Age Twisters Preview: Age truly is just a number in this charming co-op adventure

While two-player cooperative adventures are fundamentally built to be more accessible experiences than many other video games, there's no denying these games can still be a bit of a challenge for the uninitiated to wrap their heads around. The structure of It Takes Two, Split Fiction, even Portal 2, they are built so players of wildly different skills can come together and enjoy an interactive experience, and while the setup does enable a more versed individual to essentially shepherd a less experienced player along, there are still many elements where players have to stand on their own two feet, which can be a tad overwhelming and challenging for those using these games as a stepping-on point.

The reason I bring this up is because Piccolo Studio's Age Twisters does not fall into the same trap. Sure, what we're talking about with this Krafton-published game is a two-player cooperative adventure, but it's also fundamentally constructed from the ground-up to be accessible to as wide a demographic as possible.

Age Twisters manages this feat in a multitude of manners. For one, it moves away from the split-screen setup to instead favour an isometric camera angle where both players are on the same screen at all times. You can't really move out of each other's vicinity, in part down the level design that encourages players to stick together, but also because the viewing angle is quite wide and leaves enough space to operate. The second design choice comes from the actual gameplay, which is structured to be incredibly simple to pick up and understand. There are a limited number of inputs and mechanics, and while there are some powers and tools that add depth in places, much of the gameplay is built so you only need to press a few buttons to complete whatever task is at hand. And this brings me to the final point, which is as players operate in the same space, a more skilled player can effectively complete most of the tasks without needing too much aid from their partner. That may sound a bit contrarian to the point of a two-player cooperative adventure, but the premise is that players don't need to equally pull their weight to succeed, which will be useful when playing with younger audiences or those who have limited-to-zero experience with a controller.

The point is, Age Twisters is shaping up to be one of the most accessible cooperative adventure games I have ever come across. It also manages to be this without sacrificing narrative, wonderful level design, humour, or engaging gameplay, as the demo I tested - alongside game director and studio general manager Alexis Corominas Barrueco - proved to great effect. The preview build consisted of around the opening 30 minutes of Age Twisters, a portion where we meet our protagonists, learn of the reasoning behind their epic adventure, and also come face-to-face with the entire premise of the project's namesake; i.e. age twisting.

Long story short, Age Twisters follows a grandad and his granddaughter as they set out on a quest to learn the truth about their missing daughter/mother. The whole adventure is set in a colourful and charismatic future city, one where buildings soar high into the clouds, roads twist through the air without any clear support structures, and where quirky robots deliver packages. Bringing all three of these elements together, the story begins when a package is delivered from the long-lost daughter/mother and including two strange bands, which when worn, allow the two protagonists to change their age states, flipping between being a child, a teenager, an adult, and a pensioner, all of which you can do freely and without any limitation.

How Age Twisters then proceeds to build on this design is by structuring the gameplay around the four age states. The adult state, for example, is strong and can easily lift items, while the child state is fast and agile, and adding to this are tools and 'power-ups' specific to each age state. During the preview build, I got to go hands-on with the child and teenager powers, with the former acting like a grapple to leap over wide gaps where applicable anchor points are found and to grab items from a distance, and with the latter being musical instruments that when played emit a sound wave slowing anything in its direct frontal vicinity. With these pieces in place, you need to switch between the states to platform around the levels and to solve environmental puzzles. These could be herding chickens into a coop, finding and replacing batteries, slowing and controlling deadly laser shots, or fighting back against the Minions-like enemies who fumble around and want nothing more than to detain you for your age-related hijinks.

Piccolo Studio does add a few other interesting mechanisms into the equation in the form of forcibly aging the player. You'll come across blue and yellow puddles, and the idea is when you are in either area, you will either steadily become older or younger, depending on the colour. So to push through a yellow area, you will want to start in the elderly state to give you several states to progress through before being rendered an incapable baby who must be 'revived' to return to a playable form. The same applies vice-versa for the more macabre 'death' state, as if you're pushed beyond the elderly state, you'll be turned into a pile of bones... This system is then used by the enemies, who will instead of steadily aging a player, will immediately turn one of the heroes into a baby or a pile of bones in need of revival if they manage to strike you, which may sound quite challenging, but in reality the enemies are made to be Minions-like buffoons who should pail in comparison to the protagonists.

`

There were a few added extras teased as part of the Age Twisters experience that Piccolo Studio wasn't yet ready to spotlight and touch upon. From more interactable objects around each level to provide players with more to 'touch' to additional puzzles and challenges to overcome that reward coins. As for what you do with these gathered coins and how they're spent, Piccolo didn't elaborate further for now, just noting it'll give players greater options to put their own stamp on the action.

But regardless of these added extras, what I was shown of Age Twisters during the brief Gamescom preview session was more than enough to convince me about the game. What Piccolo Studio has cooked up with this project is charismatic and charming, colourful and entertaining, humorous and accessible. In many ways, it's one of the most promising two-player cooperative adventures to date, and this is during an era when Hazelight reigns supreme and projects like Orbitals continue to innovate and impress. If you're looking for a game to play with a parent or a partner with limited gaming knowhow, this is the one for you.