Two days before the official release, the first reviews from the Western press were received by Split Fiction, a cooperative adventure from the publisher Electronic Arts and the developers of It Takes Two from the Swedish Hazelight Studios.
Image source: Electronic Arts
The Metacritic aggregator site has already collected more than 110 reviews of Split Fiction with a rating of 91% (PS5) and 92% (PC, Xbox). On OpenCritic, the picture is similar – 90% with 73 reviews (the game is recommended by 97% of critics).
Thus, at least in terms of ratings, Split Fiction has surpassed previous releases from Hazelight Studios, including It Takes Two – the best game of 2021 according to The Game Awards at the time earned no more than 89% on Metacritic.
Split Fiction’s main characters, Mio and Zoe, are named after the daughters of the game’s director, Josef Fares.
Reviewers raved about the game’s rich and varied co-op gameplay, themes, intuitive controls, side content, and technical polish.
The project’s downsides included an imbalance in difficulty for hardcore and casual players, a predictable story, overly simple puzzles, some levels being drawn out, and a not always convenient camera.
How to Train Your Dragon
Critics agree that Split Fiction is Hazelight’s best game yet, and will be a benchmark for future co-op adventures. “It sets a new standard for the genre and more,” says GameSpot.
Split Fiction is coming March 6 to PC (Steam, Epic Games Store, EA App), PS5, Xbox Series X, and S. While it requires two players to play, the Friend Pass (now with crossplay) means you only need one copy to play co-op.