Beyond the Limits: Josef Fares on How Split Fiction Revolutionizes Co-Op Adventure Games

Creating something as ambitious as Split Fiction certainly isn’t a small task. The game has this remarkable way of constantly introducing fresh mechanics every quarter of an hour, discarding the old ones as it goes along. Yet, it has to make sure that each new concept doesn’t feel rushed or incomplete.

Reflecting on its development, there’s a fascinating aspect about how they managed such complexity. For instance, there’s a section in Split Fiction where you get to ride dragons. Crafting just one of these dragons was an intense effort, taking about eight months to perfect. Early in my career, team members would often question, “Why invest so much time and effort into something players will only experience for a brief moment, like 10 minutes?”

The answer lies in the intrinsic value of memorable moments. Just like in films, where a standout scene isn’t repeatedly used just because of the investment, those special instances in games should retain their unique impact. There’s a prevailing notion in gaming that if something is costly, it should be recycled. However, why should that be the case? Reusing it could diminish the magic of the initial encounter.

Split Fiction embraces this philosophy by presenting substantial segments of optional content. While It Takes Two offered some mini-games during the journey, Split Fiction goes all out with these segments. Found through portals, these aren’t mere side activities. They’re fully-fledged worlds boasting new mechanics, occasional bosses, and entirely fresh visual landscapes. It’s essentially like stumbling into a whole new game nestled within the main game itself.