Ori and the Will of the Wisps is a platform-adventure Metroidvania video game created by Moon Studios and published by Xbox Game Studios. The game was announced in 2017 during E3 and is a direct follow-up to Ori and the Blind Forest, which was released in 2015. It came out in March 2020 for Windows and Xbox One. A version for Nintendo Switch was released in September 2020 by Iam8bit, and an edition optimized for Xbox Series X/S was launched in November 2020. The game continues the story from Blind Forest and follows Ori, the main character, as they explore a new area called Niwen.
Moon Studios, based in Vienna with contributors from around the world, developed the game. It introduces new close-combat fighting and changes the visuals from two-dimensional artwork in Blind Forest to three-dimensional models displayed in layered backgrounds. Upon release, the game received high praise for its story, characters, visuals, combat, exploration, environments, chase scenes, and music. It is seen as an example of artistic expression in video games. Some technical issues, such as frame rate problems and visual errors, were reported but were mostly fixed with a day-one patch.
Gameplay
Ori and the Will of the Wisps is a 2D Metroidvania game, a type of platform game that focuses on exploration, collecting items and upgrades, and returning to areas that were previously unreachable. Players control Ori, a white guardian spirit. As Ori, players must jump, climb, glide, and swim between platforms to solve complex puzzles. The game follows a Metroidvania style, where new abilities and upgrades allow players to access parts of the map that were once blocked. Some gameplay ideas were inspired by the Rayman and Metroid game series.
Unlike its earlier version, Ori and the Blind Forest, Will of the Wisps automatically saves progress instead of requiring players to manually save at specific points called "soul links." The upgrade system from the first game, which followed a set order, has been replaced with a system of "shards" (similar to the "materia" system in the Final Fantasy series). These shards can be found or purchased throughout the game to improve Ori's abilities and attacks. Ori's attacks are managed through a circular menu, and players can find orbs that increase Ori's health and energy across the map. Unlike Ori and the Blind Forest, Ori does not travel with a companion named Sein.
A new mode called Spirit Trials was introduced at Gamescom 2018. This mode challenges players to reach a goal in the shortest time possible. To help players compete and plan strategies, the mode shows the fastest times and paths used by other players. Will of the Wisps also includes side quests from non-player characters (NPCs) that reward collectible items like Gorlek Ores. These items are used to expand the central area of the game.
Plot
The story happens right after the events of Ori and the Blind Forest and is told by the Spirit Tree. Kuro's final egg hatches, and a baby owl is born. Ori, Naru, and Gumo name the owl Ku and raise it as part of their family. Ku is born with a broken wing and cannot fly until Gumo attaches a feather from Kuro to it. Ku and Ori go on a flight, but the journey takes them outside of Nibel and into Niwen, where a storm separates them.
Ori searches for Ku and finds Kwolok, a toad who watches over the Inkwater Marsh and the Moki, the people of Niwen. Kwolok tells Ori that Ku is in the Silent Woods, a place once home to the Moki but now an empty and ruined graveyard of owls. However, because the waters of Niwen are polluted, Ori must fix The Wellspring, a device that controls the water, to enter the Silent Woods. Kwolok also gives Ori a wisp called the Voice of the Forest to help guide them. Meanwhile, Naru and Gumo travel to Niwen on a raft to find Ori and Ku.
After Ori fixes The Wellspring and cleans the water of Niwen, they enter the Silent Woods and reunite with Ku. However, they meet Shriek, a twisted and dangerous owl who was born without a family and rules over the Silent Woods. Shriek attacks Ori and puts Ku into a deep sleep.
After Ori feels sad about Ku’s condition, Kwolok explains that the Voice of the Forest is not strong enough to help Ku. He tells Ori that the Spirit Willow, a tree that once protected Niwen, died before, and its light was broken into five wisps that scattered across Niwen. This caused the forest to become corrupt and led to the death of the Willow’s guardians and Shriek’s parents. Kwolok asks Ori to find the other four wisps—Memory, Eyes, Strength, and Heart of the Forest—and combine them with the Voice of the Forest to restore the tree’s light.
Kwolok leaves his marsh to help Ori find one of the wisps but is taken over by the Stink Spirit, a creature born from the forest’s decay. The Stink Spirit had stopped The Wellspring from working. Ori defeats the Stink Spirit, freeing Kwolok, but Kwolok dies and asks Ori to protect Niwen in his place.
Ori finds all five wisps and joins them to create Seir, the Golden Light. Ori and Seir go to the Spirit Willow, and Seir brings the tree back to life. However, the tree tells Ori that its time has passed and cannot carry Seir anymore. It asks Ori to merge with Seir to restore Niwen, even though doing so would mean leaving their old life behind. The Spirit Willow dies, and Seir returns to Ori. Before Ori can join with Seir, Shriek appears and takes it. Ori defeats Shriek, who then returns to the Silent Woods and dies near the bodies of her parents.
Ori merges with Seir, healing Niwen and restoring Ku’s broken wing. Naru and Gumo arrive just in time to see this happen. Ku, Naru, and Gumo find the place where Ori and Seir merged and discover a new Spirit Tree beginning to grow. They help the tree grow and continue living together as a family. It is revealed that the Spirit Tree telling the story was actually Ori, who had merged with Seir and become the new guardian of Niwen. Eventually, the Spirit Tree fully grows, and a new spirit guardian falls from it, beginning a new cycle of life.
Development and release
Many players finished Ori and the Blind Forest in about eight hours and enjoyed the experience. However, the game’s community shared that after completing the game, they felt little reason to return to it. They wanted more content. This feedback inspired Moon Studios to create a larger and more detailed game. Ori and the Will of the Wisps is three times bigger in size, scope, and scale compared to Blind Forest.
Moon Studios’ first game, Ori and the Blind Forest, was very successful in terms of reviews and sales. However, Daniel Smith noted that players wanted more Ori content after finishing the game in about eight hours. The team aimed to expand the game’s size and scope while keeping the story connected. Thomas Mahler, a lead developer, explained that Will of the Wisps should be to Blind Forest what Super Mario Bros. 3 was to the original Super Mario Bros.
In Blind Forest, the story ended with Ori returning Sein, a character from the Spirit Tree, back to Nibel’s Spirit Tree. This inspired the team to design new combat features for Ori, including melee attacks with projectile elements. The original Ori game used only two-dimensional artwork. Jeremy Gritton, an artist from Blizzard Entertainment, was impressed with Blind Forest and joined Moon Studios to help create three-dimensional character models for Will of the Wisps. These models were placed in layered backgrounds to appear seamless. This approach also improved the game’s cinematic production. AM2R developer Milton Guasti joined the team to help with level design, including recreating parts of the Blind Forest map within Will of the Wisps. Gareth Coker, who composed the music for Blind Forest, continued to create the soundtrack for Will of the Wisps, adding unique themes for characters Ori meets.
Because of the game’s expanded size and scope, Mahler and Gennadiy Korol, another lead developer, said the team worked very hard and made many changes throughout development. For example, the E3 2017 trailer went through 2,000 revisions during polishing. Moon Studios grew from about 20 members when Blind Forest was released to 80 members by the time Will of the Wisps was completed. Most team members worked remotely from home offices.
Due to the game’s increased size—estimated to be three times larger than Blind Forest—development took longer than expected, causing delays. Smith explained that Metroidvania-style games are complex because changes to one part of the game often affect other parts. This complexity required time to refine the game’s quality. The sequel was first announced at E3 2017 with no release date. A second trailer was shown at E3 2018 with a planned 2019 release. By E3 2019, the game was delayed again, with a new release date of February 11, 2020. A final delay was announced at The Game Awards 2019, setting the release date to March 11, 2020. Xbox Game Studios also released a Collector’s Edition on that day, which included a piano music CD, a steelbook, an art book, and a downloadable soundtrack.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps was released for Xbox One and Windows 10 on March 11, 2020. It supports 4K UHD, Xbox One X Enhanced, and Xbox Play Anywhere. Both versions were added to Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass program at launch. Smith said being on Game Pass helped more players discover the game.
A Nintendo Switch version was announced during a Nintendo Direct Mini: Partner Showcase and released digitally on September 17, 2020. A physical version of Will of the Wisps and its predecessor were released on December 8, 2020. During Microsoft’s Xbox Games Showcase in July 2020, an optimized version of the game was announced, running in 4K resolution at 120 frames per second for the Xbox Series X and Series S. This version was released on November 10, 2020.
Reception
Ori and the Will of the Wisps received very good reviews on all platforms, according to Metacritic, except for the PC version, which had mostly positive but not perfect reviews. By June 2020, more than 2 million people had played the game. In mid-November 2020, the number of players reached 2.8 million.
Chris Carter of Destructoid called the game a masterpiece, saying it was an example of high quality. He noted that while the game had some small flaws, they did not greatly affect the experience. Carter praised the game’s visuals, improvements in combat from the previous game, and exciting chase scenes. However, he mentioned that the Xbox One version had some frame rate issues.
Michael Goroff of Electronic Gaming Monthly said the game had many positive aspects but pointed out that the Xbox One version had performance problems before a patch was released. He noted that the game improved on the mechanics from the first game, expanded the world, and added new features. However, he said the game did not stand out in a crowded market of emotional platformers.
Andrew Reiner of Game Informer praised the game’s graphics, story, and combat, saying it was better than the first game. He described the story as fantastic, the world as breathtaking, and the gameplay as excellent. He said the game had no dull moments and made players feel clever.
Steve Watts of GameSpot gave the game a positive review, praising the combat, exploration, story, and visuals. He also mentioned occasional visual bugs as a downside. Eight months after the Xbox One version was released, Mike Epstein of GameSpot gave the Xbox Series X version a higher score, noting improvements and fixes to technical issues.
Austin Wood of GamesRadar+ called the game’s music, world, and platforming excellent. He said the game was one of the best platformers ever made and a strong contender for game of the year. However, he mentioned some minor issues with abilities and said the final level was slightly underwhelming.
Brandin Tyrrell of IGN praised the game for returning to the style of the original while adding more content. Tyler Wilde of PC Gamer said the game had great platforming and visuals but noted that combat was not always fun.
Josh Wise of VideoGamer praised the game’s graphics, music, and platforming but said the story was thin. Tola Onanuga of The Guardian called the game a sensory experience with beautiful visuals and music but noted that fighting common enemies could become tedious.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps was listed among the best games of 2020 by Time and Game Informer, and among the top games of the eighth video game generation by Game Informer. It was also included in top 10 lists by The Washington Post, Paste, Polygon, WhatCulture, Ars Technica, and The Guardian. It ranked in the top 3 of Digital Foundry’s Best Games of 2020 and in their top 10 of Best Game Graphics of 2020. It appeared at #5 in Game Informer’s Game of the Year Countdown.
The game was nominated for awards in 2020, including “Best Visual Design,” “Xbox Game of the Year,” and “Ultimate Game of the Year” at the Golden Joystick Awards, where it won “Xbox Game of the Year.” It was also nominated for “Best Art Direction,” “Best Score and Music,” and “Best Action/Adventure” at The Game Awards but did not win.
At the 2020 NAVGTR Awards, the game won in four categories and was nominated for a fifth. At the 24th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, it was nominated for five categories, including “Adventure Game of the Year.” At the 2021 SXSW Gaming Awards, it was nominated for “Video Game of the Year,” “Excellence in Animation, Art, and Visual Achievement,” “Excellence in Game Design,” and “Excellence in Score.”