Elegant, Curious, and Spirited: A Critical Review of ‘Ori and the Will of the Wisps’
It’s Ben’s recommendation that you listen to the Ori and the Will of the Wisps score, composed by Gareth Coker and published by Microsoft Studios, while reading the review.
It’s easy to get lost in Ori and the Will of the Wisps. Even with the introduction of new combat mechanics, Will of the Wisps seems much more focused on exploration and world design than it does anything else. From the small, ferret-like Moki creatures looking for a home to the wandering merchants that deliver exposition through tight and mysterious quips, the beautiful world of Niwen now bustles with life. Despite a set of aggravating performance issues, the game’s design manages to be almost as elegant as the world it sets itself in. With intensely good movement, a spirited hub world, and a passionate score, Will of the Wisps manages to be engrossing in a time where we all desperately need to get lost in a world that isn’t our own.
Niwen, the world Ori inhabits, hums with curiosity. No two creatures ever look alike. Some are big, others are small. Each corner of the world gleams with color and possibility. Will of the Wisps instilled a desire in me to explore from the onset, and it never tried to do so any singular way. Instead, the composition of what it had to offer was always enough to check out the many hard-to-reach alcoves, even in the rare instances it didn’t result in anything tangible. This curiosity is matched by the many characters Will of the Wisps introduces, such as Tokk, a traveling bird that always remarks on suspicious happenings in Niwen.
In what feels like a nod to classic adventure games, NPC’s almost always have something interesting to say – even if it’s just a line or two. Usually that dialogue sparks a new quest, such as returning a wolf’s tooth to Mokk the Brave – whose namesake is dependent on Ori being brave for him. Other times, it’s just a way for Will of the Wisps to constitute its world. Learning about the trials and hardships of the game’s many lively characters drives the stakes upward – especially when Will of the Wisps establishes themes of loss and sacrifice very early on. All of these smaller, individualized stories inject Will of the Wisps with a sense of purpose that didn’t exist in its predecessor.
Another notable addition to Will of the Wisps are its combat systems. Just minutes into the game, Ori is given a weapon to fight and defend himself with. Not long after, the game introduces other forms of attack – such as a bow and a throwing star. It isn’t overly complicated, but the mechanics do build on each other over time with various upgrades, such as being able to shoot three arrows at a time or being able to hold the shuriken at an extended distance for increased effect. These extended abilities pull from a finite pool of “energy” but I never felt like it restricted my use of these neatly designed tools – only that it prevented me from spamming them. What makes the combat system work so well is the wide variety of enemies and the controlled movement it takes to both avoid and attack them.
These enemies require varied styles of approach, such as piranha plants that hang from the ceiling in various (usually darker) areas of the game. These plants can be hard to reach from the ground level, especially because Ori is so small compared to almost everything else in the game. In order to reach them, it usually takes a double jump – which is thankfully one of the game’s earliest acquired abilities – or a dash from a nearby wall. Even better, these plants will shoot small missiles at Ori if he’s out of their reach. From these small missiles, Ori can parry them back through an ability called “bash.” Bash is one of the most interesting mechanics in the game – not because it’s unique to Will of the Wisps, but because it allows Ori to extend his movement cycle.
Will of the Wisps has remarkably satisfying movement. From almost the very beginning of the game, Ori can jump twice and dash in the air before having to touch ground. However, the bash mechanic allows this cycle to start all over again, and bash can be used on almost anything that is alive – enemies, projectiles, and hanging bulbs that are resourcefully placed around Niwen. The movement that can be chained together is almost spiritual, especially after saving up for some special abilities like the triple jump. I’m convinced that if someone had the resolve to do so, they could play the entirety of Will of the Wisps without touching the ground (outside of some rare cutscenes that force Ori to walk).
One of my favorite examples of this is through a chase sequence that requires Ori to escape the jaws of a squid-like creature with crashing waves at his back. The movement becomes almost rhythmic as Ori bounds from platform to platform. It’s in these moments where Will of the Wisps is at its best, because the incredible movement is met with a frantic score and enchanting visual design. In a lot of ways, it’s most reminiscent of Cuphead, where the backdrops are so intricate and gorgeous that it can be hard to focus on the fight at hand. Will of the Wisps frequently does so many things well all at once that I had to go back over recorded footage just to catch things I didn’t notice while playing.
Disappointing Performance
Unfortunately, Will of the Wisps is often its own worst enemy. The only times I was pulled out of the experience was because of the games atrocious performance – especially on Xbox One X. Our reviews at Epilogue Gaming are purposefully delayed in part so that we can experience games after their almost ubiquitous post-release patches, but even several weeks after its Will of the Wisps falls victim to random freezes, frame drops, pop-ins, and bugs so bizarre that I twice had to check other playthroughs to make sure I wasn’t crazy.
There was a moment early on where I found a secluded swamp area with slowly twisting handles. After half an hour of dying in all sorts of ways, I realized there was no possible way forward (normal for a metroidvania) or back (not so normal). It appeared I was soft-locked into the area. After looking up a separate playthrough, I noticed that the exact same area had an environment totally different from the one I was playing in. I thought I had perhaps missed a lever somewhere to change the environment, but it turns out that I had to totally reset my console and load back into the game before the environment was as it was supposed to be. Thankfully, I was able to continue forward and explore the area.
Other problems, like frame drops almost every time I put the map away, were more frustrating. In my quest to 100% Will of the Wisps before writing this review, I frequently had to pull the map out to check where I was going – only to deal with an intermittent freeze. Sometimes, especially when combat got hectic with a lot of enemies on the screen at once, Ori would get stuck in thorns or the side of a wall until he died. Thankfully, the game has remarkably consistent checkpoints to help deal with any failures that resulted from the poor performance. It is worth noting, however, that I played several hours on a high-end PC without most of the frame-dropping issues. Though many of the bugs, such as areas not loading in properly, seemed to persist on both platforms.
A Hub Full of Life
The technical performance is especially disappointing considering how delightful it is to try and complete the entirety of Will of the Wisps. The game has a hefty set of collectables, including health and energy containers that upgrade Ori’s ability to survive and use special weaponry. My favorite collectable, however, was the Gorlek Ore – a purple, glowing triangle of rock used to upgrade various areas in the game’s hub. Wellspring Glades, the centerpoint of Niwek, houses many of the games NPCs after your initial encounter with them.
Wellspring can be upgraded with Gorlek Ores to do things like provide shelter for homeless Moki or open up new caverns for exploration. Watching the hub world blossom into something entirely different from what it was at the beginning of the game was the most intensely gratifying visual experience I’ve had in years. In addition, each upgrade to Wellspring is bound to a collectible for Ori, like spirit lights, which allow for the purchasing of upgrades and additional tools. If for no other reason, Ori’s adventure was so meaningful because it helps create a home for the lovable characters I encountered along the way.
Wellspring Glades isn’t the only gorgeous area in the game, however. One of my favorite spots in the game was the ‘Luma Pools’, an area that feels almost dreamlike with an assortment of bright blues, purples and pinks. Bubbles float in the air, all of which can be jumped on to reach higher spots, and bright vines drop from the ceiling. Will of the Wisps excels at creating environments that are both fascinating to look at and fun to platform around. Luma Pools also showcases Will of the Wisps wonderful swimming mechanic, which uses the dash to move around swiftly and elegantly dive out of the water – often to reach heights that can’t be found with normal jumps.
Most areas highlight one mechanic in particular. For instance, the Mouldwood Depths has a constant, encroaching darkness that would swallow Ori whole when I didn’t move quickly enough. Eventually, I gained an ability to help keep the light at bay. Figuring out ways to get from one area to the next quickly enough created some of the most adrenaline-inducing moments in the game, and just another example of how Ori merges its visual stimuli with its gameplay mechanics.
One thing that can be used to combat difficult areas are the ‘spirit shards,’ which can be slotted in for special bonuses in combat and platforming. There are only a few slots available to start the game off (I wound up with a total of eight slots), so you have to pick and choose which shards can benefit you at a particular time. For instance, the shard ‘Wingclip’ helps Ori deal bonus damage to flying enemies – many of which are really tricky to handle. There are some areas, however, that have no flying enemies and a shard like ‘Sticky’ – which allows Ori to stick to walls instead of falling – is more useful.
Meta Analysis
In the first paragraph of his Ori and the Will of the Wisps review, Austin Wood mentions Hollow Knight three times. While Will of the Wisps stands incredibly strong on its own (which he notes, giving the game a 4.5/5), it does seem particularly relevant to the conversation. Typically, with the immense amount of focus and attention developers give their games, I try not to bring other games into my reviews. This might be the exception to the rule, as the influences are strong and obvious.
For instance, the shard mechanic mentioned above is almost directly a result of Hollow Knight’s ‘charms.’ This is absolutely not an issue, as game’s borrow ideas from other games all the time. Surely, that’s how we developed a firm set of genres. It’s how we got games like Halo and even Hollow Knight itself. It’s only noticeable in Will of the Wisps when it does something overtly similar (such as the shards) and does them worse. For the most part, many of the borrowed ideas – such as Lupo, a map creator that can be found tucked away in hard-to-reach areas – fit well within Will of the Wisps universe.
Despite these overlaps, lead developer Thomas Mahler took to ResetEra to argue that Will of the Wisps couldn’t have borrowed from Hollow Knight because he’s not a fan of the game. He notes that the “shard system is directly inspired by the Final Fantasy VII materia system” instead of admitting that the feature may have been inspired by what Mahler may see as a competitor. Not only does it feel needlessly petty, it’s a smudge on how communal the Will of the Wisps universe is. Games are better when borrowing the best ideas from other games. It’s a shame Mahler doesn’t see it that way.
Focusing on the Larger Picture
It’s hard to linger on any particular mechanic or design choice in Ori and the Will of the Wisps because there are so many little things that it does right. It has a phenomenal score that never ends, even in death. It’s gorgeous to look at, from large set pieces like the snow mountain guarded by a hibernating bear, to the smaller choices like a little pond with an unclaimed fishing rod laid to its side. Perhaps beyond everything else, it’s just wonderful to play. The movement is rhythmic, challenging, and the platforms are well placed without protruding in confusing ways. Everything about Will of the Wisps is easy to get immersed in, and part of me will always be really thankful I got to play this game at this particular moment in my life – in all of our lives.
And when I think about Will of the Wisps in the future, I don’t think I’ll even remember the obnoxious bugs or performance failures. There’s just too much good that stands in the way – too many things that I loved about this game that I’m sure I’ll remember for years to come. I’ll listen to the soundtrack when I want to feel lifted. I’ll fire up the game and excitedly jump, dash, and platform my way around with Ori when I’m looking for an escape. Will of the Wisps does what all great games tend to do: it sends me to a place I’m happy to be in, and compels me to come back when I’m not there.
Thank you for reading. Your Patreon support keeps our community entirely Ad free.
