Compare Tales of Kenzera™: ZAU prices across 50+ stores and find the best deal. Developed by Surgent Studios. Published by Electronic Arts. Released on 4/23/2024. Available on PC, Xbox. Genres: Action, Adventure, Indie. Metacritic score: 76/100.

Grief processed through sun-and-moon mask combat, Bantu mythology, and some of the most intentional level-sound pairing in recent memory. An eight-hour metroidvania that earns every quiet moment.

I went in expecting a competent genre exercise and came out thinking about a dead father for two days. That's the short version of what Tales of Kenzera: ZAU does to you. It is a 2.5D metroidvania built from recognizable parts, but the architecture behind those parts belongs entirely to Surgent Studios and to creative lead Abubakar Salim, who drew directly from his own experience of losing his father when shaping the story. The result is one of the more thematically cohesive games I have played in this genre: health upgrades come from moments of meditation, combat skills represent the protagonist Zau learning to inhabit his father's legacy, and every biome you cross is quietly mirroring a stage of grief. The dual-mask combat system is the mechanical spine. The sun mask is melee-forward, fast, aggressive, built around light combos and a powerful charged ranged attack you unlock later. The moon mask flips the script: ranged by default, with a useful early stun ability that becomes essential against grouped enemies. Swapping between them mid-fight is where the rhythm lives, and when you string together a clean sun-to-moon rotation the game starts to feel almost choreographic. Alongside the masks, Zau's movement kit, double jump, wall jump, air dash, and eventually a grappling hook, opens up as you progress. Notably, core traversal abilities arrive early rather than gating you behind long hunts, which means the world stays fun to cross throughout. Souls collected from enemies, called Ulogi, fund new skills on two separate upgrade trees, one per mask, giving you some build expression within a compact framework. The biomes themselves are genuinely distinct and worth moving through: sickly green swamps that test acrobatic patience, volcanic desert stretches loaded with multi-step environmental puzzles, and quieter forest corridors that let the soundtrack breathe. Composer Nainita Desai layers synth and electric textures over African traditional instrumentation in a way that feels earned rather than cosmetic. It is one of those scores you notice without meaning to. The visual style is expressive and colorful, and the full Swahili voice performances give the world a cultural grounding you rarely get in this price bracket. Where other games borrow an aesthetic, this one is building something from the inside out. The criticisms land, though, and they deserve honest mention. The map design is the weakest link: entire zones reveal themselves on entry, but there is no way to mark visited rooms or track where you have and have not explored. Backtracking for secrets becomes guesswork, and most secrets only reward a small experience bump rather than anything that alters your relationship to the build. Some reviewers noted that gauntlet-style kill rooms cluster together in places, stalling momentum at exactly the wrong time. There are occasional difficulty spikes that feel less designed and more accidental. For players who come to the genre from Hollow Knight or Ori, the overall depth will feel modest. This is a first metroidvania from a debut studio, and it plays a little safe by those standards. What it does have, and what I would argue the mid-tier Metacritic score undersells, is a rare emotional clarity. Every encounter, every upgrade, every NPC who deals with loss in their own way, feeds back into one coherent human question. Zau's roughly eight-hour journey knows when it is done. It does not pad itself. For anyone who has ever used fiction to hold grief at arm's length, this game is doing something specific and honest. Kai, Scout Team

Tales of Kenzera™: ZAU
ActionAdventureIndie

Tales of Kenzera™: ZAU

Apr 23, 2024Surgent StudiosElectronic Arts
GamerScout Says

Grief processed through sun-and-moon mask combat, Bantu mythology, and some of the most intentional level-sound pairing in recent memory. An eight-hour metroidvania that earns every quiet moment.

PCXbox
Best Price Available
0.00
at N/A
Historical low: $

Compare Prices(0 stores)

Loading prices...

We may earn a commission when you buy games through links on this page — at no extra cost to you. It never affects our rankings or verdicts.

Screenshots & Media

Screenshot

About Tales of Kenzera™: ZAU

I went in expecting a competent genre exercise and came out thinking about a dead father for two days. That's the short version of what Tales of Kenzera: ZAU does to you. It is a 2.5D metroidvania built from recognizable parts, but the architecture behind those parts belongs entirely to Surgent Studios and to creative lead Abubakar Salim, who drew directly from his own experience of losing his father when shaping the story. The result is one of the more thematically cohesive games I have played in this genre: health upgrades come from moments of meditation, combat skills represent the protagonist Zau learning to inhabit his father's legacy, and every biome you cross is quietly mirroring a stage of grief. The dual-mask combat system is the mechanical spine. The sun mask is melee-forward, fast, aggressive, built around light combos and a powerful charged ranged attack you unlock later. The moon mask flips the script: ranged by default, with a useful early stun ability that becomes essential against grouped enemies. Swapping between them mid-fight is where the rhythm lives, and when you string together a clean sun-to-moon rotation the game starts to feel almost choreographic. Alongside the masks, Zau's movement kit, double jump, wall jump, air dash, and eventually a grappling hook, opens up as you progress. Notably, core traversal abilities arrive early rather than gating you behind long hunts, which means the world stays fun to cross throughout. Souls collected from enemies, called Ulogi, fund new skills on two separate upgrade trees, one per mask, giving you some build expression within a compact framework. The biomes themselves are genuinely distinct and worth moving through: sickly green swamps that test acrobatic patience, volcanic desert stretches loaded with multi-step environmental puzzles, and quieter forest corridors that let the soundtrack breathe. Composer Nainita Desai layers synth and electric textures over African traditional instrumentation in a way that feels earned rather than cosmetic. It is one of those scores you notice without meaning to. The visual style is expressive and colorful, and the full Swahili voice performances give the world a cultural grounding you rarely get in this price bracket. Where other games borrow an aesthetic, this one is building something from the inside out. The criticisms land, though, and they deserve honest mention. The map design is the weakest link: entire zones reveal themselves on entry, but there is no way to mark visited rooms or track where you have and have not explored. Backtracking for secrets becomes guesswork, and most secrets only reward a small experience bump rather than anything that alters your relationship to the build. Some reviewers noted that gauntlet-style kill rooms cluster together in places, stalling momentum at exactly the wrong time. There are occasional difficulty spikes that feel less designed and more accidental. For players who come to the genre from Hollow Knight or Ori, the overall depth will feel modest. This is a first metroidvania from a debut studio, and it plays a little safe by those standards. What it does have, and what I would argue the mid-tier Metacritic score undersells, is a rare emotional clarity. Every encounter, every upgrade, every NPC who deals with loss in their own way, feeds back into one coherent human question. Zau's roughly eight-hour journey knows when it is done. It does not pad itself. For anyone who has ever used fiction to hold grief at arm's length, this game is doing something specific and honest. Kai, Scout Team

Tags

singleplayerachievementscontroller-supportcloud-savestier:aaaGrief NarrativeDual-Weapon SystemBantu Mythology2.5D PlatformerAbility GatingUpgrade TreesEmotional StorytellingBoss Spirits

System Requirements

Minimum

0
<
1
s
2
t
3
r
4
o
5
n
6
g
7
>
8
M
9
i
10
n
11
i
12
m
13
u
14
m
15
:
16
<
17
/
18
s
19
t
20
r
21
o
22
n
23
g
24
>
25
<
26
b
27
r
28
>
29
<
30
u
31
l
32
33
c
34
l
35
a
36
s
37
s
38
=
39
"
40
b
41
b
42
_
43
u
44
l
45
"
46
>
47
<
48
l
49
i
50
>
51
R
52
e
53
q
54
u
55
i
56
r
57
e
58
s
59
60
a
61
62
6
63
4
64
-
65
b
66
i
67
t
68
69
p
70
r
71
o
72
c
73
e
74
s
75
s
76
o
77
r
78
79
a
80
n
81
d
82
83
o
84
p
85
e
86
r
87
a
88
t
89
i
90
n
91
g
92
93
s
94
y
95
s
96
t
97
e
98
m
99
<
100
b
101
r
102
>
103
<
104
/
105
l
106
i
107
>
108
<
109
l
110
i
111
>
112
<
113
s
114
t
115
r
116
o
117
n
118
g
119
>
120
O
121
S
122
:
123
<
124
/
125
s
126
t
127
r
128
o
129
n
130
g
131
>
132
133
W
134
i
135
n
136
d
137
o
138
w
139
s
140
141
1
142
0
143
<
144
b
145
r
146
>
147
<
148
/
149
l
150
i
151
>
152
<
153
l
154
i
155
>
156
<
157
s
158
t
159
r
160
o
161
n
162
g
163
>
164
P
165
r
166
o
167
c
168
e
169
s
170
s
171
o
172
r
173
:
174
<
175
/
176
s
177
t
178
r
179
o
180
n
181
g
182
>
183
184
I
185
n
186
t
187
e
188
l
189
190
i
191
7
192
193
7
194
7
195
0
196
0
197
198
/
199
200
A
201
M
202
D
203
204
R
205
y
206
z
207
e
208
n
209
210
2
211
6
212
0
213
0
214
<
215
b
216
r
217
>
218
<
219
/
220
l
221
i
222
>
223
<
224
l
225
i
226
>
227
<
228
s
229
t
230
r
231
o
232
n
233
g
234
>
235
M
236
e
237
m
238
o
239
r
240
y
241
:
242
<
243
/
244
s
245
t
246
r
247
o
248
n
249
g
250
>
251
252
8
253
254
G
255
B
256
257
R
258
A
259
M
260
<
261
b
262
r
263
>
264
<
265
/
266
l
267
i
268
>
269
<
270
l
271
i
272
>
273
<
274
s
275
t
276
r
277
o
278
n
279
g
280
>
281
G
282
r
283
a
284
p
285
h
286
i
287
c
288
s
289
:
290
<
291
/
292
s
293
t
294
r
295
o
296
n
297
g
298
>
299
300
N
301
V
302
I
303
D
304
I
305
A
306
307
G
308
T
309
X
310
311
1
312
0
313
6
314
0
315
316
6
317
G
318
B
319
320
/
321
322
A
323
M
324
D
325
326
R
327
X
328
329
5
330
8
331
0
332
333
8
334
G
335
B
336
337
/
338
339
I
340
n
341
t
342
e
343
l
344
345
A
346
r
347
c
348
349
A
350
3
351
8
352
0
353
<
354
b
355
r
356
>
357
<
358
/
359
l
360
i
361
>
362
<
363
l
364
i
365
>
366
<
367
s
368
t
369
r
370
o
371
n
372
g
373
>
374
D
375
i
376
r
377
e
378
c
379
t
380
X
381
:
382
<
383
/
384
s
385
t
386
r
387
o
388
n
389
g
390
>
391
392
V
393
e
394
r
395
s
396
i
397
o
398
n
399
400
1
401
2
402
<
403
b
404
r
405
>
406
<
407
/
408
l
409
i
410
>
411
<
412
l
413
i
414
>
415
<
416
s
417
t
418
r
419
o
420
n
421
g
422
>
423
N
424
e
425
t
426
w
427
o
428
r
429
k
430
:
431
<
432
/
433
s
434
t
435
r
436
o
437
n
438
g
439
>
440
441
B
442
r
443
o
444
a
445
d
446
b
447
a
448
n
449
d
450
451
I
452
n
453
t
454
e
455
r
456
n
457
e
458
t
459
460
c
461
o
462
n
463
n
464
e
465
c
466
t
467
i
468
o
469
n
470
<
471
b
472
r
473
>
474
<
475
/
476
l
477
i
478
>
479
<
480
l
481
i
482
>
483
<
484
s
485
t
486
r
487
o
488
n
489
g
490
>
491
S
492
t
493
o
494
r
495
a
496
g
497
e
498
:
499
<
500
/
501
s
502
t
503
r
504
o
505
n
506
g
507
>
508
509
3
510
0
511
512
G
513
B
514
515
a
516
v
517
a
518
i
519
l
520
a
521
b
522
l
523
e
524
525
s
526
p
527
a
528
c
529
e
530
<
531
b
532
r
533
>
534
<
535
/
536
l
537
i
538
>
539
<
540
l
541
i
542
>
543
<
544
s
545
t
546
r
547
o
548
n
549
g
550
>
551
S
552
o
553
u
554
n
555
d
556
557
C
558
a
559
r
560
d
561
:
562
<
563
/
564
s
565
t
566
r
567
o
568
n
569
g
570
>
571
572
D
573
i
574
r
575
e
576
c
577
t
578
X
579
580
C
581
o
582
m
583
p
584
a
585
t
586
i
587
b
588
l
589
e
590
<
591
b
592
r
593
>
594
<
595
/
596
l
597
i
598
>
599
<
600
l
601
i
602
>
603
<
604
s
605
t
606
r
607
o
608
n
609
g
610
>
611
A
612
d
613
d
614
i
615
t
616
i
617
o
618
n
619
a
620
l
621
622
N
623
o
624
t
625
e
626
s
627
:
628
<
629
/
630
s
631
t
632
r
633
o
634
n
635
g
636
>
637
638
T
639
h
640
e
641
s
642
e
643
644
s
645
p
646
e
647
c
648
s
649
650
a
651
l
652
l
653
o
654
w
655
656
f
657
o
658
r
659
660
t
661
h
662
e
663
664
g
665
a
666
m
667
e
668
669
t
670
o
671
672
b
673
e
674
675
p
676
l
677
a
678
y
679
e
680
d
681
682
i
683
n
684
685
1
686
9
687
2
688
0
689
x
690
1
691
0
692
8
693
0
694
695
a
696
t
697
698
6
699
0
700
701
F
702
P
703
S
704
705
w
706
i
707
t
708
h
709
710
g
711
r
712
a
713
p
714
h
715
i
716
c
717
s
718
719
s
720
e
721
t
722
t
723
i
724
n
725
g
726
727
&
728
q
729
u
730
o
731
t
732
;
733
L
734
o
735
w
736
e
737
s
738
t
739
&
740
q
741
u
742
o
743
t
744
;
745
<
746
/
747
l
748
i
749
>
750
<
751
/
752
u
753
l
754
>

Recommended

0
<
1
s
2
t
3
r
4
o
5
n
6
g
7
>
8
R
9
e
10
c
11
o
12
m
13
m
14
e
15
n
16
d
17
e
18
d
19
:
20
<
21
/
22
s
23
t
24
r
25
o
26
n
27
g
28
>
29
<
30
b
31
r
32
>
33
<
34
u
35
l
36
37
c
38
l
39
a
40
s
41
s
42
=
43
"
44
b
45
b
46
_
47
u
48
l
49
"
50
>
51
<
52
l
53
i
54
>
55
R
56
e
57
q
58
u
59
i
60
r
61
e
62
s
63
64
a
65
66
6
67
4
68
-
69
b
70
i
71
t
72
73
p
74
r
75
o
76
c
77
e
78
s
79
s
80
o
81
r
82
83
a
84
n
85
d
86
87
o
88
p
89
e
90
r
91
a
92
t
93
i
94
n
95
g
96
97
s
98
y
99
s
100
t
101
e
102
m
103
<
104
b
105
r
106
>
107
<
108
/
109
l
110
i
111
>
112
<
113
l
114
i
115
>
116
<
117
s
118
t
119
r
120
o
121
n
122
g
123
>
124
O
125
S
126
:
127
<
128
/
129
s
130
t
131
r
132
o
133
n
134
g
135
>
136
137
W
138
i
139
n
140
d
141
o
142
w
143
s
144
145
1
146
0
147
<
148
b
149
r
150
>
151
<
152
/
153
l
154
i
155
>
156
<
157
l
158
i
159
>
160
<
161
s
162
t
163
r
164
o
165
n
166
g
167
>
168
P
169
r
170
o
171
c
172
e
173
s
174
s
175
o
176
r
177
:
178
<
179
/
180
s
181
t
182
r
183
o
184
n
185
g
186
>
187
188
I
189
n
190
t
191
e
192
l
193
194
i
195
7
196
197
7
198
7
199
0
200
0
201
202
/
203
204
A
205
M
206
D
207
208
R
209
y
210
z
211
e
212
n
213
214
2
215
6
216
0
217
0
218
<
219
b
220
r
221
>
222
<
223
/
224
l
225
i
226
>
227
<
228
l
229
i
230
>
231
<
232
s
233
t
234
r
235
o
236
n
237
g
238
>
239
M
240
e
241
m
242
o
243
r
244
y
245
:
246
<
247
/
248
s
249
t
250
r
251
o
252
n
253
g
254
>
255
256
1
257
6
258
259
G
260
B
261
262
R
263
A
264
M
265
<
266
b
267
r
268
>
269
<
270
/
271
l
272
i
273
>
274
<
275
l
276
i
277
>
278
<
279
s
280
t
281
r
282
o
283
n
284
g
285
>
286
G
287
r
288
a
289
p
290
h
291
i
292
c
293
s
294
:
295
<
296
/
297
s
298
t
299
r
300
o
301
n
302
g
303
>
304
305
N
306
V
307
I
308
D
309
I
310
A
311
312
G
313
T
314
X
315
316
1
317
0
318
7
319
0
320
321
8
322
G
323
B
324
325
/
326
327
A
328
M
329
D
330
331
R
332
X
333
334
V
335
e
336
g
337
a
338
-
339
5
340
6
341
342
8
343
344
G
345
B
346
<
347
b
348
r
349
>
350
<
351
/
352
l
353
i
354
>
355
<
356
l
357
i
358
>
359
<
360
s
361
t
362
r
363
o
364
n
365
g
366
>
367
D
368
i
369
r
370
e
371
c
372
t
373
X
374
:
375
<
376
/
377
s
378
t
379
r
380
o
381
n
382
g
383
>
384
385
V
386
e
387
r
388
s
389
i
390
o
391
n
392
393
1
394
2
395
<
396
b
397
r
398
>
399
<
400
/
401
l
402
i
403
>
404
<
405
l
406
i
407
>
408
<
409
s
410
t
411
r
412
o
413
n
414
g
415
>
416
N
417
e
418
t
419
w
420
o
421
r
422
k
423
:
424
<
425
/
426
s
427
t
428
r
429
o
430
n
431
g
432
>
433
434
B
435
r
436
o
437
a
438
d
439
b
440
a
441
n
442
d
443
444
I
445
n
446
t
447
e
448
r
449
n
450
e
451
t
452
453
c
454
o
455
n
456
n
457
e
458
c
459
t
460
i
461
o
462
n
463
<
464
b
465
r
466
>
467
<
468
/
469
l
470
i
471
>
472
<
473
l
474
i
475
>
476
<
477
s
478
t
479
r
480
o
481
n
482
g
483
>
484
S
485
t
486
o
487
r
488
a
489
g
490
e
491
:
492
<
493
/
494
s
495
t
496
r
497
o
498
n
499
g
500
>
501
502
3
503
0
504
505
G
506
B
507
508
a
509
v
510
a
511
i
512
l
513
a
514
b
515
l
516
e
517
518
s
519
p
520
a
521
c
522
e
523
<
524
b
525
r
526
>
527
<
528
/
529
l
530
i
531
>
532
<
533
l
534
i
535
>
536
<
537
s
538
t
539
r
540
o
541
n
542
g
543
>
544
S
545
o
546
u
547
n
548
d
549
550
C
551
a
552
r
553
d
554
:
555
<
556
/
557
s
558
t
559
r
560
o
561
n
562
g
563
>
564
565
D
566
i
567
r
568
e
569
c
570
t
571
X
572
573
C
574
o
575
m
576
p
577
a
578
t
579
i
580
b
581
l
582
e
583
<
584
b
585
r
586
>
587
<
588
/
589
l
590
i
591
>
592
<
593
l
594
i
595
>
596
<
597
s
598
t
599
r
600
o
601
n
602
g
603
>
604
A
605
d
606
d
607
i
608
t
609
i
610
o
611
n
612
a
613
l
614
615
N
616
o
617
t
618
e
619
s
620
:
621
<
622
/
623
s
624
t
625
r
626
o
627
n
628
g
629
>
630
631
T
632
h
633
e
634
s
635
e
636
637
s
638
p
639
e
640
c
641
s
642
643
a
644
l
645
l
646
o
647
w
648
649
f
650
o
651
r
652
653
t
654
h
655
e
656
657
g
658
a
659
m
660
e
661
662
t
663
o
664
665
b
666
e
667
668
p
669
l
670
a
671
y
672
e
673
d
674
675
i
676
n
677
678
1
679
9
680
2
681
0
682
x
683
1
684
0
685
8
686
0
687
688
a
689
t
690
691
6
692
0
693
694
F
695
P
696
S
697
698
w
699
i
700
t
701
h
702
703
g
704
r
705
a
706
p
707
h
708
i
709
c
710
s
711
712
s
713
e
714
t
715
t
716
i
717
n
718
g
719
720
&
721
q
722
u
723
o
724
t
725
;
726
S
727
t
728
a
729
n
730
d
731
a
732
r
733
d
734
&
735
q
736
u
737
o
738
t
739
;
740
<
741
/
742
l
743
i
744
>
745
<
746
/
747
u
748
l
749
>

Reviews & Ratings

Metacritic
76

Game Info

Developer
Surgent Studios
Publisher
Electronic Arts
Release Date
Apr 23, 2024

Price Alert

Get notified when the price drops below your target!

Create Alert