There are games that inevitably go unnoticed until their release approaches, or even after. In my case, I don’t remember when I first saw TOHU , but I do know that I put off trying their demo until it was too late. The good thing is that these days I have been able to play its final version.
The work of Fireart Games, it is his first “serious” job after Spirit Roots, originally from mobile devices, this time facing a point & click graphic adventure halfway between old and new mechanics, where it inevitably recalls the great Machinarium, the best compliment that can be given.
Once upon a time … a universe full of fish planets
TOHU is gorgeous to rage . His universe is pure fantasy, with settings cared for down to the smallest detail, being able to interact with tiny beings with whom we will do nothing to advance the plot, but just enjoy their animations or, in a few cases, unlock a gallery of collectibles.
Set in a universe full of fish-shaped planets, as if it were “The Darius of graphic adventures”, our task will be to repair the Sacred Engine of our home, by destabilizing harmony in the rest of the worlds.
The protagonist of this story is a nice girl who has the ability to transform into her mechanical alter ego , nicknamed Cubus. And the grace is that each one has differences. For example, Cubus is capable of picking up heavy objects and manipulating them to solve less “brainy” puzzles, while the girl, apart from being able to chat with the inhabitants, can jump in certain areas.
TOHU is not an adventure where you have to talk too much, anyway. She is rather sparing in words , telling the right thing and playing more with the pictures, as clues. Nor is it an adventure in which you have to manage the inventory, inspecting as in the classics of the genre, but rather it is about interacting more directly with what is there or we save for later.
As much as there may be with Machinarium , Fireart Games has moved away from other Amanita Design proposals, where more emphasis was placed on controlling every pixel of what we saw on the screen to the millimeter to find a point where to interact, seen equally in the vindicable and less popular Mr. Shadow, from a Spanish studio. In TOHU you will have to pay attention to the environment , yes, but following a logic far from surrealism.
This does not mean that there will not be fantasy involved, because there will be. In fact, the protagonist’s ship will be driven by insects … traveling through the rest of the galaxy to continue our mission to other fish planets.
In the variety lies the good taste for TOHU
Each planet is a world, never better said. Despite sharing very lively environments, with a lot of animals swarming, both in the foreground and in the background, the style varies, but always within locations that we will see at a stroke, with connected rooms that will give it greater depth … and also to increase the challenge of some puzzles with more variables to take into account.
These kinds of puzzles are quite striking , because they are not limited to “take this object and use it here”, but we will come across elements that will have to be manipulated, use of aiming or with sections like Quick-Time. Event , where you can act fast without being still all the time.
It is not a complex adventure, since the vast majority of actions can be deduced as soon as we pay a little attention to our environment, but in certain sections guiding the pointer with a control is less effective and immediate than a mouse (available in the PC version, obviously). Now, there are some shortcuts with a command, such as to transform into Cubus or access the inventory.
This does not prevent it from being too rigid at times with the movement of certain actions, as it is not possible to move freely, but to specific points of the mapping (where the symbol of walking feet appears), or because it shows the nice animations of its protagonists. And that sometimes you don’t even need to be less than one meter from an object to interact with it. Without going any further, the girl will sometimes use a contraption or throw stones to give variety to the matter.
And what happens if we get stuck? As in other classics of the genre, here we will have a section of clues, which will show the solution with some vignettes after passing a brief QTE. They do not reach the level of detail of Machinarium , but on more than one occasion, even if we know the solution, they are worth seeing.
What is clear is that we are facing an adventure that captures without remedy and that is enjoyed from beginning to end, backed in turn by a great job by Christopher Larkin for its soundtrack , the same composer of Hollow Knight.
In short, TOHU is a recommended adventure for fans of Machinarium and other point & click of that style. Beneath an innocent appearance hides a very neat product with a charm that is difficult to resist. It’s the kind of title that comes quietly but ends up drawing a smile on you .
TOHU
| Platforms | Nintendo Switch, PS4, Steam, Xbox One (analyzed version) and Google Stadia |
|---|---|
| Multiplayer | Not |
| Developer | Fireart games |
| Company | The Irregular Corporation |
| Launch | January 28, 2021 |
| Price | 12.99 euros |
The best
- Visually it is a delight
- Show off sympathy and a sense of humor
- The originality of some puzzles
- Good soundtrack by Larkin
Worst
- Not being able to move freely
- Control the pointer with the joystick