Ori and the Blind Forest

The Definitive Edition of one of the best games from 2015, Ori and the Blind Forest, is set to release March 11. Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition developed …
Read More

Earlier this year at Gamescom Microsoft and Moon Studios announced that Ori and the Blind Forest would be receiving a definitive edition set to launch sometime in 2015. However, Ori and the …
Read More

After its first full calendar year of existence was dominated by ports, re-releases and remasters, ID@Xbox came into its own in 2015. Yes, as we looked back on this second …
Read More

Critical darling Ori and the Blind Forest is getting an expansion, Moon Studios Director Thomas Mahler announced through Major Nelson earlier this week. Ori and the Blind Forest Definitive Edition …
Read More

Every game will work in remote play, but these games will work the best.
Read More

This is a really exciting time to be working on XBLA Fans. The Xbox One is currently in another resurgence with tons of impressive and exciting games coming through the console.

Read More

Moon Studios CEO Thomas Mahler took to NeoGaf this week to talk about the current state of Ori and the Blind Forest. He revealed that the critical darling has …
Read More

Super Time Force received a free update this week. The new Ultra Update includes the Helladecks, made up of 50 new challenge levels that force players to use their time-rewinding skills in a different way, and a new Ultra Force mode which is unlocked after you complete the game and is said to be an alternate style of time-forcing with extra-powerful versions of the Time Force team. Achievement hunters will also be pleased to know that the update brings five new achievements worth a total of 375 Gamerscore.

Sling TV recently launched a new app exclusively for Xbox One. The new app, which allows viewers to watch live TV instantly without a cable company, offers the same great features gamers have come to expect, including the ability to Snap, Pin to Home and use voice or gesture controls with Kinect for Xbox One. Microsoft are also offering a limited time deal of three free months of Sling TV service with the purchase of an Xbox One console via the Microsoft Store (US only).

And finally, current Xbox One darling Ori and the Blind Forest secretly paid tribute to one of XBLA Fans all-time favourites Super Meat Boy. Meat Boy himself can be spotted behind a hidden wall in the Blind Forest, apparently fallen victim to a bed of spikes. Check out the video on how to spot this charming easter egg after the jump.

Read More

The XBLA Fans Twitch Stream Team has grown drastically in recent months thanks to the support of our viewers. I’d love to personally encourage each of our readers to check out at least one broadcast this week. We will be updating the site on a weekly basis with a plethora of streams for you to enjoy.

In addition to our scheduled streams below we also sometimes do impromptu streams. The best way to stay informed of those is to follow XBLA Fans on Twitter and follow us on Twitch.

If there is a game you want to see streamed, please contact us.

This week we are doing a special Subscribers Only Giveaway. On 3/22 we will do a random giveaway for our subscribers entering anyone who has subscribed automatically. The winner will get their choice of prize from our vault of giveaway codes. Please consider subscribing to support the stream.  We are close to unlocking two more awesome emotes.

All times are listed in EST.

Monday 3/16

• 11a – 2p SMITE with Zero Jehuty
• 2p – 5p Thomas Was Alone with Cuckoolander
• 7p – 10p Ziggurat with K4rn4ge
• 11p – 12a Ori and the Blind Forest with The Snapple Cap

Read More

Ori and the Blind Forest was developed by Moon Studios and published on Xbox One by Microsoft Studios. It will be released on March 11, 2015 for $19.99. A copy was provided for review purposes.

If I’m ever asked sum up Ori and the Blind Forest in just a few words, I’ll undoubtedly describe it as beautiful, sorrowful, thought-provoking and magical, but it’s also a game which offers a stiff challenge that stretches across a vast and diverse range of environments and offers a lot of replay value. In fact, I’d have to say that Ori is one of the best games I’ve played in a long time and it may even be one of my favourite games ever, despite belonging to a subgenre of platform games of which typically I’m not a fan.

Although Ori is basically a platform game with RPG-lite elements, it features a system of advancement through the unlocking of new and different abilities – double jumping, air-dashing and so on which in turn allow access to previously unreachable areas. This style of game is traditionally likened to Metroid and Castlevania, but due to its graphical leanings and wonderful musical score, Ori is perhaps most alike to Dust: an Elysian Tale among its peers.

As a reviewer, I’m duty bound to tell you what genre a game belongs in, or how it looks and how long it is, but the truth is that Ori is one of those special kind of games that works hard to set itself apart (and boy does it succeed) because almost everything comes together perfectly to create a tight and eminently enjoyable experience which allows it to sit aside from similar games and perhaps even redefine the accepted norm.

Read More