Omno | Nintendo Switch Review
Omno is a single-player adventure game and an epic journey of self discovery and realisation. It was developed by Jonas Manke and published by Studio Inkyfox and is currently available on Windows PC, PlayStation, XBox, and Nintendo Switch. For the purpose of my review I was playing the Nintendo Switch version in docked mode.
Omno is a whimsical blend of platforming and puzzling in a stunning and enchanted land, as you traverse your way through a lost world. The story very much focuses around friendship and relationships as you uncover different types of creatures and travel through the various biomes. Omno is a journey of exploration and problem solving and with no combat, there is very little threat to the pure zen-like chill that Omno has to offer the player. Each biome requires you to light up a main pillar and to do so you have to explore around the areas, solving the puzzles and collecting orbs. Once you’ve collected the third orb you’ll be able to activate the pillar and solve the final puzzle allowing you to move onto the next biome and continue your adventure. All throughout Omno, the player is given a fascinating terrain with a variety of adorable and intriguing animals, none of them which are of any threat to you at all. Some animals simply exist for you to appreciate visually; and others help you with puzzles and then there is even one big beautiful mythical creature that flies you majestically between the biomes.
The whimsical, fairytale environments really never failed to blow me away and from very early on I felt incredibly charmed by Omno. Throughout the game you’ll need to use some platforming skills alongside engaging your brain to figure out puzzles. Neither the platforming nor puzzling are particularly difficult but despite the simplicity it was still highly engaging and rewarding throughout - although there were one or two puzzles that stumped me, but never to the point of wanting to give up or feeling like I was wasting my time. There was some platforming later on that felt a little bit clunky and frustrating, but I mostly put that down to the Joycons not being the most responsive controller. I was, however, so invested in the game by this point that I pressed on despite having to navigate through some frustrating floating and flying sections.
Omno is the perfect game for a quiet, cosy Sunday of gaming and is easily completed in one sitting. It took me about five hours to beat – however, I was certainly left wanting more, so I would not complain, if there were a few more biomes to complete. This would mean the game would be slightly longer, however, if you finish the main story and still want more you can return to the early biomes and grab the remaining glyphs that you previously couldn’t access without the other skills you learn later in the game. I’d easily recommend this game to anyone of any skill levels or age. Some will appreciate the beauty and tranquillity more than others - but no matter what, there’s a beautiful, stunning environment there for all to enjoy. Alongside the gorgeous visuals, the soundscape is also absolutely beautiful and the score flows with you as you progress. The game was scored by Benedict Nichols who also worked on the soundtrack for The Falconeer and Before We Leave.
I absolutely adored Omno. Despite feeling in some areas that the controls weren’t quite intuitive enough (however this could very much be a “me” problem as detailed), I really fell in love and was charmed by my adventures with Pickle Onion Head (my affectionate pet name for the main character). The puzzling was simple yet effective, the worldbuilding was totally immaculate and it was absolutely jam packed with charm. Quite clearly some real care and attention went into Omno from beginning to end and to know that this came from a solo developer really shows so much promise. I really look forward to seeing what is next for Jonas Manke.
Lj’s Rating: 4.5 mythical beasts out of 5.
For more information on Omno please use the following links...
Jonas Manke - Developer | Website
Studio Inkyfox - Publisher | Facebook | Twitter | Website
Many thanks to Future Friends Games for the Review Key.
Omno | Windows PC | PlayStation | XBox | Nintendo
#Omno #JonasManke #StudioInkyfox #AdventurePuzzle #IndieGame