Tchia review

Tchia is a story of self-discovery just as much as it is about saving your father from a group of enemies called the Maano. The overarching narrative focuses on finding a way to defeat the antagonist Meavora, but for much of my time in the gorgeous sun-kissed islands inspired by New Caledonia, I saw a young girl grow into a warrior, overcoming her insecurities and making friends with a host of colourful characters, all inspired and created by a passionate team of developers who are proud of where they came from.

There was so much to do and so much to see, and the ways in which you get around offer complete freedom. Tchia is filled with some smart mechanics, both new and familiar, and although there was a story to play through, I had so much fun pulling at the threads of mysteries scattered across the world, uncovering treasure chests that led to adventure and secrets that offered new cosmetics and skills through the use of music and soul jumping. Everywhere I went, something caught my eye and pulled me into such a wholesome and enjoyable experience.

Getting around the islands was never a chore. There’re plenty of ways to travel across the mountains, jungles, and beaches, as well as making your way across the clear blue ocean. You can climb up trees and use them to catapult you across the sky; jump and glide off of high peaks; become crows and parakeets, boars and deer, or tiger sharks and puffer fish to travel much faster across land, sea, and sky; and use a fully customisable boat to set sail across the clear blue waters that surround you. Like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, you have a stamina gauge when climbing or swimming, however, it can be increased by finding stamina fruit.

If you need to get to a much higher area such as the top of a mountain, or cover more ground to get to where you need to go, you can use an ability called soul jumping to become one of the many local animals. Each one has different abilities. Some let you run faster, while others simply let you poop on people from a great height. It’s a useful ability that isn’t limited to just animals, and anything you can focus on, you can become. You only get a certain amount of time to take over animals and objects, but again, by visiting shrines, you can gobble on soul fruits to increase your soul-jumping gauge.

Your boat is an important extension of who Tchia is. You don’t simply get on the boat and sail, either. Lifting the anchor, raising the sails, and controlling the helm gives you the freedom to control direction and speed, which makes sailing more engaging and fun. There’re plenty of ways to customise the look of your boat, whether finding items by completing quests and minigames, or purchasing new stuff in various locations. While you can’t fast travel on foot, there are plenty of docks that you can instantly visit as long as you’ve found and unlocked them on the map.

Tchia’s appearance can also be customised in plenty of different ways, in much the same way as your boat. Minigames like slingshot target practice and arcade-style games can reap rewards, as well as finding treasure chests at the bottom of the ocean. Exploration is always rewarded, and one of my favourite things about Tchia came in the form of a treasure map that led to a wonderful adventure across the island, making me both utilise the various abilities on offer and search for clues.

Music plays a big part in Tchia. There are scenes where you can take part in rhythm sections featuring instrumentation from the culture found in New Caledonia. If you want to skip these sections, you’re free to do so, especially when some can take a bit too long to complete. Playing the ukulele is another important mechanic in Tchia. You can unlock new melodies by completing rock formation minigames, which provide you with certain abilities that help a great deal. One gave me the option to create a bubble that allowed me to spend more time underwater, and this helped no end when deep underwater.

Awaceb has built an open-world adventure game filled with wonder and adventure. It’s not particularly difficult, but it’s about having fun and introducing you to cultures you may not have encountered before. If you want to skip forward to chapters further into Tchia’s story, or bypass exploration to get to the next mission, the option to do so is there. There are no walls to block progress, and you’re never forced to struggle. Even defeating the fabric-based creatures by burning them with lamps isn’t too tough, but rather an extension of the varied gameplay. Tchia is about love, family, and adventure. It wants you to enjoy your time with it, and that’s something I certainly did.