PC Review Code Provided by Hazelight Studios
In a time where there is a disagreement on whether or not split-screen gaming is even viable anymore, Hazelight Studios continues to push out co-op only titles. These games invoke the use of both split-screen and shared screen co-op gameplay to the point that it is literally mandatory. Their latest game, It Takes Two, takes on a much lighter form of this, compared to their first released game of this genre and style - A Way Out. After playing through their second game, I have to say that they are proving their mastery in the art of mandatory co-op gaming.
Story
After May and Cody have another fight and informing their daughter, Rose, that they are going to get a divorce, one broken marriage is going to end up on a journey that is unlike anything they’ve experienced before. Rose ends up retreating to her hideout where she asks a love repair book to help her parents become friends again while holding hand-made dolls that resemble her parents. With a little bit of magic, her wishful thoughts of her parent’s reunion, and a few tears shed onto her dolls. Soon after, May and Cody wake up in the doll’s bodies and must quickly come to grips with their situation as the book comes to life and informs them of their situation. Like it or not, their journey begins.
Gameplay
Majority of this game revolves around the platforming aspect of the game. The whole first level you are introduced to the basics of your controls. The constant controls you will have from the moment they are introduced are jumping, double jumping, dashing, rope swinging, and rail grinding. Every level will utilize these in some way or another, but at the same time, every level has its own touch of gameplay uniqueness to it.
As you progress through the game, you will find that each level introduces something new to the player that will likely only last in that level. In the snow level you get ice skating, in the garden level you get enemy wave fighting, in the castle level you get dungeon crawling, and so on. There is always something unique about the level and that includes the main item you will use. These main items could either be essential for combat or for puzzle-solving (typically both with an emphasis on puzzle-solving). It would take a full walkthrough to break down each level’s different tools, weapons, uses, and gameplay introductions, so it is better to say that this game provides an overall experience of a variety of genre’s that both experienced and new players can get through.
When it comes to the puzzles, they are a neat combination of intricate and simplistic. Some are easy to figure out but require a bit of skill to pull off while there are others that are the opposite of that. This mixture of puzzle types makes it so that they fit with the storyline and level uniqueness, are able to be completed by players of varying skill levels, and they always force the two players to work together. Really, these puzzles and general player guidance designed in this game shows amazing thoughtfulness by the developers because the level almost always indirectly guides the appropriate player to where they need to go for their end of the puzzle.
You will definitely need to work together throughout the game, but rarely will you ever split up or need to look at each other’s screen views. The level designs are made to keep the players together throughout the majority of the game, but there are open, explorable areas. During these explorations, and sometimes even along the path of the main missions, you can come across mini-games. These mini-games are marked by a Tamborine that can also be heard when nearby to indicate to the players that they can find one in the area. Even with some effort put into searching for these and stopping by them every time we found one, we only managed to find a little over half of the mini-games. So, some of them are well hidden from those that don’t really explore each section of the levels.
Visuals
The overall cartoon-style art mixed with the storyline gave off the same atmosphere that you would expect from a quirky movie by Pixar or another top-rated animation studio. It was very fitting to the type of game that they made and really maintained a family-friendly art style throughout.
Sounds
All of the voice actings was very well done, along with very suiting music, and accurate sound effects. It all matched so well with every scene and moment throughout the game that even some of the subtle stuff came through to give the experience a hint of realism, which helped maintained the storylines immersiveness.
Replayability
While the adventure and puzzles are always going to be the same, mini-games are always a fun way to challenge your friends. The range of different mini-games that are available in this game have quite a range as well, so finding them is definitely something I suggest. Other than that, I would be lying if I didn’t say that certain sections of certain levels were a ton of fun to play through and would be enjoyable to go through again. Especially the final level of the game!
What Could Be Better
Honestly, the only complaint that I have with this game is the Garden level near the end. I wasn’t a fan of the enemy wave gameplay style they chose to go with for it and after playing through the majority of the game before it came up, it just didn’t seem to fit the gameplay provided leading up to it. Something about the mandatory “kill them all before moving forward” was just dulling to the overall experience of the game. It would have been better if they continued the trend of keeping this co-op puzzle and platform-based, which they showed they could have kept doing with some parts of the Garden level that include the flowers.
Conclusion
It Takes Two is a family-friendly masterpiece! It had an amazing story with moments that players could both agree and disagree with. Even if you knew the ending, you could never tell what crazy level you were about to be thrown into. The jokes were quirky, funny, and fitting for a wide age group. They really had all bases loaded and then smacked a home run when they released this title. It was a great experience that I highly recommend for players, friends, and family to all go through!
