Ori and the Will of the Wisps Game Review
3 Step Game Review
About the Game
Released
March 11, 2020
Developer
Moon Studios
Price
US$ 29.99
(MAY VARY PER LOCATION)
Game Description
The little spirit Ori is no stranger to peril, but when a fateful flight puts the owlet Ku in harm’s way, it will take more than bravery to bring a family back together, heal a broken land, and discover Ori’s true destiny. From the creators of the acclaimed action-platformer Ori and the Blind Forest comes the highly anticipated sequel. Embark on an all-new adventure in a vast world filled with new friends and foes that come to life in stunning, hand-painted artwork. Set to a fully… (continues…)
Step 1: Playing Conditions
Read below the game basic characteristics. If it is something you see yourself playing, move on to Step 2: Graphics & Sound.
Gameplay Overview
Ori and the Will of the Wisps (OWW) will test your gaming skills on EXPLORATION, COMBAT and a bit of LOGIC. Run, jump and combo abilities in the air to reach new areas or to win fights and as game progress, you will find out that there is much more.
There are dozens of things to do, quests, side quests, puzzles, time trials, base improvements, skills character customization, upgrades, collectibles… and all that is put together by a STORY WORTHY OF A FAIRY TALE.
Unlike most games, death at OWW is not a punishment, the respawn usually happens really close putting you right back into the game. The game comes with 3 levels of difficulty: easy, normal and hard. The normal level is challenging and the hard level will make you suffer.
Step 2: Graphics & Sound
Watch 5 to 10 minutes of any video below. If you like what you see and hear, move on to Step 3: Game Evaluation.
Step 3: Game Evaluation
Build your expectations about the game by learning what it offers and how was The Partisan Spy’s experience.
USER INTERFACE
Graphics is one of the GAME’S FOOTPRINT and to let you experience every bit of that, the HUD brings only the essential to gameplay. All the rest is left to the in-game menu, something you will access a lot as the MAP IS YOUR BEST FRIEND.
On a side note, the function to swap and bind abilities to buttons keeps the gameplay simple as it replaces “comboing” buttons for abilities.
STORY
OWW is a FAIRY TALE that unfolds as you progress in the game by completing the main quests. To help you get involved with the story characters, the side quests are usually related to them.
The story is told in cutscenes, characters voice-over, and dialogue boxes. An important detail about the voice-over, the game “speaks” an unknown language so reading will be always necessary.
COMMUNITY POTENTIAL
PVE games usually don’t get the same kind of attention from the gaming community as PVP games, mostly because the content generation is LIMITED to the completion of the game, resulting in a short awareness life span.
OWW has various leaderboard which may bring players together. The Xbox exclusivity can be a negative, a counterpoint to that, it’s free for Xbox Game Pass members.
GAMEPLAY MOOD TRACKER
MOOD ANALYSIS
The combination of story and gameplay is the reason why my mood average results in EAGER. During almost the entire game, my mood was at least at ENTERTAINED and 2 times it spiked to CAN’T STOP PLAYING IT.
While the gameplay was able to maintain my mood between ENTERTAINED and EAGER, the unfolding of the story and the boss encounters were in charge of the “wow” moments.
GRIND FEELING
There is always the possibility of feeling grind while playing Metroidvania games because of the constant need to BACKTRACK. Beyond the story and gameplay, OWW has some features to make backtracking, not a painful experience.
As game progress, checkpoints will be unlocked in which you can TELEPORT from anywhere. You will also learn mobility skills that make traveling around the map much faster.
LOVED THE MOST
There are a lot of things to love about this game, but the gameplay moments of bosses chasing Ori are definitely a favorite.
DISLIKED THE MOST
There is really nothing to dislike, maybe the quests icons on the map could be a little bit smaller as sometimes overlap other icons.
EVALUATION SUMMARY
There are more similarities than differences between the first Ori game and this one. The considerable gap of 5 years between both games can be seen in different ways but in the end, what matters is the delivered gameplay experience. OWW excels in every aspect and goes beyond.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is…
It could be a book as it tells a charming story.
It could also be a movie as it’s beautiful to look at.
Luckily for us, gamers, it’s a game.
And it has everything it needs to become again a bestseller or blockbuster.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is…
…a must-read…
…a must-see…
…a must-play sequel.
Choices & Advice
DON’T BUY IT
IF YOU ARE NOT INTO CHARMING AND FAIRY TALES LOOK-ALIKE STORIES.
WAIT TO BUY
IF THE GAME IS NOT AT YOUR PRICE POINT RANGE AND YOU PREFER TO WAIT FOR A SALE.
(Ori and the blind forest is cheaper and you will have a similar experience.)
BUY NOW
IF YOU WANT TO PLAY A SOLID AND CHALLENGING METROIDVANIA GAME.
GAME LIFETIME
GAME CAN BE FULLY COMPLETE IN 20 TO 30 HOURS.
SUPPORT THIS GAME REVIEW
There are 4 easy ways to show support to this content. Thanks for doing that and for reading my review.
