It's been over two years since we started the Co-Op Classics column. For the first year or so, it was a weekly feature, then, when Casual Fridays started, the two alternated weeks, and it has been that way ever since. As of now, over sixty columns are available, featuring all manner of games, from arcades to the NES and even more modern consoles like the Gamecube. As you can imagine, a lot has changed here at Co-Optimus since we started Co-Op Classics, not the least of which is our video capabilities. Today, we'll take a look back at two Co-Op Classics, this time in video form: X-Men The Arcade Game, and Space Invaders II.
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X-Men is my favorite arcade game of all time, and playing it never gets old. When the game was released in 1992, the co-op brawler was fairly new, but X-Men still stacks up nicely in comparision to later heavyweights like the Dungeons & Dragons series. A roster full of six heroic mutants, each of which have varying abilities and powers, was among the largest character selections of the era. The graphical style was, and still is, impressive, just like a comic book come to life. Apart from repetitive enemies and fairly simplistic boss fights, I can't find too much wrong with X-Men The Arcade Game. Give us an Xbox Live Arcade or Playstation Network release, please!
Read the original Co-Op Classics article
One of the oldest co-op titles in the entire database, Space Invaders II hit the arcades in the Golden Age, back in 1980. The game was unusual in many ways, not the least of which was the fact that it was only released as a cocktail cabinet, where players could sit down across from each other. Putting the players in control of tanks at opposite ends of the screen was odd, too. The cooperative elements of the game were fairly light, and friendly fire was a huge obstacle to any sort of teamwork. Still, it was likely the first simultaneous two player co-op shoot-em-up, and that alone makes it a worthy Co-Op Classic.