Split Fiction Reviews
It's safe to say Split Fiction is a fun game for anyone who's got another player ready to try it out. Whimsical, lighthearted, action-packed and thoughtfully-made, it feels ready for any co-op team from strangers to best friends.
There’s no denying the exceptional quality of Split Fiction. It’s easily going to be one of the best games of 2025 and an awards season shoo-in. However I feel that it lacks the wonder and joy found in It Takes Two, which made that game one-in-a-million. The absence of mini-games and a reduction of relaxed exploration is likely intentional to drive home the oppressive nature of the main story. But this definitely removed some joy from the experience for us. I would have also liked to see some more variety in the chapters. Perhaps the side stories could have been the authors’ brief forays into different genres, introducing other elements such as horror or romance. I’ve not mentioned much about the overarching story itself, the characters, and the overall writing. This is probably the weakest area of the game, but it’s not terrible by any stretch. I remember having similar complaints about characters beginning unlikeable in It Takes Two towards the start of the story, but again it serves to build the same feelings in the players as in the characters. Ultimately, though, as a co-operative adventure, Split Fiction is another fantastic delivery from Hazelight Studios. One that will provide entertain and fun for friends as well as couples who enjoy gaming together. The developers continue to have huge ambitions when it comes to building these titles, and I’d love to see it continue for many years to come. Split Fiction earns a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Overall, Split Fiction is a clear testament to Hazelight Studios' ambition and growth, and after my time in the game. It's more than a game, however. Instead, it's an exercise in the strength of imagination coupled with the strength of human connection wrapped up it a technologically advanced package that stretches the limits of co-op gameplay.
Split Fiction offers the essence of pure gameplay with a lot of original ideas. Alas, it's a shame that the whole game is wrapped up in a not very interesting story. The constant alternation between sci-fi and fantasy worlds is equally inventive, but at the same time a bit tiresome.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
I didn’t really enjoy the story that much, but I absolutely loved everything Split Fiction has to offer. It’s true that I’ve seen most of these elements in other games before, but it’s really nice to have them all wrapped up so well in one package - especially with our co-op partner.
Review in Unknown | Read full review
Split Fiction is a great title that repurposes and improves on the elements that allowed It Takes Two to become GOTY in 2021, all seasoned with a good quality storyline that always remains perfectly balanced between depth and levity. A highly recommended co-op game for those who want to spend several hours of fun together.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Once again, Hazelight Studios comes back with another success with their new game Split Fiction, which takes all the fun elements from its previous game It Takes Two and elevates them to a whole new level. The game introduces a vast array of ideas alongside fast-paced levels that clearly bear Josef Fares’s signature, making it one of the most outstanding co-op experiences and placing it high among the contenders for “Game of the Year.”
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Split Fiction may just be the finest co-operative video game ever made. It’s local co-op is seamless and rarely struggles through slowdown. It’s online service is generous, supporting friends to play together with just one copy between them, and its challenges, puzzles, action and creativity is thriving and in abundance. While there’s no scope for a singleplayer to tag up with the computer or to jump in a lobby with a random, Split Fiction gives you all the tools you need to play and proves to be the most worthwhile enjoyable ride so far in 2025. This is one we’ll be talking about for years to come for the powerful messages it sends and truly is the standard bearer of what a co-operative adventure with friends and family should look like.
Split Fiction is one of the top candidates for Game of the Year 2025, I have no doubt about that. It is a great blend of genres that surprises you with something new and innovative at every turn. Josef Fares, after the great It Takes Two, has done it again and delivered one of the best experiences of the year.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Hazelight Studios have continued to expand their portfolio over the years and we have seen their co-op games become increasingly popular and with good reason, they are fun, easily accessible and incorporate visual storytelling in a co-op game, something that is rarely seen if at all and even when it is it usually isn't done well. Split Fiction is a game that had taken my expectations and exceeded them massively.
Split Fiction is a masterpiece of game design and another example of how the development team, in the span of three games, has managed to completely rewrite the playbook on how to develop entertaining and incredibly creative and powerful stories. Hazelight Studios, has far exceeded the already mammoth expectations we had by coming up with a game that manages to be so many things at once; Split Fiction is ultimately, yes a clear demonstration of how a cooperative game should be developed and a wonderful ode to gaming as an art form but it will be remembered in the years to come - among other things - for something that we are now perhaps inclined to underestimate and should instead carry more weight in our lives, namely: how important the power of friendship is.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Split Fiction is definitely Hazelight Studios' best game so far, keeping the formula of a great story mixed with excellent gameplay, with the cherry on top being the fun of playing together. The game's performance is flawless, making it an unmissable experience.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Split Fiction is a co-op masterpiece, blending inventive gameplay, emotional storytelling, and stunning visuals. While its dialogue occasionally stumbles, the game’s relentless creativity and seamless teamwork mechanics make it a must-play for fans of cooperative adventures.
Calling Split Fiction a roller coaster of a game does it a disservice. We’ve yet to ride any real-life track that rebuilds its layout and even the attraction type more than a dozen types as you’re on it. Split Fiction is the entire theme park, condensed into an inventive, explosive, and unmissable experience for two.
Split Fiction is an ambitious and innovative CO-OP adventure game featuring a diverse game world design and gameplay. It's currently the best CO-OP game out there, and its concepts and ideas encourage collaboration and communication. The game is an artistic and intellectual masterpiece, an enjoyable journey through an exciting story and diverse worlds.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Split Fiction is everything you could want from a co-op game – it’s creative, charming, and packed with gameplay variety that constantly surprises you. Hazelight Studios has taken the winning formula of A Way Out and It Takes Two and refined it even further, blending an imaginative narrative with a seemingly endless stream of fresh mechanics and co-op challenges that’ll keep players absolutely thrilled from start to end. It’s outstanding. Sure, there are a few little hiccups, but the overall experience is so engaging and well-executed that it’s easy to overlook the minor flaws. With its stellar gameplay mechanics that always give players something fresh to do, gorgeous visuals that help bring the variety of worlds to life, satisfying co-op gameplay that emphasises ‘teamwork making the dream work’, and its accessible Friend Pass system ensuring that it’s easy to play with any friend, Split Fiction easily cements itself as one of the finest co-op experiences in gaming.
While both Split Fiction and It Takes Two don’t quite nail the landing in their final acts, the journey is nonetheless a stellar example of how to do a co-op game justice. Split Fiction’s spin of sci-fi and fantasy works extremely well here with a captivating pair in Mio and Zoe, two writers who push through their own personal traumas to heal alongside one another. Split Fiction is the definitive co-op experience with engaging mechanics that constantly impress with their creativity and design. With unique mechanics around every turn, Split Fiction constantly keeps you on your toes and rewards you with a truly sensational adventure.
Split Fiction is Hazelight Studios firing on all cylinders - a creatively rich, imaginative and emotionally rewarding co-op adventure that sets a new high bar for all co-op games to come.
Hazelight Studios sets a new benchmark for co-op games with Split Fiction. Its dynamic split-screen cinematography and genre-blending gameplay keep things constantly engaging. For those who resonate with the creative struggles highlighted in the age of AI, the story may strike an even deeper chord.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Split Fiction is a best in genre co-op experience filled with some of the most creative ideas in the medium. While the story leaves a bit to be desired, you're guaranteed an experience that is filled with laughs, tense moments, and sequences you will never forget. Josef Fares and Hazelight Studios once again prove that having fun is what matters most in this industry.