Operation: Tango

Stimulating, entertaining and entirely devoted to collaboration between players, Operation: Tango is a cooperative adventure that offers a good number of puzzles but that shows also several technical and artistic imperfections.

With only six missions, it’s a fun way to spend an evening or two with a pal (especially if you grabbed it on PS Plus last month), but not something you can return to too often. Replaying the game after swapping roles is fun, and offers some insight into just why you were struggling on that section, but otherwise even the semi-unpredictable portions don’t change enough to make dancing with the same partner again that interesting. But it’s good fun while it lasts, and certainly doesn’t overstay its welcome. [Issue#3, p.135]

With Operation: Tango, Clever Plays delivers here a refreshing production that will satisfy lovers of cooperative experiences. The game, with its mastered asymmetric gameplay, simply offers two totally different and yet complementary ways to play. Unfortunately, the proposal, while short, runs out of steam somewhat over time, repeatedly featuring the same mini-games or introducing increasingly confusing objectives. Despite its small flaws, the little creation deserves your full attention, especially if you are looking for an experience to punctuate one or two evenings of your summer vacation.

Operation: Tango is a solid addition to the PS5 library that offers an experience unlike anything else on the platform. With clever puzzles, charming visuals, and novel gameplay mechanics, it’s a great way to spend a couple of afternoons with a friend. Sadly, once you complete each stage as both the Hacker and the Agent, there’s no real reason to come back to it. Nevertheless, if you don’t mind the game’s relatively short runtime and lack of replayability, you’ll find a unique and exciting game that’s worth diving into. Just keep in mind that this is a strictly two-player mission. Solo spies need not apply.

Operation: Tango is a clever and appealing take on a co-op spy experience with eye-catching style and excellent music. It’s short and not all that replayable, and some of the puzzles are annoyingly silly when compared to its best challenges and conundrums, but it’s still well worth a play with a friend with patience and a keen eye for detail.

An asymmetric multiplayer espionage adventure, Operation: Tango is a game that demands co-operation and requires good communication. The non-linear difficulty curve can make some puzzles feel out of place but that doesn’t prevent it from being a gratifying, fun frolic through a charming series of missions.