I do love me a good metroidvania game, especially those with a rhythmic tempo to combat (I’ll love you always, Hollow Knight) or an intriguingly unfamiliar world rich with story that I want to spend hours uncovering (looking at you, Iconoclasts). Tales of Kenzera: Zau may deliver on both fronts, with the demo of the first hour of the game hiding snippets of lore amongst its beautiful levels and offering a taste of the dance-like movements of its combo-focused combat. It’s still too early to say definitively, but I think there could be a great game here.
Tales of Kenzera is a 2.5D metroidvania developed by Surgent Studios, which was founded by Abubakar Salim (best known in the gaming industry for voicing Bayek in Assassin’s Creed Origins). You play as Zau, a young man on a journey alongside Kalunga, the god of death. Zau utilizes twin masks that represent the dual forces of the sun and the moon, each offering different combat and traversal abilities–the sun mask blesses Zau with powerful close-range attacks while the moon mask gives him long-range abilities.
Establishing the dynamic between Zau and Kalunga is the focus of the game’s opening hour. This early on, there’s not much to it that hasn’t been seen in other games. Zau is brash and impatient, teetering on arrogance, while Kalunga is a more wizened voice. What’s most intriguing about their relationship is what’s set up and potentially teased in that first hour: Zau is embarking on a quest for Kalunga that others have tried and failed at, and in return, Kalunga will bring Zau’s father back to life. But Kalunga seems too smart to go through with something that would inevitably disrupt the natural order of the world, and early conversations hint that this journey will be more a learning experience for Zau than anything else.
Source: Gamespot Tales Of Kenzera: Zau's Tabletop Inspirations And Rhythmic Combat Are Making Me Excited