Review – Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Starbreeze Studios makes first-person shooters. You already know who they are if you have ever played one of the surprisingly good Riddick games or last year’s FPS Syndicate revival. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, then comes as a pleasant surprise from this previously gun-crazy Swedish studio, not because it is a great game (Starbreeze has always made good games), but because Brothers could not be more different from anything the company has previously done. This game is simply fantastic, weaving an emotional and very human narrative through a beautiful bed-time story world full of magic, wonder, and true abject horror.
Don’t let its fairy tale aesthetic fool you, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, is a dark and deeply tragic game. Its simple story is an example of narrative minimalism at its finest, managing to capture the joy, wonder, terror and heartbreak of childhood with nothing more than gesture, vocal intonation and a beautifully sweeping score. This emotionally charged story is set amidst a breathtaking fantasy world that overflows with the best kind of imagination. In spite of all its surrealistic beauty, the world manages to feel truly real at times, thanks in part to the fantastic ways your characters can interact with it. The game at its core is a puzzle based adventure and yet much of your characters’ interaction with the wonderfully varied environments is purely for the sake of character development and joyful exploration. The less said about the story the better: the true joy of Brothers comes from its incredible sense of discovery and players looking to get the most from this relatively brief adventure should be encouraged to explore the game’s world thoroughly, interacting with everything and everyone possible. Rest assured, however, this is one of the best game stories ever crafted.
As mentioned, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is essentially a puzzle game, albeit one with one very intriguing gameplay conceit. Players assume the role of two brothers: one older and one younger. You control each brother simultaneously with a different analog stick and the left and right triggers are mapped to their corresponding character’s contextual action command. The controls take some getting used to, to say the least, and you will likely find yourself making blunders even late in the game. That said, the game never truly feels frustrating, thanks in part to its very generous check point system, as well as the fact that successfully utilizing both brothers to complete a puzzle can be a genuinely fun and challenging task. The puzzles themselves are all relatively straight forward and unlikely to leave you scratching your head for too long. For puzzler enthusiasts, this may be a sour point. However, the wonderfully natural way in which the puzzles (and their solutions) appear in the world, as well as the relatively tricky act of actually completing them, make up for any lack of complexity.
The game’s relatively painless difficulty is likely for the best, considering the pacing is one of its greatest features. The game always manages to keep you moving forward, itching to see what new and fantastic sight awaits you around each corner. The story beats also come at a good pace, never interrupting the action at awkward times nor overstaying their welcome. The game features a number of exciting set piece moments as well that continually manage to feel fresh and never like they are wresting control away from the player. Conversely, some of the game’s best moments are the quiet ones. Whether it’s rowing a boat down an icy river or simply enjoying the sights at one of the game’s many vista points, these moments offer time to reflect on the beauty of Brothers’ world or the solemness of its narrative.
The game does unfortunately have a few rough edges. You will frequently encounter ledges or similar obstacles that appear perfectly surmountable, but actually aren’t. The game clearly has a set path for you to travel (albeit with a few side paths to explore) but doesn’t always do a great job of communicating when an object can or cannot be interacted with. It’s a minor gripe, and one that never really impedes progress. The correct path is never too hard to find.
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is truly a remarkable game. If you are a fan of games such as Limbo, Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, or last year’s Papo y Yo, this game is a must buy. However, if you are simply a person who has ever felt wonder and amazement, perhaps after hearing childhood tales of giants and mysterious far away lands, and want to feel these things again, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is still well worth the price of admission.
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is currently available for XBLA, PSN, and Steam. A copy of the XBLA version was provided to theparanoidgamer.com for review.