Tanzia is an upcoming single-player open-world RPG created by Arcanity Inc. The game revolves around a young member of the Akazi whose on a mission to find his missing grandfather and stop an old foe from causing chaos in their peaceful village. The game gives players the freedom to explore the world while completing objectives and a few side quests here and there. The graphics is a little bit cartoonish but is well made and give the game a retro look.
The game has tons of backstory as seen in the 5-minute cutscene in the beginning of the game. Although the story told in the cutscene is crucial, I felt it was a little bit dragging. However the art style and the music combined was pleasing enough but the length can feel a little bit overwhelming.
The main storyline of Tanzia is interesting enough but not mind-blowing. It revolves around the Akazi tribe who are island dwellers that possesses magic. The grandfather of the main character was a hero of the tribe when he defeated the Skeleton King some time ago. However, as events took place and the Skeleton King threat is apparent, the player’s grandfather vanishes and it is up to him to know his whereabouts and stop the Skeleton King from causing havoc once again. It is not the most original story but the game was able to put unique elements that made the generic good vs. evil storyline their own.
Tanzia, although a single player game, has very similar mechanics to most MMOs out there. The player is equipped with spells, attacks, and potions that are all accessible via a quickbar at the bottom. Each ability placed on the quickbar is assigned a number on the keyboard for quick access during combat. There are three main abilities in the combat system in Tanzia: Arcanity, Alchemy, and Hitting.
In a nutshell Arcanity is the ability of the character to use magic and spells. There are variations of standard spells such as the Ice Shard and the Fire Bolt that can be used to fight enemies on long ranges. Alchemy is the ability of the player to concoct potions to restore HP, Mana, and give the players some extra boost that helps during combat. Finally they made it crystal clear that the last ability Hitting, is pathetic for an Arcanist to use in combat but is understandable to use as a last resort whenever Mana is depleted and the player is unable to use spells.
The combat system is pretty simple and becomes repetitive at times. However, some enemies take more damage on certain spells, which gives the player the option to strategize a fight but the long cool down of spells becomes counter intuitive as the player is forced to use whichever spell is available rather than just using the one that the enemy is more vulnerable to.
The visuals in Tanzia are cartoony that is reminiscent of early PS2 games. However, the game still looks good and polished and its simple graphics fits so well with the game’s overall style. Most PCs should be able to run it smoothly since it is not a graphic intensive game. The style of the monsters and creatures in the game looks inspiring and well thought out. What’s most impressive are the cutscenes in the game. They are not your standard CGI but rather still images, with a distinct and high quality art style, voiced over by a narrator.
So far what impressed me the most in this game is its music. The soundtrack goes well with the cutesy vibe of the game and the tropical setting of the island. The voice acting in the game is limited only to the narrator during cutscenes as dialogue in-game is presented using a comic style dialogue box.
All in all, I would say that Tanzia has a big potential to be a good game. Of course there were minor issues in gameplay such as the long cool down times, and lack of variety in spells that detracted me from the game in some way. If the time for spells to cool down is part of the game’s challenge then I would love to see a stronger melee weapon or even a bow and arrow as an alternative while my spells are unavailable. The visuals of the game are top-notch as it captures the nostalgic feel of games in the past. The bright colors mixed in with the spells, the lush trees, and blue seas makes the game a visual treat. I would easily give this game a score of 7.5 out of 10. The final version of the game may or may not be different from the early access version but if you like a simple, light hearted RPG adventure, then Tanzia is worth the look.
The early access version of the game is already available for those who are excited to play the game on Steam for $14.99. A Nintendo Switch version is already in the works and the game will premier on that platform, however this pushed back the release date for PC a little bit further. A comic book will also be available as an in-game unlockable.
