Ori dev explains why they “decided not to move forward with Microsoft” for latest game

Moon Studios’ new game is out now in Early Access on Steam, so it’s not quite yet time for us to go after the No Rest for the Wicked achievements on Xbox. The developers previously brought us the excellent Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel, both of which are without a doubt some of the absolute best Xbox platformers, and both of which were published by Xbox Game Studios. While discussing what he loves about “Phil’s current direction” for Xbox, CEO Thomas Mahler explains why Moon Studios “decided not to move forward with Microsoft” for No Rest for the Wicked.

Moon Studios partnered with Private Division for their new game No Rest for the Wicked

After thanking Private Division, which Moon Studios partnered after they “decided not to move forward with Microsoft” for No Rest for the Wicked, Mahler says, “We always knew we wanted to make an ARPG people could access on every platform with us fully supporting Crossplay, etc. and we’re hugely appreciative that Private Division understood our vision, believed in us and ‘let us cook.’”

Mahler then responded to a comment about how the team’s decision to go with Microsoft “makes sense,” saying, “Yep — we had this big vision from the start and we already had a ton of PlayStation fans begging for ports of Ori even back then. So it was clear to us that since Wicked was to become a Multiplayer game, we wouldn’t want to be locked onto a single platform especially since we knew our competitors wouldn’t be either.”

Mahler goes on to compliment Microsoft’s present stance, saying, “That’s why I love Phil’s current direction reg Xbox. If we would’ve signed Wicked with Xbox back then, it would’ve become an Xbox exclusive. I think Xbox is more open now to support all games on all platforms and frankly, that’s something I’d love Sony to adopt as well. If we want to see our industry grow, we have to stop gate keeping and make the access to entry as simple and affordable as possible to everyone.”

It is quite the change, as both Ori games were published by Xbox Game Studios. Moon Studios is of course completely focused on No Rest for the Wicked which launched into Early Access on Steam last month and is set to come to Xbox Series X|S in the future. While Ori 3 isn’t in development, we do know that Moon Studios has ideas and even a title for a hypothetical third Ori game, although Mahler also says that Moon Studios doesn’t own the Ori IP, and that “just because Moon is too busy atm doesn’t mean that Microsoft won’t hire some studio to do it!”