Abubakar Salim Explains Why Tales Of Kenzera: Zau Is A Metroidvania

Tales of Kenzera: Zau is inspired by game director Abubakar Salim’s grief at the loss of his father. The game received positive reviews at launch, with our own Rachael Fiddis calling it “a powerful and heartfelt narrative” in her 9/10 review.

Interestingly, Salim was set on the Metroidvania genre from the beginning, despite the action-focused genre not lending itself naturally to a narrative-focused experience. Speaking to TheGamer, Salim elaborated on Surgent Studios’ decision to make Tales of Kenzera: Zau a Metroidvania.

The Directionless Feeling Of Grief

“The Metroidvania genre is exactly like grief,” Salim explains. “In a sense, you’re thrown into a world you have no control of, you’re kind of lost in it. You’re winging it and there’s no guide or book as to how to go through it and you’re discovering secrets as you go along.”

The team had decided Tales of Kenzera: Zau was going to be a Metroidvania even before development had officially begun. Lead gameplay designer Zi Peters confirms this, saying the “genre as a whole” was a launching point for the game.

“We really wanted to have something that has a strong emotional core that not many Metroidvanias do,” Peters says. “Delivering on that with a really personable story for the character, and really trying to tie the narrative into the gameplay and make them work in sync with each other.”

The narrative elements of Tales of Kenzera: Zau are universally praised, with most of the game’s criticism levelled against a couple of the design and gameplay decisions.

Salim has high hopes for Tales of Kenzera, saying “I want to put the story of Tales of Kenzera in every format and in every way by exploring different characters and different time frames.”

“There’s a reason why Zau was the first story, and there’s a puzzle I’m trying to create, a picture I’m trying to paint, and if Zau is a huge hit it gives me insurance. You have no idea what I have in store,” Salim continues.

Unfortunately, despite a glowing critical reception, Tales of Kenzera: Zau peaked at just 287 players on Steam, according to SteamDB.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau is the debut title of director Abubakar Salim and the studio he founded, Surgent Studios. It was published by EA Originals, an indie-focused publishing arm of Electronic Arts.

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