The Co-Optimus staff has really taken a liking to Monaco: What's Yours is Mine. The four player online and offline co-op game earned the coveted Editors Choice award for being an all-around great co-op gem. Our staff and community have enjoyed the heck out of this game and we want to spread the joy.

I swear, whoever is in charge of setting up sales at Steam keeps an eye on our chatter here, because the past several PC co-op nights we've announced were accompanied by a Steam sale for the same game. Perhaps it's just coincidence, since Steam is always having sales, but I like to think we have some influence on the industry.

Master Chief and Co-Optimus Co-Op Nights have one thing in common, they were MIA for far too long. There’s good news though, they’re both making a return with Halo 4. Co-Optimus and Xbox Live have teamed up to bring you a Halo 4 Co-Op Night on February 7th, starting at 8PM Eastern. We’ll be playing through the campaign and/or the new co-op mode named Spartan Ops. There’s an event thread in our forums where you should post your gamertag and what you’re interested in playing. Plan on revisiting the thread on February 7th to find people to meet up with.

By now you must have heard that we're gearing up for Extra Life, a 24 hour gaming marathon for charity. We're raising money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. If you have 24 hours to spare this weekend, you can still join our team, and help us bring in donations. If not, you can still join in on the fun. We're inviting everyone to join us this weekend, whenever you can, playing whatever game we happen to be playing at the time. We've started a tentative schedule which you can view below, or on our Extra Life 2012 page.

Borderlands 2 will be in our living rooms in just four days. It's time to say farewell to Borderlands, and hello to the new hotness that is Borderlands 2. To do so, we're hosting two co-op nights. As we've mentioned before, we're playing Borderlands tonight, starting at 9 PM Eastern, on all platforms (PC, Xbox 360, and PS3). Head on over to the event thread for more details. Let's give Borderlands the farewell party it deserves.

Borderlands 2 is only a couple of weeks away from release, and the itch to play the game is overwhelming. To make matters worse, we watched a video like the one in this article of our own free will. For any co-op gamer, it’s useful for both extreme relief and extreme torture, seeing only a small portion of how much co-op potential the game has. All we want to do is play it in the very near future.

These Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition Skin Packs cannot be stopped (not that we'd want to)! Possibly one of the biggest XBLA titles ever to be released is constantly giving players more content to play around with. This time, more character skins will be coming to console players while we wait for a title update of real substance.

Some of my fondest co-op memories are from my high school and college days, when some good friends and I fired up Serious Sam and played all night until the crack of dawn. Serious Sam games have always had the ability to make entire nights disappear. The frantic action paired with ridiculous over-the-top enemies is perfect for keeping a group of co-op buddies laughing for hours. This is why we think Serious Sam 3: BFE should make for a perfect co-op night.

Ghost Recon Future Soldier is right around the corner, but you need a Ghost Recon refresher. We're inviting you to a Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 co-op night on to make sure you're ready. The event will take place on Xbox Live, starting at 8 PM CDT on Wednesday, May 16th. Make sure you head on over to the event's thread on the forums for more details. Leave your gamertag in the thread and find other people to meet up with there. Staff members will be sending out invites, so keep an eye out for us.

This Sunday, April 22nd, is Earth Day, so we're participating in the planet-saving efforts by playing Shoot Many Robots (XBLA). Well, ok, that doesn't exactly help save the planet, but bear with me. The robots in Shoot Many Robots are fueled by fossil fuels, and we all know burning fuel is harmful to the environment. The more robots we destroy, the better off our planet will be.

Sometimes it fun being the bad guy. That's why we're playing Payday: The Heist on PS3 starting at 8PM Central tomorrow, April 12th. Bring your best clown mask and head on over to the event's thread in the forums. Leave your PSN ID in that thread and find other friends to play with. Hope you have fun!

When the folks at Xbox asked us to co-host a Mass Effect 3 co-op night, we couldn't refuse. This game has dominated my friends list all month, and I've heard it's co-op mode is exactly what everyone was hoping for. Mass Effect, plus friends. Sounds like a great formula for fun to me!

A knight, a thief and a wizard walk into a bar. The knight clears the way to the bar, the wizard levetates the bartender, and the thief quickly nabs the cash from the cash register. Then they all run like hell. I bet you thought there was a punch line coming... I'm not that clever. That's just my plan for my Trine themed bar heist. I'm pretty quick with my hands, so I think I'd make a good thief. I just need a knight and a wizard to complete my team. Any volunteers? No?

I don't know about you, but I can't get enough of Dungeon Defenders. Some nights I play a little on PC, then I switch over to my Xbox and play a little more. Then a little turns to a lot, and I end up playing till the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes I black out and wake up several days later wearing nothing but my favorite boxers (the white ones with red hearts). Perhaps I have a problem. Some say the best way to get through an addiction is to just let it run it's course (at least that's what doc says when I've got a cold). That means more Dungeon Defenders! Of course addicts always need support from their peers, so you're invited!

Little Big Planet 2 is one of the few games that makes me a bit jealous of PS3 owners. That game looks awesome! This Saturday, February 18th at 8PM Central, I'm going to be even more jealous, because I'll be missing out on a Little Big Planet 2 co-op night. If you own a PS3 and Little Big Planet 2, you're invited to join! Unfortunately, I won't be making it, unless the Co-Optimus community surprises me with a PS3 and a copy of the game before Saturday. No? Dang. It was worth a shot.