The main antagonist of Ori and the Blind Forest, Kuro. I spent most of my time upgrading various combat abilities in an attempt to freshen up the combat system, but you can also upgrade the benefits of various pickups, and other things such as having your save points heal you. Finally, the addition of a skill tree really added to my desire to explore because I knew that the more experience orbs I discovered, the more abilities I would be able to unlock in the ability tree. The dash was the most fun mechanic that I have uncovered in my time so far with Ori and the Blind Forest. Dashing towards enemy projectiles also allows you to reflect them back at the enemy, or at destructible objects in the environment. This mechanic allows you to freeze time shortly, and dash towards an enemy projectile or lanterns that are located throughout the level. Another mechanic that was very fun was the dash mechanic. The ability to save anywhere is one of my favorite features in Ori and the Blind Forest. However, there are some sections where, if you do not conserve your energy properly, you will be left without the opportunity to save through many difficult platforming sections. This definitely made some of the more difficult parts of the game seem much less so, because you could save either right before or right after you complete them if you have enough energy. One of my personal favorites was the ability to use your energy, which is like mana, to create a save point at any location. It could even be said that Ori and the Blind Forest is a relaxing game, if you find a section with no enemies and pause to enjoy the visuals and the soundtrack.Īlong with the visuals and soundtrack, Ori and the Blind Forest contains some very interesting mechanics. Accompanying the gorgeous visuals is a fantastic soundtrack that just adds to the atmosphere of Nibel. Ori and the Blind Forest is on par with, if not better than the Trine series in terms of its visuals. I found the visual variety of the enemies did help to break up some of the monotony of the combat as the game progressed. The character and enemy design is sublime. The game just oozes beauty, and it seems as if every screen is another opportunity for a fantastic desktop wallpaper. I have never taken as many screenshots of a game as I have during my time so far in Ori and the Blind Forest. First thing’s first, the visuals are just stunning. Now that we’ve gotten through my dislikes of the game, let’s focus on what I really enjoyed. Still, I would have liked to have seen some visual presets, but the game ran very smoothly (over 200 fps on average) on my machine, which runs an SLI setup with GTX 760s. However, this being a 2-D game, it is a bit more justifiable. In terms of the games options on PC, the menu was very barebones, containing only a resolution, full screen, and vsync option. Needless to say, this was very frustrating and caused more than a few of my deaths in the game. This stutter often occurred during extremely difficult platforming sequences that required a great deal of precision. On top of the combat being a bit dull, I also noticed a ton of frame stutter that occurred, even though my frame counter showed the game to be running at a consistent 160-250 fps. Even after unlocking two new combat moves, the game still lacked a certain fun factor when it came to combat. I felt like every fight was becoming a chore and even went out of my way to avoid enemies. Which I felt was a shame, considering how much of the game actually consists of combat. The combat felt as if there was little flow and very little skill involved. For the four or so hours that I played, it seemed that I was only spamming the ‘X’ button on my controller. My first issue with the game lies with the combat system. As you make your way through the level, you meet Sein, who befriends you and provides a means of attacking enemies. At the beginning, you simply possess the ability to run and jump. The game follows Ori, who is the small being of light that you control. The opening sequence was extremely powerful and definitely causes a tear to be shed. Ori and the Blind Forest begins with a melancholy sequence of friendship, adventure, and loss. You can grab Ori and the Blind Forest on Steam, or on the Xbox One Marketplace. Ori and the Blind Forest is a platform adventure game developed by Moon Studios and published by Microsoft. This is simply my initial thoughts of Ori and the Blind Forest after around four hours of game time. *Disclaimer* This is not, nor should it be taken as, a review.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |