As 1996 drew to a close, a new chapter in videogame history was beginning. On December 31st of that year, Diablo was released. It was a smash hit, and forever altered the gaming landscape. Diablo was a hybrid, blending action and RPG elements together, and it was incredibly fun to play, especially in cooperative mode with a few friends. Today, we’ll take a look at each game and expansion in the series, tracking the evolution of Diablo in anticipation of the launch of Diablo 3 next week.

If you were a gamer in the 90s, and spent time in arcades, Capcom was a name you knew very well. Street Fighter II was released in 1991, and was a smash hit, popularizing the one on one fighting game genre. But if you were looking for a less competitive experience in your video gaming, Capcom was still a big name, producing some of the greatest co-op arcade games of all time. Cadillacs & Dinosaurs is one of them.

Once more, we take a look back at some co-op gems from the past. Both of today's video offerings are Sega Genesis (or Mega Drive, the international equivalent) games. My own experience with the Genesis was quite limited, so both of these were new to me. Step back into the 16-bit era as we investigate sci-fi brawler Alien Storm and platform/shmup hybrid Wonder Boy 3.

Last summer, I had the opportunity to spend some time at the magnificent arcade at the Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. One of my personal highlights from the arcade visit was seeing all the old electromechanical games that were on the floor. These games were the direct predecessors to video games, and though they are primitive from a certain perspective, the intricate mechanisms and ingenious gameplay methods they exemplify are wonderful in their own right.

Another month has come and gone, and we're back with a couple Co-Op Classics for your viewing pleasure. Today, we've got a nice contrast for you, with a game from the infancy of the video game era, coupled with a strong entry from the heyday of the brawler. Where else can you find Caddilacs, dinosaurs, and sea wolves, folks? (And what exactly IS a sea wolf anyway?)

It's not often I get the chance to write guest posts for other editors' regular features, but when I was asked to take over Co-Op Classics for this week, I knew what I had to feature. Secret of Mana was a huge title for me back in the SNES days, and it brought along the possibility of a grand adventure with three player co-op. Let me tell you about it!

The NES is arguably the greatest video game system of all time. Nintendo's first home console saved the video game industry, and most gamers look back on the system fondly. Recently, I sat down and played through some of my favorite NES games with my son, and recorded the experience for lucky Co-Optimus viewers. In my happy memories, I somehow didn't remember the games being quite this way...

Dragons are featured in dozens, if not hundreds, of video games. From the earliest Multi user Dungeons to the latest MMOs, and every genre in between, dragons have appeared in all sorts of titles. Today, we'll take a look at five great game series featuring dragons. Each of these games have been quite popular, and of course, each of them include the co-op gameplay that we all enjoy.

We've got two new Co-Op Classics videos for your perusal today. The first is an innovative title from the dawn of co-op video gaming, Rip Off. The second is Desert Assault, a run and gun experience for up to four players from the heyday of the co-op arcade scene of the early 1990s.

One of my greatest pleasures is reading about the classic arcade titles from the Golden Age of video games, from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. Unfortunately, cooperative gameplay, which we love so much here at Co-Optimus, was largely absent from games of this time period. In the latter half of the 80s, the co-op floodgates would open, but before then, teamwork was incredibly rare. Today, we'll look at a very early and unique example of co-op, from way back in 1980: Rip Off.

After a bit of a hiatus, we are back with another video edition of Co-Op Classics. We'll wade through a mushroom forest infested with bugs, defend Earth's cities from incoming nukes, and take on an alien empire bent on enslaving all of mankind. Arcade Classics and Escape from the Planet of the Robot Monsters: which one of these two games never made it to your local arcade?

Today, we continue our look back at two video game consoles released one decade ago. Last week, we covered Microsoft's first console, the Xbox, and its most notable innovation to co-op, online play through Xbox Live. But the Xbox wasn't the only console to arrive in stores in time for the holiday shopping season in 2001. NIntendo's GameCube hit the shelves on November 18 of that year, and brought some excellent cooperative experiences to gamers that were unavailable on any other system.

This past week marks the tenth anniversary of the release of two co-op consoles. On November 15, 2001, Microsoft entered the video game hardware market with the original Xbox. Just three days later, the veterans at Nintendo released their offering, the GameCube. Besides very similar names, the two systems shared at least one more attribute. They both brought new innovations to our favorite aspect of video gaming: cooperative play. This week, we'll cover the first of these systems, the Xbox.

Ten years ago today Microsoft changed the console war from a battle between two, to a battle between three.  The Xbox, a big black box loaded with a "duke" controller became a staple of hardcore gamers.  It contained a hard drive and a network connection, and it was the beginning of a big change for consoles.  The system saw many great co-op games over it's life span, though none may be more iconic than the one it launched with in Halo.

Generally, when it's time for a Video Edition of Co-Op Classics, we feature games we've previously covered. As the collection grows, however, we can branch off into other games that haven't been given much coverage on their own. Today, we revisit two entries from classic co-op franchises: the deep space R-Type shmups and the swords and sorcery Golden Axe brawlers.