I'd like to begin by pointing out that I had never heard of this game. I was actually surfing around on Metacritic and this game popped up on the top rated recent PC games list. I immediately got curious when I saw it was an adventure game. I came here to read Mark's review and immediately was even more interested. I bought it on Steam and played it the next day. Boy am I glad that I did.
When it really boils down to it, the core of this game comes in three steps:
1. The shocking beginning.
2. The interactions that happen throughout the adventure.
3. The emotionally charged finale.
Those three simple things are what make up this beautiful adventure. Quite plainly, the game is about two young brothers who set out on a quest (I can't tell you the details of that quest...nothing in the game should be spoiled) together to try to accomplish a nearly impossible goal. The connections the brothers make to each other, the struggles they suffer through together and the laughs they have together all combine into a wonderful experience. The thing I found most interesting about the game though, is that there is no talking. Well there is...but it is all incomprehensible babbling. There isn't even any text in the game (aside from a couple quick tutorials in the beginning). Yet somehow, the game seems to be able to convey more story and invoke more of an emotional response than most games these days.
To make things even better, the environments are beautifully crafted. Since this is of course an Arcade game (XBLA, PSN, Steam), it doesn't have the same sort of a budget that a retail game does. As a result of that, you aren't going to get super 1080p HD awesome HDR lighting and extreme anti-aliasing...etc. That being said, the power here is in the artistic design of the environments. Everything feels believable yet equally fantastical, and everything also feels in place. You don't miss things because they are placed smartly, yet things never feel like they are placed there JUST to give you a puzzle to solve. Everything falls into place logically.
Which leads me into my assessment of the game play. This game shows us that we don't need our hands held in order to be able to figure out what to do next or how to play. The game starts by simply showing you that you can control each brother individually and that they can interact with objects. That's the best tutorial you will get in the game. From then on, you figure things out on your own and through investigating the environment. I never once felt like things were frustratingly difficult to figure out...because everything was placed brilliantly. While I noticed some others saying the puzzles were decently challenging...I actually felt like they were painfully simple. Nothing made me scratch my head and I flowed through the game with ease. To be fair though, I come from playing games like Myst and Professor Layton...so I'm used to using critical thinking when trying to solve problems in games. Not everybody is. Another interesting point is that you actually control both brothers simultaneously. You use the left stick to control the older brother and the right stick to control the younger. You then use the corresponding trigger to interact with objects. That's all of the controls (well you can rotate the camera as well...I never used that though). It reminds me of Conker's Bad Fur Day actually. You do your tasks using one button, which is context sensitive. In one part you may be using the action button to climb...while in another part you might use it to push a lever. The simplicity actually makes the game quite enjoyable though.
The final piece to the puzzle that makes this game so beautiful is it's music and sound. The sound effects feel real and the music is beautifully composed and expertly placed.
In the end though, this IS an adventure game...so be warned. You really are running from place to place and solving puzzles in order to progress. There are some violent (i.e. combat) situations that are situational, but the brunt of the game is progressing through adventure mechanics. That being said, everything is put together beautifully. The two main complaints I have about this game are that the game is painfully short. Considering how effectively the game draws you in, it made me sad that the adventure was over in about 5 hours. My other complaint is that I felt like the puzzles were FAR too simple. The only thing that keeps an adventure game from being a slightly interactive movie is usually the puzzles and form of progression. Having extremely easy puzzles detracts from that overall experience. On the bright side though, exploring every nook and cranny is oddly satisfying.
There is one booster that this game gets which bumps this game's score up for me: achievements done right! There are no silly achievements that involve beating the game or walking 2 steps or turning the game on. ALL of the achievements in this game involve doing things that involve you travelling off the beaten path. In other words, you get rewarded for exploring and paying attention to things that aren't integral to the progression with an achievement. I actually really liked that, and I wish more games used the concept of achievements properly like this one does. The best part is that these tasks for which you are rewarded achievements actually help enhance the story and the characters. I have never, in all my life of gaming, seen a game place achievements so wisely.
So if you are looking for an emotionally charged, story-driven adventure that will pull at your heart with minimal effort on the game's part...then this is the game for you. I highly recommend this game to anybody who has the time to play it.