By Gabe Thornber
“It Takes Two” is a video game where two players get shrunk down to miniatures of their former selves and are forced to undertake puzzles, platforming sections and boss fights against neglected pieces of housekeeping equipment. While the game is “cute” in concept, and could be fun for couples to play together, it is actually hiding a much darker storyline.
The characters are the parents of a little girl named Rose, and they are in the midst of a divorce. Rose is torn, and shrinks her unwilling parents so they are forced to work together. They meet their now sentient, neglected hobbies in the form of rusted hammers and more, and each of these objects view the pair as heartless villains. So, the characters deceive and trick these items in order to aid them on their journey, and if the truth is unveiled about their identities then they are forced to battle and destroy the friends they had collaborated with just before.
I initially thought that this game would accommodate for this dark plotline with its gameplay, but it does the opposite; it maintains a false atmosphere of colorful cheer and attempted witty one-liners. This, backed up by clumsy mechanics and an impossibly frustrating movement system, makes for a game hardly worth playing. In addition, the puzzles the duo undertake are all relatively simple, with no real challenges awaiting the entertainment-seeking player.
If you are looking for a fun game to play with a partner, I recommend seeking other titles in the co-op genre, such as “Minecraft” or the “Portal” series. It takes patience and a considerable amount of frustration to finish this game.