In the very first boss fight, it isn’t immediately obvious how to damage the stone-covered quadruped.
There’s a certain childhood experience that D-Pad Studio succeeds in conveying in “Owlboy.” Through the invention of wonderfully challenging puzzles and riveting boss fights, it has perfected the “aha” moment that comes with finally understanding how to progress in a game. These small, seemingly irrelevant idiosyncrasies are instrumental in bringing the world and its eclectic cast of characters to life.
The motherly villager Mandolyn lightly chides Otus for annoying his stoic mentor Asio. For example, the shirtless, kooky Toby sits in the hot spring and attempts to convince Otus that he’s trying too hard and needs to relax before erupting in maniacal laughter. Each person whom Otus encounters has something different to say, whether cheerful, dark or straight up nonsensical. “Owlboy” also resurrects the importance of the NPC, or nonplayer characters. “Owlboy” has an excruciating amount of detail lining every pixel if one takes a moment to admire it. Inside the abandoned Owl Temple, massive waterfalls, vine-covered ruins and ancient torches pulsing with light are all exquisitely animated in a wonderfully nostalgic 16-bit style. Huge, picturesque clouds float carefreely behind the windswept countryside village of Vellie. Soaring up through idyllic villages or carefully through spike-ridden dungeons forces the player to think beyond the dimensions of more traditional games in order to progress unbounded movement and sprawling environments make for a sense of freedom rarely seen in 2-D.ĭ-Pad Studio takes heavy advantage of this freedom with incredibly gorgeous and stunning Zelda-esque world-building. By introducing unrestrained flight, D-Pad Studio redefines the boundaries of the typical platformer, no longer tying players to the ground and creating an unexpected, delightful interaction between two different interpretations of what 2-D means.
But flying isn’t just fun, it completely innovates the 2-D space. The controls in “Owlboy,” best served on a controller, are crisp and responsive. Right away, players will notice how fun it is just flying, let alone actually playing the game. As his journey continues, he unravels the mysteries of these curious relics and of his owl ancestors’ sudden disappearance. Along with a ragtag band of friends - such as the nervous but kindhearted Geddy and the noble ex-pirate Alphonse - Otus shoots his way through ancient temples and flies through cavernous jungles in order to prevent the all-powerful owl relics from falling into the villainous Molstrom’s hands. In “Owlboy,” the player takes on the role of the mute owl-child Otus. 1 by the D-Pad Studio, the indie RPG platformer “Owlboy” is a soaring example of what happens when a dedicated five-man team painstakingly crafts a video game with loving warmth for the spirit of platforming.