Tales of Kenzera: ZAU takes you through a powerful process of healing after losing a loved one.
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is a 2.5D Metroidvania game that’s a little under the radar. Here we have another title from the classical side-scrolling genre. We’ve just gotten a relatable game with the positively reviewed Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. But now we enter a brand new adventure that surely awaits us. Amazingly, the game is under only $20, and if you’re a PlayStation 5 owner, you might not know this, but it’s free for you if you were to install the Day 1 release.
That’s right, Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is free to download, as it’s one of the main titles that’ll come out in this month’s PlayStation Plus monthly games, along with last year’s Immortals of Aveum and Minecraft Legends. However, even if you’re planning on playing the game on a different platform, there’s not much of an issue with only paying the $16.
Because in the end, you’re all going to be getting a wild experience nonetheless by playing this bad boy. And with such a game, you’re probably wondering what on Earth this game has to offer for such a low price. Not to fret, I am here to help, and what you read will leave you impressed with what Tales of Kenzera: ZAU brings to the table.
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU takes you through the intriguing story of a grieving boy who’s named Zau, who is a young Shaman. For those who are confused by the term, a Shaman, by definition,n is a spiritual being who has a masterful understanding of the human body, healing, and medicinal herbs and uses their expert knowledge in aiding their communities. Anyway, Zau reads a Bantu tale that was created by his deceased father.
Here’s a fun fact for you: the game director who’s also a British actor named Abubakar Salim is the voice behind Zau. He founded the studio that created this game. Looks like we’re in for a real treat. We get to endure his own experience as he projects his feelings towards grief and how love helps us heal after losing a loved one in Tales of Kenzera: ZAU. Moreover, phenomenal visuals with a vibrant and unique African-themed presentation, and incredible voice acting from the cast.
Salim has worked on major projects such as last year’s Diablo IV and the Science Fiction drama, Raised by Wolves but he’s most famous for providing his voice for 2017’s Assassin’s Creed Origin,s where he was nominated for the British Academy Gaming Awards, and was awarded as a BAFTA Breakthrough Brit. And to add to his accolades, he finally directs his gam, and it’s in the form of an exciting single-player adventure.
Now, to resurrect his father, Zau is required to collect the spirits of 3 monsters that he can use to trade with the God of Death named Kalunga, with whom he made a deal, but can you trust such an entity? There’s only one way to find out. You’ll be entering several mythical and mysterious lands, and you’ll need to fight your way to reunite with Zau’s father.
And we must go through how Zau will fight. This must be said, but it is a 2.5D Metroidvania, and when it comes to the combat, Tales of Kenzera: ZAU shines with a range of unique weapons and skills Zau has to be able to defeat enemies and bosses. And after doing so, Zau collects a fallen enemy’s Ulogi, which is a soul energy, which you can use to acquire brand new skills for Zau by visiting the shop. Plus, you’ll be able to unlock new skills and paths as you progress through the story.
You’re getting a heartwarming and touching and, for many of you, relatable storytelling through the life of Zau. And no matter how long you’ve been grieving, getting Tales of Kenzera: ZAU would be a great idea for you, as the story will undoubtedly guide you through the tough process of losing a loved one, just like it did for Salim.
Zau comes with two weapons, which are the sun and moon masks. The sun mask enables Zau to deal with damage from enemies at close range, while the moon mask does the opposite and helps him to deal with damage from much further distances. The Sun mask is for close combat, and this is where you can strike and impose combos on your enemies with light and heavy attacks. Plus, the mask grants Zau immense brute melee attacks.
The mask of the moon is a devastating mask that excels in long-range attacks and crowd control techniques. But you must use the mask cautiously, as the mask’s energy reduces during use, and if you empty the meter, the bar will recharge gradually. The moon mask also helps you during obstacles with situations such as the freezing ability, which temporarily freezes water and creates a path for Zau to travel, as well as jump off the frozen water.
To do this, you’ll need the Bamba Stone, and whenever you’re using the moon mask, it’ll launch the storm to unleash said powers. But you don’t only have to use the freezing ability for obstacles. You can also use it during combat against enemies, which freezes them in place, leaving them completely vulnerable, and allowing you to inflict your attacks on them. And just like against water, the freezing ability is also temporary on enemies.
As for the special attacks, you have the Spirit attacks for both the Sun and Moon masks. Once the two segment bars that are below your health bar fill up, this is when you can use them. The moon special is the Lunar Blast. This will release a powerful energy beam that wipes out enemies in its path. You can control the direction of the beam onto which enemy you want it to destroy.
And the Sun special is called the Supernova. This will transform ZAU into an inferno, powering Shamanistic fire. Plus, there are other great abilities and upgrades for both Moon and Sun masks, such as the Moon mask’s Adept Deflection ability that allows you to deflect incoming enemy projectiles if you use it at the right time, and the Sun mask’s Ignite ability that’ll burst enemies into flames after a light combo. Plus, you have workbenches where you can equip the likes of Shaman Trinkets, which are ancient relics of Kenzera that enable Zau with powerful boons. These can be found as you progress through the story.
If you’re seeking negatives out of me, don’t bother. You won’t see them from me. I couldn’t identify an actual major negative, even if I tried. Well, the only concern is that after pausing a game, you wouldn’t really be able to move Zau. However, you can easily get out of that rabbit hole by either pausing the game again or moving your left analog stick around until there’s movement. Other than that, Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is practically the perfect game.
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is exactly what we deserve, as we’re getting a great package for a very low price. This isn’t often that you can say that about a game until you meet this one. I would strongly recommend any player, especially those who are grieving, to play this, and you’ll surely obtain one of the most heartwarming experiences in recent years. Do I consider this to be a genuine Game of the Year contender? You bet I do.
