Split Fiction

Split Fiction is Hazelight's next step on its path toward cooperative games that simply can't be played solo, and it arrived on Nintendo Switch 2 practically on the console's launch day. The story follows two writers, Mio and Zoe, who find themselves trapped inside a simulation of their own unfinished manuscripts. One writes dark sci-fi, the other whimsical fantasy, and the game constantly switches between the two worlds, so you fall from a cyberpunk metropolis into a dragon's cave and then back among spaceships. The whole game runs on split screen, where each player sees her own half, and a lot of situations hinge on the fact that both sides are looking at something different and have to describe it out loud.

The mechanics change practically every few minutes. One moment you're controlling a character with a whip while the other has a gravity ability, then it turns into a precise platformer, and moments later there's a fight against a giant boss where each player attacks from a different angle. Hazelight has also tucked a large number of optional side stories into the game, which are the wildest part of the whole package in terms of ideas and often change genre entirely, from racing to parodies of other games. In Switch 2's favor is the fact that the console handles split screen smoothly, plus the option of shared play across two consoles over the network. The game also only sets you back a few seconds after any failure, so you never end up with one weaker player holding the other back.

The game received a very strong reception and was widely called one of the highlights of 2025, in part because it keeps up a constant stream of new ideas without ever repeating itself. It also continues the tradition Hazelight established with its earlier cooperative titles, including the system where a single purchased copy lets a second player join for free. Today Split Fiction feels like the ideal title for a pair who want to spend a weekend together in front of one console, and a reminder that cooperation doesn't have to mean two identical players sitting side by side.