With titles like It Takes Two seeing much success, many are looking for more co-op experiences. Luckily, Operation: Tango offers a spy-inspired adventure for players to jump into. An espionage-themed 2-player experience, Operation: Tango brings a globe-trotting story in which players must solve puzzles and work together to succeed.
Coming from developers Clever Plays, who previously released Leap of Fate in 2015, Operation Tango is set in the near future, and tasks players with taking down a threat that could destroy the globe.
8 Friend Pass
Similar to games such as A Way Out, and It Takes Two, Operation: Tango offers players the chance to play with a friend for free via a friend pass. A second player can experience the full game by doing the following: download the demo version of the game, then input the code provided by the player with the full paid version.
It's cross-platform too, meaning regardless of the platform players own, they can still play Operation: Tango together. The only limitations to this system is that the player using the free version of the game is unable to unlock trophies/achievements. Still, it's an acceptable trade-off considering the free access provided.
7 Two Playable Perspectives
Naturally, as a co-op game, Operation: Tango offers gameplay from multiple perspectives, but it goes a step further by making the two characters completely unique from each other. Players have two options: be the agent, or the hacker, with each offering different types of gameplay to deal with. The agent is where all the 'on the ground' action takes place, but the hacker is tasked with the equally important role of ensuring the agent can navigate all the obstacles in front of them.
As a result, even though the story is linear, you can replay the game with the alternative character. Of course, the game won't change dramatically, but the gameplay will, and it's not a bad idea to try out both characters in order to get the most out of Operation Tango.
6 Hint System
Operation: Tango offers a really good hint system, and it doesn't make solutions too easy if you make use of it. The developers intended for this system to push players in a more focused direction, as opposed to offering easy ways to get out of solving puzzles, and it ends up being a fairly intuitive system.
It's a great way to curb the frustration many often experience when they get stuck in puzzle games and stops them from heading straight to YouTube as soon as they're stopped in their tracks by a seemingly impossible conundrum.
5 No Local Co-Op
It may come as a surprise but Operation: Tango only offers online co-op, so any players looking to play local co-op should make note of that. Developers Clever Plays believe that for Operation: Tango to truly be enjoyable, players must be unable to see each other's actions, hence the need for the experience to be a purely single screen affair.
Many of the game's puzzles, in particular, need players to work together separately to solve them, with both agent and hacker having to share information with each other over voice chat. As a result, it does make sense that it would be impossible to translate this experience into one where players can simply look at each other's screens to work things out.
4 It's Fairly Short
With just six missions to complete, Operation: Tango comes in at around 3 to 4 hours long. Of course, there is the option to play the game again in the opposite perspective, which might be worth doing for some players, but it is still a short game, all things considered.
Luckily, the quality of gameplay more than makes up for the shorter length, especially considering there are some trophies that will require completing the game multiple times. Anyone looking to get the platinum trophy in Operation: Tango will probably be looking at a longer experience of around 5 to 7 hours.
3 Communication Is Crucial
Every co-op game requires good communication between its players, but Operation: Tango's focus on making players communicate purely through voice chat makes it even more important here. Players in both roles rely on each other to share details that are only accessible from one perspective.
The fact that you can't see what the other player is seeing means that poor communication will lead to failure, as often puzzles require both players to actively work with one another to solve them.
2 Large Gameplay Variety
Operation: Tango may only have six missions, but each takes place in completely unique parts of the planet. It truly is a globe-trotting adventure, with missions taking place across five different continents, and even in a plane!
The missions themselves vary greatly too — one mission places both characters onto a train, tasking them with discovering a hidden undercover agent, before then having to work together in order to stop the train. Another requires the agent and hacker to infiltrate a penthouse vault and access the rewards hidden inside.
1 The Ultimate Spy Fantasy
There aren't many spy games around nowadays, especially ones offering co-op play, and Operation: Tango really sells the spy adventure it promises players.
From the cyberterrorist plotline, which could be ripped straight out of a modern-day Bond film, to the hacking gameplay, which feels like something from Mr. Robot, players are sent on a thrilling adventure, constantly on the edge of their seat.