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Tengami

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  • 9 min read

Tengami is a platform adventure game based on the ancient art of folding paper, developed and distributed by Nyamyam. It’s set in a three-dimensional Japanese storybook that we’ll go page by page through puzzles and settings with the aim of bringing an ancient tree back to life. The game involves a fairly simple interface that can be understood by all kinds of audiences, casual and experienced.

Story

The story develops around an ancient tree which, for unknown reasons, has lost all the luster and life it carried with it. Our protagonist must undertake a search through various territories to get to the cause of this and, more importantly, bring the leafy tree and its surroundings back to life.

Tengami gameplay

At one point, the story involves a metaphor for how dreams deteriorate over time, becoming weaker and sadder. That’s when we have to start an adventure in search of what’s needed to color the tree again, and relive our dreams whatever the season.

This metaphor could be propagated throughout the story. The wolves represent our consciousness by watching us from afar, following our path and sometimes blocking our passage; but not always will they be there with us. Life would be represented by the road we travel, full of obstacles that will test our patience and our ability to solve problems.

Gameplay

The gameplay is the best it could offer a game targeted at all types of audience. Movements are comfortable and fluid, instructions are simple and user-friendly, and interactions are quick and easy.

This is made possible by the touch-control function, which gives us a simple system in which to move around with just a touch on the screen. The Wii U platform has the advantage of showing the game on the big screen of a TV while we manage from the GamePad, something difficult at first, but it gets easier as you learn to control it.

The difficulty is fairly low at first, and although it increases as you go along, it doesn’t get really difficult. The puzzles are kept simple and didactic, allowing the game to be explored fluidly by young and old alike.

Tengami Puzzle

Although this is a title where our objective is to advance by solving puzzles, in reality what it offers us is not a challenge but an experience. The gameplay and story aim to help us find some peace and tranquility, while entering relaxing new landscapes with a magnificent artistic setting and soundtrack.

Fun and entertainment

The highlight of this title is its ability to disconnect from the rest of the world and focus solely on exploring and discovering what lies ahead. Time and again, it conveys a sense of intrigue that frees our imagination and stimulates our problem-solving abilities.

Patience will be our strong point, if we want to have a good experience. Just place the game and let’s go for what they want us to understand in this beautiful story. If we get properly involved to have fun and enjoy the title we’ll spend hours distracted without thinking about anything other than achieving our goals.

The plot, the scenery and the challenges grab us and give us a magical experience which, in the end, is what we’re really left with. The book includes phrases that help us to be patient and teach us to be humble. Our character’s heroic adventure as he embarks on various journeys to restore color to his valley and fill it with dreams again, is the biggest attraction that will keep us playing constantly.

Graphics

The graphics section is well executed, adapted to the characteristics that predominate in the paper figures of three-dimensional books. The scenarios are constantly folded as desired to allow us to appreciate the same objects from different perspectives.

Being a mystical adventure worthy of a story, it’s accompanied by beautiful, colorful landscapes that become increasingly user-friendly to explore. The setting invites us to be part of it, managing to express a sense of tranquility and absolute well-being.

Our character’s clothing is well-crafted and focused on Eastern culture, as are the designs of the houses, trees and objects we find throughout the adventure. Even the puzzle designs involve oriental symbols and letters compatible with the essence of the story.

The art section delights us with beautiful landscapes, trees full of life and nature living with all elements in harmony. The lighting is very well implemented, conveying the right sense of depth while remaining colorful and fantastic.

The seasons are represented by different colors and the state of the environment. We’ll see flux flowing into a waterfall in autumn that becomes shelves of ice when winter comes. Likewise, we’ll also see less-lit scenarios where necessary, such as dark nights or small caves.

Sound

The complete sense of magic and harmony achieved would not have been possible were it not for the musical pieces in each level. As we make our way through the stages, we are treated to a relaxing soundtrack that invites meditation and concentration.

Relaxation is an important aspect of our research, and if you’re careful, you can achieve it. Even the most impatient can give in to the calm melodies emitted while enjoying the beautiful fields, forests and listening to the sound of animals around and environment interacting everywhere, with waterfalls falling, the sea current flowing down and the breeze roaring through the leaves of the trees.

Anyone who doesn’t appreciate the gentle tunes emitted by various instruments, including flutes, will have had this experience in vain. The calm situation conveyed is impressive, very consistent with what we are visually involved in. Even in the caves and desolate landscapes, the music is overwhelming but not tragic, just a little optimistic.

For those who simply don’t share this taste for relaxing music, in the “Music” option they can deactivate all the songs in the game. This doesn’t mean that nothing will be heard, since other sounds that have nothing to do with the songs will continue to play in the background, but now more exceptional because they’ll be the only sound around. This means that we’ll be listening in full force to waterfalls, passing pages, or the sound of animals.

Help system

The team responsible for this work of art has made its intentions clear, offering a great experience of exploration and discovery, while respecting players’ time. That’s why, throughout our adventure, we can use hints from the pause menu to help us overcome certain obstacles where we’re stuck, so we don’t waste the day on the same mission.

We can use the hints nonchalantly, as there is no limit to their use or the scores affected by them. Bear in mind that hints, while useful, are short, indirect messages that we’ll need to analyze if we’re to make sense of them.

For those who prefer to play without any help, these hints can be deactivated from the game settings, easily accessible from the pause menu. Once deactivated, we’ll stop seeing certain explanatory dialogs, which will increase the game’s difficulty, which in itself is a little low.

Interaction with the Wii U GamePad

The game makes full use of the Wii U GamePad’s touchscreen, providing an original paper-folding and page-turning emulation. The touchscreen quickly recognizes and responds to our instructions. Even a young child could get through the whole game without making any mistakes or errors when it comes to controlling the character.

This game doesn’t use the gyroscope, microphone or any of the buttons we’re used to using in most video games. We even have to touch a little gear symbol in the top left-hand corner of the screen to access the pause menu, as the ‘+’ and ‘-‘ buttons have no function.

Interaction with Miiverse

Apart from the regular use of all Wii U games with Nintendo’s social network, Tengami comes with a very original way of sharing our progress with others. Along the way, we’ll be able to collect stamps, symbols, and even flowers as we explore and complete levels.

When we obtain a collectible, we can share it in Miiverse without leaving the game, using different meditation and reflection phrases that come by default in the message with each discovered object and which we can modify to our liking.

Game menu

  • New game: This option allows us to start the game. The game will be created automatically by selecting this option. If we want to start from scratch, we need to select it again, but this will erase our previous game and we won’t be able to recover it.
  • Continue game: With this option, we can follow the game from the last time it was saved. The game is responsible for automatically saving games, as there is no save option. This may not be necessary, as this is a relatively short title whose progress can be easily retrieved.
  • Settings: Here we can configure our game options. We’ll be able to choose between four options, which are ‘Music’, ‘Sound output’, ‘Hints’, and ‘Main menu’.
  • Finally, in the pause menu, we’ll have the option of Exit, which will take us back to the title screen without saving our progress. This option does not require confirmation of exit, so we must be careful not to touch it by mistake.

Tengami

The combination of game concept, tunes and visual section really manages to immerse us in this fantastic story told literally in a storybook. The game focuses on delivering a wonderful experience in the shortest possible time, because unfortunately, it’s quite short.

It is without doubt an alternative to most of the games available on the market, both conceptually and technically. It can be purchased in the European and American eShops for $7.99 and $9.99 respectively, an acceptable price for this fine project that will bring a little peace to your lives or those of any family member.