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SPIRIT OF THE NORTH FOX HOW TO
When I was not sure how to proceed, I knew I should try the newest ability first, which taught me what each ability was capable of. The game did a good job of introducing each new mechanic-each one was introduced in a separate chapter, and became the focus of the puzzles in the rest of the chapter after their unlock. With these new powers come new kinds of puzzles, such as switches that only activate when a weight is on them, meaning you must use Spirit Form to leave your body behind, or platforms with long gaps between that you must Spirit Dash between. You unlock three new powers during the story: Spirit Bark, which is a powerful cleansing power used to clear away massive areas of plague Spirit Form, which lets you leave your body behind and progress as a weightless spirit and Spirit Dash, a teleport-like quick dash. Your spirit powers become more advanced as you restore more of the land. One of the runestones after being activated.
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This ultimately culminated in the final level, where there were no flower patches, to restore your spirit energy, meaning you had to pick and choose when to use each runestone carefully. You could also take spirit energy back from a runestone, which deactivated it and its effect. Powering a runestone would expend your fox’s spirit energy, which could be recharged in special flower patches. The runestones with their different effects form the basis of the puzzle mechanics, eventually being combined with other powers to create more involved puzzles. I really enjoyed that your ‘task’ throughout the story was linked to the actual gameplay-you have to power the runes, or you actually cannot progress. These runestones all have a variety of effects, such as raising or lowering the water level, clearing a path through rubble, or even creating geysers or portals of wind used to launch your fox to new areas. I didn’t feel like the vastly differing landscapes should have had the same music.Īs you travel through the land, you have to use spirit powers to rejuvenate runestones scattered throughout. I wish each chapter had had its own music track or tracks associated with them, as the areas vary wildly, from blue-skied hot springs to ash-covered ruined cities.
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It honestly got a little repetitive while I was struggling on puzzles or confused on where to go. As someone whose favorite animal is a fox, of course I loved playing as a fox-especially one that glows! The music was surprisingly my least favorite part of the aesthetic experience– the game only has a few tracks, and they loop in the same order on all the levels (except for the final level).
SPIRIT OF THE NORTH FOX FULL
The landscapes are beautiful and full of amazing sights and vibrant colors. Learn more about an long-forgotten civilization by uncovering and restoring ancient murals.Īs soon as I started playing, the ambiance the game creates drew me in. Spirit of the North combined my favorite elements from each of these titles to create a breathtaking and fascinating experience-the sense of sonder from exploring a desolate landscape from Journey, and getting to play as a powerful and adorable animal from Ōkami. Not to say it was exactly like Ōkami-in fact, once I started playing it, I realized it was more similar to Journey, which is another of my favorite games. I was immediately interested in this game because, conceptually, it sounded very similar to Ōkami, one of my all-time favorite games-playing as an animal with spiritual powers on a journey to restore the land. It released earlier this year on the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam, with the Enhanced Edition releasing for the PS5 at the end of November. The game has more of an implied, entirely visually-based narrative-you are solo on your journey, apart from your spirit companion, traveling silently through the remains of a ruined civilization. Spirit of the North is an adventure puzzle game where you take control of a fox who awakens the spirit of the northern lights, in the form of a spirit fox, and their journey of discovery and restoration.
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