Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake review

If you were asked to name one of the best co-op games of recent years, what would be the first thing that would come to mind? You'd probably say It Takes Two, which deservedly won the Game of the Year award in 2021. Joseph Fares was responsible for its development, but before A Way Out and It Takes Two, Fares, together with Starbreeze Studios, gave us the adventure game Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, which received high marks from players and critics.

The gg editorial team received Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake for review, and we were satisfied. It's an enjoyable and sometimes emotional journey for one or two evenings with simple puzzles, which I recommend sharing in co-op with a friend or loved one. Of course, if you've played the aforementioned A Way Out or It Takes Two, the emotions may not be as intense, but why not try Josef's first creation to get a clear sense of the progression through his three games? And for some, this remake will be an opportunity to return to the carefree 2013 and replay the story of two brothers, especially since it is now powered by Unreal Engine 5 and looks very decent.

Synopsis.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake is a puzzle adventure game. The story tells about two brothers who set out on a journey to find "living water" - the only way to save their father. During the journey, you will have to solve puzzles, visit different locations, and face many dangers. The remake has completely redesigned the visuals to bring the game up to the current level of graphics, and the soundtrack has been re-recorded with a live orchestra.

5 reasons to buy Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake

• You loved the original game in 2013
• You missed the new story-driven co-op adventures
• An interesting gaming experience where one needs to control two brothers
• The graphics have been completely redesigned on UE 5
• You've completed A Way Out and It Takes Two, but you're not familiar with Phares' first creation yet

2 reasons not to buy Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake

• You are not ready to control two characters at the same time
• A 4-hour adventure is not enough for you

Quick transition:

• What we learned after reviewing Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake review
• Plot: to worry, laugh and cry
• Gameplay: puzzles, enjoyment, and a bit of action
• The technical side of the journey of two brothers
• Five things you need to know about Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake

What we learned after reviewing Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake review

I love It Takes Two, and I love A Way Out, but in 2013 Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons passed me by. Although I've been hearing rave reviews about the game for 10 years, I've never gotten around to picking it up. So 505 Games and Avantgarden SRL decided to create a remake to refresh the game.

It leaves you with a pleasant impression. The story and gameplay are so simple at the same time, but you get so involved that you don't even notice the end credits rolling. This is a good game that I primarily recommend to those who have the opportunity to play it together.

So, as you might have guessed, I think this remake is necessary, because the more interesting story-driven co-op games we have, the better.

The plot: to worry, laugh and cry

In one fairy-tale world, two brothers have learned terrible news: their father is terminally ill, and the only medicine that can save him is so far away that the boys have to pull themselves together, learn to act as one unit, and return home with the medicine.

Their journey takes them through fairy-tale villages, secret caves, dilapidated castles, battlefields, forests and even places where wild tribes live. At the beginning of the journey, everything goes relatively smoothly for the brothers, but after a while it becomes clear to everyone that the journey is turning into a dangerous one, where one mistake can cost them their lives.

Even so, the brothers find time to catch their breath and enjoy the moment, such as sitting on a bench and watching whales jump out of the sea. At the same time, their journey is full of love, as the older one is responsible for the younger one, and the younger one is forced to grow up and take risks. At some point, all this brings the boys to a level of mental connection that they cannot live without each other. You start to worry about them, even though there are no dialogues in this fairy tale that we are used to.

Although this plot cannot be called a breakthrough, the authors have managed to create an interesting story. The events happen quickly, the timing is not extended. You don't have time to get bored, and at the end you reach a peak emotional point for which you just want to thank the developers, because Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons gives you a story that stays in your heart for some time and reminds you of yourself.

I am sure that for those who have a younger brother or sister, the story will be even more emotional through the prism of life experience. After all, even I, as the only child in the family, got an interesting experience from the project, and that's what I want games to give me.

Gameplay: puzzles, pleasure, and a bit of action

I want to tell you about the gameplay feature if you play alone. You control two brothers at the same time. On the gamepad, the right stick is responsible for the younger one, and the left stick is for the older one. At first, it may seem a bit complicated, but if you've been playing games for a while and you don't have any major problems with coordination, you'll be able to navigate normally in 15-20 minutes. Although I still recommend playing in co-op, because then all attention is focused on only one character. In addition to sticks, you'll have to use two buttons - L2 to interact with objects as the older brother and R2 for the younger one.

What about the game itself? Most of the gameplay can be described in a simple way: "get from point A to point B while solving puzzles".

Almost all of the puzzles are simple, and I can't remember getting stuck on even one, so the game is suitable for those who don't like to think about solving a problem for 10 minutes.

And thanks to the good level design, you can almost immediately understand which direction you need to move and what the game requires of you. Although sometimes the tasks will require you to be agile, so you will have to think and act quickly and do everything correctly, but this adds adrenaline, which dilutes the gameplay.

Thanks to the constant change of tasks, locations, and the short time limit of the adventure, it's fun to play. One minute you're flying a paraglider, and 3 minutes later you're climbing a certain area like a climber with a rope tied to two brothers, and such changes are regular. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons wants to offer something new. Even if it's minimal differences, it's at least some variety. So, as in the case of the plot, the authors have managed to implement good gameplay and gain a new experience in the form of controlling two characters at once.

As for the disadvantages, I can only note that sometimes you have to do something that the game did not hint at. For example, in one of the locations, you need to move a part across a destroyed bridge, but neither of the brothers knows how to jump with an object in their hands. It turns out that one of the brothers has to jump over the bridge, and the other one has to throw the part at it, and then it will fly over. Otherwise, it won't work, even though you've never been shown this before. It's also a mystery why I can't throw a part without the other brother on the other side of the bridge. Fortunately, such moments can be counted on the fingers of one hand, but it was important to mention it.

The technical side of the two brothers' journey

I read Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake on PlayStation 5, and in some places the game failed to maintain a stable 60 fps. The frame loss is not significant, and it may be fixed before the release, but keep in mind that there is a chance that the game may freeze for a few seconds. However, the game never crashed, and I didn't encounter any critical bugs. There were only a few visual bugs, but the authors are aware of them, so they should fix them.

Redesigned visuals thanks to Unreal Engine 5

Visually, the game has undergone drastic changes that have been to its advantage. First of all, the adventure has become more cinematic. Cut scenes now look much better. Facial expressions have also been improved, allowing the characters to show more emotions (and more expressively).

The game has been remade on the Unreal Engine 5, so absolutely all textures have been changed. At the same time, the developers have worked on the detail of water, lighting, vegetation, feathers, animal fur, small elements, and the locations have become more full, which makes them more alive. And the conditional scene on UE 5, where a vulture gnaws the leg of a dead giant on the battlefield, evokes more emotions, because it is shown more realistically and with more details than it was with the "plasticine" graphics in the original.

Of course, this is not God of War Ragnarok (maybe someone was expecting that), but the game has a decent level of graphics for 2024.

The soundtrack that was re-recorded by a live orchestra

The sounds in the game are recorded at a good level, but I would like to talk about the soundtrack. Most of the compositions are dramatic, and they sound at the right moments to emphasise the events on the screen and immerse the player in the events even more. But in the remake, the authors managed to reach a new level in this regard, as the soundtrack was re-recorded with a live orchestra. So in some important scenes, using the music created by a live orchestra, the game managed to pass through me like an arrow.

And all of this creates a mix of atmosphere and emotion that makes me say after this journey that Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake is worth paying attention to.

Five things you need to know about Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake

• Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Remake brought us back one of the best games of 2013, but in an updated form
• Visually, the game was modernised thanks to Unreal Engine 5
• The soundtrack was re-recorded with a live orchestra
• The story of the brothers will take you no more than two evenings
• You can play the game alone (if your head doesn't explode from this) or together

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