Tchia
Tchia is an action-adventure video game developed by Awaceb and published by Kepler Interactive. The player assumes control of the titular character as she explores a fictional archipelago inspired by New Caledonia. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on March 21, 2023.
Tchia | |
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Developer(s) | Awaceb |
Publisher(s) |
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Director(s) | Phil Crifo |
Engine | Unreal Engine |
Platform(s) | |
Release | March 21, 2023 |
Genre(s) | Action-adventure |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Gameplay

Tchia is an action-adventure video game played from a third-person perspective. The player assumes control of the titular protagonist, who must explore a tropical archipelago to rescue her kidnapped father. Tchia has the ability of "soul jumping", which allows her to possess and assume control of animals and inanimate objects found in the world, and uses their power to travel to new areas, solve puzzles, and defend herself against opponents.[1] For instance, by soul jumping to a dog, players can use its ability to dig to dig out treasure maps. According to developer Phil Crifo, players can soul jump to more than 30 animals and "hundreds of" objects.[2]
Tchia can explore the archipelago in her human form. She is equipped with a glider and a raft which allows her to navigate between places quickly.[3] Tchia is highly acrobatic, as she can quickly slide down a mountain, climb up trees and use it to catapult herself across the canopy, and ascend nearly all types of surfaces. Through exploration, players will discover different points of interest, minigames, and chests with cosmetic items, meet other non-playable characters, and complete side quests.[1] Tchia features elements from rhythm games, as players can play Tchia's ukelele at will. Players can play "Soul-Melodies", which allows Tchia to perform feats such as summoning animals for soul jumping, altering the time of day, or changing the in-game weather.[2][4] These gameplay sequences are completely skippable.[5] Tchia's appearance, as well as her glider and her raft, can be extensively customized.[6]
Development

Tchia was developed by a team of 12 people in Awaceb, an independent game studio based in Bordeaux.[7] The setting of the game is fictional; it was heavily inspired by New Caledonia, a Pacific nation where the founders of Aweceb, Thierry Boura and Phil Crifo, grew up. In particular, Kanak culture was a major source of inspiration for the team. One of the goals for the studio was to "show what it was like exploring New Caledonia" when the two were still kids. Most members of the studio travelled to Lifou for two weeks to conduct research for the game, as well as showing a demo of the game to the indigenous population.[8] Similar to the natives in New Caledonia, the characters in the game speak French and Drehu; as there were no professional voice actors who spoke Drehu, the studio had a difficult time recruiting people to record lines for the game.[8] The character of Tchia was described to be "curious" and "a bit naïve". As she slowly explores the world, she gradually meets different non-playable characters and helps resolve their conflicts, breaking down the wall between different communities. The soul-jumping ability was inspired by New Caledonia's folklore about shapeshifting.[5]
The team received funding from Kowloon Nights in August 2019 for the development of the game, then known as "Project Caillou".[9] It was co-published by Kepler Interactive, a publishing label jointly operated by several independent game developers including Awaceb.[10] Tchia is powered by Unreal Engine.[11] The game was announced during The Game Awards 2020.[12] The game was originally set to be released in 2022, though it was ultimately delayed to 2023. The game was released on March 21, 2023 for Microsoft Windows via the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.[13]
Reception
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | (PC) 77/100[14] (PS5) 77/100[15] |
Publication | Score |
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Destructoid | 8.5/10[16] |
Digital Trends | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Easy Allies | 8/10[18] |
Game Informer | 8.5/10[19] |
GamesRadar+ | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Hardcore Gamer | 3.5/5[21] |
PC Gamer (US) | 90/100[22] |
Push Square | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Shacknews | 9/10[24] |
Tchia received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[14][15] By May 2023, 1 million copies of the game had been sold.[25]
References
- Valentine, Rebekah (August 31, 2022). "Tchia Preview: Sea, Sky, and Sandbox". IGN. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- West, Josh (January 7, 2023). "Tchia is a deep breath of fresh air at a time when we need it most". GamesRadar. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- Zhang, Jenny (September 1, 2022). "Tchia Gameplay Walkthrough Shows Off Glider And Soul Jumping". GameSpot. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- Romano, Sal (January 18, 2023). "Tchia details soul-jumping, ukulele, exploration, and more". Gematsu. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- Miller, Matt (November 24, 2022). "Hidden Treasure - The Making Of Tchia". Game Informer. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- Silva, Marty (January 22, 2023). "Tchia Taps into Breath of the Wild & Wind Waker's Sense of Exploration – Preview". The Escapist. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- "Studio location".
- Batchelor, James (January 16, 2023). "Game Changers: Marilou Lopez-Aguilera". Gameindustry.biz. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- Carpenter, Nicole (August 27, 2019). "Investment fund Kowloon Nights signs 10 more games in its second year". Polygon. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- Saed, Sherif (June 13, 2022). "A44 on the strength of game publishing co-op, Kepler Interactive: "If Kepler does better, we all do better"". VG247. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
- Thang, Jimmy (April 2, 2022). "Tchia is a beautiful, ambitious undertaking from a small indie studio". Unreal Engine. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
- Tack, Daniel (December 10, 2020). "Tropical Exploration Game Tchia Announced". Game Informer. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- Benfell, Grace (February 23, 2023). "Colorful Platformer Tchia Is Coming To PlayStation Plus Extra And Premium On Day One". GameSpot. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
- "Tchia for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- "Tchia for PlayStation 5 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Andriessen, CJ (March 20, 2023). "Review: Tchia". Destructoid. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Franzese, Toma (March 20, 2023). "Tchia review: beautiful open-world indie is a new coming-of-age classic". Digital Trends. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Bloodworth, Daniel (March 21, 2023). "Review: Tchia". Easy Allies. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
- Hilliard, Kyle (March 20, 2023). "Tchia Review - Simply Transformative Fun". Game Informer. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Wald, Heather (March 20, 2023). "Tchia review: 'Awaceb delivers a delightful, inventive adventure'". GamesRadar+. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- LeClair, Kyle (March 20, 2023). "Review: Tchia". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Livingston, Christopher (March 20, 2023). "Tchia review". PC Gamer. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Sayers, Jade (March 20, 2023). "Tchia Review (PS5)". Push Square. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Erskine, Donovan (March 20, 2023). "Tchia review: A soulful journey". Shacknews. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- Colp, Tyler (May 3, 2023). "Over 1M people have bought our favorite open world game of 2023 so far". PC Gamer. Retrieved May 8, 2023.