Orbient (Wii)

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100 point score based on reviews from various critics.
5 point score based on user ratings.

User Reviews

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Our Users Say

Category Description MobyScore
Overall MobyScore (2 votes) 3.4

The Press Says

Hooked Gamers
Orbient isn’t about engaging visuals or complicated controls, nor is it about complexity. What Orbient shines at is creating an experience that is fun to play as an escape from hardcore video games, yet at the same time engaging enough to play for hours on-end. The pick-up-and-play nature of the game may turn some people off, but once you get under the game’s skin, you can see that Orbient can be played for hours.
Game Critics
Who knew orbiting planets could be so fun? Or difficult for that matter? Art Style: ORBIENT successfully finds the balance of being accessible initially, yet more challenging as you drift further into space. The music is killer. The core game mechanic is oh so addictively fun. And the price is just right. We do wish the graphics could have been spruced up or that online leader boards were present. Let’s also not forget that rebound problem. But still, this is the perfect shuttle for seeing what lies in the far reaches of outer space.
Orbient is exactly the kind of game that I want out of WiiWare: high concept, experimental games at an affordable price. And the fact that the experiment is a huge success just seals the deal: for six bucks you get one of the most clever, engaging games to never hit the US Game Boy Advance. You've never played anything like Orbient, and hopefully this trend will continue with future Art Style games from Nintendo.
The A.V. Club
Some of the game's best moments come when you're simply surfing the cosmos. If you approach a larger body at the right angle, you hear a satisfying chime, and you can then settle into a steady freefall around the object. It's much more fun, though, to come barreling toward a planet at breakneck speed, then use the slingshot effect to whip around its backside. Kirk and company pulled off a similar maneuver to travel through time in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Mastering Orbient, sadly, will do very little to save the whales. But the game's 50 increasingly diabolical scenarios will give you greater appreciation for the rocket scientists responsible for getting probes to Mars without cratering in the dusty Martian soil.
Nintendo Life
Eurogamer.net (UK)
It's a weird game, yes, but a quietly brilliant one if you put a little effort in and are prepared to grapple with the physical concepts at its heart. It's certainly the most interesting and rewarding of the three Art Style games on WiiWare, so far.
Jeu conceptuel s'il en est, Orbient réussit son pari en nous faisant vivre une expérience aussi spatiale que spéciale, qui n'en oublie pas d'être ludique pour autant. Le titre développé par Skip se révèle parfaitement adapté au support et prouve de belle manière que les principes les plus simples sont parfois les meilleurs.
For all its uniqueness, Art Style: Orbient is unlikely to be a game you'll return to once you've meandered through. Its slow pace, often requiring extended moments of inactivity, keeps it from developing the addictive charms of the finest puzzle games--an issue that might have been mitigated by the addition of leaderboards or some kind of multiplayer mode. Additionally, the high level of challenge in the later levels hinders the potential for a relaxed, psychedelic experience in the vein of Flow. Nevertheless, you probably haven't played anything like Orbient before, and at such a low price, it's a good value for an afternoon's worth of enjoyment.