Split Fiction review: dynamic cooperative adventure

Split Fiction is a game that has given me so many emotions that no other project has managed to do in recent times. Josef Fares, together with his studio Hazelight, which is known for the wonderful adventure It Takes Two, has prepared for the industry one of the best story-driven cooperative games about two writers who are imprisoned in their own ideas, so the gg editorial team could not pass up such a banger. I can confidently say that this is the best game I've played in the last 3-4 months, and I'm not sure I'll come across a project that can surpass Split Fiction in the near future. I'd even say that Split Fiction will most likely be a contender for Game of the Year in 2025. And although the year is just beginning, during the 15-hour adventure, the game regularly surprises you, gives you something new, and sometimes makes you sit with your mouth open and scream: "how did they do that?".

Synopsis

In Split Fiction, you play as two writers, Mio and Zoe, who find themselves trapped in their own written stories after being connected to a mysterious machine designed to steal their creative ideas. The characters must work together to survive and preserve their memories, navigating Mio's sci-fi world and Zoe's fantasy world. And each level has unique mechanics and dynamic gameplay that will not make you get bored for a second and will give you an unforgettable experience.

5 reasons to buy Split Fiction

• one of the best co-operative adventures in recent years
• only 1 purchased copy for two people is enough to complete the game
• the gameplay changes frequently, not only because we are thrown from fantasy to science fiction and back again
• no loot boxes, microtransactions or unnecessary collectibles that only distract
• the best secondary quests where you will be a pig, a tooth at a chocolate party, and even try to destroy the sun

1 reason not to buy Split Fiction

• you are afraid to fight with a loved one during the passage because they will be constantly stupid

Fast forward:

• What I learned after reviewing Split Fiction
• Plot: unsuccessful writers are locked in their own ideas
• Gameplay: there are no limits to genius
• The technical side of the two-dimensional world
• What Split Fiction will be remembered for
• Five things you need to know about Split Fiction

What I learnt after reviewing Split Fiction

The gaming industry is still able to surprise, although it is becoming harder and harder to do so every year. However, thanks to studios like Hazelight, playing a game can feel like something magical again, and Split Fiction is a clear proof of this. Usually, when discussing the most anticipated games of this year, people often seem to forget about Hazelight's new co-op project, and for good reason. I didn't expect Split Fiction to impress me so much, but at the end credits, I just jumped out of my chair and shouted that it was my game of the year so far. It's a great, dynamic and colourful adventure that I recommend you not to miss. And if you haven't been interested in games for a long time, believe me, the first 20 minutes of Split Fiction will be enough to keep a smile on your face and make you want to continue the adventure with your loved one until the clock shows one in the morning. And if you want to lure someone into the world of video games, it's hard to find a better option than this. What other arguments do you need to spend a magical few evenings at Split Fiction?

Split Fiction's banner perfectly describes the essence of the game - two-dimensionality, where everything is actively changing, and you will be dumped with a ton of action

The plot: unsuccessful writers are locked in their own ideas

Everything starts out quite calmly (but don't let the game fool you). The Rader Corporation offers writers fame, money, cars, yachts, and everything they want. Isn't it a dream for people whose books are rejected by all publishers and told that they are complete rubbish? And these two writers are Mio and Zoe. The girls arrive at the Rader complex with the hope that now their books will be published and that's it, that's the success they could have dreamed of.

The girls and the other writers are promised that their lives will change for the better after the deal with Rader, but no one has any idea what secrets this corporation is hiding

But there is always a catch. The Rader employees bring the grieving writers to a huge room, put on special costumes and ask them to enter the analogue of capsules, where everyone will find themselves in their own written world, a giant machine will scan your thoughts and ideas and that's it, everyone wins. However, Mio is the only one among the bunch of writers who realises that something is wrong and asks to be released.

And during the fight, she accidentally finds herself in a capsule with Zoe, but surprise surprise, the capsules are designed for one person only, so now the girls' creative ideas are intertwined and at the same time they have to somehow get out of their own fantasies and it would be desirable to figure out what Rader is hiding.

As soon as Mio and Zoe are in the same capsule, you and your partner choose who will play for whom, and from that moment the fun begins

Who are the main characters?

Mio grew up in the city with her father, and in recent years she has been struggling to make ends meet. She's not looking for fame or recognition as an author, she's only in it for the money. Her love of all things sci-fi is reflected in her literary works, which are set in neon-lit cyberpunk cities, harsh futuristic weapons factories, and even in the cold of outer space.

Mio's characteristic: Reserved. Determined. Realistic. Introverted.

Zoe is a country girl with a deep need to prove to her family (and herself) that she is not a failure. Zoe hopes that a publishing deal will solve all her problems. Fantasy is her favourite genre, and her portfolio includes works of fiction about escaping from cities overrun by trolls. It's about fighting in the forests against various creatures and protecting the last dragons from extinction.

Zoe's profile: Charismatic. Empathetic. Optimistic. An extrovert.

And at first, the girls are not that keen on being friends (especially Mio). At the same time, they don't understand each other's preferences for this or that genre. Zoe thinks science fiction is depressing. Mio doesn't want to understand what's cool about fantasy, but believe it or not, you're forced to end up where you don't want to be. But maybe this is the only way to expand your horizons and realise that there are many more cool things in the world that you have been avoiding?

Mio and Zoe have a hard time getting along at first, but we all know that the most interesting acquaintances start with the thought: "I don't even want to see this person."

In general, the story turned out to be quite good and emotional. The most important thing is that the characters do not feel empty. They have their own experiences, skeletons in the closet and burdens that prevent them from living life to the fullest. You believe them, you sympathise with them, and at some moments it's even hard to hold back tears or shock at what they say.

At the same time, it is beautifully shown how two completely strangers, who, at first glance, have only one thing in common: their writing, open up to each other, start to trust each other, go through fantastic worlds together, hang by a thread from death, look for ways to solve problems, slap in the face all those who try to stand in their way, and end up... but you have to find out the end of this course yourself.

Over time, the relationship between the two writers begins to develop rapidly, which makes you want to find out about the future course of events and the past of the heroines as soon as possible

And honestly, I even liked this story better than It Takes Two, because at the age of 21, it's easier to understand the story of two losers with cockroaches in their heads who become the main characters of a cool adventure than a couple who are somehow raising a child and want to divorce.

So if you were looking for a good, emotional, and intense story with interesting characters and magical moments, this is the place for you.

Gameplay: there is no limit to genius

If the story is just good and interesting, then the gameplay is just a brain explosion with a jaw-dropping experience. Honestly, if I could, I would give the gameplay all 8 stars, not 5. In terms of gameplay variety, this is one of the best games in the industry.

In Split Fiction, something is always changing, even within a single chapter. Here we are, a cyber ninja in a huge cyberpunk city, but we won't just be running around with swords all the time. We'll have to solve puzzles that play with space, where interaction with each other is the most important thing. Then you're thrown into a car chase, where you have to shoot down police cars, park and chop up bad guys.

One of the first fights in the game is with the cyber police, where one player has a sword and the other has an electric whip, and it all takes place on the road, where you have to manoeuvre between cars thanks to the cat hook, which adds even more dynamics

Later, you are given motorbikes, where you seem to be flying to your destination at full speed. On the same motorbikes, you will fight a boss battle, where after winning you will be put behind a plane, where one of you controls it and the other shoots at enemy ships, and then you will have to quickly pass a test, one of which is the captcha you see on the sites. In what other game do you have to solve a fucking captcha? At this point, I laughed all over the apartment.

What should you give players in a dynamic motorbike race? That's right, to solve the captcha for speed. And it's so simple at the same time, but at the same time brilliant

And this happens throughout the entire game. The gameplay can change almost every 15 minutes, changing not only the mechanics but also the camera position, turning the game into a 2D platformer or an isometric RPG.

But even at the moments when it seems that the game can't surprise you anymore, it does. I don't even want to give a detailed description of the gameplay mechanics beyond Chapter 1, because this is a case where the less you know about the game's gameplay, the better, because the emotions of being a sausage that has to spin on a grill and then turn into a hot dog are hard to compare with anything. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

How do you cross the huge gap between two skyscrapers? Push one player into a dry closet and throw him so that he opens the passage for the other

And the final section of the game is the pinnacle of technological coolness. How the developers managed to implement the final segment of the game is still unclear to me, but I will definitely remember the last 2 hours of the game for many years, because that epic is so engrained in my head that I want to approach everyone and say: "Play Split Fiction and you will become a happy person."

It is also important to remember that the game has no notes, no loot boxes, no "cosmetics" or anything like that. Only dynamic gameplay that constantly offers something cool. And if more studios had the same approach as Hazelight, the industry would be ten times better.

Thanks to the constant change of the sci-fi setting to the Middle Ages and juggling with the game mechanics, Split Fiction is always interesting to play. Here's an example of a section where you fly on dragons. Isn't it great?

The best side quests

However, there is one type of secondary activity in the game, and that is the additional missions. There are 12 of them in total and they are scattered throughout the game. It is difficult to miss them, because the characters will comment that there is something interesting nearby, and you will see an object that glows brightly. And these stories are absolutely not recommended to be missed, because they are so well done that I cannot remember a game where absolutely all the additional activities were so fun, high-quality and diverse.

How about a story where you become pigs and find yourself on a colourful farm. Do you want something serious? Here's a mini story about how the sun is about to explode and you have to stop it. Are you a sports fan? How about a story about a galactic tournament where you have to carry a bomb through various obstacle courses without exploding? Oh, you can also go to a sweet party where you will fight against a cruel metal dentist in the form of baby teeth.

And how can you not say that Split Fiction deserves a nomination in the Game of the Year category? Even though the year has only just begun, it's hard to imagine that there will be such a high-quality variety of gameplay anywhere else.

At the end of one of the additional stories, you become sausages and have to grill yourself, put on sauces, jump into a bun and become a hot dog. So, there is definitely no need to skip the additional content

Conclusion about the gameplay - it is great

If you have been looking for a game with incredible gameplay quality for a long time and the gameplay is the most important aspect of the game for you, then Split Fiction will definitely not disappoint you.

The authors managed to combine different genres: shooter, platformer, stealth action, puzzles, and others. The team made sure that all these mechanics feel polished and interesting, and it really is. In most levels, Zoe and Mio have unique abilities.

The game changes so often that sometimes it's hard to remember all the surprises it has shown you

And in general, the player's abilities change not just from level to level, but within the level itself, easily 5 times or more. And you will be given a laser whip, a wing suit, a hoverboard, a sword, a machine gun, jumping on the back of a dragon, and the list goes on and on.

In general, we can talk about the gameplay of Split Fiction all night long, but as you have already understood, the best solution is to just stick with it, see it all for yourself, feel it, and tell others how cool everything was thought out in this adventure.

In addition to interesting gameplay, the game also has many references to other popular fictional worlds. What do you think of the location, which is very similar to Hogwarts and takes you to the Harry Potter atmosphere?

The technical side of the two-dimensional world

Everything is fine with the game's optimisation. On the PlayStation 5, the game kept a stable 60 fps and I never felt any frame drops. As for bugs, I didn't encounter any critical problems, the game never crashed, but there were micro bugs that hardly spoiled the experience. Sometimes there were moments when you performed an action and it didn't work properly. However, otherwise, I have no complaints and this is a happy case when we get a game that works as it should right at release.

Even in very busy scenes, the game managed to run smoothly at 60 fps, so the technical condition before the official release is more than satisfactory

They also made the visuals cool

The visuals in Split Fiction are awesome. As in the case of the gameplay, the game constantly changes the picture and you can see new beautiful locations all the time. And they did a great job with the detail. The sci-fi levels are filled with neon, tall buildings, various signs, an endless stream of cars, and bright effects that are constantly on the screen. Fantasy levels also feel large-scale, but neon and skyscrapers are replaced by exquisite castles, dense forests, statues, and a harmonious combination of nature when the winter meadow is covered with red leaves.

In most cases, when I got to a new location, I heard the phrase: "wait, I need to take a screenshot", and this is probably the best compliment that can be paid to the visuals of the game.

The audio is also not far behind

There are no problems with the sounds at all. In addition to the fact that the characters sound great and are well acted, and the environment also does not hesitate to reveal itself through the audio, Split Fictions has a cool soundtrack. It sounds at the right moments and sets the tone for the events. There's dramatic music that emphasises important plot points, there's also room for more epic compositions that can be heard during intense boss battles, and of course, there's often a calm melody playing in the background to accompany your journey, all of which combine to create an atmosphere you don't want to leave.

Since the Split Fiction soundtrack hasn't been officially released at the time of writing, here's a moment from the game where you, as a gorilla and a tree, have to repeat the dance moves of a funny monkey

How Split Fiction will be remembered

Split Fiction will be remembered as a rich, dynamic and unforgettable co-operative adventure that aims to tell an interesting story and, more importantly, to constantly surprise you gameplay-wise. Making a game where you won't get bored for a second is a real challenge, but Hazelight has managed to do it. At the end of the year, when we all recall the best games of the year, no matter what else comes out, Split Fiction will definitely be on this list, because there are not enough games like this, they make you stay in gaming and believe that all is not lost. It's still hard to imagine how Hazelight will jump over such a high bar, but right now we can say with full confidence that everyone who put effort into this game is a genius who must continue to create. From me, Split Fiction receives the "Editor's Choice" mark, which I rarely give to games, but this is exactly the case when the game 100% deserves the best awards!

Five things you need to know about Split Fiction

• Split Fiction is Hazelight's third story-driven co-op adventure after It Takes Two and A Way Out
• The game tells the story of two writers who find themselves caught up in their own stories after being connected to a machine designed to steal their ideas
• Split Fiction can be played together online or sitting next to each other on the couch
• Only one copy of the game is enough for a full passage, even if you play on different platforms
• The gameplay is constantly changing, offering a dynamic experience that will stay in your memory for a long time

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