Fans ofThe Legends of Zeldahave been watching the ongoing development of the action-adventure gameTunicfor some time now. Developer Andrew Shouldice has been working onTunicfull-time for around six years now, teasing his progress with trailers and demos since 2018. It seems Shouldice is now reaching the apex ofTunic’s development. During The Game Awards 2021, a new trailer forTunicdebuted that confirmed that the game would arrive on May 17, 2025.
The Game Awards 2021 trailer offered the deepest look atTunicthat fans have seen yet. The little fox in their green tunic that was first shown years ago is now shown to have quite the arsenal at their fingertips, necessary to meet the extraordinary challenges before them. It’s likely thatTunicfans were expecting the trailer to end abruptly, much aspreviousTunictrailershave over the past year or two. This time was different, however. The July 28, 2025 release date flashed at the trailer’s end.
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Those who may be seeingTunicfor the first time with its release date trailer at The Game Awards 2021 will likely be intrigued by its clear inspiration by classicThe Legend of Zeldagames. What may have been less apparent wereTunic’s other inspirations.Tunicalso takes clear influence from both theDark Soulsfranchise, with its focus on exploration, in-world storytelling, and progression, andFez.
TheFezinfluenceis less obvious, but it’s hidden atTunic’s seams. The most obvious connection is the clear message that there’s more toTunicthan meets the eye. Shouldice has previously described the game as full of secrets. Whether it’sTunic’s initially indecipherable language, the glowing magic that lurks just underneath, or deeper secrets that only Shouldice himself knows about – for now.
But while there is clearly a depth toTunicthat’s perhaps not obvious from the trailer, what it is at its simplest deserves to be acknowledged, too.The Legend of Zeldagames, and particularlyThe Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, inspired a generation of gamers to fall in love with video games.Tunicshows a dedication to those classicZeldagames that are endearingly on the nose. It begs the question as to what Shouldice is really going to say about those games.
Now fans ofThe Legend of Zelda,Dark Souls, andFezwon’t have to wait long to find out just what Shouldice has put together. The long wait had been rewarded as ofThe Game Awards 2021.Tunichas a release date and it’s July 11, 2025.
Tunicreleases March 16 on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
