Split Fiction by Hazelight Studios looks exactly like the kind of game my husband and I would love. We are a gamer couple always in search of more games to replenish our ever-dwindling supply of couch co-op games. If it exists on the PS5 and it has couch co-op—true couch co-op, not "girlfriend" or drop-in co-op—we've probably played it.

So when Split Fiction was announced during The Game Awards, we should have been ecstatic. Like the two previous games by the studio, the title from Hazelight is specifically made to be played by two people. It's a cooperative experience, made all the better by literally sitting near each other on a couch and discussing how to by certain puzzles or where to go next. The trouble is, we've played It Takes Two, and while it was a good game on a mechanical level, the writing nearly stopped us from finishing the game.

It Takes Two Was A Fantastic Game With Terrible Dialogue

The Childishness Of The Protagonists Was Jarring

From a purely gameplay aspect, It Takes Two was a fantastic game. Each level introduced a new mechanic that added a layer of puzzling and platforming that required my husband and I to work together to progress. The levels were creative and fun and often had us laughing out loud when we failed to coordinate a particularly tricky maneuver or high-fiving when we finally nailed it.

At first, we felt the game was too linear, but each level got larger and more expansive, and after just a few stages they became large enough to explore with plenty of fun little Easter eggs to discover. In other words, It Takes Two was a solid game and a fun experience for cooperative play.

But, and you knew the "but" was coming, the writing in the dialogue nearly caused me and my husband to abandon the game. The title is meant to explore what it means to be a married couple struggling to keep their relationship together, and what it means for their young daughter. This entire premise is completely undercut by how childish the protagonists are.

The vast difference between the stellar level design and the lowbrow writing is incredibly jarring, and it's upsetting to see such a good game be let down by such poor dialogue.

All the potential for a poignant, introspective story goes out the window as the protagonists talk to each other like a bunch of 5-year-olds. They bicker constantly and play blaming games not in the manner of an adult relationship but in the manner of two people who seemingly have very little experience talking to other human beings. We're supposed to believe these are grown adults considering divorce, but they constantly make snide remarks about each other in a way that I'd expect from my 11-year-old daughter, not my adult husband.

At one point, they decide that the only way to transform back from being dolls is to make their child cry, and they go about this task with alarming glee. The only other character, a talking book, adds nothing to the writing other than being a borderline racist stereotype that's incredibly annoying, to boot. The vast difference between the stellar level design and the lowbrow writing is incredibly jarring, and it's upsetting to see such a good game be let down by such poor dialogue.

The Protagonists Of Split Fiction Have A Similar Relationship To It Takes Two

Split Fiction May Have The Same writing Issues As It Takes Two

Split Fiction looks like it does a lot of the same things as It Takes Two, with each level giving players a completely new set of challenges to overcome. It follows Mio and Zoe, two authors who somehow end up getting sucked into their own stories. The levels will be based on the two characters' stories, both written and imagined, and will alternate between the two writers' genres of choice, sci-fi and fantasy.

If it's anything like It Takes Two, the actual gameplay of the title will be incredibly fun and explore many ways to play cooperatively. Based on the trailer and everything learned about Split Fiction so far, the game will have a huge variety of environments, will include plenty of obstacles to overcome, and will feature both slower exploratory segments and heart-pounding, quick-thinking action sequences like its predecessor. Unfortunately, it seems that Split Fiction might also take the previous game's angle for the writing and dialogue.

The protagonists in Split Fiction might not be a married couple, but they still have a very similar dynamic to the couple in It Takes Two. They don't like each other when the game begins, even looking down at each other for their different genres of choice. Understandably, the trailers and promotional materials have been placing a strong emphasis on showing off gameplay, but what little we saw reveals that the two protagonists of Split Fiction will likely spend the entire game fighting like the protagonists in It Takes Two.

If the writing for Split Fiction is the same as it is for It Takes Two, it would stand out even more. The game is based on the imaginations of Mio and Zoe, two authors who get sucked into the worlds of the stories they've written. Having lackluster writing in a game all about writing might be even more immersion-breaking.

I Hope Split Fiction Features More Believable Dialogue

The Protagonists Are As Important As Their Stories

The gameplay for Split Fiction looks absolutely amazing, as the game takes players through a cooperative romp through different genres. I love the style and can't wait to see all the different mini-adventures that each stage has planned for cooperative players. However, the game can't run on mechanics alone and the writing will need to be there to the gameplay.

We haven't entirely written off Split Fiction yet, though. My husband and I agree that we will remain cautiously optimistic, and hopeful that the more mature style of the game's visuals means that the game has grown since its predecessor. In It Takes Two, it could be argued that the childishness of the protagonist stemmed from their situation as being dolls (perhaps, at a stretch, the dialogue was supposed to be imagined by their daughter).

Split Fiction won't have that excuse, so it will have to have strong writing to carry the game through its adventures. My husband and I would love another fun co-op game to play, but only if the title has improved the way its protagonists communicate with one another. We want to explore the varied worlds of Split Fiction, but first, we'll wait to see if the title fixed our biggest complaint about It Takes Two.