Owlboy is not at all the most awaited game of the year, but it is certainly a title that has maintained some expectation after its eventful development. Not in vain, the owl boy game was announced almost a decade ago, and even competed in some awards
for the independent videogame with the now legendary Limbo . Years later, when it seemed that this anthropomorphic owl would no longer cross the skies, he ended up seeing the light even after the sequel of that title, that fantastic visual nightmare that is Inside . But the sensations that Owlboy tries to evoke are, in any case, opposite.
There is nothing here of that world as of German expressionism. Even less of all this so sombre plot proposal of Playdead games.Owlboy does not want to scare us, but rather give us a hug , and takes us to one of the most gleaming audio-visual worlds of
all those we can visit right now in the indie scene, considering the trend of pixel art with a new approach . One in which D-pad Studio has fully hit and that assumes much of its brilliant reality.
Title screen and superb introduction melody make it clear to us from the first moment. Owlboy comes to attack the sensitive fiberof the players
who enjoyed the numerous models that he reveres, while addressing those who seek an experience almost identical to what was common in many videogames of the mid-nineties. It is a respectful game with tradition to such an extent that it
could pass for a newcomer from an alternative past in which the polygonal wave did not completely destroy the classic sprites . A parallel dimension in
which the two-dimensional graphics followed their evolution at a rate higher than that which occurred in our reality. The indie news has now
returned us the appreciation of the pixelated graphicsand two-dimensional, but the tendency to abuse 8-bit aesthetics is
beginning to take its toll. Owlboy is great news in this direction. His world, beautiful, seems to consider rather what would have happened if things had passed for more years along the path that marked the technical possibilities of, say, a Super Nintendo .
Contemplating the aspect of Otus, the mute owl who stars in this great adventure, it is impossible not to think about the old Link or Chrono, on whom he
bases not a little on what happens in his adventures. The same goes for the charming list of secondary characters, who seem to have just arrived from a Chrono Trigger or Secret of Mana 2. The aesthetic that the studio has
dubbed “Hi-Bit” is undoubtedly the game’s greatest achievement, as it gives form scenarios and prints that will constantly surprise us for their beauty.
Characters and scenarios integrated in a world like 16 Bit evolvedenormous taste for detail that, we think, will be a model in the future for other developments that bet on the
visual personality, rather than a literal evocation of the past that already drive games like Shovel Knight or Maldita Castilla. What Owlboy and
his artists bring under his belt is a master class of what can be done right now with classic resources, a bit of modernity and a lot of care. His message was necessary, if not urgent, in the indie scene.
In any case, the first moments with Owlboy can lead to deception . The emphasis on narrating Otus’ quarrels with his disappointed teacher, through a copious text in English, comes to make us fear that the argument will end up getting in the way of
fun. Fortunately, this is not the case, and we are learning a really lovely story, at the same time that it is archetypal :
that of the classic hero who is not yet aware that he is, when he embarks on a long journey from his home where he will meet his not less usual retinue of
friends forever, with whom he will live an epic adventure in which he will save his world. Just like his admired Link and Chrono, among many others, they did before him. Fortunately,
After a short period of presentations, the game begins to show us its real cards , showing some resources that it manages with convincing solvency and among which we find the best, but also the most improvable, of its proposal.
