E45 Unravel Two

Pixel Vision

Ben and Tao tug and pull each other - not like that - as they swing from leaf to bough to frog to swan, in stringy suburban couch co-op pendulous puzzler, Unravel Two. The duo break down exactly what they’re looking for in a co-operative platformer and if this side scroller has all the right ingredients. Between comparisons to other co-op titles and nearly random film references, they talk friendship, fascism, faux urgency, the role of metaphors in story design, and of course their own interpretations of the Unravel Two plot. Plus, what makes a suitable audience, and why Ben’s sudden interest in simulations may be linked to his new VR headset. Negligible spoilers.

Content Warning: PEGI 12. Some bad language but not worse than your average playground. No violence. No sex. Good or bad? You decide! (And let us know in our Suggestion Box…)

Clarifications:

* If it isn’t obvious, the audio at the end is Ben and Tao narrating their own playthrough of Unravel Two. It’s not the commentary track of an inappropriate DVD.

* Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) is a sci-fi comedy from Mark Duplass.

* Vengeance (2022) is a comedy film written and directed by B. J. Novak. Ben enjoyed it and recommends. You can see other films he liked (and hated) here: BennyViews.com

* Tao references N! - game you can still play in browser here: https://www.thewayoftheninja.org/n.html (it’s not as fun as everyone remembers it)

* We reviewed Overboard! Here:

* We reviewed It Takes Two here:

* We reviewed Astroneer here:

* We reviewed Greedfall here:

Audio extracts:

* Monty Python - Bring Out Your Dead

* Al Bowlly - Goodnight Vienna

* Spanish Flea by Herb Alpert

* Overboard! Game (2021)

* The Amazing Spiderman - 1960's Cartoon theme

* The Mighty Boosh - ‘Hold Me’

* Half-Life 2

* Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes by Liam Sauvé

* It Takes Two OST

* Are we the baddies? - Mitchell and Webb

* Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Mr. Hitler by Jimmy Perry and Derek Taverner (Dad’s Army theme)

* A Way Out game (2018)

* Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons game (2013)

* Portal OST - 'Still Alive' by Jonathan Coulton

* Astroneer OST

* Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) feat. Mark Duplass

* Greedfall OST by Olivier Deriviere

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