{"id":186813,"date":"2022-03-25T16:11:33","date_gmt":"2022-03-25T15:11:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=186813"},"modified":"2025-07-01T20:51:44","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T03:51:44","slug":"tunic-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/tunic-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Tunic Review | Exploration Adventure"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tunic<\/a> is an isometric adventure game<\/strong> developed by the Tunic Team and published by Finji. It was released for Windows on March 16, 2022. It features a fox as the main character<\/strong> where you\u2019ll run through various levels finding treasure and pages of a sacred book<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since Tunic is available on the Xbox Games Pass<\/strong><\/a> for Windows 11, I decided to give it a try for this review. There are many stages to complete, and you\u2019ll be busy for several hours<\/strong> trying to finish it. However, there are some frustrating aspects to warn you about, so stay tuned!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tunic\u2019s fun adventure<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When you start playing Tunic, there isn\u2019t much to direct you in the way of a solid plot. You\u2019ll run around, exploring the environment<\/strong>, until you pick up a stick for a weapon. I haven\u2019t really seen any story elements explaining why you\u2019re there<\/strong> and what the ultimate goal is<\/strong>, except for a minor mention in the game\u2019s description.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be that as it may, let\u2019s take a look at a few elements worth mentioning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fox looking for treasure<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As mentioned, Tunic presents you as a fox exploring<\/strong> various environments where you\u2019ll discover an assortment of enemies. The primary goal appears to be finding lost treasures<\/strong>, which then give you gems and new items or weapons. If there\u2019s any driving motivation for the fox to find these treasures, the game doesn\u2019t explain it well enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tunic<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Locating manual pages<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s an object called a sacred book<\/strong> in Tunic. You\u2019ll find pages along the way<\/strong> that works as a manual for the game<\/strong>. It also provides pages of your map<\/strong>, without which the game becomes a confusing maze. Without any proper quests, locating these manual pages is as good as it gets for a mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tunic<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Nothing to keep you going<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sadly, there\u2019s nothing really keeping you going in Tunic\u2019s story. You won\u2019t really receive any massive quests, and nothing motivates you<\/strong> to progress to the next level. There were a few moments when I stopped and wondered where I needed to go next. There\u2019s more exploration and adventure, than narrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How long to play Tunic<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re brave enough to continue playing Tunic past the first few levels, you can rack up about 17 hours<\/strong> for the main game. You may well want to be a completionist and collect all items, which will take you up to about 20 hours. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tunic: playing the game<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Combat<\/strong> is the primary gameplay<\/strong> element in Tunic. Exploring areas and fighting enemies<\/strong> is what you\u2019ll be doing 80% of the time, while the rest is spent opening treasures and changing weapons. Similar types of games include Zelda Classic<\/strong><\/a> and Pikuniku<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the gameplay aspects to consider in this review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning how to play Tunic<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no tutorial<\/strong> for Tunic. The best you\u2019ll have is finding the lost pages<\/strong> of the sacred book that shows you how specific actions work. When you need to perform an action, a small icon will appear on the screen showing you which one to press. The rest is up to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A different language<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

What confused me the most was the written language<\/strong> used in the game. I made sure my settings were in English, but for some reason, I was seeing a different language<\/strong>. There was English on occasion, but some signboards were in another language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It made me wonder if the Xbox Games Pass version was the same as the Steam version. It\u2019s frustrating when you want to know what the controls are or in which direction to head when the game throws strange languages<\/strong> at you. Perhaps it\u2019s how the game was meant to be, or the developers didn\u2019t feel like translating the words.\u00a0
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tunic<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Weapons and combat<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The combat starts as basic as you can get in a game. Take your weapon, head to an enemy, and bash it on the head. Later, you\u2019ll unlock<\/strong> new weapons and abilities<\/strong> that will help you cross new areas. However, don\u2019t expect any combos or fancy kill moves. At least the items do become more interesting to use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tunic<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Environmental obstacles<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You might be able to see where you need to get to, but that doesn\u2019t mean you can get there easily. Tunic places obstacles in your way<\/strong> to make it more challenging. Part of the puzzle is working out how to get to the new area, which requires exploration. It may need a new key or an alternative route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Death is not the end<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you die<\/strong> the first time, you\u2019re transported to the spirit world<\/strong>. You can run around until you find a massive female fox <\/strong>figure waiting for you. She touches you for a moment before transporting you back to the world <\/strong>of the living. After that, you won\u2019t really see this sequence of events again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll need to find your ghost<\/strong> by the last place you died. When you touch it, you\u2019ll receive your gems and items again. There\u2019s also a massive explosion<\/strong> that causes damage to any enemies nearby. It\u2019s a nice touch that I really appreciated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Tunic<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Minimal interface elements<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Tunic presents an interesting user interface<\/strong>, especially if you\u2019re using an Xbox controller on your PC. You\u2019ll see your health in the bottom left corner, but there\u2019s no mini-map<\/strong> to guide you. You\u2019ll see your active weapons in the top right, while there\u2019s a button for your inventory.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tunic computer requirements<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately, Tunic doesn\u2019t require too many system resources<\/strong>. You can play it on Windows 10 with the following settings:<\/p>\n\n\n\n