Ori and the Will of the Wisps

I came into Will of the Wisps already convinced that Ori and the Blind Forest had the best movement in the genre, and Moon Studios managed to one-up themselves. The core of what made the first game special is all here - the double jump, the wall cling, the signature bash technique that lets you redirect enemy projectiles and fling yourself to unreachable heights - but the sequel layers on a midair dash, a grapple, and an underwater boost that all slot into the movement grammar so naturally that within a few hours you are chaining them together without thinking. That feeling of being genuinely in control of a nimble little spirit carving through a handcrafted forest is the best argument for buying this game, full stop. The combat overhaul is the other big headline. Blind Forest's combat was the weakest part of that package, but Will of the Wisps replaces the old single-orb attack with a proper arsenal: a light blade, the Spirit Arc bow, the heavy Spirit Smash hammer, a throwing star, and more. Each weapon pulls from an energy pool so you can't just spam your favorites, which keeps decision-making alive in fights. Spirit Shards add another customization layer, letting you tweak attack power, projectile firing rate, and a handful of other stats. It is not a deep RPG system, but it gives players a genuine reason to think about builds rather than just mashing through encounters. The world of Niwen is where the game really flexes. Each region highlights a different mechanic - the Mouldwood Depths throws a creeping darkness at you that you have to outrun and then learn to push back, while Luma Pools introduces a swimming mechanic that uses the dash to move with surprising elegance. Level design is the connective tissue: Moon Studios built sequences where combat, platforming, and environmental puzzles blur into a single unbroken flow. The autosave system (replacing Blind Forest's notorious manual checkpointing) makes the difficulty spike feel fair rather than punishing, though be aware the PC version launched with some technical roughness that early players complained about. Patches have addressed much of this, but it is worth knowing the launch window was bumpier on PC than on console. The honest critique is that some of the new abilities feel zone-specific rather than world-expanding. You pick up a cool trick, use it heavily for one area, then rarely call on it again - more like a Zelda dungeon item than a true Metroidvania power that reshapes every corner of the map. The story is also thin by design; it hits its emotional beats through music and animation rather than dialogue, which works for some players and leaves others wanting more. Neither issue is a dealbreaker, and the roughly 10-15 hour runtime feels well-paced rather than padded. If you have any appetite for Metroidvania platformers, this is one of the strongest examples the genre has produced. First-timers do not need Blind Forest as a prerequisite, though playing it first adds emotional weight. Players who bounced off the original due to its manual save tension will find this version considerably more accessible.

Alex · Scout Team

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