Summary

• Tales of Kenzera: Zau presents a painfully realistic depiction of a young man struggling with grief.
• Although Zau is a good and kind soul underneath, he's brash, hot-headed, and in a hurry for most of the game.
• It's only when he allows himself to heal and reflect on what's happened that we see him for the hero he really is.

I may not be as experienced with as those who started with the games that gave the genre its name, but even I know that one of its main weaknesses is telling a worthwhile story. Although there are expectations to that r♚ule, even the best of the best like and spin yarns that are notably weaker than their excellent gameplay mechanics.

That’s one of the reasons why interested me so much. , Kenzera’s central focus is on exploring deat🐼h and grief, which it does through protagonist Zau, a young man struggling to deal with his father passing away.

Minor spoilers for Zau's opening hours follow.

Tales of Kenzera’s portrayal of what it’sꦿ like to lose a loved one and to struggle with moving on is excellent, but the main reason it works so well is because of how layered and human Zau is. In order to cope (or not cope, as it were) with his dad’s death, Zau makes a deal with the God of Death, Kalunga, to take down three g🌳reat spirits and bring his father back from the Land of the Dead.

A Young Man Struggling With Grief

Despite having suffered such a monumental loss, w🤪hen Zau is introduced he comes off as cocky, brash, and far too sure of his ability to do what no other shaman has done and revive his father. He brushes off Kalunga’s advice and wisdom at almost every turn, and seems uninterested in helping anyone but himself.

Zau’s headstrong attitude comes to the surface when, early on in the adventure, he meets a young girl and seems apathetic to her whole existence since she🦂’s standing in the way of his ultimate goal. After nearly sending her tumbling down a cliff and seeming almost irredeemable, Zau then goes on to make fun of the ancestors from whom he’s inheriting abilities from, laughing at the name of a great hero who is now lending him strength.

Both Kalunaga and the player are baffled at how Zau is acting and, even if you can relate to what he’s going through, he still comes off as a total jerk. We sಌee glimpses of a good person who wants to help people underneath the surface, but he’s so heartbroken from losing his father that he’s lost all perspective.

A Hero Beneath The Pain

It’s only after being berated by Kalunga after getting the new power and being convinced to apologise to the young girl that we see Zau for who he truly is - a kind young man who is going through an indescribably tough time. Once he&💮rsquo;s not as laser-focused on his own goal, he’s willing to help the girl out and treats her with kindness and sincerity.

From that moment on, Zau’s true personality shines through as he solemnly reflects oꦏn everything his dad taught him and is reminded of his responsibilities as a healer. His relationship with Kalunga grows friendlier and less transactional, he pays more respect to the ancestors lending him strength, and he shows a true interest in helping out those he comes across, even if it’s nothing 🌃to do with his own quest.

It would have been easy for Zau to just be heroic and kind for the rest of the game after the opening hour but, like any human, he’s far from perfect. Even after that bout of character growth, he still has steps to take in his emotional journey and we see him moving through the different stages of grief throughout his adventure, starting with bargaining and den♍ial and even occa𓆏sionally dipping into anger.

It's Okay To Not Be Okay

One of my favourite moments in the game comes a little later on when Zau has to find ingredients to help an old friend with her sickness. Despite Kalunga urging him to give up on finding an impossible🍸 cure and🤪 to just be with her, Zau pushes on anyway in the name of human spirit and completely ignores him, leading to a gut-punching argument between the two where Zau blames the God of Death for taking his father away.

I've already expressed how fantastic Abubakar Salim is as Zau, but special mention has to be made for Tristan D. Lalla's incredible performance as Kalunga. The two together have some of my favourite character moments in 2024 so far.

It’s a tough scene to watch, but it&♔rsquo;s another sign of just how much Zau is hurting and how his sometimes irresponsible behaviour is a consequence of what he’s dealing with and not a reflection of who he is. At the end of the day, he’s just a young boy who wants his father back and, while his intentions are noble, it doesn’t make what he’s having to do any easier.

To say too much more would be spoiling the rest of Zau’s character arc, something I think Tales of Kenzera: Zau is well wo💖rth playing for, but by the end of the gam🐓e, Zau’s painfully realistic humanity and his many struggles made him a hero I didn’t always agree with, but one that I could always understand and relate to.