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Ori and the Blind Forest |OT| A Soft Heart for the Hard Core

thomasmahler

Moon Studios
Interesting point of view.
The funny thing is that while i was reading your post, when i got to the part where you wrote "you fight a giant octopus that has a red eye that you have to hit 3 times" i imagined that scene, with that amazing art direction of your (i'm also a sucker for things with tentacles!) and i went like HELL YEAH!!! in my head, LOL.
To each his own, i guess. :D

Yeah, we wanted to stick to that triangle relationship between Ori, Naru and Kuro and not introduce any arbitrary huge characters that are just there to get slaughtered. I understand why people want bosses and if we'd ever do a sequel, I'm sure this would become a big topic again, but we'd probably try to tackle it in a more creative way :)

That would work really well.
It was hard at first, the controls were tricky (but because of the shift in perspective, the controls were just as amazing as usual!), but when i got better at it it was so satisfying.

I'm just curious: are you already working on something else?

The Gravity Mechanic is a funny thing: It feels really 'off' at first, because the controls don't adjust when you walk up walls, etc. - but it becomes intuitive fairly quickly. And simply because of the shift in perspective it adds a layer of difficulty even to the simple platforming challenges you already went through. I think it's a very, very interesting mechanic and I'm quite proud of how we handled gravity there :)

We're working on the patch right now, so that everyone has a good time. The number of people who had issues is comparatively really small, but it's obviously annoying if you bought the game and some stupid glitch stopped you from progressing.

I'm also dabbling on some protoypes on the side, yes. I sometimes post some of my prototypes either here and / or on TIGSource. These are just my own little personal projects though, Moon is currently still 100% dedicated to delivering the first content update for Ori :)
 

Mdk7

Member
Yeah, we wanted to stick to that triangle relationship between Ori, Naru and Kuro and not introduce any arbitrary huge characters that are just there to get slaughtered. I understand why people want bosses and if we'd ever do a sequel, I'm sure this would become a big topic again, but we'd probably try to tackle it in a more creative way :)



The Gravity Mechanic is a funny thing: It feels really 'off' at first, because the controls don't adjust when you walk up walls, etc. - but it becomes intuitive fairly quickly. And simply because of the shift in perspective it adds a layer of difficulty even to the simple platforming challenges you already went through. I think it's a very, very interesting mechanic and I'm quite proud of how we handled gravity there :)

We're working on the patch right now, so that everyone has a good time. The number of people who had issues is comparatively really small, but it's obviously annoying if you bought the game and some stupid glitch stopped you from progressing.

I'm also dabbling on some protoypes on the side, yes. I sometimes post some of my prototypes either here and / or on TIGSource. These are just my own little personal projects though, Moon is currently still 100% dedicated to delivering the first content update for Ori :)
Thanks for the answers man.
I really can't wait to see what you guys come up with in the future, Ori was definitely something special... A stellar debut all around, you guys have a crazy amount of talent and vision there. :)
 

Jergingha

Neo Member
I think Ori is the first game in a long time that really wants to make me play it again just to get all the Achievements.

I might do that this weekend. Fantastic game.
 

Hendrick's

If only my penis was as big as my GamerScore!
Anyone else feel the game relied too heavily on the Bash mechanic? It's almost like the developers forgot Ori had other abilities they could incorporate into the challenge of the levels.
 

Mdk7

Member
Anyone else feel the game relied too heavily on the Bash mechanic? It's almost like the developers forgot Ori had other abilities they could incorporate into the challenge of the levels.

I strongly disagree with this, one thing that i really really enjoyed about Ori (among the long list of things i loved) was how the game handled well all its mechanics: you get a nice sense of progression while playing, as your character powers up and unlocks great abilities that constantly feel fresh and new thanks to the level design.
Before venturing into the final level i explored all the map, and i had a blast moving at light speed, jumping everywhere and doing mad ninja acrobatics by using properly all the skills i had unlocked, and exploration felt amazing that way.
 

Munki

Member
Not sure if this has been brought up already, but are there any plans to release a patch that would allow us to re-visit "dungeons"? I would like to be able to get a few orbs that I had missed.
 

Hendrick's

If only my penis was as big as my GamerScore!
I strongly disagree with this, one thing that i really really enjoyed about Ori (among the long list of things i loved) was how the game handled well all its mechanics: you get a nice sense of progression while playing, as your character powers up and unlocks great abilities that constantly feel fresh and new thanks to the level design.
Before venturing into the final level i explored all the map, and i had a blast moving at light speed, jumping everywhere and doing mad ninja acrobatics by using properly all the skills i had unlocked, and exploration felt amazing that way.

Sure, all of the abilities are useful for exploring, but the main challenge of most of the latter levels seemed to focus on Bash.
 
bash is unlocked early in the game and it completely changes how you move and fight enemies from then on. none of the other abilities do that, but they certainly compliment it.

perhaps there could have been more verticality after charge jump was introduced, and maybe some more interesting platforming tied to stomping (instead of making it a glorified lock picker). otherwise, i like the way the abilities were handled. the only thing that bugged me was how wall jump got replaced with climb. you can still wall jump, but i only use it when i'm going for style points.
 

Maffis

Member
Just beat it. All secrets with 270 deaths. I really enjoyed it. Great music and artstyle, and the gameplay felt really fluid.

What I felt were the weaker spots was the combat and some parts of the game that felt like trial and error.

The combat was pretty much non-existant. I was dissapointed that you never got any new weapons and the combat in itself basically played on its own. There werent alot of interesting enemies either other than new-skinned styles of enemies you met before.

The trial and error part kinda frustrated me sometimes. It worked great when you could save anytime, but sometimes, especially during the escape segments, the camera angles and the overall speed pretty much made it impossible to react before you died. Thankfully the game reloads quick and the save system was really great. But for a comparison, Rayman Origins and Legends has alot of "escape levels" but they never felt as frustrating because they always showed the dangers before you could reach there; giving you time to react and dodge. That wasn't the case in this game. I died alot on the second escape from randomly falling icicles that was so close to my screen and character that it is just extremely hard to react to.

Other than that I'm glad I bought this game. 20 euro was a steal.
 
Just build a direct connection with indie developers. I think Gareth also contacted me out of the blue back then - Or I contacted him, I can't remember. Just build a few relationships and never be too afraid to say hi and show your stuff.

With Twitter, Facebook and so on and so on, it should be fairly easy to contact any developer.

Thank you for answering! I will let him know. I wish there were some sort of directory specifically for indie developers that people could go to in order to offer their skills to the devs.
 
Silly complaint, but I really wish it was easier to figure out where you're supposed to go. A fas travel option (to discovered save points) would have been nice too. I really hate all the constant backtracking.

Younger me would have loved it as I could pick up missed collectibles and farm EXP, but older me just sees it as a colossal waste of time.
 

DALBEN

Banned
Just finished the game.

Best game of the year. Congrats from Brasil to the creators, what a awesome game. The ending is Beautiful :).
 

wouwie

Member
For me, Ori and the Blind Forest shines when it's a platform game. However, combat and enemy encounter is slowly draining out the fun i have with the game. Most enemies seem just about keeping distance and smashing that A button time and time again until dead. Enemy difficulty seems to come from enemies having more health later on in the game which means smashing the button even more while dodging the things that are thrown (faster) in your direction. I'm virtually fully specced in the ability that deals with doing damage so i keep wondering if i'm missing something here. Can i one-hit kill enemies with bash or stomp? I tried but with little result.

I miss the ability to punch or jump on an enemy. The enemy combat is taking away the flow that a lot of other platformers have. Because you need to move, stop, spam button until enemy dies, move, rince and repeat. In games like Rayman Origins, enemies didn't take away the flow of playing and platforming. You jumped on a enemy, that made you gain height, which meant you could continue moving, slapping the next enemy,.. Ori seems to have a very different kind of combat that slows down the platforming and gameplay. Or i'm just not playing the game in the right way.
 

TheMAK

Banned
For me, Ori and the Blind Forest shines when it's a platform game. However, combat and enemy encounter is slowly draining out the fun i have with the game. Most enemies seem just about keeping distance and smashing that A button time and time again until dead. Enemy difficulty seems to come from enemies having more health later on in the game which means smashing the button even more while dodging the things that are thrown (faster) in your direction. I'm virtually fully specced in the ability that deals with doing damage so i keep wondering if i'm missing something here. Can i one-hit kill enemies with bash or stomp? I tried but with little result.

I miss the ability to punch or jump on an enemy. The enemy combat is taking away the flow that a lot of other platformers have. Because you need to move, stop, spam button until enemy dies, move, rince and repeat. In games like Rayman Origins, enemies didn't take away the flow of playing and platforming. You jumped on a enemy, that made you gain height, which meant you could continue moving, slapping the next enemy,.. Ori seems to have a very different kind of combat that slows down the platforming and gameplay. Or i'm just not playing the game in the right way.

Bash bash and Bash :)
 

wouwie

Member
Bash bash and Bash :)

Bash is the arrow mechanism, i assume? Can you one-hit kill enemies with Bash, say for example the frogs or the enemies stuck on walls? Do you need to aim yourself at the enemy or do you aim enemy fire at other enemies? I haven't killed any enemy with Bash. Just used it as a means of platforming when needed.
 

roytheone

Member
Bash is the arrow mechanism, i assume? Can you one-hit kill enemies with Bash, say for example the frogs or the enemies stuck on walls? Do you need to aim yourself at the enemy or do you aim enemy fire at other enemies? I haven't killed any enemy with Bash. Just used it as a means of platforming when needed.


You can return enemy fire towards themselves or other enemies for a lot of damage, but using an enemy as a "bash point" also does a bit of damage by itself. This can be upgraded to do quite a bit of damage.
 

thomasmahler

Moon Studios
Bash is the arrow mechanism, i assume? Can you one-hit kill enemies with Bash, say for example the frogs or the enemies stuck on walls? Do you need to aim yourself at the enemy or do you aim enemy fire at other enemies? I haven't killed any enemy with Bash. Just used it as a means of platforming when needed.

Most people use Bash to direct enemies right into spikes, try that, it's fun! :)
 

Exentryk

Member
What I felt were the weaker spots was the combat and some parts of the game that felt like trial and error.

The trial and error part kinda frustrated me sometimes. It worked great when you could save anytime, but sometimes, especially during the escape segments, the camera angles and the overall speed pretty much made it impossible to react before you died.

Was thinking how this aspect could be maintained, while still not being frustrating. The reason for the frustration is the trial and error, so how about if we could remove this trial and error?

What I mean is that during these escape sequences, you could pause and view the whole escape zone (each screen at your own pace) before you even begin the sequence. Basically, you would pause, then activate this detach camera mode, then move the camera up each screen while studying the screens and formulating a route.

I think this would reduce the frustration a lot, as you'd be able to plan the escape. Of course, people that don't want to plan can just go blind like the game currently does it. This would cater to both types of approaches.

Thoughts?
 

wouwie

Member
You can return enemy fire towards themselves or other enemies for a lot of damage, but using an enemy as a "bash point" also does a bit of damage by itself. This can be upgraded to do quite a bit of damage.

I'll try and see if that gives me more interesting ways of killing enemies than spamming the A button. But i guess i like my platformers more without "shooting" mechanics (i prefer punch/jump on/kick/... which is basically killing enemies with platforming) or with shooting + aiming (e.g. straight line shooting or some sort of aiming mechanism). Shooting in Ori doesn't involve any aiming. You basically get close to the enemy, press A multiple times while trying to avoid the things that are being "shot" at you (which mostly means going backwards and forwards) while hoping that the shots that release in uncontrollable and random direction from your "weapon" will hit the enemy. If there was proper shooting, the enemy combat would have been a lot more enjoyable, involving different mechanics and ways to approach combat.
 
Ok I'm about to bash my head against a wall. I did another attempt at a 0 death speed run tonight and AGAIN I wound up choking and dying 1 time in Mt Huru, so yet again I just set a new personal best of 1h 30min 02sec with 1 death.... Woulda been around 1h 29min without that death. Damnit.

This 0 death speed run is going to be the death of me. No pun intended.

I'll be attempting again tonight at 10pm central and streaming if twitch isn't still screwing up for me. Twitch.tv/korbekgaming if you wanna come laugh at my mysery when I fail lol.

Silly complaint, but I really wish it was easier to figure out where you're supposed to go. A fas travel option (to discovered save points) would have been nice too. I really hate all the constant backtracking.

Younger me would have loved it as I could pick up missed collectibles and farm EXP, but older me just sees it as a colossal waste of time.

That's kinda the beauty of it. You see, there's actually very little backtracking if you learn the routes. I think someone did a 100% clear run, getting all life and energy cells, discovering 100% of the map, and going 'full path' with no glitches (dunno if they used the save/quit to skip cut scenes, they probably did) in less than 2 hours.

You can 'main path' the entire game picking up 6 or 7 live cells and 8 or 9 energy cells and clearing all the dungeons in about 90 minutes.

There's a lot of back tracking when you're still learning the routes, but the map tells you more or less exactly where you need to go even when you're still learning.

I'll try and see if that gives me more interesting ways of killing enemies than spamming the A button. But i guess i like my platformers more without "shooting" mechanics (i prefer punch/jump on/kick/... which is basically killing enemies with platforming) or with shooting + aiming (e.g. straight line shooting or some sort of aiming mechanism). Shooting in Ori doesn't involve any aiming. You basically get close to the enemy, press A multiple times while trying to avoid the things that are being "shot" at you (which mostly means going backwards and forwards) while hoping that the shots that release in uncontrollable and random direction from your "weapon" will hit the enemy. If there was proper shooting, the enemy combat would have been a lot more enjoyable, involving different mechanics and ways to approach combat.

Shooting is sort of a 'fallback' approach to combat in this game. Once you get ChargeFlame/Bash/Stomp, if you're using them properly in conjunction with one another, you do very little in the way of shooting enemies. That's where the high-level play and speed runs come in, using the optimum path and approach to encounters instead of just 'stop and spam spirit flame' during encounters.
 

m23

Member
I bashed a fish out of the water onto land only to see it start flipping and flopping, I felt bad then bashed it back into the water and then it continued swimming. The attention to detail is so good.
 

Exentryk

Member
I'll try and see if that gives me more interesting ways of killing enemies than spamming the A button. But i guess i like my platformers more without "shooting" mechanics (i prefer punch/jump on/kick/... which is basically killing enemies with platforming) or with shooting + aiming (e.g. straight line shooting or some sort of aiming mechanism). Shooting in Ori doesn't involve any aiming. You basically get close to the enemy, press A multiple times while trying to avoid the things that are being "shot" at you (which mostly means going backwards and forwards) while hoping that the shots that release in uncontrollable and random direction from your "weapon" will hit the enemy. If there was proper shooting, the enemy combat would have been a lot more enjoyable, involving different mechanics and ways to approach combat.

I disagree. If the game had proper aiming and shooting, it would ruin the gameplay, as it would interrupt the fast paced nature of gameplay. It would ruin the flow. Also, I don't like shooters at all, so trying to force this aiming and shooting mechanic is a definite no no.

Plus, once you get abilities like bash, stomp, multiple jumps, those are all you really need.

I bashed a fish out of the water onto land only to see it start flipping and flopping, I felt bad then bashed it back into the water and then it continued swimming. The attention to detail is so good.

Holy Shit! For real? Damn, MoonStudios!!!
 

wouwie

Member
Shooting is sort of a 'fallback' approach to combat in this game. Once you get ChargeFlame/Bash/Stomp, if you're using them properly in conjunction with one another, you do very little in the way of shooting enemies. That's where the high-level play and speed runs come in, using the optimum path and approach to encounters instead of just 'stop and spam spirit flame' during encounters.

Any videos available of your speedruns?
 
Any videos available of your speedruns?

Yeah I have a one-death speedrun on my youtube channel (KorbeKGaming) where I died 20 seconds from the end of the final escape sequence (and nearly broke my controller in anger lol). That was around a 1hr35min run. I recorded my latest one with 1 death that took 1hr30min but I prob won't upload it as the other one barely has any views. If I ever get a 0 death one done I'll upload that. I'll be running live in just a few minutes (twitch.tv/korbekgaming). Hopefully I don't suck/choke tonight!

My runs don't include the sequence breaks and save/quit glitch to skip cut scenes. They are full-path no glitches runs, but still fall into the "Any %" category because I don't grab all the life/energy cells or clear 100% of the map.


Lol that's too funny. Something that's probably uncommon as most people wouldn't be bashing that particular way with a fish near the surface.



Well I can't seem to stream because twitch is being a pain in the ass. Keep getting error code 0x103311B4 and searching twitch support reveals nothing.
 
Just realized Ori looks a ton like espeon.
RFQKqC4.png
 
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Mods, just tag me Chokes at Ori why don't you.

My last 3 consecutive runs have resulted in ONE death in Mt Huru..... the last two being at the exact same spot because I keep trying to climb over the top lip on the vertical elevator instead of jumping over it like I KNOW to do!

So yeah, yet another 1 death speedrun in the books, with yet another new personal best of 1hr 29min 09sec.

I'm getting really sick of "new personal best". I want that 0 death run damnit. It's like I'm Peyton Manning and it's the Super Bowl. Choke, choke, choke choke choke choke. I should change my gamertag to Chokemaster Flex. I should start drinking Choka-Cola. Screw full throttle, I'm going full choke. Fuck.
 

moerser

Member
i have 7 codss for the full game to give away, if anybody is interested, please pm me. first come first serve.

edit: xone only, sorry. two still available.
 

TheKeyPit

Banned
I've completed my 2nd run after 3 hours and 45 minutes and haven't used a single ability point to get the Elite achievement "Complete the whole game without using an Ability Point", but I didn't get the achievement...

What I've found is:
"WARNING: Before attempting this achievement, make sure you do not have any other save files active. The achievement for purchasing no abilities appears to be glitchy, in that it seems to search all your save files, and if you have any save file where you have purchased an ability, the achievement will not unlock for the save file where you didn't. Having only one active playthrough will avoid this.

To unlock this achievement, all you need to do is avoid purchasing an ability at the upgrade menu inside of a spirit link. Once you complete the game without any extra abilities, the achievement will unlock."

Why? :/
 

PaulloDEC

Member
Finally finished this wonderful game with nine and half hours clocked. While the save/checkpoint system and I didn't always see eye-to-eye, I loved pretty much everything else about it. Not sure I've ever seen such a dazzling mix of brilliant control, excellent design and breathtaking art.

Can't wait to see what Moon has in store for us next.

Ok I'm about to bash my head against a wall. I did another attempt at a 0 death speed run tonight and AGAIN I wound up choking and dying 1 time in Mt Huru, so yet again I just set a new personal best of 1h 30min 02sec with 1 death.... Woulda been around 1h 29min without that death. Damnit.

This 0 death speed run is going to be the death of me. No pun intended.

Just reading this is giving me anxiety. You have patience on a level that I can't even begin to understand.
 

thomasmahler

Moon Studios
@lifeexpectancy: Keep us updated, the team at Moon is rooting for you to manage to pull of a 0 death run. It's not easy, but it's very satisfying! :)
 
@lifeexpectancy: Keep us updated, the team at Moon is rooting for you to manage to pull of a 0 death run. It's not easy, but it's very satisfying! :)

Well I did it again.... meaning I choked. That's 3 times now I've choked in the vertical elevator room. My hands get so shaky I end up tapping jump too fast when trying to switch sides on the damn elevator!

Current personal best now sits at 1hr 29min 09sec according to the title screen, although the leaderboard has a slightly shorter time. And yes, that's with 1 death yet again. I refuse to attempt the glitches/sequence breaks until I can nail the 0 deaths doing the full route with no save states (except when I save to replenish health, but keep going).

Gonna try again tonight... I pray I get it because I have to go back to work for four days tomorrow and I'm afraid I'll get rusty.
 

GReeeeN

Member
help please!!

I went to jump back into my game, and its loaded my progress from about 5 hours ago...

Basically I started the game last night, played till about 25% and turned the console off while I was in game.

I jumped back in this morning, and it resumed the play session and i kept playing. I was saving by holding B continually throughout my play though, played it today for about 5-6 hours and again, turned the console off while in game. I just turned my system on and noticed the game was closed for some reason, so I boot it up, click Start Game, and it only showed my progress from last night, nothing from today....

so what the heck happened?, when the game saves, is it just a checkpoint save or something?, not an actual save..?, why had my progress not saved... is there any way to get back to my normal session?, have I just lost 5 hours of playtime?

any help would be great!! :(
 

GReeeeN

Member
Hey GReeeN,

Please send a mail to feedback@moongamestudios.com - I'm guessing you have the April update installed?

We're currently working on a patch that'll fix this issue, but it'd help to hear about your exact specs.

Yes I do have the April update installed,

No problem I'll send the email off now, just off the top of your head though, has my progress actually been lost?, or is it recoverable somehow?
 
Finished this last night. Very beautiful soundtrack, and nice world aesthetic. Wasn't a huge fan of the design of Ori. I think it got a bit repetitive as the game went on, but it was a decent Metroidvania.
 

GReeeeN

Member
Yup. And the water glitch and the collider issue.

Numbers-wise, the bugs are pretty rare... but it sucks for the people that encountered them, so we're working uber-hard on getting the patch out ASAP.

Will the patch recover my save state or should I just continue from my 25% save?, if a patch recovers 5 hours of playtime i'de rather wait for the release, any indication would be greatly appreciated
 
Ugh. For some reason I thought 100% completion in an area meant you got all the orbs, but I just unlocked the ability to see through walls and discovered I missed a life orb in the 2nd dungeon.
 
@lifeexpectancy: Keep us updated, the team at Moon is rooting for you to manage to pull of a 0 death run. It's not easy, but it's very satisfying! :)


I decided to do one last run before bed. New personal best 1hr 28mins 54sec.......
ZERO DEATHS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


The adrenaline is real. It is very, very real. My fingers are tingling and I screamed in triumph. I wasn't streaming, but I was recording with my Hauppage Pocket Rocket, so once it compiles the 20-minute splits into one video on my computer I'll upload it to my KorbeKGaming youtube.



HELLLLLLLLLL YEAHHHHH

It's too bad the leaderboards for speed running/0 deaths include people that used the save/quit to keep re-doing sections. I have a feeling my time is pretty solid for a no-glitch no-save state run.


7p4WXHL.gif
 
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