BattleBlock Theater – Our Review

Couch coop games are something of a rare breed these days. Games that provide cooperative experiences like The Division or Dark Souls 3 require games be on separate consoles. The recent Halo game, a franchise that started as the gold standard for couch coop, jettisoned the local coop in favor of an improved framerate. It’s actually newsworthy then that the upcoming Gears of War game does offer a couch coop mode.

Finding a quality local coop game then is somewhat of a surprise, especially when it’s actually pretty good. Battleblock Theater is the latest from Castle Crasher or Alien Hominid developer, The Behemoth. The studio is notorious for its macabre cartoony art style and its games are frequently hilarious. Battleblock Theater is no different and, while not as deep as Castle Crasher’s experience, is without a doubt their funniest entry to date.

You start to grow numb to the weirdness and just accept what you see

The game’s deliberately nonsensical story follows a group of friends that wreck their ship on an isolated island inhabited by intelligent cats that immediately toss your party in cat jail and force you all to engage in a series of theatrical puzzles that comprise each of the games levels. Yeah, it’s bananas but the comedy actually works here due largely to the hilarious narration of sound designer Will Stamper who not only tells the story of the game in every cutscene but provides running commentary contextual to how you’re playing. It’s not as robust as Bastion’s gravely voiced narrator that covered your every move, but it is almost always funny.

The game is surprisingly casual. Death has no real penalty as you’ll immediately respawn. You will get into fist fights with cats that torment you in each level that amounts to button mashing hoping you finally get the upper hand and see them fall into water or get hit by an errant laser beam. None of it really matters as you can just carry on until you find all of the gems you need to finish the level at your leisure.

Even though it killed us a lot, we hope this isn’t the last we see of raccoon deer

For those keeping score, this means this game is absolutely ideal for couch coop, especially with casual gamers (e.g. very likely significant others). Normally this genre has been dominated by every Lego game under the sun but finally there’s another contender for a game you can play with someone who perhaps doesn’t want to take the game that seriously.

Overall this game is perfect if you need a fun, easy diversion for a couple looking to kick back in the evening for an hour or two. It will provide a memorable 5 or 10 hours for a cooperative experience and you won’t hate each other when the game gets harder. That’s a rare game indeed.

What works

Each level is meticulously designed and The Behemoth creates a lot of challenges out of a few basic mechanics. But it’s Will Stamper’s narration that steals the show when all is said and done.

What doesn’t work

It’s not meant to be but the game isn’t a visual powerhouse nor is it aiming to be anything other than surreal and funny. Even it’s ending stays in tone with the rest of the game making absolutely no sense. If you’re not okay with that, you may feel a bit cheapened by such a bizarre conclusion.

Overall: Rent It

If you need a local coop game, look no further. Don’t rush out to buy it until then but this should easily be at the top of your list when the need arises.