Ori is my favorite Metroidvania series by far, and I love Metroidvanias. The most incredible feat is that the second installment actually surpassed the first. The first Ori was amazing. It was stunningly beautiful, had a compelling story, and the gameplay mechanics were fantastic.
For Ori 2 I would have been happy with more of the same. They didn’t have to try to reinvent anything, and yet they did in Wisps. Every tweak they made was for the better. The interface/mechanics changes rounded off rough edges I didn’t even realize were there. The story remained engaging and touching, and it had a real arc. And the graphics are even more stunning. I remember playing Wisps for the first time and just standing still and being amazed at the graphics. My character was standing still, and yet the entire screen was alive with movement. I was standing on a branch, and the branch was slowly bouncing with my weight. The leaves were gently blowing in the wind. Blades of grass were swaying. It was incredible.
The two Ori games are some of the best games of any genre I’ve ever played. Big fan, and I’m excited by that studio’s next game.