Yousef Fares again tries himself in a new genre. This time – in a romantic comedy for two.
Cody and May are facing each other. He is a whiner and a bummer, she is a grumpy careerist; with their characters, it is more surprising not that they decided to divorce, but how long they tolerated each other. Only their young daughter Rose, who makes a wish for her parents to reconcile, does not agree with the pattern of divorce. But human relationships do not change at the behest of a pike – they need to be worked on! And to work, moreover, together, the heroes will be forced by a magic book that calls itself Dr. Hakim. The minds of Cody and May are transferred to their daughter’s dolls, and in order to return to her, they will have to go through fire, water and … vacuum hoses.
Dr. Hakim’s motion capture actor is Yousef Fares himself. “I am this book!”
Like A Way Out, It Takes Two is a two-player game. You cannot go through it alone or with a bot, and Yusef Fares does not recommend playing with strangers: you need a friend with whom you can discuss everything that happens with your voice. After all, It Takes Two is not one of those projects where one mechanic is stretched out for the whole game: it constantly surprises, throws something new. A Way Out began as a simple stealth, continued with puzzles and QTE, and ended with a shooter – so Fares’s new game changes genres almost on the go. For the most part, this is a 3D platformer with puzzles, but literally every half hour the game offers something completely unexpected, be it a fighting game or a flight simulator. Or both at the same time – there are two heroes.
Differing playstyles and characters’ missions will be the only incentive to replay. “No one is playing the game now, what kind of replay are you talking about!” Exclaims Fares. In his opinion, it is better to make a rich, exciting game, which will be watched to the end by as many players as possible. There will be no nonlinearity and dilemmas here – Fares believes that they are not suitable for such a game.
The director also doesn’t like forcing users to collect useless items and “other glowing shit” at the levels. Instead, he hides Easter eggs and cute interactive objects there: whoever finds it will rejoice. Optional content is also provided by competitive mini-games, be it racing, shooting range or tug-of-war. They are not required for the passage, but they bring even more variety to the process. Although, it would seem, much more.
The variety is not limited to mechanics – locations also change one another faster than they get bored
Fares is very pleased with how the elements of It Takes Two fit together: almost all gameplay segments have a plot background, and the joint passage of trials literally lies at the heart of the narrative.
Yousef Fares: “Based on the plot, we create short unique gameplay segments that are narratively relevant to this moment. Sometimes employees get mad at me – we spend a lot of time creating cool scenes, and they only last a minute or two. But I think it’s important. “
It Takes Two is a simple game. Checkpoints are generously placed, lives are endless, and you can revive as much as you like – the main thing is not to die at the same time. However, this is still a three-dimensional action game, so it’s better to take a gamer as a partner for passing, albeit a casual one.
However, if you are in doubt whether the game is suitable for your soulmate, who does not play so often, then the answer is more yes than no. The fact is that It Takes Two skillfully assigns roles. Mei, who is likely to be played by the girls, gets a nicer toolbox than Cody. In the first chapter, she walks with a hammer and can, for fun, beat her partner to the floor: he has no similar opportunity. And at the level where you need to shoot wasps, Cody gets a more responsible role – he needs to cover all enemies with tar while May shoots matches at the already doused wasps, blowing them up. It is more fun to play, and it will surely give extra motivation for those who usually do not like action games.
In addition to its incredible variety, It Takes Two also stands out for its storytelling genre. If with romance everything is more or less clear, then comedy is a difficult matter: for the two chapters that we were able to watch, the game really did not make it laugh. In all fairness, she tried not that often. Even claims to jokes were quite rare: most of the time the heroes grunt, shout or grumble, and Hakim entertains with his accent rather than remarks. Youssef Fares laments that there are few sensible romantic comedies in the world, but there is a suspicion that it Takes Two will not lead them.
However, Fares himself is extremely optimistic.
Yousef Fares: “I hope you fall in love when you beat this game. There is so much love in her! By the way, wasn’t there … how was he? Everybody’s day … Valentine, Valentine, yes! Should have released it on Valentine’s Day! That would be perfect for marketing! How did we miss this? Ahhhh, damn it! We could do it, how cool it would be! “
It Takes Two will be released on March 26 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series S / X. As with A Way Out, you only need one copy of the game to play together.
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