Game: TOHU
Genre: Adventure, Puzzle
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam, PS4, & Xbox One)
Developers | Publishers: The Irregular Corporation | Tinsley PR
Age Rating: EU 3+ | US E
Price: US $13.49 | EU $12,99 | UK £11.99
Release Date: January 28th, 2021
Review code used, with many thanks to Tinsley PR
TOHU is a point-and-click adventure puzzle game, set in the magical world of Fish planets, by developers The Irregular Corporation.
The Little Girl
On a small floating world lives an unusual little girl who has a secret, she can turn into Cubus, her mechanical alter-ego. Cubus can lift and carry big items and perform big deeds, such as picking up wooden boards to use as a bridge or pull large pipes and throw them.
The pair spend their days in their cosy house until one day a strange dark creature breaks the Sacred Engine, which is the heart of the planet. All living beings on the planets are now in great danger and the brave little girl must find a way to travel to see her Juncle. In the hopes that Juncle can provide the tools necessary to fix the Scared Engine. However, this being a game’s storyline not everything goes to plan as Juncle has gone a little mad!
Cubus the Alter Ego
You’ll control the little girl and her alter ego Cubus, as you point and click your way through busy scenes packed full of weird and wonderful things, clicking and interacting with the surrounding environments. When you need the girl to use her ability and change into Cubus it’s a simple press of a button and she transforms into the robot-like Cubus.
The little girl, as she calls herself, can jump and is light whereas Cubus is heavy and cumbersome but makes up for it by being able to lift heavy objects. You’ll be swapping between each to help solve all the puzzles in the game.
Puzzles make the Game
The quality of the puzzles is where TOHU really shines, you’ll be collecting some items to use and moving objects and turning on switches. All in the usual style for a point and click game, but each puzzle is different, feels unique and most fit in with the surroundings. The puzzles are difficult and some of the puzzles can be a little obscure and frustrating to complete but they all offer a great sense of satisfaction once you have completed them!
It’s A Busy World
The games’ story is told through large speech or thought bubbles. Both the girl and Cubus don’t say a word as such. They both make an uh-uh noise and shake their heads when you click on something that can’t be used right away for a puzzle, which can be helpful.
Since the surroundings in the game are a little busy with lots going on, it’s sometimes hard to spot exactly what you are meant to do. You can click on the clipboard next to the menu icon on the upper right corner of the screen to check your goals so that you always know what your next step should be.
Hint System
Also, there is a hint system of sorts to help you out, even that’s a puzzle in itself opening the hint. It’s a timed padlock where you must press the button at the correct time to unlock the hint, which comes in obscure picture form. However, the hints are told entirely without words, which still leaves you with a little bit of effort to work out what the images mean before solving the puzzles.
Visuals and Controls
The visuals in TOHU are beautiful and whimsical as you can see from the pictures. I love the look of the game, with all the things going on in each scene. There are things to interact with, weird and wonderful creatures and contraptions you can click on to bring forth a reaction in certain scenes.
For anyone who has ever played a point-and-click game, the controls are a standard affair. Click on a given area to have the little girl or Cubus move to that specific spot. Sometimes the controls felt a little slow to me, or I would lose the pointer in the busy scenes. But it didn’t detract from the gameplay or interrupt my enjoyment of the game.
Music and Sounds
On the opening screen, the game recommends you use headphones while playing. And I agree with that recommendation as it’s wonderful along with all the sounds and little noises of the environment. The music is composed by Christopher Larkin, the same composer who is responsible for the Hollow Knight soundtrack, need I say more!
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a solid fun point-and-click title then look no further as that is exactly what fans of the point-and-click genre will find in TOHU!
TOHU is a great adventure that will engage you right from the start, with it’s classic gameplay mechanics. And a lovely soundtrack that does a brilliant job of adding more detail to the whimsical world through its music and sound effects, with satisfying puzzles that you’ll need your thinking cap on for.
Final Verdict: I Like It A Lot
Cute! The art style looks a bit like an old puzzle game, Machinarium.