MIO: Memories in Orbit is a 2D side-scrolling metroivania starring MIO, a robot who wakes up on the Ship, a gigantic technological ark adrift in space. The purpose of the spaceship is unknown, but MIO soon realizes that it is in ruins and that the machines that were once responsible for maintaining the facility have lost control. Furthermore, the Pearls, the artificial intelligence responsible for the ship, have stopped working and nothing seems to go as planned. Our hero must restore order and prevent the Ship from going out forever.
As MIO, players must explore the enormous ship in search of the Pearls, while acquiring skills and upgrades to access new areas and face more powerful enemies. Exploration is one of the great bets of MIO: Memories in Orbit. The Ship hides different ecosystems and platforms that require you to chain jumps and creative movements to reach the most difficult points, a curiosity that is rewarded with collectible elements, objects and improvements. Playstyle can be customized with upgrades that are installed into MIO's memory.
MIO: Memories in Orbit's combat system is presented as challenging, just like exploration, but with some concessions. For example, it offers the option to reduce a boss's health after failing multiple times. The title has a catalog of more than 30 enemies and 15 bosses, each of which has its own fighting style and movement patterns. To be successful in your business, MIO has an arsenal of skills to adapt to each encounter. Combat and exploration skills consume energy, but there are mechanisms to recover it and execute combos.
Asked which games are similar to MIO: Memories in Orbit, game director Oscar Blumberg cites Hollow Knight for world design and Ori and the Blind Forest for controls. Douze Dixièmes recognizes that his game does not take risks in the gameplay and follows the traditional metroidvania formula. Instead of trying to invent the wheel, the French studio has focused on enhancing the feeling of discovery and offering a setting with its own artistic style. The Ship feels like a living organism and the world features watercolor aesthetics and backgrounds inspired by comics, art, and anime.