It’s remarkable how many ideas, mechanics, and scenarios It Takes Two tosses at you, lets you play around with for a bit, and then shelves for the remainder of the game. While the concept may feel familiar, the execution is anything but. Through some magical chinacery of their daughter Rose, the pair are transformed into miniature doll versions of themselves and forced to explore their homestead for a way to revert back to normal, while also slowly recognizing their own personal failings and ultimately repairing their relationship. The thrust of It Takes Two centers on Cody and May, a couple on the cusp of divorce. It’s a persistent reminder that you’re in this thing together. No matter where you are, you can always glance over and check out where your partner is at. This immediately creates a strong and unbreakable connection between the two players. Once you’re in, the entire game is presented as a split-screen experience, even when you’re online. However, this is remedied by the fact that you only need one copy to play it online with a friend, and of course, the same goes for couch co-op. The entire foundation of It Takes Two is built around cooperation in mind, as you literally cannot play the game by yourself. And in 10 short hours, it exemplifies the kind of experience that can only be achieved through cooperation. The latest game from Hazelight, the studio behind A Way Out, it’s probably the best cooperative game I’ve played in just about a decade, since Portal 2 released back in 2011. But again, it feels like a tweak on what is otherwise a single-player game.īut every so often we get a game that is fundamentally designed around the idea of two human beings working in tandem. Likewise, the chaos of having four people scurrying through Super Mario 3D World’s diorama-like stages adds an air of wonderful chaos to what’s normally a very precise platforming experience. Grinding for new gear in Outriders is certainly more fun with two supercharged pals at your side, but you’re still doing the same string of micro encounters as you would in solo. Co-op modes are often seen as an enhancement to an already solid core game.

Best two player video games ever