Brothers – A Tale of Two Sons (Remake) review: Poignant quest with a touching double act

Even if this poignant and clever adventure never registered with you, many people will surely know of its creator Josef Fares, who later gave us similarly themed co-op narratives A Way Out (2018) and It Takes Two (2021). But much of the unconventional concept for those later games were established in Fares’s first effort in the genre 11 years ago.

Set amid a medieval landscape that’s both bucolic and perilous, you take the role of two boys whose father falls ill and needs a cure fetched from a faraway village. Encompassing puzzles and platforms, the gameplay assigns you control of both brothers at once – one on each joystick and trigger.

In principle, this 2024 remake – with which Fares seems to have little association – borders on superfluous given the original’s widespread availability. But the price differential between old and new is almost non-existent (€20, give or take a few quid here and there), so you might as well experience this short but affecting tale in modern attire – rebuilt in 4K and with a new soundtrack.

That’s about as far as the remake goes, nonetheless, hewing tightly to the structure, mechanics and pacing of a decade ago. The developers promise a few extra secrets and a co-op mode that splits control of the boys. But in truth the remake has little to enhance, such is the finely crafted nature of the Fares original.

The inspired design stems largely from the controls. You guide the two lead characters – one small, one tall – using a single gamepad, forcing your brain to throw out years of muscle memory from conventional systems. You direct one boy with the left stick, the other with the right, while also frequently performing separate co-operative interactions tied to the triggers.

That’s tricky enough while just running from place to place. Now try turning a handle to open a gate while the other clings for dear life to a moving conveyor belt, for instance. Brothers is full of head-scrambling interactions like that as you traverse the world, outsmarting ogres, solving puzzles or climbing platforms.

Meanwhile, the two brothers convey their great bond and the desperation of their quest with a mixture of gibberish language and plaintive gestures, urging each other on. Outside of the plot, it is by times contemplative (you’re encouraged at certain points to sit on benches and admire the pretty views) and playful (offering cats to pet or practical jokes to perform).

With most remakes or remasters, the result is only ever going to be as strong as its foundations. With such an exquisite Fares blueprint to work from, the remade Brothers can’t help but carry on that great family tradition.