Learning a new language is like going on a journey – and you’ve never been on one quite like this. Chants of Sennaar takes you to a land of unfamiliar languages, curious cultures and breathtaking locations. As you decode symbols, solve puzzles and interact with those you meet, you’ll discover and decipher a rich world.

Having taken our first steps into the mysterious Tower, we share what we’ve discovered so far in this unique world and ask Julien Moya, co-founder and creative director at developer Rundisc, about how this spectacular adventure came to be.

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You awake at the bottom of a strange tower, unable to read the glyphs written on walls and spoken by the people you encounter. But wait: these symbols appear several times next to another, and seem to indicate something about the doors that block your way. If the two different symbols indicate “open” and “close”, the recurring glyph must mean “door”. Eureka! Jot down your guess at a definition in your journal – you can always tweak your translation as you uncover more clues.

Once you’ve explored each part of the tower, you’ll use your collected knowledge to decipher a set of glyphs. Tapping symbols found around the world will translate them using a combination of the words you’ve already solved and your notes – a sweet sense of achievement when everything lines up.

The tower is home to many people and languages, not all of whom are welcoming at first. There are times where you’ll need to avoid being seen by those guarding parts of the tower, using hiding spots and distractions to sneak through, but eventually you’ll come to understand the unique language and beliefs of these distinct groups.

Some of the real influences behind those languages include the futhark runes used by Vikings and the oldest known writing system of cuneiform, making the world of the tower feel alive and expansive. “We used symbols and cultural references familiar to everyone to allow players to fill in the gaps left by the unexplored aspects of our universe,” Moya says.

That universe is one that begs to be explored, depicted in stunning splashes of yellow, green and purple between stark lines reminiscent of seminal bandes dessinées comic books by the likes of legendary French artist Mœbius.