Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) Review

A Tale of Two Worlds in 17th Century Canada

The history of Canada is an amazing one. For a millennia, indigenous people would be found living and trading there with their own belief systems and culture structures. Then around the late 15th century the Europeans came, colonising the place, filling it with the English and French, forming much of what modern-day Canada is today.  

Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is set in Canada, but follows a story through the 17th century where we hear from a French Woman, a local hunter, and an indigenous tracker, tackling a story of loss, betrayal, and a forced religion. It’s a spiritual and environmental story that is both heartwarming and thoughtful. 

Shipwrecked and Seeking

This first-person action-adventure is strong on story and exploration. You play several different characters, the first being Jeanne, a young French woman who is shipwrecked on the coast of Canada with only her dog, Capitaine, as a survivor. She meets a hunter and solo trader who agrees to accompany her to Quebec in the wilderness. 

The other protagonist you play as is Maikan, a Wendat Native who, while out in the country, discovers the corpse of a skinned white wolf, heading out to find who disrespected the animal and didn’t let its soul find peace. And then you have a strange frost spirit haunting both parties; a strange frost spirit who is very angry…

A Tapestry of Beliefs

The story is linear, but deals with several subjects through the eyes of our heroes. It’s a historical document of the different beliefs of the indigenous systems of the time, as well as the cultural struggle between the invading French and their religious ideas. It’s fair to say that the developers have done their research here, working with writers entwined with the various cultures. 

Playing through gives you the opportunity to collect information, picking from real world historic events. And there’s no doubt that the story being told is a powerful one, engaging throughout. I liked the main characters and there are a few very emotional segments that are pleasingly done. Yes, the odd story thread gets lost a bit at times, but the main themes are super strong.  

Gameplay and Interaction

Gameplay is also quite linear, as you move from story beat to story beat, much more so than in a pure action adventure experience. I like this, but wouldn’t be surprised if others found the lack of gameplay a bit, well, lacking. 

Get involved though and you’ll move your characters around in the first person, jumping about the place, exploring a sort of on-rails location. You can interact with items and there are dialogue choices with NPCs to take in along the way. How you react affects each character’s decision making going forward too, and for example, Jeanne could start to lose her religious shackles and think more for herself, or Maikan gets to be more understanding of his French invader’s motives. 

QTEs and Stunning Scenery

In Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina), some of the action sequences are very well scripted and require a bit of QTE knowledge and some quick reflexes, but there isn’t really any combat to worry about. 

The graphics are stunning. Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is set in the Canadian wilderness and some settlements mostly, but everything looks top notch. There is some beautiful animations, as well as amazing light effects that play with the weather, sun, and shading. There are some sequences (that I won’t spoil) that work brilliantly and it all feels like it’s a bit of a technical achievement from such a small team. 

The soundtrack is also superb with some beautiful songs sung by Jeanne that are based on original 17th century melodies. The game is fully voiced, and the leads and all the minor parts give a splendid performance to their roles. 

An Original and Thoughtful Journey Through Canadian History

Running at around six hours, Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is most definitely an original experience. The story is strong, the lead characters are to be loved, and the adventure which plays out delivers something new. You’ll learn much by playing Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina), taking in details of the culture and people of the place. 

Perhaps the gameplay is a bit too sparse, but this is very much a story-driven game that is highly recommended. Dive into Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) and get ready to experience something special from the past.

Your Links

See Both Sides: Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) Launches on Xbox Series X|S & PS5 – https://www.thexboxhub.com/see-both-sides-two-falls-nishu-takuatshina-launches-on-xbox-series-xs-ps5/

Buy Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/two-falls-nishu-takuatshina/9NDQZV4SZZ2F