Owlboy

It took me way too long to get to Owlboy. There are so many stellar indies on my backlog that continue to get usurped by the bigger-name games. It's a lot easier to talk to friends about big-budget AAA games since they are so much more likely to have played them, but less recognizable games like this can pull off some really special things. I only chose to start Owlboy after owning it for nearly four years because I wanted a shorter game to fill the short lull before Christmas beefed up my library again, but I found that the game actually helped me to better appreciate the value of well-crafted independently-developed videogames.

Owlboy is a story-oriented platformer that feels incredibly polished, no matter what angle you consider it from. You play as an owl named Otus, and, along with his friends, you go on an epic adventure that covers important themes, like loss, forgiveness, acceptance, and redemption. The characters and their animations can often feel comically over-the-top, but they still seamlessly integrate into the game's world and its unique approach to such an emotional story. Even the gameplay itself, which can be very challenging at times, falls in line with the established themes, offering endless forgiveness for your failures, and valuable rewards for your dedication. It's clear that the developers knew exactly what kind of world they wanted to make and what kind of story they wanted to tell because the cohesion they managed between the different pieces of this game is absolutely remarkable.

Because my heartstrings were tugged from the opening cutscene of Owlboy, I want to avoid saying almost anything tangible about the actual story so that you can experience its full impact first-hand. If you like platformers and powerful narratives, Owlboy should be right up your alley. While it's relatively short, the developers managed to pack a whole novel's worth of story into this gem, making a thoroughly fulfilling experience the entire way through. As long as you're not put off by retrying a difficult platforming challenge every now and then, Owlboy has my heartiest recommendation.

The game is available for Steam here (as of 12/29/21): https://store.steampowered.com/app/115800/Owlboy/
The game is available for Switch here (as of 12/29/21): https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/owlboy-switch/
The game is available for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S here (as of 12/29/21): https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/store/owlboy/C1PHTB54976G/0001
The game is available for PS4 and PS5 here (as of 12/29/21): https://store.playstation.com/en-us/product/UP4218-CUSA09914_00-OWLBOY0000000000

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