Ori and the Will of the Wisps review – monsters and magic stir in the forest

The soulful platformer returns to an extraordinarily beautiful world filled with new characters, challenges - and myriad foes to engage in combat

More than anything else, Ori and the Will of the Wisps is an intoxicating feast for the senses. From its hauntingly beautiful visuals to its ambient, responsive music, there is so much to love about the look and feel of this long-awaited sequel.

As with 2015's masterful Ori and the Blind Forest, Will of the Wisps falls into the Metroidvania subgenre of multidirectional scrolling platformers, and its impressive aesthetics are matched by a gripping storyline, bewitching characters and a fully immersive environment in which every nook and cranny pulses with life. This time around Ori, the translucent white guardian spirit, is tasked with navigating through and beyond the dense Nibel forest to a new world shrouded in darkness.