Tunic

Warning: this post has a light spoiler about the game Tunic.

I didn't think it would take this long to write this post about Tunic; I thought I could see the ending two weeks ago. Xbox Game Pass gave me so many games to play. I found this game - Tunic, while I browsed and cherry-picked games for my next round. Many (including me) would say the visual is not all of the game. However, it might be true that the visual is the most crucial feature of the game; I believe the visual (usually) makes users start a game, and the gameplay makes users keep playing the game. The art concept and its hue were so attractive. It reminded me (and I'm sure many will agree on it) of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. The game system that you could expand places you could go as you acquired more equipment was very similar to the Zelda; the sword cut the bushes, the hook made you cross over cliffs, and so on.

However, the actual gameplay was not like the Zelda. Instead, it was a kind of game that is the most popular genre these days: Soulslike. It was my first Soulslike game (though it might be a pretty casual one). It was not that kind of game that the playtime genuinely converted into the numbers - how strong you were. You could be stronger only by your experience and muscle memory engraved by your countless deaths. I felt like I became Subaru of Re: Zero. No, I would feel sorry for him because I didn't have his agony of death; rather, death was elation in the game. The fox shrines (the bonfire of Dark Souls) were always the just right re-starting point. The cheap cost of the death made me more aggressive and focused on the next run. I spent hours defeating some bosses, but the play was fun; I realized I was "playing" the game in every moment.

Interestingly, I learned that Tunic was developed by an indie game developer Andrew Shouldice. It was my surprise that one developer could make this quality of the game (he outsourced some parts of arts and music). It made me think I wanted to develop a game again someday - maybe with my daughter. I recommend you give this game a try if you have the chance; it is available on PC(Windows), macOS, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. It is my pleasure to realize there are so many great games to play in my life every day.

Disclaimer: I couldn't defeat the final boss for four hours. I researched various strategies on the Internet but found that defeating her would lead to a bad ending. I relied upon the Internet to get to the happy ending.