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Ori and the Blind Forest Hype

K

Kevin Shields

Member
This past week I have been introduced to this upcoming game and every new thing I see on it the more excited I get. I haven't seen any recent threads on this game so I just wanted to put it on people's maps if you were unaware like I was. It has a beautiful art style and according to a fellow gaffer who is working on the game, a lot of work has been put into making a metroid like game with superb level design and tight controls. It looks like super metroid gameplay in the world of shadow of the colossus/dust.

I've been refreshing their website page hoping for a release date, because I am day 1 on this game.

Here is the trailer:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cklw-Yu3moE


And here is a nice gameplay video:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9gLk8pUFUFw


So if you are interested, come in on and get hyped. Hoping this will release in January...
 
B

Bgamer90

Banned
Really looking forward to this.

Would be nice if this ends up being a "GWG" during whatever month it releases. Going to have the game as soon as it launches either way though.
 
K

Kyuur

Member
Incredibly hyped. I was intrigued the first time I saw the art style but upon finding out it was Metroidvania-styled and not just a regular platformer my excitement shot through the roof. Just need a release date. :(
 
1

1.21Gigawatts

Banned
Not too sure what sets this apart from many other beautiful, promising indie titles next year.
So I wouldn't say I hyped, but it certainly looks interesting.
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
calcetinvolador said:
I will get this game if it comes out for the 360, has this been confirmed?
Click to expand...

Yes. We will release on 360 a bit after we released on X1 and PC (which release on the same day/date).

Thanks to all of you guys who're looking forward to Ori. We've been pouring our hearts and souls into this game for 4 years now and we're currently in friends and family testing. We still have a bit of time to just polish and perfect everything, but it'll come to you soon!

I hope that 2015 becomes the greatest year in videogame history and I hope we're starting it off in a fantastic way with Ori.

I can't really say too much yet, but if you guys have any specific questions, fire away.
 
M

Momentary

Banned
thomasmahler said:
Yes. We will release on 360 a bit after we released on X1 and PC (which release on the same day/date).

Thanks to all of you guys who're looking forward to Ori. We've been pouring our hearts and souls into this game for 4 years now and we're currently in friends and family testing. We still have a bit of time to just polish and perfect everything, but it'll come to you soon!

I hope that 2015 becomes the greatest year in videogame history and I hope we're starting it off in a fantastic way with Ori.

I can't really say too much yet, but if you guys have any specific questions, fire away.
Click to expand...

Oh man you just answered my biggest question I had about the game. Thank you! This will be a day one purchase on Steam. Can't wait to have it in my 52 games in 1 year challenge list.
 
S

ShogunX

Member
thomasmahler said:
Yes. We will release on 360 a bit after we released on X1 and PC (which release on the same day/date).

Thanks to all of you guys who're looking forward to Ori. We've been pouring our hearts and souls into this game for 4 years now and we're currently in friends and family testing. We still have a bit of time to just polish and perfect everything, but it'll come to you soon!

I hope that 2015 becomes the greatest year in videogame history and I hope we're starting it off in a fantastic way with Ori.

I can't really say too much yet, but if you guys have any specific questions, fire away.
Click to expand...

How is the hand holding in the game? Are you constantly told where to go, where to jump ect ect? Also interested in if the game has any difficulty levels above vanilla?
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
ShogunX said:
How is the hand holding in the game? Are you constantly told where to go, where to jump ect ect? Also interested in if the game has any difficulty levels above vanilla?
Click to expand...

It's very much inspired by Super Metroid. We did add objectives (similar to markers on the map like in A Link to the Past), but they're not telling you exactly how you reach the places... So we thought that's the perfect compromise. You know what your main objective is, but you can deviate from that path and the objective doesn't feel like hand holding.

You can go wherever you want, as long as you have acquired the skills you need. After reaching the Spirit Tree fairly early on, you can actually go to late stage areas early on to find some secrets, but obviously the enemies and obstacles there are pretty tough.

No difficulty levels. That being said, if you think some areas are too difficult for you, you can always explore the overworld a bit more to find more health / energy or to gain new abilities on the ability tree that all help to make the game easier. Also, if you're afraid of dying too often, just use the Soul Link. It's basically a bit like Quicksave / Quickload, but you have to pay with your energy to create a Soul Link.

We're also currently making sure that speedrunners will have their fun with Ori. I hope we'll see some crazy people who record themselves playing through Ori without dying once. I just recently managed to do it, but man, was it ever close :D
 
V

ViewtifulJC

Banned
thomasmahler, I know playtimes vary person to person and usually I'm faster than most dev times say, but how big is this game, without going into any specifics? I know its called "Ori and the Blind Forest", but I like to get an idea of the size of the game and maybe the kind of variety we'll be playing in this Metroid style game.
 
M

migh_and_highty

Neo Member
Might get in a steam sale or something. Not an anti indie guy but recently getting bored of sidescrollerish games, bought a few retail games for Christmas which should last a few months, and then I could refresh and visit the sidescroller indies that I've missed
 
N

NoctisVsStar

Member
thomasmahler said:
Yes. We will release on 360 a bit after we released on X1 and PC (which release on the same day/date).

Thanks to all of you guys who're looking forward to Ori. We've been pouring our hearts and souls into this game for 4 years now and we're currently in friends and family testing. We still have a bit of time to just polish and perfect everything, but it'll come to you soon!

I hope that 2015 becomes the greatest year in videogame history and I hope we're starting it off in a fantastic way with Ori.

I can't really say too much yet, but if you guys have any specific questions, fire away.
Click to expand...

game looks awesome bro
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
calcetinvolador said:
is this game 60fps? the graphics of the 360 version will be downgraded compared to the PC/Xone versions?
Click to expand...

Yep, it's 60fps. Graphics on X360 will be 720p while it's 1080p on X1 and Steam.

Sorry bout that, but Unity is locked to 720p on 360 and we couldn't do all the effects and keep the framerate up at 1080p on the 360. That being said, gameplay-wise, the 360 version will be just as good as the X1 / PC version, so whatever version you buy, you should be happy :)

I really can't wait for all of you to play it, it'll be a blast for the entire dev team to read the threads here and see what you guys think.

Also, Ori will be shown at PAX South and there will be an event with Major Nelson where you guys can visit and play Ori with him. We'll have a build there where you can play a dungeon that we've never shown before.
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
ViewtifulJC said:
thomasmahler, I know playtimes vary person to person and usually I'm faster than most dev times say, but how big is this game, without going into any specifics? I know its called "Ori and the Blind Forest", but I like to get an idea of the size of the game and maybe the kind of variety we'll be playing in this Metroid style game.
Click to expand...

Typical playthrough is roundabout 10 hours. I doubt that you'll be able to finish it in anything less than 6-7 on your first playthrough, even if you're really good - I think it's similar sized to Super Metroid / Symphony of the Night. We haven't really even shown a lot of the later stage areas yet, cause I always hate it when i'm seeing late stage gameplay in previews. Spoils all the 'Holy shit, this is crazy!' moments when you experience it for the first time :)

We did an interview with Game Informer a while ago where we went into more specifics:

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/o...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
 
K

Kevin Shields

Member
thomasmahler said:
Yep, it's 60fps. Graphics on X360 will be 720p while it's 1080p on X1 and Steam.

Sorry bout that, but Unity is locked to 720p on 360 and we couldn't do all the effects and keep the framerate up at 1080p on the 360. That being said, gameplay-wise, the 360 version will be just as good as the X1 / PC version, so whatever version you buy, you should be happy :)

I really can't wait for all of you to play it, it'll be a blast for the entire dev team to read the threads here and see what you guys think.

Also, Ori will be shown at PAX South and there will be an event with Major Nelson where you guys can visit and play Ori with him. We'll have a build there where you can play a dungeon that we've never shown before.
Click to expand...

How big is the dev team Thomas?
 
C

calcetinvolador

Banned
thomasmahler said:
Yep, it's 60fps. Graphics on X360 will be 720p while it's 1080p on X1 and Steam.

Sorry bout that, but Unity is locked to 720p on 360 and we couldn't do all the effects and keep the framerate up at 1080p on the 360. That being said, gameplay-wise, the 360 version will be just as good as the X1 / PC version, so whatever version you buy, you should be happy :)

I really can't wait for all of you to play it, it'll be a blast for the entire dev team to read the threads here and see what you guys think.

Also, Ori will be shown at PAX South and there will be an event with Major Nelson where you guys can visit and play Ori with him. We'll have a build there where you can play a dungeon that we've never shown before.
Click to expand...

Thanks you for answering, if the visuals are the same then no problems for me with the game being 720p on the 360.
 
K

Kiyo

Member
Pretty hyped for this game as well. The delay is a little disappointing but I know the game will be better off for it so not too worried about it.

Also, please don't limit it to 1080p on PC. As someone with a 1440p monitor, it's a deal-breaker for me when games do that.
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
Robobandit said:
I know someone will ask this, so it may as well be me. Is it limited to 1080p? Some of us have higher screen resolutions than 1080p and would hate to have to play the game in a window or have it stretched.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Nope, you can set it to whatever you want. We also recently showed Ori in 4k at an Nvidia Event. We got all your p's covered.
 
O

OrbitalBeard

Member
I can't wait for this game! I just bought a $30 Xbox code from Amazon with a gift card I received for Christmas specifically for this game. Hoping it's out within the first couple months of 2015.
 
R

RK9039

Member
This will be the first game I buy in 2015, looks great.

ed: And Below, where has that game gone? I want it.
 
T

transience

Member
I want to ask about a hundred questions but I'd rather go in blind (ha ha). I do have one thing unrelated though: do you guys have a release month or anything like that? Is it Q1?
 
V

ViewtifulJC

Banned
thomasmahler said:
Typical playthrough is roundabout 10 hours. I doubt that you'll be able to finish it in anything less than 6-7 on your first playthrough, even if you're really good - I think it's similar sized to Super Metroid / Symphony of the Night. We haven't really even shown a lot of the later stage areas yet, cause I always hate it when i'm seeing late stage gameplay in previews. Spoils all the 'Holy shit, this is crazy!' moments when you experience it for the first time :)

We did an interview with Game Informer a while ago where we went into more specifics:

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/o...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response! I've been looking forward to this game for quite a while, once I saw there were some tight controls and interesting mechanical challenges behind all those good looks. The Super Metroid inspiration is a plus, too. Can't wait to play it early next year :)
 
S

Sydle

Member
I'm not hyped, but very much looking forward to this lovely looking game. Will probably be my first game of 2015.

EDIT: Just watched the gameplay video again. So beautiful. Kind of hyped...
 
D

Dunkley

Member
Played it twice while it was being demo'd at public events. I have to say it plays really well and looks absolutely gorgeous. Controls are very simple and I loved the momentum and just going around and collecting stuff. Definitely recommending this from my impressions.

I wonder how the 360 version will perform however. The Xbox One version had occasional choppy moments at certain places (although I am sure they are probably fixed by now).

I also wonder about the requirements for this on PC. I hope they stay low enough so I can still play it on my computer before having to upgrade.
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
calcetinvolador said:
One last question, will the game be digital only or there will be a retail disc release as well?
Click to expand...

We nagged Phil Spencer about that at Gamescom ;) If Ori becomes a hit, there's definitely a possibility of a Retail Release, but it's digital only for now.

We're also gonna release a soundtrack to Ori, since Gareth Coker (our composer) has done such an excellent job... some of the tracks always bring tears to my eyes. And the games soundtrack has recently been recorded by an orchestra in Nashville, so the quality of the tracks is pretty damn great.

Also, if you guys haven't seen it yet, we recently released a small teaser that's all about our Sound Effects and... Gumo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OA8Uzj0tyG0
 
S

ShogunX

Member
thomasmahler said:
It's very much inspired by Super Metroid. We did add objectives (similar to markers on the map like in A Link to the Past), but they're not telling you exactly how you reach the places... So we thought that's the perfect compromise. You know what your main objective is, but you can deviate from that path and the objective doesn't feel like hand holding.

You can go wherever you want, as long as you have acquired the skills you need. After reaching the Spirit Tree fairly early on, you can actually go to late stage areas early on to find some secrets, but obviously the enemies and obstacles there are pretty tough.

No difficulty levels. That being said, if you think some areas are too difficult for you, you can always explore the overworld a bit more to find more health / energy or to gain new abilities on the ability tree that all help to make the game easier. Also, if you're afraid of dying too often, just use the Soul Link. It's basically a bit like Quicksave / Quickload, but you have to pay with your energy to create a Soul Link.

We're also currently making sure that speedrunners will have their fun with Ori. I hope we'll see some crazy people who record themselves playing through Ori without dying once. I just recently managed to do it, but man, was it ever close :D
Click to expand...

Sounds great, now a day one purchase for me. I was worried the game would be too easy and focus on the player enjoying the adventure and story rather than providing a challenge.
 
K

Kevin Shields

Member
Man that scene in the gameplay video where the water is rushing up and Ori had to escape looked incredible... The variety looks pretty nice in this game. Doesn't look repetitive at all.
 
M

Miles Quaritch

Member
So incredibly hyped for this, still bummed out it wasn't released this year, but if the delay means it'll be even better when it does finally release, I'm all for it.

Hopefully MS sees sense and turns this into a series and doesn't just invest in the one IP and then move on...
 
T

thomasmahler

Member
Miles Quaritch said:
Hopefully MS sees sense and turns this into a series and doesn't just invest in the one IP and then move on...
Click to expand...

Hey, I hope we'll get to have a say about that too! ;)

Actually, there's quite a lot of stuff that we cut from the game a year or two into development, simply cause it wouldn't have fit into what we were building. We wanted to keep Ori and the Blind Forest as tight as possible - You'll never really see any level where we're repeating challenges you already went through and even still, the game ended up being a 10+ hour thing.

But I do think that we could have a bit of a Mario Galaxy situation here, where we just prototyped so much stuff at the beginning and we might want to use some of the levels and things we created, but haven't used yet further down the road again.

There's also a gravity mechanic in the game that's unlike anything you've seen so far - I'd like to explore that further, too. We could've made a full game just out of that mechanic, to be honest. But hey, for now, let's make sure we're perfecting this title, so that we make you guys happy and hopefully end up with a financially successful game.

I'm not even all that worried about the critics and the 'hardcore' crowd, cause we've gotten so much positive response from everyone who played it thus far, but sales are something that's awfully hard to predict. I'll be biting my nails around the time of release and i hope you guys see how much value we picked into this game.
 
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