Welcome to our review of Mulaka, a game that’s been out for a while but we finally got to enjoy it!
Embark on the journey of a Tarahumara shaman!
Dive into northern Mexico’s breathtaking landscapes with Mulaka, a 3D action-adventure game based on the rich indigenous culture of the Tarahumara. Renowned for their impressive running abilities, embark on the journey of a Sukurúame – a Tarahumara shaman – as you fight back the foulness corrupting the land while drawing upon the powers of demigods. From solving puzzles in environments inspired by real Sierra Tarahumara locations, to heated hand-to-hand combat with creatures pulled from the region’s mythology, find out why the Tarahumara have earned a reputation for being superhumans.
Mulaka bears a striking resemblance to Zelda at first, but let me start off by saying that is about as wrong as can be. I felt Mulaka actually had a lot more depth and not just because of the real-life lore behind it based upon the ancient Mexican tribes but just the overall feeling this game brings to the table.
With a stunning visual presentation and a quite fulfilling game mechanic, Mulaka brings quite the variety in gameplay and that is its main strength. While you run around, you get to talk to the people and animals around you. Figure out what the demigods are and how to get them on your side so you can get those magical powers.
Once you obtain their help, a whole new world opens up and well, imagine flying around in that beautiful world. It is all possible, while you listen to its soft melodious soundtrack.
A lot of good points to this game, but how about the bad?
Well, at first, you will feel lost in this world and it is only after a while that you really get used to everything around you. That sense of being lost, it bothered me a lot. Also how I kept forgetting to use my second sight, often missing out on hidden ledges or plateaus in between others.
But aside from those, I had fun running around the world of Mulaka. I often felt this game offered me a lot. Usually, story-driven games or action driven games lack in one way or the other, but Mulaka did not have this general default you often find. Just a handful of games did not have this issue and I am glad to be adding Mulaka to the list.
Battles itself proved to be challenging at times. At first, you just need to hit away at them, but very shortly into the game, you had to dodge and hit or even more complicated. I remember being able to beat one enemy only by hitting him from the top. All in good fun though!
(Special thanks to the Indieselect initiative for providing us with this code)
In conclusion, Mulaka joins a handful of great games that mix up great gameplay with nice graphics and the added lore sure did help improve a good game into greatness! With the issues previously mentioned, included in my rating, I came down to a solid 8.
