I could not shake the feeling that I should be liking this game a lot more than I did. It has a lovely aesthetic, the puzzles are evocative if also entirely Not My Jam. The in-game manual is beautiful and I want a printed copy, even if I'm too old and tired to pick up the "single player ARG" vibes its laying down. The world really is brilliantly designed, with shortcuts often hidden in plain sight by the isometric view that were always a joy to discover.
But what keeps getting in the way for me is the combat. Now, I'm not opposed to a difficult action game. But Tunic's difficulty is different. Its riding that recent wave of games that use Dark Souls systems, and I had no issue with that. But there is something I can't quite put my finger on that made most enemy encounters and every boss fight incredibly frustrating. Your cute little guy moves so slowly, and the range in which he swings his sword is so miniscule, and also weirdly inconsistent? The stamina bar never stops feeling like "I only put 2 points into Endurance". I also felt like the isometric nature of the game made it so I was never completely sure I was shield blocking in the right direction, even with the lock on. The I-Frames on the dodge are extremely tight, and once again with the isometric view my results seemed to vary based on which direction I was rolling.
Which once again is fine! It's fine. None of these things would be irredeemable on they're own, but they start to pile up during the many, many combat encounters. I never once found any of the combat enjoyable, which I feel like I could overlook if there wasn't so much of it!
I should also note that there is an accessibility setting that makes you invincible, which negates pretty much all of my issues. So never mind, I guess!
But what keeps getting in the way for me is the combat. Now, I'm not opposed to a difficult action game. But Tunic's difficulty is different. Its riding that recent wave of games that use Dark Souls systems, and I had no issue with that. But there is something I can't quite put my finger on that made most enemy encounters and every boss fight incredibly frustrating. Your cute little guy moves so slowly, and the range in which he swings his sword is so miniscule, and also weirdly inconsistent? The stamina bar never stops feeling like "I only put 2 points into Endurance". I also felt like the isometric nature of the game made it so I was never completely sure I was shield blocking in the right direction, even with the lock on. The I-Frames on the dodge are extremely tight, and once again with the isometric view my results seemed to vary based on which direction I was rolling.
Which once again is fine! It's fine. None of these things would be irredeemable on they're own, but they start to pile up during the many, many combat encounters. I never once found any of the combat enjoyable, which I feel like I could overlook if there wasn't so much of it!
I should also note that there is an accessibility setting that makes you invincible, which negates pretty much all of my issues. So never mind, I guess!