It Takes Two – A Game To Inspire

“It Takes Two, baby🎶”

🧙🏼‍♀️🧙🏽‍♂️🐝🌵🌻☃️🐌🐸🦕🕰🦄🙇🏻‍♀️🐘🎻🎶🦅🛸💫🪐
Director, Josef Fares, and Hazelight Studios invite you and a friend to the couch, to be hurled into the most creative, fantastic co-op gaming adventure you never imagined. Grab a seat and get comfortable. But not too comfortable.

Just check out this Trailer!

The bad? It’s co-op ONLY. Disappointed? As an introvert who’s spent 99% of his lifetime gaming hours alone, I feel ya✋😌 The good? If you are lucky enough to have someone to play with, this is an ultra-fun, ever evolving journey of discovery. The controls are buttery smooth (and learn-able! If you’ve never gamed before). While the character animation is rudimentary, the worlds they inhabit are intricate and awe-inspiringly gorgeous.

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Novelty is key. No puzzle is the same. No world looks the same. And each character gains different weapons and abilities each level. Furthermore, there are something like 30 super-fun min-games hidden throughout the campaign that you can revisit from the start menu anytime, and can spend hours playing, if you so choose. This feature, combined with endless pick-up-and-play objects littered throughout the game, make It Takes Two feel like not just one game, but every game, all-in-one!

The Plot: Honey I Shrunk The… Parents?

May and Cody are getting a divorce. Their young daughter is devastated, of course. She crafts a doll version of each of her parents, and pretends they can love each other again. Next thing we know, May and Cody are magically transformed into the dolls, and hurled onto the cold floor of their dingy basement. In order to transform back, they must work together – to discover more beautiful worlds, and remember how to enjoy each other’s company again.

Saving a Relationship

May and Cody are annoying, but also relatable and instructive. May is the sole breadwinner, and is a frigid, passionless stick-in-the-mud. And Cody is a whiny, cowardly oaf. Their endless bickering throughout might just have you rooting for their divorce by the end. “This is why your wife’s leaving you, Cody!”🤦🏽 The Lesson? Don’t Be Cody. In real life. Or May. But their daughter is just such an adorable little freakshow, you wanna succeed for her.

Ok, if I’m being a little hard on these characters, it’s probably bc I see a bit of myself in them. I hate breakups. I really do. I hate the forces of chaos separating people. And that’s exactly what my own future holds in store, in all likelihood. Guys, the moment you get too comfortable, is the moment he or she starts thinking about leaving you. Stay hungry. Furthermore, several of my childhood friends’ parents got divorced, and I know that was really hard for them. I feel really lucky my parents have stayed together, personally.

If your relationship survived quarantine, it could always use some more spice. And if it didn’t? This game could be the start of a beautiful new friendship. It Takes Two is perfect for those nights you just wanna chill on the couch, but there’s no shows or movies you wanna watch. The game will challenge you to work together. But at no point is it difficult to the point of causing a breakup. At least, I’m cautiously optimistic about this😄😗

Have you played It Takes Two? Or similar co-op game. What games have inspired you? Beyond simply being fun.

E.F.

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