Ahhh Ori and the blind forest... where to begin?

My life story: Going to my local game store in December 2016 i walked around the Pc section only to see 4 copies of this game on the shelf priced at 19 AUD (Australian Dollars). My first instinct was to scoff at the realatively low price tag but if any game has taught me anything, it can be full of surprises (looks at undertale). Anyway picking it up and inserting the disc into the Pc then activated it through a code, waited for a quick download and the game was ready to play. What hit me next was a journey into the wonderful world of nibel. The menu screen already introduced me into a trance that so little games managed to accomplish, the combination between the sorrowful music and the beautiful background instantly destroyed the essence of my being. The adventure i underwent through next completely took me away from this world.

Gameplay: As most platformers go, Ori and the blind forest brings a few things to the table. The gameplay flows very well, combining quick thinking, timing, interesting puzzles and a decent combat system. The feel of the game is very smooth on my end (you don't really need a good Pc to run it), and i have not encountered a single bug or gamebreaking glitch so far. However do not think this game is simple, it is possibly (especially on one life) one of the most hardest platforming challenges you might face. However with a multitude of abilities that Ori has is able to fight of most of the denizens and dark dwellers within the forest.


//////////// The Story section can contain spoilers READ AT YOUR OWN RISK \\\\\\\\\



Story: As story goes it is relatively simple, an orphan (Ori) is lost to a storm and is picked up by a creature (Naru) who becomes a mother to Ori. A series of unfortunate events (which is revealed later) wracks the forest with death and famine. Ori now Orphaned again now must venture on a journey to restore the forest back to the way it was.

Despite being a very simple story, it is the way it is told that makes it special, full of plot twists, moments of pure joy and moments of utter devastation really plays on your feelings.



\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ End of Spoilers ///////////


I suppose this is the section about the pros and cons of the game yes?
Well here it is

Pros:
-excellent soundtrack
-Gameplay flows very well
-excellent art style
-Story is well told
-game is challenging
-characters are well fleshed out
-a feel trip all the way
- incentives to explore every nook and cranny
-puzzles are sometimes hard but fair
-Ori is cute <3

Cons
-combat can be a bit tedious and repetative at times (especially if you're dying over and over because of a bad save)
-sometimes you wont be able to remember all your abilities
-sometimes the challenge is so hard it makes other people quit (not me personally but comments seem to be less than happy about certain sections of the game being too overly hard or tedious)
-sometimes you are forced to look online (which can put you into some major spoilers) to seek out answers you aren't too familiar with (i havent had much trouble with the puzzles in my experience)


Overall judgement: I love this game, apart from the sometimes repetative combat the game is excellent. It isn't as widely as popular undertale and the hard gameplay aspect might drive people away but it is well worth the money spent for this game.

rating: 10/10

Small re-edit: Nominated this game for Steam 2017 awards

Ahhh Ori and the blind forest... where to begin? My life story: Going to my local game store in December 2016 i walked around the Pc section only to see 4 copies of this game on the shelf priced at 19 AUD (Australian Dollars). My first instinct was to scoff at the realatively low price tag but if any game has taught me anything, it can be full of surprises (looks at undertale). Anyway picking it up and inserting the disc into the Pc then activated it through a code, waited for a quick download and the game was ready to play. What hit me next was a journey into the wonderful world of nibel. The menu screen already introduced me into a trance that so little games managed to accomplish, the combination between the sorrowful music and the beautiful background instantly destroyed the essence of my being. The adventure i underwent through next completely took me away from this world. Gameplay: As most platformers go, Ori and the blind forest brings a few things to the table. The gameplay flows very well, combining quick thinking, timing, interesting puzzles and a decent combat system. The feel of the game is very smooth on my end (you don't really need a good Pc to run it), and i have not encountered a single bug or gamebreaking glitch so far. However do not think this game is simple, it is possibly (especially on one life) one of the most hardest platforming challenges you might face. However with a multitude of abilities that Ori has is able to fight of most of the denizens and dark dwellers within the forest. //////////// The Story section can contain spoilers READ AT YOUR OWN RISK \\\\\\\\\ Story: As story goes it is relatively simple, an orphan (Ori) is lost to a storm and is picked up by a creature (Naru) who becomes a mother to Ori. A series of unfortunate events (which is revealed later) wracks the forest with death and famine. Ori now Orphaned again now must venture on a journey to restore the forest back to the way it was. Despite being a very simple story, it is the way it is told that makes it special, full of plot twists, moments of pure joy and moments of utter devastation really plays on your feelings. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ End of Spoilers /////////// I suppose this is the section about the pros and cons of the game yes? Well here it is Pros: -excellent soundtrack -Gameplay flows very well -excellent art style -Story is well told -game is challenging -characters are well fleshed out -a feel trip all the way - incentives to explore every nook and cranny -puzzles are sometimes hard but fair -Ori is cute <3 Cons -combat can be a bit tedious and repetative at times (especially if you're dying over and over because of a bad save) -sometimes you wont be able to remember all your abilities -sometimes the challenge is so hard it makes other people quit (not me personally but comments seem to be less than happy about certain sections of the game being too overly hard or tedious) -sometimes you are forced to look online (which can put you into some major spoilers) to seek out answers you aren't too familiar with (i havent had much trouble with the puzzles in my experience) Overall judgement: I love this game, apart from the sometimes repetative combat the game is excellent. It isn't as widely as popular undertale and the hard gameplay aspect might drive people away but it is well worth the money spent for this game. rating: 10/10 Small re-edit: Nominated this game for Steam 2017 awards