Ori and the Will of the Wisps: Best Abilities and Upgrades

As we discussed in our Ori and the Will of the Wisps review, traversal and combat are better here than they ever were in Blind Forest. Plus, Moon Studios added a ton of new abilities and upgrades players can use to make themselves even more powerful. 

This guide will show you which of these new tools are the best of the best, where you can find them, and why they stand above the rest.

Ori and the Will of the Wisps: Best Abilities and Upgrades

Triple Jump

There’s nothing like a straight upgrade, and Triple Jump is as simple and powerful an improvement as it sounds. The only catch is that it’s expensive. You’ll need 2,000 Spirit Light Orbs to buy it, and you won’t have that until Twillen (the merchant shown above) moves to the Wellspring Glade. 

You won’t regret the extra time you’ll need to take to make the extra cash. Triple Jump makes much of the game exponentially more manageable, and just as much more enjoyable. 

Finesse 

Another Twillen purchase, Finesse is another straight upgrade, though not quite so reliable as Triple Jump. It gives you a 10% chance to do 50% more damage. When upgraded, that percentage jumps to 20%, or one out of every five hits. That might seem like too few at first, but when you’ll be hitting most bosses several dozen times, the bonus damage adds up faster than you’d expect.

Ancestral Light

Here’s another flat upgrade: Ancestral Light gives you 25% increased damage, full stop. Don’t think you’ll make this ability part of your arsenal without working for it, though.

You’ll need to complete one of Will of the Wisps‘ most complex puzzles to acquire it. Or should I say, you’ll have to complete the puzzle backward. Let’s look at how to solve it below.

The stones in the image above represent musical notes, and the flowers to the right of the stones each play an individual note. The stone’s height corresponds to the depth of the note, and the shape on the stone represents each note’s length. You’ll have to be quick, accurate, and, most of all, musically inclined. 

Completing the puzzle earns you entrance to the Burrows. Doing it backward rewards Ancestral Light and the knowledge you have a good ear.

Resilience

One of the earlier upgrades you’ll find in Will of the Wisps, Resilience is in the Inkwater Marsh. It’s yet another flat upgrade (yes, there’s a pattern here), giving you a 10% reduction in damage from all sources.

You can upgrade Resilience four times for a total of 1,600 Spirit Light Orbs, giving you a whopping 30% damage reduction from all sources. This ability is more useful for the early game or on harder difficulties, but you can’t beat just tanking attacks that would otherwise kill you.

If you want it at this early stage, you’ll need to make use of the blue moss and carefully time your jumps over the deadly thorns. If you’ve not purified the water yet, don’t fall into the pink stuff, either. That’s a quick way back to the checkpoint. 

Magnet 

Magnet is more of a quality-of-life upgrade, as it increases the screen distance you’ll pull in health and energy orbs. It starts at 50% increased distance, then goes to almost full-screen by it’s third upgrade. 

This ability is most useful in boss fights and during tough, ability-based platforming challenges. You won’t have to worry as much about collecting health and energy orbs, ensuring you can stay on the move as much as possible.

You’ll find Magnet in Inkwater Marsh, just past the Spirit Edge ability tree. Keep heading to the right and up from said tree, and you’ll arrive at a brief platforming section where you’ll make a Z shape upwards. Eventually, you’ll reach the area shown above. 

Catalyst

Both this upgrade and the next (Spirit Surge) are later-game abilities. You need the Light Burst ability to reach it from the Wellspring Glades, but it’s worth the wait.

Catalyst is another quality of life upgrade, as it turns a portion of your melee damage into energy. It’s improved form increases the amount of energy recovered. This ability will come in especially handy during boss fights when you’ll be spending a lot of your time wailing on their health bars. Couple it with Magnet, and energy will rarely be a problem.

To acquire Catalyst, head to the top right of Wellspring Glades until you see an NPC with a pot. Go past the NPC until you see a frozen hearth. Light it, then swim down and to the left, revealing a secret area with the upgrade shard.

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If you’re looking to up your power and general effectiveness in Ori and the Will of the Wisps, the abilities and upgrades listed above are your go-to sources for both. We could spend ages talking movement tech, efficient use of energy, and other general skills, but those are often better built on your own.