This is Niche Spotlight. In this column, we regularly introduce new games to our fans, so please leave feedback and let us know if there’s a game you want us to cover!
Today’s Spotlight is TSIOQUE, a new point & click adventure from OhNoo Studio, the developers of 2015’s Tormentum- Dark Sorrow. TSIOQUE‘s hand-painted visuals might be more cheerful than their previous title, but the game still promises its fair share of twisted humor and dark moments.
You play as Tsioque, a young princess imprisoned within her own castle after it was overrun by the forces of an evil wizard. The wizard’s dark spell has corrupted the once-peaceful halls of the castle, ensuring that the environment can be just as deadly as the demons and enemy soldiers that you are trying to sneak past.
The core gameplay of TSIOQUE is heavily inspired by classic point & click adventure games, and features a mix of puzzle solving, conversations, inventory management, and tons of ways to meet your untimely end. You can watch a trailer above, and there’s a free demo available as well.
TSIOQUE is available on Windows PC and Mac via Steam and GOG for $13.99.
Here’s a rundown of the game:
TSIOQUE (pronounced /tsɪɒk/) is a dark but playful Point & Click adventure, hand-animated in meticulous, frame-by-frame 2D. Escape the clutches of an Evil Wizard and discover the secrets hidden within the spellbound castle of your ancestors.
We take the role of princess Tsioque, imprisoned in a castle overtaken by the Evil Wizard. When darkness falls on your ancestral home, places formerly familiar suddenly turn unfriendly and dangerous. The castle walls have become a deadly trap – we must escape and thwart the Evil Wizard’s plans before the spell he has cast on the castle escalates, triggering events beyond anyone’s control…
A changing, mysterious and dangerous world – even before the Wizard’s attack, the castle held many secrets. Now, bound by a powerful spell, the castle not only became home to demons and magical creatures, but has also been affected itself by the evil power… It bends and shapeshifts, forming layers upon layers of transformation and illusion… It is an essential part of the plot, and – especially later in the game – an element tightly integrated into the gameplay.
You can “die” in this game! – It’s an adventure game, so explore, solve puzzles… but beware. There won’t always have the comfort of infinite time to solve a problem, sometimes you may have to think fast! Other times you may want to think twice before choosing a new course of action, as a wrong decision may cost you your freedom… or worse!
Key Features:
- A 100% hand-drawn, frame-by-frame animated 2d adventure game with a unique atmosphere.
- Humor? Check. Darkness? Check. Suspense? Check! What more could you ask for?
- Story with a twist – a clever story that may surprise you.
- Fully voiced dialogue tracks.
- LOTS of 2D animation – all characters and items are hand-animated, frame-by-frame, old-school-style.
- Beautiful, hand-drawn backgrounds.
- Exceptional soundtrack by Edward Harrison (NEOTOKYO, LUCKY DAY FOREVER) and Elle Kharitou, dynamically illustrating the gameplay and adjusted to your every action.
- The protagonist – a little girl with a talent for bringing chaos and destruction wherever she goes. Those who dare stand in her way are in for a lot of trouble…
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