Game that has very good ideas but middling execution.
I feel very similarly to Tunic as I do with Hollow Knight, in the sense that I like a lot of the ideas that it has, and think it has strong worldbuilding, good core gameplay, and amazing art and sound design which all complement it as a strong qualities.
However, where I think the game falters is with the game’s direction. The game doesn’t really tell you much about what you’re supposed to do, leaving it for you to find instructions that tell you it. However the way this is presented is confusing as well. Sometimes it’ll be in the game’s made up language while other times it won’t, which makes it unclear what you’re suppose to do. The design of the game was incredibly confusing at points and I frequently got lost.
I think where the game’s weakest quality lies is with balancing and the game’s bosses. The game is very difficult but there are issues with how the bosses are handled. The issue with the game not directly telling you some things is that combat and abilities are dependent on an upgrade system. I didn’t know about this till a friend pointed this out to me on the first boss, and I could’ve gone the entire game not knowing about it. I think there is an inherent issue about having a game progress like a puzzle box while also having an ability tree. This is not helped by the design of the bosses which are all very archaic and don’t really give you a clear objective on how to defeat them.
Finally there is the endgame. You do not fight any bosses during this and only fight one circumstantial boss. However, this was worse than any of the previous bosses. For me it was literally half going to an area and inputting a complex code you can only find through hints on the instructions, and half backtracking to preexisting areas to get your abilities back. This all culminated in a very tedious experience that wasn’t worth the trouble I had to go through.
So all-in-all, Tunic is a game I like the ideas of, but has problems in execution. That being said I commend it as an effort as it was largely developed by one person and feels incredibly polished in spite of this. I hope whatever the developer makes next it builds off the foundation this game set and makes something better.
I feel very similarly to Tunic as I do with Hollow Knight, in the sense that I like a lot of the ideas that it has, and think it has strong worldbuilding, good core gameplay, and amazing art and sound design which all complement it as a strong qualities.
However, where I think the game falters is with the game’s direction. The game doesn’t really tell you much about what you’re supposed to do, leaving it for you to find instructions that tell you it. However the way this is presented is confusing as well. Sometimes it’ll be in the game’s made up language while other times it won’t, which makes it unclear what you’re suppose to do. The design of the game was incredibly confusing at points and I frequently got lost.
I think where the game’s weakest quality lies is with balancing and the game’s bosses. The game is very difficult but there are issues with how the bosses are handled. The issue with the game not directly telling you some things is that combat and abilities are dependent on an upgrade system. I didn’t know about this till a friend pointed this out to me on the first boss, and I could’ve gone the entire game not knowing about it. I think there is an inherent issue about having a game progress like a puzzle box while also having an ability tree. This is not helped by the design of the bosses which are all very archaic and don’t really give you a clear objective on how to defeat them.
Finally there is the endgame. You do not fight any bosses during this and only fight one circumstantial boss. However, this was worse than any of the previous bosses. For me it was literally half going to an area and inputting a complex code you can only find through hints on the instructions, and half backtracking to preexisting areas to get your abilities back. This all culminated in a very tedious experience that wasn’t worth the trouble I had to go through.
So all-in-all, Tunic is a game I like the ideas of, but has problems in execution. That being said I commend it as an effort as it was largely developed by one person and feels incredibly polished in spite of this. I hope whatever the developer makes next it builds off the foundation this game set and makes something better.
2 Comments
The bosses were excellent I agree with this so much. Even if the actual game was confusing that was a highlight for me at least.
Erato_Heti
1 year ago
Still...that Siege Engine fight is maybe the coolest setpiece boss I've experienced in a contemporary game. For me at least.