Of course, that can be easy to miss when you’re in the middle of some of these little-too-long jam sessions, but the game does allow players to sit back and let Tchia do the work in these sections for them. If I were to force myself to choose one for this review, it would be when you cycle through the chords on Tchia’s ukulele, you see her hands doing the proper fingering for the chord. In fact, there are so many small details and little touches throughout the world that it’s hard for me to say which touch of “above and beyond” is my favorite. It’s the details in these reefs that make them so appealing so worth your time. These underwater habitats are a joy to explore while Soul Jumping as a fish, so much so that I spent far more time underwater than the game asked of me. If there is one space where Tchia outdoes its main source of inspiration, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, it’s with its reef-filled ocean that’s beckoned me to dive deep. The developers made great use of Unreal Engine 4, creating a gorgeous world to explore whether you’re on land or under the sea. I guess I shouldn’t be complaining too much about being given a reason to stay in this world for longer periods of time because it really is a special place to be. I appreciate how organic the world looks, but I wish the developers would have implemented something extra to help guide players toward these necessary points of interest.

These points do glow with lensflare, but even that is small enough to miss. That wouldn’t be a problem if some of the activities you need to find, like the rock-stacking mini-game that unlocks new ukulele songs, are so damn small you really have to be on the lookout for them. Because nothing in this world is exaggerated in design, everything blends into the environment with ease.

Unfortunately, finding every little point of interest in this game can be difficult. Those are great traversal techniques when you just don’t have a bird or a bug around. But it’s negligible considering a lot of thought and care was put into the other ways Tchia can travel, including her super-useful slide skill and her ability to slingshot herself out of trees. Tchia can climb on every surface with ease, though you’ll often come across an impossibly steep hillside that you’re able to slowly walk up rather than climb, which does point to the world not being as carefully designed as it could have been. Many times, I just couldn’t find a bird if my life depended on it.

Rocks are plenty in this world if you just want to get around fast, but I was a bit disappointed with how sparse the wildlife could be in those moments when I had to travel high up over a mountain. Most of my traversal around this world was on foot and through Soul Jumping into birds and other creatures where I could. I didn’t do as much sailing as I thought I would in the game, but every time Tchia stepped foot on that boat, I could feel the same rush I got setting out in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

You actually have to move around the vessel to control the sail, steer and drop anchor. You don’t just sit in one place and do everything. The archipelago consists of two large islands where you’ll spend the majority of your time, but there are plenty of goodies to be found at sea. Now, the best way to avoid the feeling of monotony that I found is to actually explore these islands. It was an absolute hoot the first few times I took them down, but like several elements in Tchia, it does tend to get drawn out a bit. I really had to be on my toes here, and taking possession of the various flammable objects at the camp and hurling them at my enemies provided the type of rush I didn’t think this game would provide. The first time I stumbled across a Maano Camp was when I realized there was more to this game than the fetch quests I was doing up until that point. Yes, there is combat in Tchia, and in the beginning, it’s highly enjoyable. When in battle against Maano, the fabric soldiers mentioned earlier, she can possess gas cans and oil lamps that burn those mother truckers to ashes. As you explore the world, Soul Jumping into a bird, dog, or even a rock will help Tchia travel faster than she can on foot. With this, she can jump into any animal in the game and dozens of different objects.

Our her has a few tools at her disposal, including a slingshot, a camera, and a flashlight, but the top weapon in Tchia’s arsenal is her “Soul Jumping” ability.

Tchia ign review