Ori and the Blind Forest, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Hollow Knight, The Messenger, Rogue Legacy 2 and even this year’s Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. We’ve been blessed with so many amazing 2D action/platformers over the past few years that it’s hard for new games to break into the upper echelons these days. Presentation, controls, level design, combat, and more. Everything has to be great to please privileged players. That’s why I think the fun and enjoyable Tales of Kenzera: Zau will be lost in the shadow of other great games in 2024.
I feel bad for starting this way, because Abubakar Salim has been emphasizing that Tales of Kenzera: Zau was inspired by the grief of losing his father, but the game’s story is nothing special. . Anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one, or even just thought about it, knows where this story is going in five minutes. That doesn’t mean it’s completely boring. Most of you can relate to the young shaman Zau’s journey to defeat and capture three souls in order to resurrect his father. Every conversation and every boss reminded me of my own experiences with death, which will obviously affect some people more than others. My only problem with this take is that Tales of Kenzera: Zau ends up being very predictable and forgettable, even though it’s interesting to learn about Swahili culture.
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The same goes for the gameplay. It should be noted that I prefer highly reactive characters in platformers. Some of the best include Dead Cells and Hollow Knight, as the characters immediately reacted to most of my inputs regardless of the situation. Tales of Kenzera: Zau feels very slow and unresponsive by comparison. While playing the game on the PlayStation 5, my commands took a long time to register, and it didn’t help that Zau was barely responsive when jumping. This is a good thing for those who are less experienced with this type of game, as it makes wall jumping and other more complex platforming sequences much easier. However, for more experienced players, it becomes a bit simpler and mundane. For Platinum Hunters on PlayStation, areas with obstacles feel like filler, just expired cream on top.
Still, when you get used to it and play in the game’s locale, it’s not too bad. After playing more challenging games, it’s somewhat refreshing to run, dash, and jump through levels effortlessly. Watching pretty colors and some eye-catching environments fly by while a great soundtrack plays in the background is a relaxing experience, perfect for a peaceful evening. At least until you encounter an enemy.
Because compared to some similar games, one of the things Tales of Kenzera: Zau actually excels at is combat. You don’t exactly get a diverse enemy lineup here, but the system itself is quite fun and engaging. Seamlessly switch between Sun (close combat) and Moon (long range) masks, while mixing in awesome dash/dodge, ice balls that freeze enemies, and a special super attack that can wipe the screen if timed and used correctly Anything that’s fascinating. We’re not talking about God of War, Dead Cells, or other world-class combat systems here, but it’s hands down the best part of this game.
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Sure, I’ve given the platformer some praise, but the flaws don’t stop with the slow and unresponsive controls, which may be why the level design is somewhat linear and simplistic. One element that every so-called metroidvania game has to nail is the map, and Tales of Kenzera: Zau fails miserably in this department. Showing tiny versions of the environments on the map is kind of cool, but not being able to see or mark areas you can’t access is a huge miss. If it weren’t for the fact that each biome is fairly small and keeps track of how many I’ve lost in them, I might have spent a few more hours searching for the last few collectibles. That’s not to say it doesn’t feel frustrating when returning to an area with a new skill, just realizing that the unexplored area requires me to get another one later.
Long story short: Tales of Kenzera: Zau is a fun game best suited for those who are a little new to the genre and/or want to reflect on the different stages of grief. There are plenty of better options out there for anyone looking for more, as unresponsive controls, fairly simplistic level design, and horrendous maps are drawbacks you can’t have when the competition offers something better. Finally, I want to say something that I know a lot of people will use to sum up their experience in the podcast: This is a good PlayStation Plus Extra game.
