TUNIC

This is a solid 9/10 for me. Not using the "standard" controls takes one point off, I know you can change them and stuff but you shouldn't have to imo.
If you played Zelda games and enjoyed them, u prolly are going to enjoy this as well. A lot of secrets and puzzles that are optional and some running back and forth that's also partly optional.
To me it was a newish concept with a manual that you build as you go along, to get the answers to the next coming puzzles. Some of them were in a weird order, but might been me that did things in "wrong" order. But knowing you have all the answers to the puzzles and secrets made me pay more attention as I played. Also some parts that was challenging, but when you get a hang of it a lot start to make sens.
But if you don't like solving problems or figuring things out this is not for you.

Really really fun puzzle, definitely go for the language.
The combat's pretty shit, but there's accessibility options letting you power through it, so it doesn't end up dragging the game down.

TUNIC is one of the biggest gems in independent gaming.

The gameplay is simplistic but complex enough to keep its mysterious side, in fact the mysterious side of the game is very much inspired by FEZ, which is perfect for those who like to break their heads to solve certain puzzles, some of which are quite perplexing, which created a lot of brain explosions.
I really like the symbolism that the game gives with the manual, which is in fact designed in such an old-fashioned way that the developer has reproduced the printing errors while retaining a personal touch with pen-and-ink writing that gives the impression that the game has already been played by another player.
The game's graphics are sublime, the rendering techniques perfectly adapted to the graphic style, the fluffy feel and the light create a nostalgic charm.
This game is a love letter to video games of the NES/SNES era and to all video game enthusiasts.

As a gamer, this game left a lasting impression on me, and I have fond memories of it.
As a developer, this game taught me that creating a good game is all about the passion you put into it.

Thank you Andrew Shouldice, thank you to the developers at TUNIC, thank you Funji and thank you to everyone who helped develop and finance this game.

This game goes deep, and it's fun journey of exploration. I really appreciate a game rewarding intelligent problem solving, experimentation, and exploration instead of assuming ignorance and holding my hand. I didn't think I'd be translating an entire language while playing this, but it was very rewarding. I feel more intelligent for playing this game, and we need more games like that. Regardless, some of the late game puzzles could use more hints (including an extra hint I required to translate the language). None of those puzzles are required for finishing the game, but they are required for 100% completion.

Absolutely fantastic. So much effort in the design.
The puzzles felt so satisfying to unravel.

I love this game so much. Tunic has Zelda-like experience, has the best puzzle mechanic. Parrying is soooo hard but satisfying after few hours I mastered it . I recommend this game 10/10

this game was very cute and i enjoyed its secrets, definitely worth playing blind

Definitely challenging. Running around and trying to find every nook and cranny to advance can be frustrating sometimes, but still enjoyable. I have no idea how far I am right now.

This game is an absolute masterpiece. It starts as a charming zelda-like, but as you play, the game progressively unravels more and more depth, with cleverly hidden secrets deciphered with the help of an old-school game manual written in unfamiliar language whose pages you find as you explore. This continues until you realise you are playing a completely different game than what you started with and I implore you to embrace it.

I started this game blindly, merely vaguely knowing of its near-universal praise (and it being mentioned in the same discussions as Fez and Outer Wilds), only to discover that it features some of the most deep, cerebral, and satisfying revelations I've ever had the pleasure to experience once I understood the holy cross. Traversing the golden path is something I will never forget.

A word of caution and a genuine advice: Adjust your expectations - this game is a so-so zelda-like, but also an incredibly complex and challenging slow-burn puzzle that will make you feel like an absolute genius once you figure things out. You are going to have a much better time.

It's a real cozy game. But don't drop your guard or you'll get Dark Souls slapped!
Also the farther you get, the more puzzles and secrets you'll find.
Try not to give up, just because the game doesn't straight up tell you what to do.
It has its own language, and no simple or fast way to translate the texts.
An excellent choice for the Steam Deck!

This game is special to my own heart because I live in Halifax. Baring that, this game has a Legend of Zelda action adventure vibe to it. If you like puzzle solving and figuring stuff out on your own, this is the game for you.

A classical but very good RPG, although two points are frustrating:
- fights sometimes hard, especially versus bosses that always run away (but we can select "no death" in the options),
- the orientation in the map is very complicated, because most of the roads, even the main ones, are hidden behind elements of the isometric 3D background.
But when we reach the first end of the game, we discover another game with incredible riddles, so hard that some of them looks impossible (the golden path!). If you are ready to spend dozen of hours to resolve them, it can be a huge pleasure at the end.

I was looking for a casual game that wasn't too deep and Tunic completely tricked me into getting way more invested than expected. It's the first time I've ever beaten a game and immediately replayed it to not only simply enjoy it a second time but also to accomplish way more. Not for nothing, the community is super helpful at assisting without spoiling.

Such a cute game, but what lies beneath is a challenging, combat focused, puzzle with more secrets than you can imagine. It's one of those games, a bit like Outer Wilds (another amazing game), where the solution is hidden in plain sight. I love the idea of piecing together how to navigate and interact with the world through collecting pages from an old-skool game manual. The game really succeeds in drip feeding you just enough infromation to know where to go next.

While the game is very combat heavy, for players who prefer the puzzle and exploration side of things it can be made easier. There's a switch for infinite stamina (which usually depletes when you roll or block) and there is also a switch for infinite health. I'm a souls-like n00b but fought most of the way through, including most of the bosses, on normal difficulty. By the late game though, the combat was starting to spoil my enjoyment, so I'm glad the developers thought to unblock those of us that aren't hardened souls players.

Overall, I would highly recommend picking it up and giving it a go. Whether you're in it for the combat or just the puzzles, it's a really interesting ride.

Phenomenal action-adventure game with some wildly in-depth puzzles if you're interested in trying to 100% it.

TUNIC was a pleasantly surprising and ambitious lil' guy.
TL,DR: I most strongly recommend this to someone most drawn to its Zelda influences, as its Souls-y flourishes and puzzle elements are great but somewhat simple.

This game is trying a lot of things, and blends them in a deeply strange but overall unique and memorable way. What starts as a mix between Souls combat with old-school Zelda button-swapping tools and magic eventually transforms into a modern indie puzzle game, think The Witness, Fez, or The Talos Principle.

Upfront, probably one of the biggest turn-offs for a lot of people is the specific way these concepts are strung together. Specifically, the puzzle elements start SLOW. Any review that has less than 5-6 hours in the game has not experienced when the game essentially unlocks/opens up. In the meantime, the combat and exploration is the focus and I agree with the general sentiment that it is simple. Appropriately simple for me even as someone who's played most of the FromSoft catalouge, I'd generously call it Zelda+ rather than Dark Souls-.

The "cerebral puzzle" elements of the game are strong, probably especially so if you haven't played many games like this as they are, again, a bit simple. As someone who's played everything from The Witness to Return of the Obra Dinn to Void Stranger, TUNIC's puzzle elements are unique, fun, and most importantly feel accessible and "natural. Many games struggle to do this, even more so to Steam 100%, where I feel TUNIC nails having challenge vs leaving a few details behind.

Finally, as its perhaps the most niche appeal to me, the soundtrack was done in part by Lifeformed (Dustforce) and is just wonderful. Similar to his previous work, the music really elevates the simpler look and lighting to give the game a much more unique aesthetic in practice.

TUNIC blends many unique influences together in a way that's just exciting, engaging, and unique. No single element truly blew me away but its a stocking full of just good times. A common point of criticism is that the difficulty being a touch swingy and I can't comment on that. I felt it was nice and overall chill/easy but that is coming from someone well versed on both sides of this game's influences.

This game is a real treat.
It's not just a NES Zelda clone - it has solid combat with difficult boss fights, and it's full of really unique secrets and puzzles. If you like games that focus on knowledge-based metroidvania exploration like Outer Wilds or Animal Well, this is right up your alley.

Tunic is a good game!

To be more nuanced, it's a very good game, but definitely something you appreciate more as a retrospective than in the moment; a game that's more fun to tell someone about than to play for yourself. Tunic is a beautiful, (nearly) one-of-a-kind puzzle game with some incredibly frustrating lows, followed by a cathartic showing of genius.



At first, it's nothing special. A beautiful overworld with a cute, carefree protagonist roaming its realms. Some surface puzzles that appease your System 1 for a short while. All the while, the gnawing feeling that something bigger than you is happening behind the screen...

At one point the game changes. When exactly it happens will depend on the player, but that point will always exist. From here the puzzles become so much better and so much worse. Some are beautiful creations of artistry and ingenuity, and others are overly cryptic bullshit that make you bemoan your wasted time when you look them up online and realize you were nowhere close to the solution (That one puzzle where you need to know the runes for some reason? Why does this exist???). Less common but worse are the puzzles where you know exactly what to do, but the solution is taxing and stupidly time-consuming (The reflecting path puzzle and the one with pieces scattered all across the world)

Ultimately though, it all converges on the legendary mountain door. If you do play this game... please open the mountain door, it is one of gaming's most well-designed challenges and a truly beautiful mixing pot of all the best the game has to offer. I cannot stress this enough: the game is not over until you've opened the mountain door.



Combat in Tunic is bad. It's not really satisfying to fight normal enemies - rolling is broken, enemy AI is overly predictable, and all the fun weapons have pitifully little ammunition or do pitifully little damage. Boss fights are especially cringe and unfun. They run away from you and shoot projectiles like a zoner in the body of a gargantuan beast. Just when you think you've gotten in on them, they leap across the arena and you have to close the distance all over again. Interestingly the final boss is the one exception here - the only fight where it actually feels fun to interact with their attacks.

Confusingly, there are some mechanics borrowed from Zelda as a homage (?) that serve only to bloat the game. They'd be nice easter eggs, but the fact that bombing walls and a day/night cycle are an integral part of the game feels unnecessary.



These are not huge sins for everything great that Tunic brings to the table. The highs are high enough to carry it to peak status; it sits far above a mountain of mediocre puzzle games, sealed off by a locked door where it sits alone....

.... next to Fez, which is better :)

A fascinating labor of love that unfolds like a beautiful flower filled with thought, care, and consideration. What first appears as simplistic "souls-like" top-down game reveals itself to be a complex puzzle game that requires the player to think beyond what the game conveys to the player on the surface. I'll avoid delving deeper into the design of the game as it would take away from what you, the reader, may get to experience if you decide to give the title a try. Another great aspect of the game is the exquisitely composed soundtrack (which also holds secrets within the notes and melodies of the different tracks) that I still listen to months after completing the game.

This work of art has no praises I cannot sing without spoilers. Please, for all that is right in this world, play this game. Play it now. Go into it blind, free of judgement, like the child you once were.

A very clever souls-like that makes you figure things out for yourself. Tons of secrets to uncover and plenty of challenges to overcome. Well worth the money.

Do you like puzzle games? Do you like metroidvanias? Do you like Souls-likes? Do you love the art style of the game? Then you will love Tunic. Seriously, it is a really great game and that is all you need to know to buy this game. But, if you really want more...Combat is simple but fun and challenging. The story is interesting and well designed. It is a game you discover as you go and that is the magic of this game. My wife and I played it together and we both loved it. I love Dark Souls and Souls-likes and she is not a gamer at all but loves a good puzzle. It is really a beautiful game to experience. The magic lies playing this game totally blind for the first time. So stop reading reviews that may spoil the game! But if you really want to know the story breakdown WHAT ARE YOU DOING LOOKING UNDER A SPOILER TAG AFTER I TOLD YOU TO GO IN BLIND!! UNBELIEVABLE! Kids these days...I tell you what. Seriously go in as blind as you can. The game is better for it.

This game is a genuine indie master piece in my opinion. The combat is reminiscent of a simplified Dark Souls-esque system (roll, attack, parry, pick up currency after death) with the feel of a Legend of Zelda title. The music is ethereal and the world design is so cozy (until it's not which is a crazy vibe change). The best part of this game is how it lets (forces) you (to) find your own way through challenges with the use of the in-game manual pages. By far one of the coolest things I have seen in a video game. I can't say I solved the golden road on my own (because that is insane), but holy shit what a cool secret. Can't recommend enough.

I absolutely loved Tunic for the first 10-15 hours. At some point the combat became tedious. Most of the bosses just feel like they have too much health. I would prefer a puzzle-y challenge to beat the bosses, something that makes it difficult to figure out how to win, but once you do, they go down quickly. This is, after all, a puzzle-y game.
As it is, the boss encounters tend to last a long time. Eventually I gave up on not looking at guides and found strategy help for most bosses if only so I wouldn't have to play them over and over amd over. I really disliked the final boss in particular.
The rest of the game is amazing, and I highly recommend it if you enjoy puzzles and difficult combat doesn't scare you away. This has some of the best puzzles and puzzle mechanics I've seen in videogames. The puzzling does go a bit too far with some of the extra stuff, but that stuff isn't required to beat the game anyway.
Slight spoiler: there is a parry ability. Apparently learning to use it well makes bosses much easier. I did not learn to use it and mostly forgot it existed until near the end when I had no desire to try anymore.

With no exaggeration, this is one of the best games I've ever played. Have you ever read "Vermis"? It's a manual for a game that does not exist. Its nature as secondary media makes the act of reading it incredibly interpretive. Tunic uses this concept to create a gripping puzzlebox of an old game with an incomplete manual that you can barely read. Do you remember playground rumors? The "Mew under the truck" and "Unlocking sonic in melee" types? Tunic made from those bits of folklore. And on top of all of that, it manages to be a rock-solid top-down souls-like, complete with shortcuts, bosses, the works. I implore you, just let this game happen to you. It's up there with Outer Wilds as the most impactful experiences I've had in this medium.

This game is so much more than it appears on the surface. It's mechanics are a simple throwback to early Zelda games, but the joy is in learning how those mechanics can be used in interesting ways. There are surprising depths of secrets to discover here - in the lore of the world, the approach to gameplay, and riddles to solve. A surprisingly rich game, and much more to it than you'd think by looking at screenshots.

Great gameplay and optics. Great explenation mechanic.

I was really into this game, I was playing for hours on end without realising it, a lot of that came because of the promise of more, cleverer puzzles, more things hiding in plain sight, deeper lore that would all unlock as I kept going.

But the combat is a chore, aimed at a souls-like audience, and the final puzzle and ending were so poorly crafted and such a letdown that it retroactively hurt my enjoyment of everything I'd played up until then. I expected much, much better.

If you ever played Dark Souls 1 there's an innocuous elevator mid/late game that takes you all the way down back to the starting Firelink shrine. That moment blew my mind and forever made me a fan of FromSoft.

Tunic had like a dozen of these moments, in world design, story telling, and game mechanics, revealing something that completely recontextualize what you experienced before. It was truly a pleasure exploring this world. I want to thank the devs for all the love and thoughts put into this game, they deserve all the praises.

I'm actually a bit sad because there's not many games that can give similar experiences, outer wilds and the Myst series are a couple in that vane if you want to check those out as well.

This is a game that i was lucky to play blind and thus enjoied it even more, it all feels like a big puzzle and its atmosphere is unmatched but if i learned something from it is that if you cant from the front try going from behind

Learn absolutely nothing about the game before playing, except maybe that you shouldn't feel bad about using the accessibility settings; the combat is by FAR this game's weak point, and after giving it the ol' college try, you absolutely should just turn on god mode after 5 or so failures.

Very enjoyable for anyone looking for a zelda-like puzzle game, where the game IS the puzzle, sometimes.

The combat is sh*t in this game, specially then you compare it with games like Death's Door. I want to play Zelda style game, but this games also clones mechanics from Souls games without even clue why they are there in the first place.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this game. I do genuinely think it's a good game (or at least could be). It has a charm and coziness to it that's reminiscent of Link's Awakening, but I'm having trouble deciding how I feel about the game.

There's a handful of things I'm just not vibing with right now
- The combat is clunky--especially the parry mechanic. The delayed animation and unresponsiveness of the button-tap the input just feels really unintuitive and frustrating.
- The instruction/tutorial manual not only needs to be unlocked page by page, but it's also written in the fantasy runic language of the game world which is both a neat feature as well as a frustrating mechanic to navigate.
- It's easy to get lost because the world map is part of the tutorial manual that needs to be unlocked and the lack of fast travel (as far as I'm aware atm) makes the backtracking tedious in a way that doesn't feel good--even with the shortcuts.

Just a lot of small things adding up to something I wish I enjoyed but just can't right now. I'll come back to it in a few weeks and see if my opinions change at all.

I tried really hard to like this game. I love vague puzzle games, Outer Wilds is my favourite game, and I heard that this game had a lot of similar puzzle solving to that, which is why I tried this.

This beautiful Zelda-inspired "figure it out" puzzle game is dragged down heavily by it's clunky, slow and non-functional combat system. This really wouldn't be a problem if this game didn't happen to also be a souls-like, and as such combat is a huge part of this game. Bosses can easily dodge out of your reach and boss lock-on regularly turns off if the boss decides to dodge to the opposite side of the arena, forcing you to hold down LT to lock on instead of just having it on all the time. The shield seemingly serves zero purpose other than blocking of early route with enemies you need a shield for since dodge rolling is better in almost every situation.

As a final attempt to enjoy this game I even tried out reduced combat difficulty mode and while that does reduce the damage you take it doesn't stop certain bosses from dodging out of your small range of attack anytime you walk towards them. I'm probably missing something here but the fact that I am missing something while trying my best to focus on solving these puzzles and not even getting a hint at something to help is a problem in and of itself.

Maybe I'll come back to this game one day with no-fail on just to enjoy the puzzles but the whole time I've played the combat system has absolutely killed my motivation to play, so I'm not sure.

Tunic is almost a very good game. It is heavy on exploration and discovery. Unfortunately, it is also heavy on combat, and its combat system is held together with duct tape and string. Attacks are slow and chunky, the lock-on mechanic barely functions, and the defensive options are not worth using most of the time. Enemies fly around you outside of your effective range (and forcing you to use the god-forsaken lock-on). Enemy AI is not good, and it's easy to cheese bosses by running around in circles.

TUNIC is an amazing game that i didn't think was for me until i sat down and played the entire game in one day my first time playing.

TUNIC is also one of the best games to randomize i've ever played. if you loved your first playthrough, you will learn to love this game all over again if you run a randomizer.

Super cool and unique game.

A blend of zelda and dark souls but with a twist:
There's no tutorial, you find pages of the manual that teach you the mechanics of the game and how to get over certain obstacles to progress.

I.E: you get an item but you cant use it and dont know what it is for, then 20 min later you find a page of the manual that has drawings explaining how to use the item to progress through a previous area.

Cool progression, hard bosses, interesting mechanics and chill music.
Can't recommend enough.

This is not necessarily a "bad" game, but definitely not a game that I enjoyed playing. My progress is pretty much at the final boss, but given that it's quite challenging and I decided to just google the ending and the true ending.

During my playthrough, this game indeed has a very strong 90s-00s game vibe. Little to none hand holding and the player can approach the game whatever the way they'd like to. However, to make this experience fun, the game should provide a strong positive feedback so that player can be engaged. This is where the game is a lackluster. There're so much wall hug to the extent that you'll do that to every single wall, however 90% of time they just give you a chest of 10 coins.

Combat wise the bosses are challenging, but the character movement is clunky to the point that it felt like a turn-based game. In simple words, I don't get the adrenaline rush after beating a boss like I did in any of the other souls-like games. There're only couple of bosses as well, and beating each one don't necessarily grant you cool abilities or flashy weapons. In summary I guess combat isn't the dev's main strength, not a very enjoyable experience.

Last but not least, the game has 100% fantastic graphics and music, some scenes are just breathtaking. However, I would not recommend playing this game. This is a more of game that's fun to watch video essays on Youtube explaining all the puzzles rather than play yourself. I only gave a not recommend because the overall review is way overrated as it shall be.

It's not a bad game! Just not what I was looking for.

I was hoping it'd be similar to Death's Door or Another Crab's Treasure, but this game lacks the exposition that the previous two had. Because of that, it was hard to "get into" the game. I understand that's intentional, especially with elements like finding items around the map with instructions being in a lost, unknown language, or kind of just aimlessly wandering and exploring until you find the right way to go, but I personally like clearer directions.

I loved the experience. Letting the player mostly off the leash to explore on their own is a great choice for this. I would play more of this. Thank you.

Tunic is a game I would recommend to a specific gamer who is looking for a classic experience where figuring out mechanics and learning about the world is put onto the player themselves. Overall a good game but one that was not really my style. Tunic is a true successor to Zelda-like games with little direction in a "figure it out yourself" style with an in-game "physical" manual you collect pages for (which was admittedly very cool and unique). Learning was definitely the most fun part about the game as it was filled to the brim with secrets hidden in plain sight via the environment or the previously mentioned manual which is written in an unknown language. Most things are intuitive, however personally I felt that at times the game felt somewhat too vague for my taste leading to frustrations. One example of this for me was looking at the different "rings" and basically giving up on figuring out what some of them did since I could not tell what was changing when I equipped them (in hindsight I should of just googled these ones). But overall the game wants you to progress and gives you enough to learn yourself while vaguely guiding you through what you need to do and where you need to go.

However for me, since I was overly dedicated in not looking anything up (which was probably a mistake as it probably dampened my enjoyment at times), involved lots of backtracking to check areas I might of missed things and wasted time as the fast travel system was itself, quite limited.

This was combined with the combat that was... not great. If I had to describe the combat in Tunic I would probably use the world "serviceable," because while it got the job done, I never once felt like I had mastered any fight or did anything interesting during the combat. Some of the boss runbacks were also somewhat frustrating, and while not Dark Souls 2 / Demons Souls level of runbacks it still added a level of annoyance to a combat system I wasn't particularly engaged in either way. Also, while I was fine with it, I'm sure for some people the limited and somewhat rare nature of consumables could lead to frustrations when dying to a boss after using a bunch of them. For a game with a cutesy artstyle and chill vibe like Tunic has, I was surprised that they used the Soulslike style of checkpoints (which I also sometimes wished auto activated) as it seemed overly punishing to me at times.

However that is not to say Tunic is a bad game I knew from the very start that for some people this game will easily cement itself as one of their all-time favorites. And if you're someone who is attracted to the artstyle, likes puzzles, or is interested in playing a game which asks you to decipher it yourself, Tunic is a fantastic game.

Overall, Tunic had a specific vision and goal for its game and achieved it spectacularly even if it's not for me personally.

P.S. While I don't recommend using a guide (in fact it would be a major disservice to the game if you did), If you find yourself stuck, I would recommend looking up small bits and pieces over struggling walking around aimlessly. If I could blind playthrough it again, I personally would as it would of alleviated many of my vexations I encountered throughout my playthrough.

Kept me wanting to learn more secrets about the game for so long, some say I'm still looking for more

TLDR; Reminds me of Zelda and Hyper Light Drifter - It's not as difficult as it feels at first, don't give up or you'll miss out!

Phenomenal game. Initially thought it was going to be too difficult but that all changed once I began finding weapons/equipment <2 hours in and got a better feel for the simple combat mechanics. (There are also invincibility and unlimited stamina settings that you can toggle on/off if you are having a hard time.)

Brilliant game design, from the engaging map exploration to the beautiful graphics/art style and soundtrack. Love the retro in-game manual that you piece together through exploration. This innovative mechanic rewards you for exploring and reviewing the manual as tips/tricks are revealed. It also helps the game actually feel like an adventure where you learn as you go.

Overall, one of the most satisfying games I've played in a while. Highly recommend.

More than anything, I respect TUNIC. It's a game that calls back to the obtuse puzzle solving and game manual skimming of many game generations ago. It's a rather difficult Zelda-like adventure game that directly explains almost nothing to you, and is completely comfortable losing players in its expansive and bizarre world. It reminded me of playing games as a kid when I didn't understand how to read tutorials and making progress felt so arcane. TUNIC forces YOU to learn how to navigate it, and often won't let you progress until you do.

I won't lie, the unhelpfulness did lead to moments of frustration from me (and honestly I think it's intended that you do), but if you are able to decipher the world of TUNIC then its exhilarating. Learning how to cheese difficult combat encounters and chasing every little scribbled secret in your game manual made every moment of getting lost or dying helplessly worth it. I respect that TUNIC commits so hard to the feeling its trying to inspire in the player, and I had a lot of fun. Especially with the end game puzzles; mind-blowing stuff.

Cute skin on some serious zelda/souls born style mechanics. Loads of puzzles and exploration. I kinda love it. It’s a much deeper game than I had originally expected.

TUNIC, to me, is more interesting in concept than execution, but I still had a good time with it. It's a Zelda-like game based on the idea of importing a foreign game decades ago; the game doesn't give you much instruction upfront, but through exploration you're able to find pages to a game manual which provides important information. Aside from the concept, I enjoyed TUNIC's puzzles, they remind me of The Witness and FEZ because of how much attention to the environment and fine details is required. It's one of those games where you might want a notebook for the puzzles.

It took me a few sessions to get into Tunic, but as I started understanding what was going on and making some significant progress the game sucked me in. However, my enjoyment of the game wavered at times. The start of the game can be a difficult wall to break through, but after doing so I felt the game opened up and became much easier- this is when I enjoyed it most. Unfortunately, after that middle section I went back to being more mixed on the game as there were a few environments and game design decisions that spiked the difficulty in ways that felt more annoying than things I needed to improve at.

The combat is my least favorite element of the game, it's serviceable, but keeps me from being as high on Tunic as many others are. I played another Zelda-like, Death's Door in the last year, which does combat far better than Tunic and that certainly informs my opinion. Although I don't think I'm being overly critical in saying Tunic has below-average combat for the genre. The movement options feel a bit clunky, especially when locked onto enemies. While the final boss was one of the harder boss fights in recent memory, generally the bosses felt easy, and honestly felt like I had cheesed them when I defeated them, versus having solved their patterns or passed a real challenge.

There are some baffling game design decisions; one that bothered me was consumable items being permanently consumed regardless of if you die. So if you fail on a boss fight and spend significant resources in that failed attempt, on your next attempt you're going at it without any of those resources. The checkpoint system leaves a little to be desired. There are save points that reset your spawn point, but the lack of an automatic checkpoint when entering a new area feels a little archaic, and checkpoints, at times, feel way too far away from the target location (final boss is a great example here). Lastly, after achieving the ideal ending you're unable to keep exploring the world, which is completely baffling considering getting any other ending allows you to return to the world. This completely caught me off guard and actually forced me to download a save file to continue playing, solving puzzles, and attempt the 100%.

Ultimately, Tunic is an interesting game, and a difficult one to recommend to everyone. I would recommend Tunic, but only to a certain type of niche gamer. I really wish they put in the time to create a stellar combat system - if this was on-par with other recent acclaimed releases in the genre it would be an easy recommendation to far more people. On the other hand, what Tunic does with much of it's game design, and puzzles is quite impressive and worth recommending. I believe there are assist options available to turn some of the difficulty spikes into more manageable situations for those looking for a less intense experience. If you have nostalgia for 2D Zelda games you're more likely to love this, same with those who enjoy interesting game concepts and puzzles.

Recommended at Discount

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Im one of those gamers who barely can enjoy single player games, and im not even an old zelda fanboy. but damn how insane this game is. I read a lot of critics about the game not feeling responsive / bad combat? thats really not my experience. But sure, i guess Quake and CS 1.6 is better in that sense.

The level of gameplay is relaxing but still requires some focus to a degree i feel is rather ideal.
As the journey is not so straight-forward-braindead, it gives its mystique, cosy touch in combination with the beautiful scenery/gfx.

The "bonus" content it provides for le geeks is really cool and I kind of wish I wasn't so impatient and looked up a few things too much online. But to be fair some things are just way too hardcore to come up with by yourself... it reminded me of my childhood how mysteries surrounding games(READ: POKEMON) was everything. pre internet-boom you would have to learn by other nerds irl instead of just visiting a website and get everything for free. But as we're not 10 year olds running around with a gameboy all day you could argue some stuff are too hidden.

Through the main part you should really avoid internet guides as much as possible. The in-game manual is key!! :)
+++++The soundtrack of this game is something only old warcraft/wow can compare to imo.
buy
buy

An excellent game that looks and sounds amazing. It's filled with puzzles and combat that seem perfectly designed to make you feel smart and skilled... Right before it spanks your bottom like you're a naughty boy. =(

Tunic is a game about some little fox in a big world.
Tunic is a game about exploration.
Tunic is a game about collecting every page.
Tunic is a game about reading like a grade schooler again.
Tunic is a game about enduring and overcoming adversity.
Tunic is a game about the secrets you've uncovered along the way.
Tunic is a game about learning things aren't quite what they seem.
Tunic is a game about emerging stronger and remembering who you are.
Tunic is a game about going the extra mile to find them all.
Tunic is a game about ending the cycle.
Tunic is a game about not being meant for the world you find yourself in.
Tunic is a game about designing something purely for the love of it.

A masterpiece of a game that expands as you experience and discover

Whatever you do, do not spoil yourself, and go in as blind as possible