and exemplary pacing. Brimming with imagination and heart, it’s a beautiful, rewarding adventure that will likely stick with you long after the credits have rolled.

 

 

Platforms: PC, Xbox One, Xbox 360 (TBA) — TJD, GMA News