Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

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Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Studio Starbreeze Studios
Publisher ItalyItaly 505 Games Spike Chunsoft
JapanJapan
Senior Developer Josef Fares
composer Gustaf Grefberg
Erstveröffent-
lichung		 7th August 2013
platform Android , iOS , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , Windows , Xbox 360 , Xbox One
Game engine Unreal Engine 3
genre Adventure , skill
Subject Fantasy , Norse Mythology
Game mode Single player
control Gamepad
medium Download , Blu-ray
Age rating
USK released from 12
PEGI recommended for ages 16+

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (translated: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons ) is a 2013 published video game by the Swedish developer Starbreeze Studios , which previously mainly by Action was known. In the game, an adventure game with numerous levels of skill, you follow two brothers on a tragic journey through a world inspired by Norse mythology in order to save their father's life. Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons was created in collaboration with the famous director Josef Fares . The game received consistently positive reviews and was cited as one of the highlights of 2013 and an argument for video games as an art form. It also received several awards, such as the Spike Video Game Awards or the British Academy Video Games Awards . After the download versions from 2013, the game was also released as Blu-ray for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles in 2015. In addition to a higher resolution, it also offers bonus material such as picture galleries, the soundtrack and an audio commentary by Josef Fares. The game has also been available for mobile devices with the iOS operating system since October 2015 .

action

The story is about the two brothers Naia and Naiee. The younger of the two, Naiee, had to watch helplessly as his mother drowned on a boat trip, which had a lasting impact on him and cemented his fear of water and swimming. One day the father of the two brothers falls seriously ill. After taking him to the local healer, they learn from him that only the "water of life" can save the life of the father. The source of the water is in the Tree of Life, which is several days away . The brothers set out on a journey together to save their father's life.

Their journey takes them out of their home village, they make friends with a troll whose stolen wife they save. You traverse dark forests full of wolves, hanged men and threatening trees. You save a stranger whose wife and child have died from suicide and you get to know an inventor. Eventually the two of them arrive at the abandoned fortress of a giant, where they free a caged, injured griffin . She continues to carry it on his back until the griffin succumbs to his injuries. The death of the griffin brings Naiee into mourning. Then the brothers cross a valley that apparently served as a battlefield and is lined with dead giants. In the mountains they save a young woman from being sacrificed by a tribe that lives there. From then on, the girl stood by the brothers, helping them cross icy waters and snow-capped mountains. The three arrive in an abandoned village, where the population is apparently fighting a desperate battle against an invisible snow giant. After this danger has also been averted, the young woman begins to charm her older brother. She lures the love-drunk Naia into a cave, Naiee reluctantly follows. There, the girl turns out to be a monster-like spider creature, which lured the brothers straight into their nest to eat there. Together they fight the spider, but Naia is wounded shortly before she dies.

Although almost there, Naiee struggles to drag his wounded brother to the tree of life. Naia sends his brother alone into the tree, where he should fetch the water, while he himself wants to rest at the foot of the tree. But when Naiee returns, Naia has already succumbed to his injury. In deep sadness, Naiee digs a grave in the tree and buries his big brother in it. Another griffin then flew Naiee back near his home village. Naiee has matured through his brother's journey and death. He overcomes his fear of swimming and his physical weakness. So he finally manages to heal his father with the water he brought with him. A short time later, the father and son commemorate the deceased at the memorial stones for mother and son. The father collapses crying, while the mature Naiee endures the situation with composure. The picture pans to a griffin flying towards the horizon.

Gameplay

As a player, you follow the characters from an isometric perspective with a freely rotating camera. What is remarkable is that you always control both brothers at the same time with one controller . Only the two sticks and two shoulder buttons are required for all control commands and interactions. The extent to which you interact with objects, other characters or the environment always depends on the context. The left half of the controller is used to control the older brother, the right half to control the younger one. In order to pass the game, it is essential to coordinate the sequence of both characters with each other and to pay attention to their peculiarities, such as the greater physical strength of the older brother or the fear of water and the younger one. The game does not offer any screen displays or game life. The death of one of the brothers leads to a restart at generously set reset points. The game does speak, but in a fantasy language that seems Nordic-Arabic; The characters' facial expressions and gestures take up a lot of space. The music of the game is shaped by Kulning .

reception

reviews
publication Rating
PS3 PS4 Windows Xbox 360
4players k. A. k. A. k. A. 77%
Eurogamer 9/10 k. A. 9/10 9/10
GamePro k. A. k. A. k. A. 89%
MAN! AC k. A. 91% k. A. 10/10
PC Games k. A. k. A. 89% k. A.
play³ 8.5 / 10 k. A. k. A. k. A.
Meta-ratings
GameRankings k. A. k. A. 90.83% k. A.
Metacritic k. A. k. A. 90% k. A.

The reviews for Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons were very favorable. The atmosphere, paired with the atmospheric sound, was particularly emphasized. The gripping, emotional story is always emphasized. Carsten Görig from Spiegel Online calls the game a story “about growing up, about friendship, working together and developing courage, about self-confidence and believing in yourself” .

Sebastian Stange from PC Games magazine also describes the game as a “fairy tale for adults” and “one of the most thrilling games of the year” . Patrick Mittler from GamePro even sees it as a "gem" .

“It doesn't often happen that a game really grabs us, that it keeps us busy for a long time after the credits and that we really want to exchange ideas with others who have also experienced it. A quiet, magical adventure. It's more of an experience than an actual game. The game took me on a journey that I never saw coming. This trip shocked, touched, excited and amazed me again and again - precisely because it doesn't follow any genre rule and because the game mechanics underline everything that I experienced. No, it's not perfect. But if you are in the mood for a story, if you really want to be whisked away from the real world by a game and if you can get involved in the idiosyncratic controls, you will hopefully get Brothers as much as me! What a game!"

- Sebastian Stange : Criticism in PC Games

However, the short playing time and the low level of difficulty gave cause for negative criticism. Even if the control of the game was perceived as innovative, a certain amount of time to get used to it was criticized.

“Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons” is not child's play despite its cute presentation. In phases, the imagery is considerably mature and brutal. What at first glance sounds like a fairy tale is a heartbreaking fable about fear of loss and death itself in the game. Every moment has its meaning and is woven into the dense plot. “Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons” leaves me speechless in front of the screen. Even if the game was anything but demanding or demanding, the adventure still manages to suck me in with skin and hair in a strange world. With “Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons” it is not so much the game as such that convinces me, but the emotions that it generates. Every quiet moment, every little story counts here. And in the end I feel like someone has just hit my forehead with a board. Because it's one of those titles that shows that video games are much more than first-person shooters, shooting and violence. It is a work of art full of beauty, emotions and surprises. A piece of video game culture. "

- Criticism in the play³
Awards

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.pcgames.de/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-PC-256396/Tests/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-im-Test-1087909/
  2. ↑ http://www.polygon.com/features/2013/10/27/4864230/brothers-starbreeze-josef-fares
  3. ↑ a b Maniac.de: Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons - in the test (360). Retrieved April 19, 2018 .
  4. ↑ http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/01/01/2013-preview/3/
  5. ↑ http://www.gamesart.de/?page_id=16082
  6. ↑ Polygon.com: VGX named Grand Theft Auto 5 game of the year. Retrieved April 19, 2018 .
  7. ↑ M! Games , issue 264, September 2015, page 65
  8. ↑ http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht_fazit/Allgemein/Test/Fazit_WANY/Allgemein/32992/79882/Brothers_A_Tale_of_Two_Sons.html
  9. ↑ a b c http://www.eurogamer.de/articles/2013-08-12-brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons-test
  10. ↑ M! Games , issue 264, September 2015, page 65
  11. ↑ http://www.gamepro.de/xbox/spiele/xbla/brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons/wert/49089.html
  12. ↑ http://www.pcgames.de/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-PC-256396/Tests/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-im-Test-1087909/
  13. ↑ http://www.play3.de/2013/09/02/test-brothers-%E2%80%93-a-tale-of-two-sons-%E2%80%93-kleine-jungen-grose -emotions /
  14. ↑ http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/684837-brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons/index.html
  15. ↑ http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons
  16. ^ A b Carsten Görig: "Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons": Together you are less alone. In: Spiegel Online . September 11, 2013, accessed June 10, 2018 .
  17. ↑ http://www.pcgames.de/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-PC-256396/Tests/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-im-Test-1087909/
  18. ↑ http://www.gamepro.de/xbox/spiele/xbla/brothers-a-tale-of-two-sons/test/brothers_a_tale_of_two_sons,49089,3026526,fazit.html
  19. ↑ http://www.pcgames.de/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-PC-256396/Tests/Brothers-A-Tale-of-Two-Sons-im-Test-1087909/
  20. ↑ http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht_fazit/Allgemein/Test/Fazit_WANY/Allgemein/32992/79882/Brothers_A_Tale_of_Two_Sons.html
  21. ↑ http://www.play3.de/2013/09/02/test-brothers-%E2%80%93-a-tale-of-two-sons-%E2%80%93-kleine-jungen-grose -emotions /
  22. ↑ Elton Jones: VGX 2013: The Full List of Video Game Award Winners . In: heavy.com . Retrieved December 6, 2014.