MIO: Memories in Orbit

MIO wears its tough-as-nails metroidvania influences proudly, but spends enough time contorting familiar ideas into punishing gauntlets and rewarding patience with dazzling artistic spectacle that it truly comes into its own.

84%Game Brain Score

story, music

grinding, optimization

85% User Score Based on 1,229 reviews

Critic Score 77%Based on 19 reviews

Platforms

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About

MIO: Memories in Orbit is a single player platformer game with mystery and science fiction themes. It was developed by Douze Dixièmes and was released on June 4, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

Play as android MIO in this mesmerizing metroidvania where you explore the Vessel, an enormous technological ark overgrown with machines gone rogue. Uncover its secrets, enhance MIO's abilities, and save the spaceship and its residents from oblivion.

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85%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,229 reviews

story214 positive mentions

grinding47 negative mentions

Stunning and unique watercolor art style with 2.5D depth, creating stunning and immersive environments.
Excellent soundtrack with dynamic, atmospheric music that complements exploration and boss fights perfectly.
Satisfying platforming and movement mechanics with innovative abilities like wall and ceiling climbing, rewarding skilled traversal.
Engaging combat with fair but challenging boss fights, includes interesting modifiable builds enhancing playstyles.
Rich storytelling and lore presented through environmental clues and character interactions, emotionally impactful.
Exploration is rewarding with a cohesive and well-designed map encouraging uncovering secrets in vertical layout.

Very difficult platforming sections especially late in the game, sometimes requiring pixel-perfect precision and long sequences without frequent checkpoints.
Runbacks to bosses and failed platforming sections can be long and tedious, often involving elevators and empty corridors, harming game flow.
Permanent maximum health reduction during story progression which can feel frustrating and punishing to some players.
Limited fast travel and teleport points which may not always be accessible, increasing backtracking and travel time.
Certain gameplay mechanics like healing only at checkpoints and restricted self-healing limit recovery options in combat and exploration.
Inconsistent input detection and some imprecise controls (e.g., grapple direction, dodge timing) can cause frustration.
Combat can feel repetitive due to limited moveset and small variety of enemy behaviors.
The map lacks some quality-of-life features like area names, detailed collectibles tracking, and annotating options, complicating exploration.
Some bosses and platforming challenges require trial and error with no visual previews of upcoming hazards, increasing frustration.

story
517 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
57%
2%
The story of "Mio: Memories in Orbit" is widely praised for its emotional depth, atmospheric worldbuilding, and gradual unfolding through exploration and lore. While some find the narrative initially confusing or overly cryptic, many appreciate the meaningful themes of decay, hope, and loss that resonate throughout, enhanced by stunning art and music. A controversial mechanic permanently reducing the player's health as part of the story adds tension but divides opinions on its impact, though the overall narrative is regarded as compelling, touching, and a strong highlight of the game.
- “The story is full of hope, dread, sadness, relief, and does an amazing job at conveying these emotions in a way that impacts the player throughout the whole game.”
- “Every time you get new information it shifts the perception of the story, making you come up with new theories and guesses in your mind.”
- “The story is, at the start, pretty obscure, but in a good way.”
- “Much like Hollow Knight, this game is in tension with itself: it "wants" to tell a story but then does everything to make the actual delivery of said story a dog's breakfast, meaning, it wrecks any good this game could have to offer.”
- “Which sounds like it would be cool if the game didn't have some of the worst progression in the genre; permanent health loss at story intervals so you feel weak throughout the entire game, very hard to find/get to damage boosts (I had 1/5 by the time I got to the final boss even with doing a ton of exploration).”
- “Though a word on the controversial mechanic: at certain points of game progression, for story reasons, it strips you of some max health. I was totally despairing when I got five of my coating components taken away, especially when I got to [spoiler] the crucible [/spoiler]. Because of this, it made me not want to go back to the game after finishing to try and attempt 100%, which is bad, because the story in this game is pretty damn decent.”
music
480 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
36%
1%
The music in "Mio: Memories in Orbit" is widely praised for its atmospheric, emotive, and expertly crafted soundtrack that perfectly complements each area and boss fight, often described as haunting, melancholic, and immersive. Many reviewers highlight the dynamic and thematic boss themes, the seamless blend of synthwave and choral elements, and the soundtrack's key role in enhancing the game’s unique art style and storytelling. While some find portions of the music less memorable or sparse during exploration, the overall soundtrack is regarded as a standout feature, with many players enjoying it both in-game and independently.
- “The music is exceptional: good musical themes, great harmony, and sounds shifting between synthwave atmospheres and angelic vocals, always perfectly matching the mood.”
- “Every single song in this game is great and fits the area, boss, or major story event they're linked to (seriously, even if you don't get the game, the soundtrack is worth listening to).”
- “The music and ost were wonderful and blended so well with the whole atmosphere of the game and again back to the boss fights each having their own track – chef's kiss and overall a wonderful metroidvania experience.”
- “The boss music is cheesy, generic, forgettable, and not epic.”
- “The music is somewhat forgetful, though it clearly gets the job done.”
- “The soundtrack, however, is very inconsistent.”
gameplay
432 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
60%
6%
The gameplay of this metroidvania is praised for its unique movement mechanics, satisfying platforming, and challenging yet fair combat that rewards mastery and exploration. However, many reviewers criticize the permanent health loss mechanic, lack of traditional healing during gameplay, long runbacks, and some inconsistent controls, which can lead to frustration and disrupt the overall flow. While the game offers a fresh and atmospheric experience with tightly integrated story and gameplay elements, its punishing design choices and occasional clunkiness may not appeal to all players.
- “The gameplay feels very rewarding and extremely clean to play.”
- “It’s clear that the developers did their homework on the previous great metroidvanias of our generation and managed to create a gameplay loop that has a lot of the familiar concepts we know and love and some very surprising elements that really make the gameplay stand out.”
- “The gameplay is perfectly balanced between exploration, platforming, and boss fights - I never felt bored or like I was going through the motions to unlock the next area and no area ever overstayed its welcome.”
- “The permanent health loss mechanic can be seen as a bad thing, as the game is constantly chipping away at your health, preventing you from obtaining a large enough health pool for sustained exploration.”
- “Combine this with a health system that means you'll typically get half a dozen tries at most at any given precision platforming sequence before getting booted back to the nearest save point, and the fact that save points are few and far between, necessitating lengthy runbacks for nearly any point of interest, and it all adds up to a gameplay loop that doesn't feel like it respects your time.”
- “The mechanics are loose and lacking, the rewards uninspired, and after thinking 'I am both bored and uninvested' after many attempts, I called it quits.”
graphics
384 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
36%
1%
The game's graphics receive widespread acclaim for their stunning, unique art style, combining watercolor-like, hand-drawn aesthetics with vibrant pastel colors and 3D environments, creating an immersive and visually captivating experience. Reviewers highlight the detailed design, smooth animations, and atmospheric worldbuilding as standout features that deeply enhance the game's mood and storytelling. While some note occasional graphical glitches and minor readability issues, the visuals are overwhelmingly praised as a primary reason to play and a defining highlight of the title.
- “For starters, (and I mean this with as little hyperbole as possible) this game has the best art style I've seen in a metroidvania, likely any video game period for that matter.”
- “The artwork is absolutely stunning and highly distinctive.”
- “The visuals and soundtrack are both stellar; my eyes and ears were delighted throughout the entire journey (my save file says exactly 11hrs after the credits rolled).”
- “There's not really a great sense of exploration, either: it's just one linear loop after another, and despite how well the graphics look initially, every area just ends up looking the same.”
- “Although this graphic art-design part with 'sketched' pencil stripes on the textures is a questionable visual idea IMO that messes with your vision and should be at least switchable in the options.”
- “It feels like the developers focused entirely on aesthetics and completely forgot about quality of life features that have been industry standards for a decade.”
atmosphere
128 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
31%
2%
The atmosphere of Mio: Memories in Orbit is widely praised for its stunning, immersive art style and beautifully crafted, melancholic soundtrack that perfectly complements its moody, emotional tone. Reviewers consistently highlight the game's unique, richly detailed environments and captivating world-building, which combine to create a deeply atmospheric and engaging metroidvania experience. The blend of music, visuals, and storytelling is regarded as a standout feature that elevates the game's overall ambiance.
- “The music is exceptional: good musical themes, great harmony, and sounds shifting between synthwave atmospheres and angelic vocals, always perfectly matching the mood.”
- “I was honestly blown away with the attention to detail in the music, art, and storytelling; it all felt like it truly fit and added to the atmosphere the game was trying to make.”
- “The vibes & atmosphere are immaculate with it all being brought together with a gorgeous, adaptive soundtrack which isn't just well composed, but incredibly well designed and very intentional.”
- “The existential plight of the denizens of Mio’s world creates an oppressive and confusing atmosphere I haven’t seen in a game since Nier: Automata – a clear inspiration for this game.”
- “Sound design imbalance: the ambient choir (“ahh ahh ahh ahh ahhhh”) dominates the atmosphere.”
- “Atmosphere is like being on lithium the entire time.”
emotional
53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game delivers a deeply emotional experience through its touching, sometimes heart-wrenching story, beautifully layered soundtrack, and cohesive art direction, often moving players to tears. Its narrative explores themes of loss, hope, and humanity with strong emotional beats supported by immersive environments and expressive animation. While some find minor frustrations in gameplay mechanics, the overall emotional impact and storytelling are widely praised as impactful and memorable.
- “The way these three elements worked together to convey the emotional depth and heart-wrenching plot ubiquitous throughout the game honestly brought me to tears at some points, especially in the true ending.”
- “Mio: Memories in Orbit is going on the shelf next to games like In Stars and Time and Nier Automata for "games that made me so, so, so mad and then made me cry real tears when they were over." The story is immaculate from start to finish, the environmental storytelling is peak, and as a whole the game is truly something magical.”
- “The art direction is incredible, the soundtrack is absolutely perfect for the atmosphere of the game, the gameplay is incredibly fun, and the story is beautifully sad, yet touchingly human and hopeful.”
grinding
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
2%
4%
94%
Grinding in the game is widely described as tedious, with repetitive platforming sections, long runbacks to bosses, and limited checkpoints leading to frustrating trial-and-error gameplay. While some find challenge and occasional enjoyment in precise platforming and combat, many criticize the poorly supported mechanics, slow elevator rides, and excessive backtracking that hamper pacing and immersion. Overall, the grinding aspect often feels more exhausting and annoying than fun, detracting from the otherwise beautiful art and story experience.
- “Checkpoints are usually nicely placed to make sure the run-back to a boss room isn't too tedious.”
- “As many mentioned before - there is point in the game where it switches gears to precision platformer without controls supporting that switch - making progress a grinding nightmare of millisecond timing of yet-another-in-20 jumps, slashes, hovering and navigating your fingers between clumpy combos of gamepad.”
- “I wanted to give this game a positive review but after almost a dozen hours of the same frustrating formula - tedious platforming challenges with no checkpoints, massive amounts of backtracking even after unlocking the fast travel network, and a array of equipment that has no practical impact on combat - I've decided that enough is enough.”
- “Just another game bent on exhausting the gamer for no good reason: wasting your time one minute at a time with unskippable tedious scenes you have to watch every time to try another platforming section or run back to the boss, with menus (including unskippable loading logos when starting the game) and save points that take forever to load to be ready for your input, bringing you to ragequit with the lack of checkpoints in general and for some platforming sections you have to get in one try from start to finish, and don't even start with the accessibility options when there's a boss that just two-shots you and the controls are inconsistent and unreliable.”
character development
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The game features stunning and unique character designs that greatly enhance storytelling, with memorable characters like the silent yet impactful protagonist Mio. The art direction and animations contribute deeply to character development, creating an engaging and immersive narrative experience. Some minor animation pacing issues exist but do not detract from the overall strong character portrayal.
- “Character design: Mio and the other body similar to us are very interesting; using whip-like hair tendrils as weapons is unique, and Mio being silent and small yet making such a large impact amazes me.”
- “Not to mention how adorable and unique Mio's character design is; she's a joy to play as and I love the physics of her hair.”
- “Character design is awesome; the Crucible looked sick!”
optimization
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
The game demonstrates impressive optimization, delivering smooth performance even on low-end hardware and maintaining stable frame rates at various settings. Some users report minor stutters on specific setups like Linux with an Nvidia 4060 and occasional performance dips on the Steam Deck, but overall the experience remains stable and visually appealing. Future patches may address these minor issues for an even better performance.
- “Also the performance is unbelievable; on my burnt, unsalted oven fry of a potato laptop, I'm getting almost 60 fps on 1080p 'low', and a locked 60 fps on 720p 'medium' (which still looks really good, by the way).”
- “Nothing to complain about — it looks fantastic, runs smoothly, and I’ve had a consistently stable gameplay experience.”
- “Technical (performance, bugs, physics): 9.5”
- “Some minor stutters on Nvidia 4060 on Linux, wish performance was a little better.”
- “I wish the map showed you your completion percentage upon finishing the game and told you what items were missing and where to make end/post-game cleanup ever so slightly easier, the performance was patched just a tad in some areas, and some bosses had ludicrous runbacks in proportion to their difficulty.”
- “I did notice some unexpected performance dips on the Steam Deck, which I hope future patches will address.”
stability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game experiences frequent stability issues, including occasional freezes requiring restarts, graphical glitches, pop-in effects, and camera problems. These technical hiccups, while not always game-breaking, can lead to frustration during gameplay.
- “Game freezes every 20 minutes or so requiring the process to be ended and restarted.”
- “Then there's a series of small but present technical hiccups and glitches.”
- “Combined with fuzzy spikes and occasional glitches, this becomes kind of frustrating.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is praised for its witty and entertaining NPC dialogue, including amusing robots, which enhances immersion and encourages exploration. Humorous elements are sprinkled throughout the lore and character interactions, adding charm and keeping players engaged.
- “This game immerses me in a world and encourages me to explore to find out more with interesting characters, even minor NPCs that have funny or interesting dialogue.”
- “It definitely kept me interested enough to check out all the lore bits and pieces while sprinkling in humorous bits and pieces here or there.”
- “I love all the funny things a lot of the robots say.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users note that the game's monetization heavily relies on aggressive targeted advertising, which can be misleading about the game's actual difficulty. This approach has effectively driven purchases but may set inaccurate expectations for new players.
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers strong replayability through extensive exploration and discovery, encouraging multiple playthroughs to uncover all content. However, adding a checkpoint system beyond the attunement stations could enhance the experience and further boost replay value.
- “Each area can give you tons of discovery moments, and finding the right path will always leave you with more replayability because you will not get everything in one go.”
- “I think having some form of checkpoint system outside of the attunement stations would improve replay value and make for a more satisfying experience overall.”
- “Replayable.”