Emotion is the big thing in games at the moment. Is it possible to make the player cry? to make them feel empathy? It’s relatively easy to get someone’s heart pounding, or to scare them but to make them cry? That's genuinely tough. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons may well be the game to do it for you though.
Not unsurprisingly, you play as two brothers, one older, one younger. Their father is sick, dying in fact, and only one thing can save him. That particular cure is at the top of a mountain, and so the two siblings set off to find said cure and save their Dad. At it’s core, Brothers is a relatively simple adventure title that lasts just a few hours, but it is also so much more.
You control both brothers at the same time, one with the right stick and trigger, and the other with the left stick and trigger. The triggers act as context sensitive action buttons, so pressing them near something climbable and the brothers will climb, pressing near a pushable object and they will push. The control scheme works really well for the most part, the sticks controlling the movement of each brother individual, essentially giving you local co-op that you play by yourself. I did find I sometimes struggled to navigate the environment, but that was more due to me forgetting myself and thinking one stick controls the camera.
Puzzles are relatively simple and the game isn’t exactly a challenge, but do not let that diminish thoughts of a purchase. The siblings adventure is as beautiful as it is poignant, and the game creates a world you want to know more about. As you play, you move from seaside town, to farm, to mountains to rivers and every inch of the world is just stunning. The art style is kinda of cartoony, not cell shaded or anything like that, just cartoony - its tough to describe, but it works really well.
The story is told in a language that is unknown, and there are no subtitles, but the intricacies aren’t lost, in fact I found them to be slightly enhanced. You don’t know what the brothers are saying, but you know what they doing, why they are doing it. The older brothers want to protect his younger sibling is obvious, but he also helps him find his inner strength. They face many perils throughout their journey, but overcome each one and it really is a heart warming tale of two sons love for each other, and their father.
The world they move through has its own stories to tell, and random encounters with NPC’s give the universe life. I dont want to spoil these smaller encounters, but in one section of the game you move through the mountains, coming across a river literally running red with blood. That blood is of giants, and clearly there has been a battle. Why? what caused such carnage? who won? these questions are never answered, and that is kinda of cool. It makes you want to discover more about the fairy tale land the boys live in, and it is a stunning piece of design.
As the game draws to a close, I challenge anyone to not at least well up with tears, let alone cry openly. It draws you in and you are totally invested in these two brothers fates and it is simply brilliant, rivaling the best drama TV and movies can offer. Is it one of the best, most emotional games I have played? To be honest, no. I have played much better titles for such things, but it is definitely up there, and I can only imagine what it would be like to play the game with an older or younger brother in the mix.
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is only short, clocking in at around three hours. It is a great three hours and well worth the price of admission. You will watch movies for the same price that won’t be as entertaining or affect you in such a way. The emotional journey will vary depending on your situation, but I defy anyone to not shed at least one tear. And that, my friends, is something very special indeed.