Like traversal, combat also moves quickly. Super Meat BoyвЂs essence may have also contributed to the difficulty, but more on that later. I was able to immediately get a feel for its capabilities, and I never missed a jump that felt like the fault of the control. The little forest creature dashes with impressive speed, and the platforming control is tight. It may seem difficult to reconcile the beautiful artwork with a Super Meat Boy influence, but that shows up with the way Ori handles. MiyazakiвЂ™s influence can be felt in the themes as well, which deal with life, death, and the beauty of nature. As a more direct reference, one of the characters shown in the demo bears a striking resemblence to Spirited AwayвЂs No-Face. In motion, it looks even better, with scrolling and lighting effects that play with the two-dimensional artwork well. The environments are stunning in their beauty, each hand-drawn and unique, with a generous use of color. The most obvious result of OriвЂs influences is that from Miyazaki. Imagine my surprise and delight to find that the influences are not only clear, but that they work wonderfully together. Though each has achieved greatness in its own right, the grouping is a strange one. He cited the works of Hayao Miyazaki, Super Meat Boy, Limbo, and Metroid.

Before I was able to play Ori and the Blind Forest, Microsoft Studios producer Daniel Smith rattled off a list of influences for the game, which sets lofty, perhaps unreasonable, expectations.

Ori and the blind forest