The AlchemisT’s cookbook
In which a bunch of veteran RPG developers go in search of the philosopher’s stone.
Tanzia is an odd beast, but has the potential to be a really fun one. The single player action RPG in which players take the role of a young shaman retracing the footsteps of their Akazi ancestors in an effort to become the greatest shaman ever has a great lineage behind it. The developer, Arcanity Inc. is made up of ex alum of some very prestigious studios, including inXile Entertainment, Sony Online Entertainment, Obsidian Entertainment, Westworld Studios and more, with designers, programmers and artists who have worked on KotOR II, Neverwinter Nights 2, Torment: Tides of Numenera and EverQuest. The pedigree shows in Tanzia, with elements both of old school RPGs and MMOs shining through.
The island of Tanzia is something of a tropical paradise, rendered in lovely bright colours, but beneath the canopy of trees and between the sandy beaches darkness dwells. Evil creatures cover swarm the island under the command of the Skeleton King, the mortal enemy of the player’s grandfather (there is quite a lengthy backstory of murder, subterfuge and mystery leading up to the events of the game), and it’s up to the player to master the arts of Arcanity and Alchemy to defeat the evil and defend the Akazi people.
Arcanity and Alchemy are the magical skills the player must use to defeat the monsters that threaten the island. Arcanity is spell casting, and players are able to learn multiple spells throughout their adventure. Each spell has a different effect, such as freezing enemies, burning them, exploding for AoE damage, slowing, rooting or pushing enemies away. How these spells are combines really defines how combat plays out. In many ways, larger combats in the game feel more like an old-school MMO like EverQuest than they do an ARPG, with players using movement to gather groups of enemies together so they can be quickly dispatched with an AoE spell, all the while keeping larger enemies at bat with some form of crowd control. It takes a little getting used to, but the constant need for movement either to round up smaller creatures to kill them efficiently, or to avoid enemies while spell cooldowns reset makes the game feel really dynamic.
Alchemy is something of a support skill, with the player being able to craft and use potions to heal, confer brief invulnerability, increase spellcasting power and what have you. Effectively combining alchemical potions and spells lends an aura of resource management to proceedings and feels both natural and powerful.
The island of Tanzia is open right from the beginning of the game without any kind of artificial level gating. Players are free to go anywhere at any time, but that does not make all of the content immediately easily accessible. While players may be able to travel anywhere, some locations are definitely too tough for a neophyte shaman to tackle, making exploring them tantamount to suicide if you haven’t levelled up and found some good gear.
Tanzia is currently in early access but is already showing a good degree of polish (aside from the combat notification font that looks something like comic sans). It plays well, looks good and sounds great. There still isn’t a set release date, but we’d expect to be able to review the game within the next three or four months. TAVISH FORREST