Introduction
We are going to look at two games this week, Ori and the Blind Forest and Ori and the Will of the Wisps, first we are going to look at Ori and the Blind Forest. This game is the first game in the series and who knows maybe we will see the third game in the Ori series! Ori is a Metroidvania that specializes in platforming instead of equipment and leveling up. You will gain new skills as you progress through the game, these skills will allow you to gain access to new areas.

There are also additional skills that are not necessary to complete the game but you can use these skills to reach new upgrades. Upgrades consist of more health points and energy points. Energy is used for saving and healing. You will gain experience points from enemies, these are called ability points and you are able to unlock skills with these ability points. You can choose from three different skill trees but you are able to earn enough ability points to unlock all of the skills in all skill trees. The stories are very important in the Ori series and the stories are tearjerkers.

What did I think before playing Ori and the Blind Forest?
I am always looking for new Metroidvania games to play as they are all the hype right now, I see a lot of buzz around this genre on social media.
The Ori series has been requested by multiple people like Nate and Beltrain, I was always interested in the Ori series ever since the launch of the first game in 2015 but for some reason, I never started.
Finally, I am getting around to starting Ori and the Blind Forest, Nate recommended to me that I should get the definitive edition of this game because it has additional content.

I started by looking up the steam page to see if this game would entice me to get started, the page immediately screams that the game is one of the bestselling games in 2015 by showing a high Metacritic score.
The trailer looked very promising, not to mention the art style of the game, I did wonder how could one little spirit kill enemies but I was about to find that out!
Without delay I purchased the bundle of Ori with both games, little did I know this would be a trap that the game had set for me, thinking I would set off on a happy adventure through this land called Nibel, boy was I wrong.

I rate Ori and the Blind Forest before playing with an 8.1
The game looks like a great Metroidvania with an amazing story, happy times are bound to come your way with this joyful cast of characters, at least, that is what I thought before playing.

Story
You are Ori a spirit that apparently grows on a tree, nonetheless, a big storm approaches and Ori gets blown away, seemingly lost to the spirit tree forever. Now an orphan Ori finds hope in the form of another creature called Naru. No longer being an orphan Ori is greeted by happy times and all seems to be okay once again. Ori and Naru create a bond together but slowly they notice that the land is dying and food is running scarce. Even though Ori is carefree and happy until something horrible happens and things take a turn for the worse.

I rate the story of Ori and the Blind Forest with a 10.
Ori is mostly made for the story and not the gameplay, the story is an amazing emotional rollercoaster that breaks the net of safety and toys with your emotions. If you have a sensitive soul the story will hit you hard, you will find out when you play the game. Even though the game is from 2015, I am not going to spoil anything for the people that have not played the game yet!

Gameplay
In Ori and the Blind Forest, you will need to restore the land of Nibel while avoiding large threats and taking care of smaller enemies. In the beginning, you are not able to explore much of the map but as you progress in the game, more areas will unlock. Ori will use the light of Sein a spirit to defeat his enemies. Sein uses ranged attacks but you can also get up close and personal if you like. Your goal is to visit the three main dungeons to restore the land. Restoring these dungeons will also grant you access to new areas but completing the last dungeon will end the game. Ori is a Metroidvania at heart but uses many platforming elements, there are also segments where you need to platform very quickly otherwise your death is guaranteed. Luckily saving can be done easily with spirit energy when there are no enemies nearby. As you unlock more skills the platforming might get more intense in some areas but also easier when you unlock a few of the final skills.

The maps are pretty huge and finding all items can be hard but this where the skill trees come in, there are three different skill trees. One will upgrade the strength of Sein, make toast of your enemies! The other skill tree will grant you utility skills like breathing underwater or even a triple jump and the last skill tree will give you sensor abilities. These sensor skills will let you see more items on the map and in the end, even see the secret areas while you are exploring! This will certainly help you with getting 100% in Ori and the Blind Forest. Next to platforming, killing enemies, and backtracking there are also a few puzzles in Ori and the Blind Forest like the forest that changes when you walk around.  You should be careful as there are many things in Ori and the Blind forest that will kill you in one hit even if you have acquired the maximum amount of health!

I rate the gameplay of Ori and the Blind Forest 7.8
I did enjoy the gameplay a lot but I just wish I could bash some enemies’ skulls in, remember that the story is more important in Ori and the Blind Forest. If there are a few improvements to the gameplay I would give a much higher rating, I am excited to see how Ori and the Will of the Wisp tackle the gameplay!

Sound and Graphics
The graphics are perfect in the Ori series and Ori and the Blind Forest has amazing graphics, I think it would take ages to create all these art assets. Ori and the Blind Forest definitely focuses more on the story and the graphics of the game rather than gameplay. Due to the story, I did not see too many flaws in the gameplay as the story swoops you on an emotional ride along with the beautiful graphics and great cutscenes.

The soundtracks and sound effects are perfect in Ori and the Blind Forest, I can only say I enjoyed every minute of listening to the music, this is probably the reason why the developers sell their soundtracks.

I rate the sound and graphics of Ori and the Blind Forest with a 9.2

What did I think of Ori and the Blind Forest after playing?
I did enjoy exploring the game all the way to 100%, the collectibles felt important and they were hidden well in some places.
The story sweeps you off your feet and takes you on a ride of having hope when all seems lost. Usually, games make you feel happy, this game did not but it was still perfect.
The gameplay was good but nothing too spectacular, I mostly wanted to continue the story but the gameplay was good enough that I wanted to explore everything Nibel has to offer.
How the story ended made me realize there would be a second game, even if you played it way back in 2015, the urge to continue immediately was very great.
Even my wife who dislikes Metroidvanias that is based on heavy platforming enjoyed the story, she checked in regularly to see how the story of Ori developed.
The game did exceed my expectations big time, to be honest, I feel bad for waiting so long to play this game.

I rate Ori and the Blind Forest with an 8.7 after playing.
This game wants to tell you a message with the story and succeeds but I can see the gameplay suffered a bit but nonetheless, I did enjoy the gameplay a lot!

Personal Rating
It was an odd feeling, sadness due to playing a game this is not something I experience often, I kept wondering how will Ori and the Will of the Wisp manage to top this story?

My personal rating of Ori and the Blind Forest is an 8.5

Last Words

I recommend this game to everyone that loves a good story in a game and also likes to play Metroidvanias. I would say that for the story alone that this game is definitively worth it!
The final rating of Ori and the Blind Forest is …Drumroll…

8.8

The final verdict: A visual novel that plays like a Metroidvania.

Let me know what you think about this game in the comments.
I hope that you enjoyed reading this review, I hope to see you in the next review!