As time progressed day by day, many players who had been following It Takes Two began to grow increasingly excited.
During this period, Nebula Games also carried out some pre-launch promotion to boost the game's popularity.
After all, in terms of scale, this was currently Nebula Games' second-largest title after Dark Souls.
Although neither players nor industry professionals and gaming media following the game believed it could live up to the hype, promotional efforts were still necessary.
Moreover, the promotional budget for It Takes Two was significantly lower than that of last yearâs Dark Souls.
This was mainly because the gaming industry had recently lacked excellent releases, leaving players in a state of game droughtâany title that appeared moderately impressive could attract considerable attention.
And with game media starved for big news, they eagerly reported on any game that looked promising.
Last year, Mr. Chen had swept the Annual Game Awards Event, and his new work naturally carried immense spotlight.
Combined, these factors meant that even though It Takes Two was a game with high entry barriers, it had already gained significant attention.
It was truly a case of perfect timing and favorable conditions.
As for human harmony, that naturally referred to Nebula Gamesâ loyal fanbase.
Unlike ordinary players, who remained skeptical about It Takes Two's quality, Nebula Games and Chen Xu's fans had only one word in mind: Buy!
In a residential complex in the Imperial Capital, Wang Han was already fully prepared.
Two computers were logged into the Nebula Games Platform, waiting only for the game to unlock for purchase.
Beside her, Zhang Yi watched his girlfriendâs eager expression with a rather complicated look on his face.
He recalled the unequal treaty he had signed a year ago.
Because of a game called Overcooked, he had been doing the dishes for an entire year.
Still, despite that, he had absolutely no resistance toward any game released by Nebula Games.
Whether it was Mirror (Game)âa title only Nebula Gamesâ two-year-old fans would knowâor last yearâs Dark Souls, which had left him utterly stunned, he loved them all.
As for the game about to unlock, It Takes Two, truthfully, he was quite looking forward to it as well.
Judging from the promotional trailer, the gameplay content appeared extremely rich.
"Itâs unlocked, itâs unlocked! This game is huge! Itâs almost as big as Dark Souls!" The moment the game became available, Wang Han immediately purchased it, staring in surprise at the download interface that popped up.
While game size wasnât necessarily an indicator of qualityâand compression technology also played a roleâ
It Takes Two and Dark Souls were both developed by Nebula Games, so compression technology differences were irrelevant.
There was only one explanation:
The scale of It Takes Two was definitely no smaller than that of Dark Souls.
This realization instantly heightened Wang Hanâs anticipation.
Beside her, Zhang Yi, after a brief moment of excitement, quickly snapped back to reality. Staring at the screen, he silently repeated a phrase in his mind:
âImpulse is the devil!â
Absolutely no impulsiveness. He must not get Hyped Up while playing this game.
Otherwise, forget about dishesâheâd be doing laundry for the rest of his life!
Even though, based on all available information, It Takes Two was a completely different genre from last yearâs Overcooked,
Mr. Chenâs reputation was well-established, and the official Weibo account had described the game in such mystical terms. Moreover, It Takes Two was a game that required two-player cooperation.
Every time he thought about this, Zhang Yiâs mind flashed back to how utterly Hyped Up he had been while playing Overcooked.
And how loudly he had promised to become the ultimate dish-washing man.
Zhang Yi silently repeated his mantra three more times. Then, Wang Han reminded him, "Hurry, the game finished downloading! Get in quicklyâIâll invite you right away."
"Alright, Iâm coming," Zhang Yi replied, nodding as he entered the game.
After a brief Nebula Games Logo splash screen, the gameâs visuals appeared.
The scene was set in a yard resembling a Farm.
Cody, stepping outside to take out the trash, was talking with May, who arrived by car holding a document folder.
The coupleâs relationship had broken down, and they were about to divorce.
Even over minor daily matters, they complained and argued with each other, each feeling that the other couldnât understand them or grasp how much inner pressure they were under.
They continued to quarrel in the yard.
On the windowsill, their daughter Rose watched them with a heartbroken expression, holding two doll figures and whispering her wishâclearly, she hoped her parents would stop fighting.
Then, theçťé˘ froze.
On the frozen screen, the two dolls in Roseâs handsâone male, one female.
Cody was a clay doll, while May was a wooden doll.
Zhang Yi and Wang Han, having seen the promotional trailer, were not unfamiliar with them.
On this paused screen, the appearing UI choices clearly indicated they were meant to select their respective characters.
"Are these two characters different?" Wang Han asked curiously.
"Of course they are!" Zhang Yi jumped in.
"Whatâs the difference?" Wang Han asked.
"Havenât you noticed? Oneâs male, oneâs female. Oneâs clay, oneâs wood," Zhang Yi said with a chuckle.
Wang Han gave Zhang Yi a Speechless look.
As if she didnât know that?
Seeing her expression, Zhang Yi stopped fooling around and shared his speculation: "Didnât Chen Xuâs official Weibo and the promotional trailer show this? The two characters have special abilities in the game and need to cooperate. I think the male and female characters have different special abilities."
"Ah, I see!" Wang Han exclaimed in understanding.
Still unsure about the exact nature of the charactersâ special abilities, they chose according to gender.
Wang Han selected May, while Zhang Yi chose Cody.
After confirming their character choices, the game screen faded into a black screen.
After about one or two seconds, visuals and audio returned.
But the game didnât immediately begin. Instead, a cutscene played.
In the living room, at the dining table, facing their daughter Rose,
Cody and May finally told Rose they were getting a divorce.
Hearing this, Rose appeared calm on the surface, simply taking her little elephant toy and returning to her room.
But the next moment, she grabbed the dolls representing her father and mother, climbed out the window, and went to the storage room.
Under the storage room table lay a red book titled Book of Love.
"Dr. Hakim, you have to help me... They have to stay together."
"Look, it says: [Love Requires Effort]. See?"
"You have to put in effort. You canât just give up."
"Mom, Dad, I hope you can become friends again."
Tears fell from Roseâs eyes as she held the dolls representing May and Cody.
After a brief moment of darkness, the scene cut back to the two doll figures.
Cody and May, waking from their sleep, panicked to find themselves transformed into wooden and clay puppets.
At that moment, the personified Book of LoveâDr. Hakimâappeared, offering a brief explanation of the general situation.
Though seemingly explaining the circumstances to May and Cody, this was clearly aimed at the players sitting in front of their monitors, introducing them to the game.
"It feels just like watching an animated movie!" Wang Han exclaimed in admiration.
"Yeah, and the scenes around the game world are soç˛žč´ too," Zhang Yi nodded in agreement.
Already immersed in the game, he looked around the environment in amazement.
In terms of visual presentation, It Takes Two wasnât quite in the first tier.
But unlike realistic-style games, It Takes Two adopted a cartoon art style.
Combined with relatively detailed modeling, the surroundings became incredibly dreamlike.
Especially since the player controlled clay and puppet characters, the sensation of being shrunk down created a unique visual experience.
Wooden floors, table legs, and cardboard boxes
had all become enormous. This shift in spatial scale brought a sense of contrast and novelty, making the gameplay experience for every It Takes Two player feel incredibly engaging.
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