Operation: Tango (2020)

Recommended by Lateef Martin
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Operation Tango, by Montreal’s Clever Plays, is a spy-tastic puzzle co-op thriller where you and a friend tag team to take on perilous missions to save the world! 

One of you is the Hacker, a cunning protagonist able to travel through cyberspace and manipulate computer systems, security cameras, and more—the cyberspace sequences alone are quite convincing that you’re the master of this domain! The other one is the Spy, an expert at taking real-life (and cyberspace-based) risks to infiltrate and procure items and information. 

There are a multitude of puzzles you must collaborate to solve, which ups the fun factor. But no cheating by looking at your partner’s screen—gameplay is based on verbal communication only!  The variety of engaging and creative puzzles and locations keep things fresh, and Operation Tango’s art direction will have you feel like you’re in a James Bond spy thriller from the sixties! 

Oh and the best bit? Crossplay is available—that means that if you have the game, your friend plays for free! 

Lateef Martin is a multidisciplinary artist working in writing, music production, voiceovers, cosplay, and fabrication. He is the founder of Miscellaneum Studios, which tells stories centring Black persons, Indigenous persons, People of Colour, women, the LGBTQ+ community, the disabled, the neurodivergent, and other marginalized communities.

Have you always dreamed of being a spy? Not one of those spies who are ‘’stealthily’’ armed with bazookas and machine guns, but a real spy who furtively enters buildings without leaving a trace behind.

If so, you’ll love Operation: Tango, a game exclusively played in co-op mode. You’ll need to team up with a friend to complete a series of missions. One of you will be the spy on the ground, while the other will be the hacker, the person on the computer who will guide the agent through their mission by hacking cameras and other computer terminals.

Playing a game of Operation: Tango feels somewhat like going through an escape room with one of your buddies; you’ll need to collaborate, solve riddles and puzzles, and do it quickly before you get caught and time runs out.

The catch? You don’t see what your friend sees on their screens! So, of course, you’ll need to be quick and witty, but most importantly, you’ll need to communicate efficiently to succeed in this mission… should you choose to accept it.

Review by Pier-Luc Ouellet

Available on:

Type:

Digital

Collections:

Indie Games, Seek More Games

Canadian connection

Developed by Clever Plays
Montreal, Quebec