Remember when Beta meant that a game was being released to a select market to see what works and what doesn't? Darkspore on PC played the Beta release correctly and listened to the feedback of the Beta players in order to optimize the game upon release. Delaying Darkspore in all of its Spore-style action by a month to make fixes is a much better solution than pushing the game out and having to wait for patches in order to enjoy your purchase.

The release of Portal 2 is less than a month away, and many of us here at Co-Optimus can't wait. Today, we have a new trailer for your viewing pleasure.  It's 47 seconds of good times.  Wait! There's a catch.  The trailer is in German, which makes it even more hilarious, or possibly a little evil.  I was raised on Indiana Jones films, so to me, it is decidedly evil, in a funny, face-melting kind of way.  It also depicts robots taking human jobs, which is pretty evil, as well.  My knowledge of the German language is about as good as my Japanese, therefore I won't bother to translate for you.  

Arcen games have just sent out some new screens and videos for their upcoming online co-op game A Valley Without Wind.  A stark contrast from previous screens seen, the new images showcase a brutal looking world filled with lava and strange creatures - some as high as level 529!  I think we're going to need our Strange Creature Slaying Knift +2 for this journey.

The Total War series is a well-known and well-respected name out there in the strategy game world. A cooperative mode, however, is pretty new to the series. How does Shogun 2: Total War fare as a co-op strategy/RTS game?

Rumors swirled last week about a brand new Resident Evil title that looks to break the mold of the previous games, and today, Capcom has confirmed that game.  Called Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, the game is a reimagining of the events that took place in Resident Evil 2 and 3.  The game is a "team based shooter" first and foremost, being developed by Slant Six Games who have created several SOCOM games including the excellent SOCOM Fireteam Bravo 3 on the PSP.

Today we're proud to announce the mobile version of the Co-Optimus website has officially launched.  With it comes a portable version of Co-Optimus, accessible by numerous devices like Android Phones, iPhones and BlackBerry smartphones.  The mobile site is built on HTML5 standards and utilizes a resource light view into the world of co-op gaming.  

As we've covered recently here at Co-Optimus, there's a new Dungeons & Dragons game coming out soon. This has me excited; the D&D brand has provided some excellent video game experiences for years, and one of the finest was the subject of this week's Co-Op Classics: Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance.

Welcome to Beyond Co-Op, a weekly piece that talks about industry stories that may or may not be related to co-op gaming.

We had a hands on preview of Dungeon Siege 3 a few weeks ago. We covered two of the four playable characters: Lucas, a warrior; and Anjali, a fire sorceress. Square Enix has been keeping the identity of the remaining characters under wraps.  Today, they released a trailer showcasing Katarina, a pistol-packing warrior who adds gunplay to the mix of sword and sorcery combat.  She's even got a puppy!  A giant, man-eating puppy!  The new trailer shows off some of her moves and abilities.  It looks like Katarina will be a welcome addition in the fight against Jeyne Kassynder.

  It's time once again for the weekend, where plenty of hours of co-op gaming are to be had.  This week, a recent smash hit, Dragon Age 2, makes several appearances, as does an expansion pack for an excellent co-op RTS: Dawn of War 2 Retribution.  So, lots of fantastic battles will take place on our PCs and consoles i...

Yup, Conduit 2 still isn't out yet; however, things are still looking good for its newest release date, April 19th. This game has suffered a good number of delays, but if it's in the name of the multiplayer, that's fine by us. To tide us over, High Voltage has released a trailer of a bunch of the locations players will visit in the game. Whereas the first game had you mostly confined to the area of Washington D.C., its sequel will provide a large variety of locations to tickle your fancy.

Sad news comes our way today, with news of a co-op classic retro-remake cancellation.  The ironically titled Bonk: Brink of Extinction is going the way of the dodo and the Tasmanian tiger.  The game was announced in 2009, and we hadn't heard much about it since then.  Developer Hudson cancelled the title, along with a Bomberman game for the 3DS, in the aftermath of the recent disaster in Japan.  Though disappointing for fans of classic co-op like myself, the news is certainly understandable given the circumstances.  Perhaps Bonk will turn up again at some later date; we can always hope.  But for now, you'll have to headbutt your friends in real life instead of over XBLA or PSN.