Ori ability guide: locations, PC controls and obstacle uses

Edition: Ori and the Blind Forest: Definitive Edition on Steam PC (app 387290), using Normal difficulty as the baseline. The 2015 original, Switch-specific changes, and the equipment, shards and abilities of Will of the Wisps are outside scope.

Verification scope: Public sources checked on 2026-10-04. The current installed Steam build number and hands-on demonstrations of every control have not been verified. PC controls follow the QWERTY layouts in the official 2016 Quickstart Guide; use the in-game display for remapped controls.

Sources checked: 2026-10-04

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Acquired abilities and the ability tree are separate systems

Abilities such as Wall Jump and Bash are new actions obtained mainly from Ancestral Trees. The ability tree instead spends points from experience and Ability Cells to improve existing actions, healing and exploration.

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Acquired abilities and the ability tree are separate systems: 3 entries
Category	How to obtain it	What changes	Caution
Abilities obtained through exploration	Trees or main-story events	New movement and interactions with obstacles become possible.	More points alone cannot substitute for them.
Ability-tree upgrades	Open the tree at a Soul Link or Spirit Well and spend points.	Improves recovery, attacks, movement or collection.	Check preceding upgrades in the branch and the required points.
Purchasing upgrades early in DE	Upgrades can be bought before the underlying acquired ability.	They become effective after you gain that ability.	Buying Air Dash alone does not grant Dash itself.

This page shows ordinary acquisition routes, rather than minimum requirements for skips using bugs or difficult maneuvers. It also excludes the sequel's Spirit Shard equipment and weapon purchases.

Reading the PC inputs in the tables

Acquired-ability tables use Keyboard & Mouse (QWERTY) as the baseline: WASD moves, Space jumps, left click attacks and right click uses Bash. Keyboard-only mode instead uses arrows to move, X to attack and C for Bash.

Distinguish tapping the attack button from holding it and releasing a charged attack.
Shift is shared by grabbing and gliding. The result depends on whether you are on a wall or airborne and whether the ability has been acquired.
To charge a ground Charge Jump, upward input is W with a mouse or the up arrow in Keyboard-only mode.
If you have changed controls, prioritize your current in-game bindings over the key names below.

The official manual's gamepad layout uses A to jump, X to attack and Y for Bash. Do not read these as the PC X key.

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Main-story abilities: acquisition and uses

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Main-story abilities: acquisition and uses: 9 entries
Acquired ability	Ordinary route requirements / location	Keyboard & Mouse input	Compatible obstacles / next exploration example	Applicable edition
Spirit Flame	Meet Sein in Sunken Glades.	Click the left mouse button repeatedly.	Nearby enemies and breakable objects; first repel the early enemies.	Original and DE
Wall Jump	The first tree, in Spirit Caverns in Sunken Glades	Press toward the wall and repeatedly press Space.	Vertical walls; return from underground to the upper passage.	Original and DE
Charge Flame	Loop through underground Hollow Grove using Wall Jump.	Hold left click and release after the charge completes.	Compatible blue-cracked walls and ceilings; open the return route.	Original and DE
Double Jump	Gumo's Hideout in Moon Grotto, beyond the Keystone gate	Press Space to jump, then Space again in midair.	Extend distance or adjust your landing; reach the upper route following Gumo.	Original and DE
Bash	The tree inside Ginso Tree, entered using the Water Vein	Hold right click near a target, aim and release.	Travel using lanterns, enemies and projectiles. Send shots in the opposite direction to break compatible walls.	Original and DE
Stomp	The tree in Thornfelt Swamp after Ginso Tree	Press S / down in midair.	Breakable floors and pegs sticking out of the ground; the route west from the swamp.	Original and DE
Kuro’s Feather	Main-story event in upper Valley of the Wind	Hold Shift in midair to open it; release to close.	Glide across long valleys and rise through restored winds; cross to Misty Woods.	Original and DE
Climb	Enter Misty Woods with the feather and reach the tree inside.	Hold Shift on a wall and move up or down.	Stay on or climb walls; appearing plant walls and interactions beyond them.	Original and DE
Charge Jump	The tree in Sorrow Pass after restoring the wind	On the ground, hold W then press Space. On a wall, hold Shift, charge away from the wall and press Space.	Compatible ceilings and side walls, or high platforms; reach the top of the pass.	Original and DE

Acquisition requirements describe the state needed on the ordinary route. These moves do not break every floor or wall; some obstacles require projectiles or an enemy to break them. Check the terrain and nearby mechanisms instead of deciding from an ability name alone.

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DE's two added abilities and their entrances

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DE's two added abilities and their entrances: 2 entries
Acquired ability	Entrance / acquisition requirements	Key steps to the acquisition point	Controls and uses	Relation to the main story
Dash	East of the first Spirit Well in Sunken Glades. Wall Jump reaches the entrance.	Carry the light through Black Root Burrows and operate the statue mechanism to reach the tree.	Ctrl moves you in the direction you face. Distinguish the initial ground Dash from upgraded Air Dash.	Optional DE addition. Ordinary story progression works without it.
Light Burst	Beyond Dash, Stomp the floor that opens Lost Grove.	Take the left route around the laser area to the tree. Light the lanterns to create return platforms.	Press R, or hold it to aim and throw. Light lanterns or Bash from your own orb for movement.	Optional DE addition; not counted as a mandatory main-story ability.

Some sources include Lost Grove within the larger Black Root Burrows area. Distinguishing Dash in the dark cave from Light Burst in the deeper, Stomp-accessed area makes them easier to locate.

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Bash: send Ori and the projectile in opposite directions

Bash chooses a direction at a target's position. Aim differently when moving Ori across a gap and when sending a shot into a wall.

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Bash: send Ori and the projectile in opposite directions: 4 entries
Intended result	Check before holding the input	Arrow direction	Check after releasing
Send Ori to an upper platform	Approach a lantern, enemy or projectile.	Upward toward Ori's destination	Can you reach the next target or correct the gap with Double Jump?
Send a projectile into the right wall	Is anything else between the projectile and the wall?	Left	Did the shot travel right and hit the wall?
Return an enemy's shot	Check the shot's source and relative position.	Away from the enemy	Is Ori's landing safe too?
Use your own Light Burst as a stepping stone	Throw it overhead in an arc you can reach by jumping.	Toward the high place you want to reach	Is there somewhere to land after leaving the orb?

Defeating every projectile-firing enemy first can remove needed Bash targets. Use them for movement first, while defeating required enemies in rooms where combat opens a gate.

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Choose charged attacks, Stomp or charged jumps for breakable terrain

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Choose charged attacks, Stomp or charged jumps for breakable terrain: 5 entries
Visible obstacle	Move to try	Where the move starts	Common mistake
Compatible wall broken by a nearby blast	Charge Flame	Charge an attack near the obstacle and release.	Repeated ordinary Spirit Flame attacks from afar are not equivalent.
Breakable floor or peg below Ori	Stomp	Downward from midair	Pressing down while standing does not perform the falling attack.
Compatible ceiling above Ori	Charge Jump	Charge upward on the ground, then jump.	Different from repeatedly pressing Double Jump
Compatible wall to the side	Charge Jump from a wall	Hold with Climb and charge toward the outside of the wall.	Continuing to press up and climbing the wall instead
Wall opened by an enemy projectile	Bash the projectile into it.	Near the incoming shot	Do not assume it is a Charge Flame wall.

For Charge Jump from a wall, keep Shift held, press away from the wall, watch the charge indicator and press Space. Holding only W as on the ground may make you climb instead.

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Choosing ability-tree upgrades by purpose and prerequisites

Choose candidates for the problem you face, rather than treating this as a strength ranking. Points shown are the upgrade's own cost, excluding earlier prerequisites. Only early upgrades whose Normal costs agree across the checked sources are given numbers here.

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Choosing ability-tree upgrades by purpose and prerequisites: 9 entries
Upgrade	Point cost / prerequisites	Purpose	Exceptions / cautions
Rekindle	1 point. Start of the blue branch.	Reuse the most recent Soul Link to update its save more easily.	Does not unlock respawning. Cooldown seconds are not specified.
Regroup	1 point. Follows Rekindle.	Restore one cell of life when creating a Soul Link.	Neither increased maximum life nor full healing
Charge Flame Efficiency	1 point. Follows Regroup.	Reduces Charge Flame's cost, helping preserve energy for saving.	Purchasing it does not let you use the move before acquiring the ability itself.
Air Dash	Earlier blue-branch upgrades required. Check the current display for cost.	Allows an acquired Dash to be used in midair.	DE addition; Dash itself must be acquired separately.
Ultra Soul Link	Earlier blue-branch upgrades required. Check the current display for cost.	Increases healing when creating Soul Links.	Not the same full recovery as a Spirit Well
Water Breath	Earlier blue-branch upgrades required. Check the current display for cost.	Removes the need to surface for air in clean water.	Does not make polluted water or all hazards harmless.
Triple Jump	Earlier blue-branch upgrades and Double Jump itself. Check current cost on screen.	Adds another jump in midair.	DE adds Dash-related upgrades to the branch. Do not reuse the original's shortest total point cost.
Spirit Magnet／Map Markers	Purple branch. Map Markers requires preceding upgrades; check the displayed cost.	Helps collect recovery items and light or check the map.	Map Markers alone does not necessarily reveal every hidden collectible.
Attack branch, including Quick Flame	Check the earlier orange-branch upgrades and cost.	Improves Spirit Flame in combat.	Does not substitute for a new movement ability or door key.

Hard changes point requirements, so this table's numbers do not apply. Sources differ on Ultra Defense's reduction percentage, total upgrade costs and fine details of what map upgrades reveal; these are not quantified here.

Three checks after gaining an ability

Try the input on nearby compatible terrain immediately after acquisition.
Check the direction and distance needed to land on the next platform. Activating a move and landing safely are separate matters.
Return to safe ground where you can save and check resources before the next attempt.

How long you hold an input is part of movement: distinguish slow descent with the feather open from faster descent with it closed. See the closed tables for specific ability uses.

Frequently asked questions

I bought Air Dash, but Ctrl does nothing

Air Dash in the ability tree upgrades Dash itself. You can buy it early, but it will not work until you obtain Dash through exploration. Check the added-abilities table for the location.

Are Dash and Bash the same move?

No. Dash moves quickly in the direction Ori faces; Bash launches from a target such as a lantern, enemy or projectile in a chosen direction. Their default PC inputs also differ: Ctrl versus right click / C.

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Bash will not send a shot into the wall I want

The arrow points Ori's way, not the projectile's. Point away from the wall you want to hit. Also check that Ori will land safely.

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Do I need the added abilities to finish the game?

Dash and Light Burst are optional abilities acquired in Definitive Edition's added regions. The ordinary story route connects without them. They are used in the added areas' own puzzles, so keep the main route and added regions separate.

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