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 Hello, and welcome to Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. This is a tale of two brothers (technically sons of the same man), named Naiee and Naia (hereafter referred to as Little and Big Brother, respectively). Developed by Starbreeze Studios, of Payday 1 and Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay fame, this game marks a thematic departure from those games as it does not feature a gunman making tough choices. This is largely due to the influence of the game's Director, Swedish filmmaker and Fajr International Film Festival award winner Josef Fares. Brothers won a BAFTA in 2014 for innovation, and was also lauded at the 2014 Video Game Awards (stop laughing) for Best Xbox Game. I feel the praise is well deserved. Told without intelligible dialogue, the story follows the brothers through an improbably dangerous and magical journey to find a macguffin to cure their deathly ill father. While the story can often veer into the heavy-handed and maudlin, I was enchanted when I first played this in 2013. There are some truly beautiful moments in the game, and incidental details show that we aren't even scratching the surface of what this world has to offer. Starbreeze has managed to create a beautiful game that was able to quiet the cynic in me, and awakened a real sense of the marvelous. The main selling point of the game is that you control both brothers simultaneously - Big Brother is controlled with the left stick and trigger, and Little Brother is controlled with the right stick and trigger. This can prove challenging, as I will amply demonstrate throughout this LP. There are no puzzles that punish sluggish responses, and do-overs due to brain farts are merciful. That said, I feel that the mental gymnastics involved in managing two protagonists simultaneously help to deepen the bond we form with the characters - it'll be interesting to see if anyone who hasn't played the game actually identifies with the characters, or if that's a function of the mental investment necessary to even play the game. I'll be playing through the story, attempting to show off every delightful aside and Neat Thing (helpfully alluded to in the game's achievements). If you haven't experienced the game before, or wrote it off as the usual indie schlock, I can't blame you. It is clearly a game that makes you want to Feel Things. For those of you still reading, however, I hope you'll join me on this brotherly quest. Playlist       
Skippy Granola fucked around with this message at 23:01 on Apr 13, 2016 |
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Apr 4, 2016 02:19
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I played this game co-op with my wife (who does not normally play games at all). It isn't intended to be played that way, of course. But because it makes the controls far simpler, (you're only controlling one of the brothers each), that's perfect for someone who doesn't play games. And the game is pretty short too, so it's not impossible to convince someone else to play it with you. I enjoyed the experience a lot.
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Apr 4, 2016 03:15
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This game seems really cute. I particularly liked the last section with the giant, because I didn't realize until the end that at no point was the giant actually NECESSARY. He could easily have been replaced at all points with just an extra ledge or bridge, but the aspect of having the giant helping you was interesting and engaging enough to make the whole segment feel fresh and interesting.
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Apr 4, 2016 19:34
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The whole game is just a haunted house only for wonder and magic, and I love it. At no point is any world building explicitly done, you're just given these tantalizing glimpses of this huge interesting world
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Apr 4, 2016 23:44
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I guess it's about time for a cave level, huh? Thankfully, the game gets all the dull tropes out of the way quickly. Nevertheless, the caves manage to tell a pretty bleak story all on their own, and they have probably the highest concentration of puzzles in the game. It's all about pulling levers and moving switches and shuffling around this baffling and complex machinery in order to escape. I like it a lot, from a gameplay perspective, even if the drab colour scheme leaves something to be desired.
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Apr 6, 2016 23:27
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I'm not a huge fan of this chapter, honestly. The oppressive, halloweentown atmosphere is such a departure from the fantastic areas we've visited so far. To go from pastoral valley town to meeting a dang giant, to exploring this ancient and improbably massive mechanical mine, and then to end up in the requisite SPOOKY FOREST feels like a cop-out. There are so many more themes to explore - I'd have even enjoyed another area with Mr. and Mrs. Giant as they never show up again in the entire game. Luckily, Chapter 3 is relatively brief and forgettable, which is instantly forgiven by the rest of the game.
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Apr 8, 2016 23:14
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I recall someone, Slowbeef I think, raving about this game back when it was new. Whoever it was, they had really good taste because this game is something so far. I slept on it so I hadn't seen anything but a few screenshots until now, and it is already presenting one hell of a world. I even liked the darker aesthetic of the most recent chapter, although the dream sequence at the end was way too creepy to be in an otherwise light-hearted adventure like this. It also deserves a lot of credit for such a unique style of gameplay, which I can tell just from watching makes even mundane tasks pretty challenging.
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Apr 9, 2016 01:38
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Gee I sure did a crummy job cropping these chapter images. Oh well. Sorry about the frequency of the updates, but it's so dang easy to record I can't help myself. Yesterday's update was quite short, and I'm just too excited about Chapter 4 to sit around. In fact, I think I'll update this thread pretty rapidly because - and I don't mean to sound like I'm complaining, because I'm not - there doesn't seem to be much to discuss in the updates. I hope you folks are enjoying the videos though! This is the one that really stuck with me - we're out of the woods and the game really hits its stride. This mountainous level is the perfect microcosm of this game's artistic vision - from the pathos of the first couple of minutes, to the beautiful scenery of the next, to the innocent and freewheeling fun, the sense of peril, the unexplained and fantastic world. If you're still with me at this point, I trust you won't be disappointed by the rest of the game. There are some surprises yet! Fiendly posted:I recall someone, Slowbeef I think, raving about this game back when it was new. Whoever it was, they had really good taste because this game is something so far. I slept on it so I hadn't seen anything but a few screenshots until now, and it is already presenting one hell of a world. I even liked the darker aesthetic of the most recent chapter, although the dream sequence at the end was way too creepy to be in an otherwise light-hearted adventure like this. It also deserves a lot of credit for such a unique style of gameplay, which I can tell just from watching makes even mundane tasks pretty challenging. I found GiantMom more absurdly funny than anything, actually. They'd have gotten more mileage out of those creepy stump monsters than OH NO NAIA IS A BAD GUY SUDDENLY edit: Video is still uploading and processing! Sorry folks, give it a minute.
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Apr 9, 2016 22:58
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I'm not sure I'd call the creatures the brothers encountered "giants" considering how even they would be off-scale compared to whomever lives in that tower.
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Apr 10, 2016 00:21
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That owl griffin was amazing--just how it moved and the design. I figured it was going to be a giant eagle or something dull because the cries definitely sounded like some sort of bird of prey, so I was pleasantly surprised. Those rope mechanics looked like they were a lot of fun to handle, I'm tempted to pick the game up for myself just for this level alone.
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Apr 10, 2016 03:58
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The next update is going to be super exciting in terms of visual design. When I played the game it definitely made me go "aaaaa what is this where am I?"
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Apr 10, 2016 21:46
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bewilderment posted:The next update is going to be super exciting in terms of visual design. When I played the game it definitely made me go "aaaaa what is this where am I?" You said it! While Chapter 4 is definitely the most emblematic of the game, Chapter 5 really takes it away in visual design. I love everything about it - the vague sense at unease at the things you're required to do in order to progress, the completely ruined timescale, and really there's just something about improbably huge creatures that makes you feel so small. My only regret is we didn't get to see these suckers in action.
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Apr 11, 2016 01:35
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I'm reasonably certain the giant battle happened in the recent past, because the giant residence we passed through earlier wasn't dusty and the captive griffin was still alive.
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Apr 11, 2016 02:58
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Skippy, your musing near the beginning of the video about a world where the human villagers live in constant fear of the gigantic warriors roaming the land was interesting. I agree that it would make an interesting setting, but I think you were ignoring the bigger question: who was it who Attacked these Titans?  Terrible anime jokes aside, this was a really interesting chapter. A dead giant whose blood pours out as a literal river (or at least enough to turn the water dark red) feels like something out of some of the weirder origin myths from the real world.
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Apr 11, 2016 03:06
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Ah man, that captive gryphon just wanted one last hurrah and gave the bros a lift while it was at it. Reminds me of the walks my dog did before he kicked the bucket. That titan battlefield was certainly something. My main question is, was the giant naturalist also a wizard and won the battle or was it the giant naturalists versus the industrialists? We may never know.
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Apr 11, 2016 03:15
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It's interesting seeing how the world's steadily gotten darker and more unnerving on a fundamental level as the brothers continue their trek; from the idyllic fields and hills of their village, to helping two seperated couples reunite, to, most-recently, entering a freezing wasteland, surrounded by death and, in the ending of the most-recent video, a thwarted ritual sacrifice. You really get a sense of 'here be dragons' in a way, but in less of a sense of adventure and plunder and more in a foreboding, 'this poo poo is dangerous' sort of mentality. Even if there's no real danger in this level/area, the fact that you have to steadily desecrate corpses in more-extreme ways to clear your path, as well as being soaked in gore at least twice really sets the tone. I'm honestly worried about what unfortunate fate might befall our entrepid siblings as they get closer to their goal.
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Apr 11, 2016 03:55
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I can see how "vaguely creepy forest full of wolves" is a bit underwhelming compared to... that. Even still, platforming literally through the corpses of giant humans managed to have a somewhat playful tone to it. I even laughed out loud when li'l brudder really got into the act of being the scary blood god to save the damsel in distress. EDIT: What really interested me about this setting was the cult at the end, because to me that implies the blood has been flowing through that river long enough for them build a religion around it complete with elaborate ceremonial irrigation system and regularly scheduled human sacrifice. It could also be that they're just long-time worshipers of that river taking the sudden ruddiness as a sign of upset deities in need of appeasement, but the fact that they expect the avatar of their god to be blood-soaked tells me they've always been there for the blood. It's a very provocative detail regardless of the intent. Fiendly fucked around with this message at 04:57 on Apr 11, 2016 |
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Apr 11, 2016 04:45
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Those cave paintings at the 9-minute mark are pretty interesting. Warriors (like those tribal guys), with a double-height person as the leader, hunting or warring with... what? Elephants? Many-legged people? Giant bugs? Hard to make out.
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Apr 11, 2016 05:28
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Well, I'll say this part of the game is certainly pretty. A lot happens in Chapter 6, which gives the events a nice sense of progression. The tonal shift and environment change halfway through really keeps the momentum going. However, that same shift manages to make the level just not that memorable. It's certainly pretty, and there are some inspirational moments, but after the sweeping vistas of Chapter 4, and the somewhat vertiginous inversion of scale in Chapter 5, Chapter 6 doesn't have a leg to stand on. The theme is there and, like Journey, there's something so final and epic about climbing a mountain to reach your goal. This chapter exists because it must exist - in the fairytale of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, we are climbing along with the rising action to our ultimate goal. In fact, the game's sense of altitude seems to mirror the hero's journey. We have our call to action, which propels us up the hills and into the cave, where we meet our first real threat. We descend through the cave to the graveyard, where Little Brother meets his lowest point - the manifestation of his guilt at his mother's death, how her hand is literally keeping us from helping Father, and his paranoia at being destroyed by his big brother. We then meet another man at HIS lowest point, but by putting aside our suspicions and fears we are able to help him find closure. From that point it is upward progress, the caves and graveyard all but forgotten as the world opens before us and we leave behind the mundane. I'm wanking a bit here, but I can't help but see the parallels. I've never been too concerned with spoilers in these brief stream of consciousness essays because I assume you'll either watch the video first, or you're fine with knowing what to look for. The big takeaway from this episode is that HOLY CRAP, ICE MONSTERS ARE AWESOME.
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Apr 12, 2016 02:55
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Man, how did I miss this LP? One of my favorite games of that year, mostly due to being the older brother of two.
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Apr 12, 2016 20:48
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 With that, we're all done. Short and sweet. Beware spoilers below if you haven't yet seen the end of this game and are the sort to care about that kind of thing. The final chapters really ramp up the pathos. For what it's meant to be, I feel Chapter 7 is by far the weakest, in terms of gameplay and theme. A surprise boss fight (that, nevertheless, is heavy-handedly foreshadowed in the previous chapter), wailing tragedy, and sudden determination. The spider girl feels much like the Atlas boss fight in Bioshock- included at the last minute because the player has to do SOMETHING to earn the end credits. I feel that having Naia Brung Low By A Woman is a disingenuous choice that seems out of place with the overall theme of the game. Let's discuss that in a bit more depth. Brothers is a game of cooperation - Big Brother is self-assured, determined, and steadfast. Little Brother is wracked with a phobia, a bit of a goof-off, but undeniably brave. Throughout the entire game, Big Brother has guided the flow - his idle action is to point in the direction of progress. His strength is what activates the majority of the machines. Essentially, he picks up Little Brother and flings him at the solution. This is apparent in the way the controller is laid out - the left hand is always, almost reactively, the hand of movement and direction. It is the hand we use to push our avatar to where we can act. The right hand is the hand, then, of action. Naia guides, Naiee acts. To have a brutal, inescapable fight caused by Big Brother's hormones and that eventually leads to his undoing, takes Little Brother out of the equation. Yes, I suppose it ties back to his prescient dream (which in itself felt out of place - is Naiee really scared of being destroyed by his brother, or that he won't be able to live up to him?) I'm sure I would have done it differently - a co-op platforming segment ending in tragedy as Naia throws his little brother to safety, leaving Naiee to complete the quest and discover his brother's broken body, in peace after protecting his little brother. I'm not sure if that would be less contrived, honestly, but it would indeed be more thematically cohesive. On the other side of the coin, the epilogue is a fantastic example of character development through action. We're meaningfully faced with challenges that took two characters to surpass, and by using the older brother's action button, our sole remaining character can draw on a deep well of untapped potential. It's a beautiful and tactile metaphor for growing up, and I had to pause and absorb the message for a while when I first played this game. So, we're brought to the end of the game, short one brother but with a surfeit of self confidence. Good fantasy has a way of acting more as an appetizer than a main course - it fires up the imagination with all things that are possible, and tempts you to spin your own stories. This game did just that, leaving me to wonder where that little gryphon came from? If he roosts in the tree of life, how did the titan naturalist capture him? Who were the rest of the titans? Why did they fight? What happened to our friends the Giants? What's the backstory to their war with the trolls? For that matter, why is that guy with the stick way back in chapter 1 such an rear end in a top hat? Did he ever befriend that small dog? Not many storytellers can weave a tale by omission, but the world presented in Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is one I'd dearly like to revisit. Thank you to everyone for watching, and I truly hope you've enjoyed this. And I dunno stay tuned for something weird
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Apr 13, 2016 23:58
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The only thing I was able to think towards the end of the video: Due to the slow action of the water of life, big brother wakes up buried alive.
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Apr 14, 2016 04:34
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The only thing I was able to think about was that little bro must have hands of goddamn steel.
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Apr 14, 2016 05:09
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Never underestimate the power of sad diggin
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Apr 14, 2016 05:18
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Honestly, I thought the griffin had died but willing to wave it off. That whole ending bit with older brother's death definitely left a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth--death by a woman when there really aren't any women in the game to start didn't help--but also it just felt so heavy handed and at odds with the rest of the games tone. When the chapter started it felt disjointed from the rest, like it just sort of jumped to something different. That disconnect definitely made it so the pathos they wanted to evoke with older brother's death just didn't click with me. I really did love the mechanics and little brother doing things he couldn't do alone again at the end though. I just wish they hadn't fumbled right before. The game is beautiful and so consistent otherwise.
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Apr 14, 2016 13:50
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:The only thing I was able to think about was that little bro must have hands of goddamn steel. We found that out when he was swinging big bro around on the rope! That's some terrifying upper body strength on a kid.
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Apr 14, 2016 18:54
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I just found this! You didn't tell me you made a thread. Ok I watched the first video and these boys are dicks! 1. You cart your dying dad across a complicated bridge to the healers house instead of I dunno bringing the healer over 2. You leave a dying man on the healers table, first of all he needs his table for other things and patients, second that isn't comfortable for dad 3. You sent a dog after Stymie Fuckabout when you know he is still traumatised from his mothers dog related death 4. You could have just pulled the bridge lever yourself you know 5. I am not even going to comment on how you mansplained basketball to that girl before slam dunking the ball down a well. Plus she is still traumatised from her mothers basketball down the well retrieval death 6. You left the gate open, now the livestock will get out and walk into death dog field!! 7. Racist against white bunnies, disgusting 8. Abandoned a sheep away from his friends and with the racist bunnies, doubling his social torture 9. The giant seems like a fun guy but you didn't ask how you can help HIM, that's poor
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Apr 18, 2016 17:37
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This is America, sister - you gotta bootstrap your dead dad onto a table and then sic a small dog on a welfare parasite.
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Apr 18, 2016 22:42
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skoolmunkee posted:I just found this! You didn't tell me you made a thread. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought this. I actually found them rather unsympathetic throughout, and it doesn't help that the game forced you to kill all the enemies (I also read the gryphon ride as 'they rode that beast until it
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Apr 20, 2016 02:42
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This LP gave me the warm fuzzies and I want to say thank you for that, Skippy sir. 
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Apr 21, 2016 22:01
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