The recent Microsoft and Nintendo partnership has been a treat for video game aficionados. Owners of the Switch were treated to two previous Microsoft exclusives this year. The critically acclaimed Cuphead and the equally praised Ori and the Blind Forest were great when they premiered on the Xbox One and PC, but they are equally impressive on the Switch, especially when played on the go. Here's what players can expect from Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition on the Switch.

The love child of a small creative team with Microsoft's backing, developer Moon created an audio-visual experience that was a rarely seen novelty when the title was released in early 2015 for PC and Xbox One. Detailed and colorful hand-painted environments, a captivating orchestral soundtrack, and one of the saddest story premises made Ori a memorable title. Thankfully, its solid take on the Metroidvania genre was just as well executed.

In Ori and the Blind Forest, we play as a cute creature of light that went astray from its home, the tree of light, which keeps the surrounding forest alive. The creature of light is adopted and raised elsewhere, and the forest withers away as the tree slowly loses its light in an effort to locate its lost child, Ori. Eventually, we must undertake the journey to reclaim the lost light and revive the forest on our own, which is quite a feat for such a tiny and seemingly fragile creature. Looks are deceiving. Ori isn't half as fragile as it seems, and with the help of the remaining light in the forest, reclaiming what was lost is entirely possible.

As mentioned, Ori and the Blind Forest is a Metroidvania title at heart. To revive the forest, we must remove its corruption from several different places until its light is rekindled. As expected for games of this kind, the game features a semi-open world of interconnected levels that slowly become available as we learn new abilities. Gates that were previously locked or walls that we were unable to scale require us to gain a new ability or enhancement in another area, so we can return and access places that we previously couldn't reach. If you're a fan of such games, Ori is a more than solid entry in the genre, even though it doesn't stray far from the beaten path — but it doesn't have to.

Ori is an agile creature, but by the end of the game, we can jump, double-jump, glide, wall-run, and attack enemies with increasing power and ferocity. The game is an action-packed platformer that requires combat, precise jumps, and smart maneuvering to get through its well-designed stages. There were plenty of times when the layout of certain passages had me rethink my approach or timing to get through a particularly tough section. The game also occasional enters a do-or-die phase, where Ori must quickly escape an area with well-timed jumps and dashes to avoid a certain demise. It's a testament to its level design, interesting move set, and extremely responsive controls. It can be challenging at times, but it's never unfair or feels impossible.

A couple of minutes into the game, the basic moves consist of a regular jump and a floating light orb that shoots lightning bolts at our enemies. There is a constant and tight path of progression to achieve the aforementioned upgrades. Along with additional skills, we may also find crucial health and power enhancements, which are vital if we want to stand our ground against some fierce enemies. That isn't the only way to progress in Ori, as we also have a basic skill tree where we can invest experience points to level up our attack power and other aspects, such as damage radius, for charged attacks or the ability to attack multiple enemies at once.

What's best about the experience is that it does not overstay its welcome. It's not an endlessly long game and can be beaten in roughly 10 hours if you take your time and explore. As a Metroidvania where exploration and the acquisition of new skills is important, Ori strikes a delicate balance that is close to perfect. Due to its runtime, there is always something new — areas, enemies or skills — and before they have a chance to become tedious, there's something else to discover. It's a game that rarely misses a beat and blends exploration and combat just right so that there isn't much downtime at any point. Add to that the fact that some moves are downright cool ideas, such as the dash ability. A dash isn't much of a novelty on paper, but in Ori, it becomes a vital and interesting part of traversal. Dashes can be used on special lanterns to gain additional height or distance mid-air. It can also be used on enemies and projectiles, both of which will be propelled into the opposite directions when doing so, opening up opportunities for some clever puzzle sections. It does a good job, so Ori feels increasingly powerful as the light of the tree is restored.

There's plenty of challenge to be found in Ori and the Blind Forest. Enemies vary in many respects; some send out spike projectiles when you're close by, while others may initiate a full-on attack. They always have a predictable pattern, but their attacks are powerful, so any mistake can cost a substantial amount of health and result in your demise. If you'd like more of a challenge, the game has a harder difficulty and an insanely hard "one life" game mode. There are genuine bragging rights, since the game offers an online leaderboard to compare performances in every difficulty mode. The game even packs in its own achievements (one of which is completing the game with one life), which is a feature that's otherwise missing from the Switch system.

If you're paying close attention, you may have also noticed that the title carries the words "Definitive Edition" in its name. That isn't just a fancy set of words slapped onto a re-release but a slightly more quantifiable addition. Many of the additions are quality of life improvements, such as expanded/added areas and a new save/fast-travel system. Saving in Ori is usually dependent on energy cells, which are used for special attacks. It can also be used to create save points and to access the skill tree. In the Definitive Edition, there's an additional mechanic in the form of light wells. These bright constructions are the only fixed save points that don't require spending energy cells, and they enable fast travel between them. The game didn't necessarily need them, but they are nice to have to reduce backtracking and enable achievement hunters to hunt down collectibles.

While gameplay is important, it isn't everything, and Ori makes an appealing case as to why. The game looks, sounds and plays phenomenally, with tight controls and a stellar presentation that loses nothing in its transition to the Switch. The game, while sometimes slightly reduced in resolution, runs at a solid 60fps without any other visible compromises. The only minor difference in presentation is that it looks like the view is slightly zoomed in on Switch, likely to make it easier to see the action on a smaller screen when playing in handheld mode. The fantastic soundtrack seems unaffected, and it still sounds captivating.

The end result is a game that is phenomenal in its presentation and very decent in gameplay.  Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition doesn't necessarily set a new standard or innovate within the Metroidvania genre, but it does create an experience that is elevated by its otherwise stellar production values. Ultimately, it's up to personal preference, but you should give the game a chance; you'd likely regret it otherwise.

Score: 9.0/10