Tunic Reviews
What a nice surprise this Tunic is. A true love letter to the first Zelda with a souls-like underlay to modernize everything, the game manages to keep players on their toes with its intelligent progression system, mechanics that renew themselves and its enchanting universe that hides much more than it seems.
Review in French | Read full review
If you’re a fan of exploration and puzzle-based adventure games, then playing Tunic is a no-brainer. While it does have elements of Souls games, it has more elements from The Legend of Zelda series and lots of elements from other genres as well. What makes Tunic unique is the way it gives the player items and abilities, without fully explaining them at first, and allowing the player to experiment while exploring its world. Retro players who love cryptic NES titles of yesteryear take note, this might be a GOTY contender for you.
Tunic is an isometric action game where players take on the role of a small fox on a big adventure in an unforgiving world. It might look cute, but it is far from soft, presenting a unique, cleverly mixed fusion of Souls-like combat and Zelda-like exploration and puzzles.
If you were looking for a foxy answer to the question "What would happen if Zelda was a Soulslike?" (I don't know why you're looking in a foxy way), you found it.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Tunic provides a lot of promise for fans of the old-school Zelda games, but you have to find your way to get there. However, for players who don’t mind the difficulty, the journey is worth the treasure that awaits you at the end.
So this is the magic of Tunic, the ability to combine tradition and innovation, using as main ingredient an element, the manual, which is really one of the most extraordinary devices ever seen recently in a videogame. It also has a certain symbolic and emotional value, for those who still remember the instruction manuals of twenty years ago. It doesn't matter if in the very last hours you feel the lack of an amalgam (narrative, above all, since also the story is quite obscure), that fully justifies the resolution of the most hidden puzzles (whose resolution is necessary to unlock the real ending): it is the small and negligible duty to pay to the creation of an exciting, intelligent and unique experience.
Review in Italian | Read full review
It is easy to misunderstand TUNIC as an adventure reminiscent of 'Zelda' for its cute, fairytale-like graphics and sound, But the reality is different. While the fox hero grows up overcoming boss battles, the unexpected difficulty stimulates you to challenge more. The catalog styled story and twist also show the game's charms.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Tunic is an outstanding accomplishment from solo developer Andrew Shouldice in terms of piecing every vital element together from its melancholic storytelling and exciting exploration to thrilling combat encounters. This Zelda-like gem never fails to exceed expectations the more invested you become. If you are itching to experience a captivating and refreshing tale that consists of memorable adventures, then Tunic is exactly the game for you!
TUNIC is a great indie game that will get its hooks in you as you try to decipher its incredibly elaborate game world and once you feel like you've seen everything, you'll keep discovering more and more to the point where it's hard to not think about this wonderful game.
Old school adventure sensibilities and an expertly-designed puzzle box world combine in this charming and engaging indie gem.
And yet, despite its obvious muses, Tunic manages to rise above mere flattery, by paying deeper homage to the medium itself.
I enjoyed Tunic, and I was pleased during most of my time with the game. It’s challenging, but it’s also tranquil. It’s a little slice of puzzle-y goodness in the middle of multiple massive open-world releases, and for that I’m grateful it exists. I just wish sometimes Tunic would meet me halfway and not leave me frustrated either with the controls or with the exploration.
Dicey's Zelda-inspired indie adventure Tunic gives players a magical world to explore, if they can handle the game's difficulty.
Zelda-like adventure game starring an adorable fox recalls a pre-internet era when games felt like secret worlds
In the end, I can’t help but feel increasingly enamoured by the sights and encounters. And by the time you get to the dungeons and underground fortresses, you’ll already lulled into a meditative state, as you give in to your impulses to marinate in Tunic’s sheer abundance: its atmospheric soundtrack, its crisp combat, and its resonant adventures. You become a child once more, eyes glued to the screen, fingers cemented on the buttons of your controllers, piles of notes strewn across the table, as you mindlessly hack at everything in sight: ghostly knights, creaking skeletons, and oversized bosses. How many more hours do I want to keep playing? As long as the night would last, and till the early hours of dawn.
Tunic is a charming, absorbing adventure that recaptures the feel of the original The Legend of Zelda better than almost any other game out there (including some of Nintendo's own efforts). The game's enigmatic nature won't be for everyone and a late-game difficulty spike may frustrate even old-school fans, but overall, Tunic is a successful link to the past.
Tunic is a title capable of being respected, a product that allows Andrew Shouldice to enter the videogame market with a commendable impact.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Tunic is a great game for a specific audience. The target gamer is someone who has patience, loves puzzles and isn’t bothered by dead ends and roadblocks. For those folks, Tunic is a delightful Zelda-inspired ARPG that unfolds into something bigger than its style suggests. Knowing the shorthand of Soulslikes mechanics will cut through some of the game’s opacity. For some, though, the game’s obstinate refusal to easily give up its secrets may be a barrier to enjoyment, no matter how lovely and inviting the game seems to be.
We won't spoil what happens, but Tunic slowly peels back layers right to the very end. It's a cohesive, satisfying game that scratches an old school action-adventure itch, going above and beyond with subversive, cerebral puzzles. It maybe goes on a touch longer than it needs to, but this little gem of a game punches above its weight.