It Takes Two

Developer Hazelight Publisher EA Format PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series Origin Sweden Release March 26

Having followed the delightfully dark fable that was Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons with the entertaining but uneven prison-break adventure A Way Out, maverick creator Josef Fares returns to more fantastical surroundings with his latest co-op adventure. You and a friend play as May and Cody, who, in the midst of divorce proceedings, are mysteriously transported into the bodies of two dolls made by daughter Rose. To return to human form, they’ll need to fix their relationship, working together to overcome a variety of offbeat challenges. As with A Way Out, because it’s co-op only, a Friend Pass lets you invite a pal who doesn’t own a copy of the game to join in for free.

If its predecessor’s attempts at gritty drama sometimes lapsed into unintentional comedy, It Takes Two would seem to find Fares on a surer footing. This is a more vibrant world than the grim fairytale setting of Brothers, too, with its oversized anglerfish, rampaging moles, rideable spiders and hopping frogs. You’ll blast a tentacled beast on a paddle steamer, which you will work together to steer by running in giant hamster wheels, one on either side of the boat. You’ll pump a handcart to accelerate down a narrow railway track as lava bubbles below. And you’ll run across the top of a giant mirrorball as it rolls across a bridge, while trying to avoid the holes in its surface. With platforming, shooting, rail-grinding, sledging and rafting interludes, It Takes Two certainly has the variety to match its visual invention. Fingers crossed, it’s equally smooth in the storytelling department.