It Takes Two, the latest game from developer Hazelight, is an exclusively co-op experience helping the genre make a comeback. Its consumer friendly Friend's Pass allows players to share the experience with a friend, regardless of whether that person also owns the game, a feature that already sounds like it should be industry standard -- something that's especially revolutionary coming from publisher EA.
Hazelight's followup to A Way Out and Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is generating serious buzz from critics. Here's what they have to say about the co-op adventure, which releases on PC, as well as PlayStation and Xbox consoles on March 26.
Brett Claxton, GameByte: "The story itself may be linear but I'm already excited to jump back in and track down more trophies and mini-games. It's an experience where co-op play comes naturally and it always feels fresh for each player what they're doing on each stage. It's not just a case of 'OK you shoot things all the time and I'll support'. The roles change frequently which helps make repetitiveness less."
Mike Minotti, GameBeat: "It Takes Two is a just a series of fun co-op moments. It's some of the most fun I've ever had with a two-player game. It's also a pretty game, with the lighting standing out as especially impressive. On PlayStation 5, it's a smooth 60 fps experience."
Dalton Cooper, GameRant: "It Takes Two's story is entertaining enough, but the gameplay is what makes it truly remarkable. Each chapter introduces brand new gameplay mechanics that completely change the way players approach exploring the environment and completing platforming challenges...there's always a gimmick to shake things up and ensure that players are constantly doing something new. And while this approach means It Takes Two runs the risk of being a 'jack of all trades, master of none' game, there's not a single mechanic that's boring or frustrating in the slightest. It squeezes as much as it can out of each idea and then moves on to the next gimmick before the previous one wears out its welcome."
Tristan Ogilvie, IGN: "It Takes Two also has the ability to effortlessly make mirth out of the mundane. In real life, my children's fidget spinners seem like pointless trinkets...In It Takes Two, they are whirring hoverboards that allow you to surf your way over giant inflatable slides, pulling spectacular midair tricks like a pair of tiny Tony Hawks...It's very much the Mario method of cramming as much magical interactivity into every square inch of each play space, and ensures that your every curious action goes rewarded. The fact that It Takes Two blesses you with infinite lives and extremely generous checkpointing only makes you more emboldened to experiment."
Chris Plante and Russ Frushtick, Polygon: "The pace slows dramatically in the second half, though. A number of chapters go on far too long, with The Book of Love demanding that the couple complete three mini puzzles to unlock an elevator, granting access to another three mini puzzles. These redundant tasks eventually lead to one missing piece of a larger objective. By the end, we felt as though we were completing a marriage counseling checklist for this pestering talking book, rather than watching a couple have meaningful conversations and experience sincere change."
Sam Loveridge, GamesRadar+: "Whether it's Rose's bedroom or an overrun greenhouse, start looking off the beaten track and there are secrets to uncover, including wonderfully quirky mini-games tucked away to discover. Look out for a gently tingling tambourine noise and you'll find them easy enough, each offering a competitive experience that balances nicely against the co-operative nature of the core game. And like the game's ever-changing mechanics, they've got fantastic range too, offering things like snail races, whack-a-mole and even a fully-fledged chess game."
Alice Bell, Rock Paper Shotgun: "The way you explore Cody and May's story is playful and imaginative, but their story itself isn't that interesting. It doesn't ruin the whole experience -- It Takes Two is a tremendously fun game to play -- but stacked up next to riding giant spiders, exploding wasps and surfing mic aux cables the actual relationship thing at the heart of it is a bit of a whimper compared to the bang of everything else."
Paul Tamburro, Game Revolution: "It Takes Two's director Josef Fares has spoken of his disdain for useless collectibles, and that's evident from the game’s distinct lack of shiny things to pick up. However, that's not to say that it doesn't welcome exploration. While it isn't as open as the likes of Super Mario Odyssey, there's an excellent mixture of both linear and large-scale environments players are left to jump around in, making full use of its impressively fluid movement and tight, precise platforming."
Rob Gordon, Screen Rant: "There's a stunning variety when it comes to the game's locations. The players will move from a dusty workshop to the squirrel-controlled underbelly of a tree, or from Rose's bedroom to the inside of a snow globe. Aesthetically, It Takes Two feels similar to Sackboy: A Big Adventure, the title that's arguably the best couch co-op experience on the PS5 to date."
Aaron Riccio, Slant: "Time and again, It Takes Two finds new ways to demonstrate how vital communication and effort are in getting two individuals on the same page. It even riffs on classic toys like the Etch A Sketch and See 'n Say, as well as seminal video games (like Mario Kart's Rainbow Road, Crash Bandicoot's chase sequences, or Diablo's isometric combat), to bring that message to us. But even when it isn't toying with our nostalgia and just reveling in the sublimely ridiculous, the game is sneakily, delicately balancing our desire to remain kids at heart with the reality of our adult responsibilities. That's a valuable lesson, and it's one that the developers at Hazelight deliver without making it feel like they're tasking us with grown-up homework."
Kirk McKeand, The Gamer: "It Takes Two is, without a doubt, the best co-op game you can play right now. It's much more ambitious and bigger budget than A Way Out, which was still brilliant in its own way. Josef Fares and the team at Hazelight take things to the next level here, and I can only imagine what they'll do when they're inevitably given a triple-A budget. Grab a friend by the hand and pull them through an adventure unlike any other as soon as you can -- you won't regret it."