If you ask a player which video game has marked them the most in recent years, chances are they will answer Ori and the Blind Forest . Released in 2015, this platform game, in the Rayman vein, featured Ori, a sylvan spirit responsible for bringing light into the forest of Nibel, plagued by an obscure evil. With its beautiful graphics and dreamlike music, Ori and the Blind Forest had taken players by surprise and has since established itself as one of the best games of the decade. Not easy, therefore, to pass the second. However, Moon Studios and Microsoft manage to do just as well with a splendid sequel: Ori and the Will of the Wisps .
Return to the dreamlike world of Ori
This second opus resumes exactly at the end of the first. After making his way through the woods of Nibel to restore its original shine, Ori finds his friends Naru, a kind of benevolent teddy bear, Gumo, a strange creature with long arms and a new baby, Kun, an owl baby . All is well in the best of worlds, until a storm carries Ori and Kun away from their home, towards the dark lands of Niwen. The little white spirit will therefore have to go on an adventure to save his friend and bring a little light in an environment corrupted by evil. We will not say more to preserve the surprises and the emotion of the scenario.
This is where the player takes control of Ori again. Those who have already tested Ori and the Blind Forest will not be disoriented. There is almost identical gameplay, namely a non-linear platform-labyrinth game. It is again a question of exploring different zones, filled with traps and enemies, to accomplish various missions and progress in the scenario. To progress, you must regularly unlock new powers to unlock inaccessible areas. Ori and the Will of the Wisps therefore keeps the magic recipe of its elder, but still adds a good dose of novelties.
A rich and varied game
Starting with Ori's abilities. In the first game, our hero could only fight with an energy ball. This time, he gradually acquires a number of weapons and skills, such as a bow and an energy sword or the possibility of launching fiery attacks. Ori techniques are also regularly boosted with double jumps, air sprints, damage reduction, etc. You have to be a little strategic in their use since it is only possible to assign Ori three attacks (but you can change them at any time) and a limited number of techniques and bonuses. According to the zones and the enemies, it is therefore necessary to know how to adapt.
Variety is the major contribution of Ori and the Will of the Wisps . Everything is more diverse than in the first opus. The fights are now spiced up by clashes against giant monsters (a wolf, a spider, a beetle ...), kinds of bosses that allow you to cross a level. Ditto for the heart of the gameplay: the platforms. Obstacles and puzzles are much more numerous and varied here than in the first game, making the game less linear. It is sometimes necessary to zap an area to return later, better armed.
A finely dosed difficulty
This variety could have resulted in greater complexity than the first game. It is not. First because the general difficulty of Ori and the Will of the Wisps has been alleviated. The "normal" mode, far from being in the first, is this time accessible to players of all levels. Another welcome help: an automatic progression backup system, where the first game was based on manual backups. A skincare skill, quickly unlocked, also makes it easier to get stuck in complicated passages. We always die a lot but we lose less time by trying again. Result, a maximum of fifteen hours is enough to complete the game.
Finally, Ori's movements have been refined to achieve millimeter precision. More than ever, controlling the little mind is a real joy in hand. Once you have mastered the different buttons, you turn from platform to platform, jump, swing, sprint ... Exploring the world, three times larger than that of the first game, is simplified and much less painful than before. Only regret: despite the many indications on the map, the objective to be reached is not always clear. Without being totally lost, it happens to go around in circles for a moment before understanding where the game wants to take us.
A feast for the eyes and ears
Finally, how not to evoke the artistic direction of Ori , once again sumptuous. The graphics, always characterized by their depth and a profusion of colors, draw a new dreamlike universe of great beauty. If the design of certain characters leaves something to be desired, the whole remains magnificent, up to the promises sketched by the first opus. Each region of the world of Niwen has its own atmosphere, between lush woods, windy mountains, muddy marshes or the old mill.
All this is sublimated by music, even more accomplished. The composer Gareth Coker, this time supported by a symphonic orchestra and a choir, delivers a captivating score but never heady. Each Niwen area has its own theme, which is itself broken down into several variations depending on the regions of the area and the type of action in progress (exploration, escape, combat, etc.). A joy for the ears which also accentuates the cinematics of Ori and the Will of the Wisps , adding to the already strong emotion that the game brings.
Our opinion: a wonder not to be missed
Whether you have played Ori and the Blind Forest or not (if not, go for it without hesitation), Ori and the Will of the Wisps can only amaze you. If at first it seems very similar to its elder, this second opus gradually reveals its richness. Accurate and addictive gameplay, moving scenario, magnificent graphics: all the ingredients for a masterpiece are there. And it is indeed the appropriate qualifier for this game, concentrated of all that video game can offer today as an art.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps , available on Xbox One and PC, € 29.99