Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition

Genre: Metroidvania

Players: 1

The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

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Review:

(Note: This game is included in the Ori: The Collection bundle along with Ori and the Will of the Wisps.)

Ori and the Blind Forest is a Metroidvania that has you playing as a tiny glowy white catlike tree spirit… thing. This game represents the latest in a line of previously Microsoft-exclusive games that Microsoft is releasing on the Switch, and Switch owners have plenty of reason to celebrate.

Ori is an absolutely gorgeous game, with beautiful, detailed hand-painted visuals brought to life with liberal amounts of fluid animation. As 2D videogames go, they don’t get any more visually stunning than this. Ori’s sound and music are every bit as beautiful as the visuals, with an amazing choral and orchestral score and some unique, expressive sounds, with characters in the game speaking in signature voices in some sort of fictional language (subtitled for our understanding).

In short, Ori and the Blind Forest is an audiovisual triumph, even now four years after its original release on the Xbox One. And not only has age not dulled this game’s beauty, but neither has the move to Switch – if there is any flaw in this port, I cannot detect it. The visuals are just as smooth and vivid as I remember them on Microsoft’s platform… even better, in fact – the Switch version of the game actually doubles the original release’s 30FPS framerate to 60FPS both in handheld and docked modes, retaining the 1080p resolution. The game’s own developers have been quoted as saying that due to new optimizations, the Switch version of the game actually runs better than the Xbox One and PC versions, and this appears to be absolutely true.

Sorry, I know the tech stuff doesn’t interest everyone, but I honestly think it’s astounding that not only did Microsoft and developer Moon Studios actually put in the effort to ensure the Switch got a great port, they actually went above and beyond to make sure that the Switch got what is arguably the definitive version of the game.

It should be noted that this definitive version is of the, er, Definitive Edition, which includes extra areas and abilities that weren’t in the game’s initial release. What all of this amounts to is this: if you have not yet gotten this game, the Nintendo Switch version is the version to get.

Okay, but graphics and sound and quality of the port aside, how is the actual game itself? In my opinion, this may very well be the best 2D Metroidvania game since Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Just moving Ori around the map is a joy, and new abilities you acquire only improve that mobility. This is a game where the emphasis is very much on the platforming over combat, and in fact before long the combat becomes incorporated into the platforming, thanks to this game’s inspired “bash” ability, that has players using enemies and projectiles to slingshot themselves around the environment.

That’s not the only innovation here, either. One of the other smart things this game did was to implement a custom checkpoint system that allows players to create a checkpoint anywhere in the game, at a cost of energy. This not only means that players have to strategically weigh the risk of an area against their need for that energy to do other things, but it gives players an extremely intuitive way to set their own challenge level by taking a more deliberate role in deciding how frequently they’ll save.

If I had to find a criticism with this game, I could point to some of the story bits and tutorial explanations being a tad long-winded, and a few areas having a big spike in difficulty. However, these are minor nitpicks about a game that is, in virtually every respect, a brilliant title, and one of the pinnacles of its genre.

Ori and the Blind Forest is an absolute dream made reality. Not only is it a former Xbox exclusive brought to the Switch in flawless form, but it has been made even better on the Switch. And not just any exclusive, but a game that is one of the best games of its kind, a Metroidvania that is every bit as good as the Metroids and Castlevanias that gave the genre its name. This is a must-have game on the Switch, especially if you never got it on the PC or Xbox.

tl;dr – Ori and the Blind Forest is, quite simply, one of the best Metroidvania games ever made, and not only is this an amazing port of a previously Xbox One-exclusive title, but it’s actually improved in its Switch release, which now stands tall as the truly definitive version of the game. This is a must-have game on the Switch, and if you missed it on the Xbox and PC, you owe it to yourself to get it now.

Grade: A+

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2019 Game Awards:

Winner:

Best Platformer – This game is, in my opinion, the absolute best 2D Metroidvania since Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. This game has magnificent, fluid platforming, an inventive approach to difficulty and saving mechanics, beautiful music, absolutely gorgeous graphics that look best on the Nintendo Switch… despite that this year has seen some amazing platformers, this was a no-brainer for me.

Game of the Year: Silver Award (Second Place) – I gave this game my highest review out of all of the games released this year, and for good reason. Ori and the Blind Forest is the pinnacle of what a modern Metroidvania can be, with an absolutely gorgeous audiovisual presentation made even better in the Nintendo Switch port, truly enjoyable gameplay, and some great innovation. Metroidvanias may be a dime a dozen on the Switch, but this one rises above them all. The only reason this game didn’t take the top spot for me this year was that it didn’t feel right for me to give Game of the Year to a game that first came out a half a decade ago. But even with that being the case, this game has barely aged at all since its first release. An absolute must-have on the Switch.

Runner-Up: Best Port/Remake, Best Music, Best Song – Light of Nibel by Gareth Coker feat. Aeralie Brighton, Rachel Mellis and Tom Boyd, Best Graphical Style, Best Graphics

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The Nintendo Switch 2 Difference

Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition

Genre: Metroidvania

Players: 1

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Review:

(Note: This game is included in the Ori: The Collection bundle along with Ori and the Will of the Wisps.)

The Nintendo Switch version of Ori and the Blind Forest is one of the games I tend to see as a huge success story for the Nintendo Switch, actually improving on the performance of its Xbox One source material with 60FPS framerates both in handheld and docked modes and a 1080p resolution. As such, it’s hard to imagine how this might be improved on Nintendo Switch 2, but perhaps loading times? Well, we’ll find out…

Long story short… yeah, it’s the loading times. The game looks great on Nintendo Switch and it still looks great on Nintendo Switch 2, but now with much better load times. On Nintendo Switch, it took 55 seconds to start the game, and 17 seconds to load a save file. On Nintendo Switch 2, those times have been cut down to a comparatively tiny 12 seconds and 5 seconds. Given how absolutely gorgeous this game looks, that is no small feat.

So yes, a truly great port of an absolutely incredible game, now with even better loading times on Nintendo Switch 2. There’s not much I can add to that!

tl;dr – Ori and the Blind Forest is, quite simply, one of the best Metroidvania games ever made, and not only is this an amazing port of a previously Xbox One-exclusive title, but it’s actually improved in its Switch release, which now stands tall as the truly definitive version of the game. This is a must-have game on the Switch, and if you missed it on the Xbox and PC, you owe it to yourself to get it now.

Grade: A+

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