Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons Review

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is the result of a collaboration between Starbreeze Studios and Josef Fares, a versatile Swedish director whose crazy comedies always provide food for thought, as in the case of “Zozo,” which was once shortlisted for an Oscar in the category of “Best Foreign Film.”

The game undoubtedly shares many similarities with Fares’ films, captivatingly and emotionally telling the story of the relationship between two brothers during their journey through a vast gaming world.

The events revolve around the older and younger brothers, who set out in search of the “Water of Life” for their dying father.

At the beginning of the game, it is revealed that they have already lost their mother, and it happened at sea – which is why the younger brother is afraid of water. Then the brothers leave their village and make their way through dangerous caves, mountains, graveyards, and battlefields.

The game is inspired by (or at least reminiscent of) projects like ICO and Journey, and it is a powerful story without any dialogue.

Instead, the narrative unfolds through actions, gestures, and interactions with other characters.

Whether you unfurl a scroll to understand where to go, negotiate with a deranged mountain troll who has been separated from his wife, or receive a playful kiss from a girl you just saved – every situation is extremely simple and understandable.

They stop and pray when they pass a dead body, the younger brother laughs and plays with other villagers, and the older brother gestures desperately if his brother is in danger.

And although the storytelling method may seem somewhat uncomplicated, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons has (in our memory) one of the most powerful endings – a worthy reward for all the hard work the brothers have done during their difficult journey.

A stunning game world with a variety of locations, which only enhances the captivating story.

As you approach your goal, the tension builds – the further you get from home, the more dangerous the new territories become.

We don’t want to go into details about what you will encounter, as most of the game is completely unpredictable about what awaits you around the next corner. Personally, I will definitely return to this world, specifically to learn more about its history and unique characters.

Undoubtedly, Starbreeze should be proud of their “Brothers” – the game is full of benches that offer you nothing more than to sit and admire the wonderful beauty that stretches before you.

In addition, there is another element that will awaken in you the desire to study the game – in-game achievements. Most of them require the brothers to go to some remote place and play with the local environment.

And since the plot and the well-developed universe are the strongest components of Brothers, it is easy to overlook the merits of the game mechanics based on puzzles.

To be honest, I have never mastered the art of controlling two characters at once, so often it turned out that I accidentally moved one while the other was climbing a wall, or pressed the wrong button at the most inappropriate moment.

And although this negatively affected the game “flow,” the puzzles in Brothers are quite forgiving – you never get stuck for more than a few seconds. In addition, the game is full of checkpoints, which means that you can easily start the game exactly where something went wrong.

A significant part of the puzzles revolves around clicking various game switches and moving different objects. The younger brother can crawl through quite narrow passages (triumphantly clearing the way forward), while the older brother is strong enough to press levers.

In short, the puzzles rarely pose a challenge, but from time to time you come across inventive and memorable teasers – they are interesting to solve, but at the same time you don’t feel any particular difficulties.

Closer to the beginning of the game, the brothers try to cross a field guarded by a vicious dog. One of the brothers distracts the dog, running towards nearby hay bales, while the other, sitting in a safe place, can throw a dart at it.

Memorable (although rare) boss fights require the involvement of both brothers: one as bait, and the other adding the final touches to the battle scene. The only problem with boss fights is that there are simply not enough of them.

The game can be completed in just three hours, so it can be finished in one or two sittings. However, it makes sense to go back there again to unlock the aforementioned achievements.

The game’s short duration made us want more, but it should be kept in mind that if Brothers were slightly longer, it would add unnecessary baggage to an already dense narrative. We all remember stories with overly stretched out TV series.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is a wonderful example of solid video game storytelling and a great reason to dust off your Xbox while the game has not yet been released on PC.