I’ll admit, the latest blockbuster game over a smaller indie game will normally hold my attention much longer every time.  However recently that has changed, and with the release of the gorgeous old-school platformer ‘Ori and the Blind Forest’, my once feverish love of platforming games, harking back to the glory days of Sonic The Hedgehog, has been restored.

You play as a woodland spirit who after the death of his adoptive mother, he has to fend for himself in a sprawling forest in hope of returning it to it’s former glory.  I can’t say the story is the big pull here, and it’s fairly whimsical and vague at best, but the setting … this ultra-detailed woodland environment is a sheer wonder to behold.  This is certainly the best looking old-school platformer I have ever seen, utilising the graphical power of XB1 (and XB360, this is a Microsoft exclusive, so it’s also on the PC), to create a world that’s really fun to explore.  Now this is no easy children’s game, despite it’s cute looks – there are puzzles, platforming acrobatics and a wealth of abilities to upgrade that make every area fiendishly tricky.  Trick as in, it never feels like I can’t get past an area, it’s just going to take timing, memorization and a bit of skill.  That’s the addictive quality of this game and each new section presents new ways to play and explore and combat enemies.  It’s also a huge game and over 8 hours in I am still finding new places and earning new skills.

from my channel on YouTube

For £15.99 this is a must buy.  It borrows heavily from games such as Metroid and Sonic The Hedgehog and wear’s it’s clichés proudly – it doesn’t do a lot new, but gimmicks in my opinion have ruined many a decent looking platformer in the past, and this just does what it does very well indeed.

Essential.