Sure, you could buy some co-op game for the PS3, Xbox 360, or (insert other generic console here), but c'mon! We both know the truth. We both know that what you really want is a game on a platform where you can tweak those graphics all the way to 11; a platform that holds no illusions about install times, patches, or updates. Staffers Mike "pheriannath" Katsufrakis and Jason "OrigamiPanther" Love are here to point you towards the best hardware and software on which to drop some holiday green.

Today is the final day for Steam's Summer Sales - and it appears as though it's the highlights from all the sales over the past 10 days.  What does that mean?  It means plenty of co-op games, that's what.

Let's face it, with 18 co-op releases in June you are already broke.  I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you are going to be spending more money on games over the next 10 days.  Why?  Because Steam is having their annual Summer Sale.  These Steam sales are legendary for amazing deals on games.  Come August you'll fire up your Steam client and see dozens of games, their names and origin a hazy memory.  Playtimes in the single digits.  You'll wonder how this happened.

Do you love survival modes in an RTS setting? Or do you really love heroes in RTS games and would rather focus on playing a hero instead of micro-managing units? Or do you love the idea of DoW2: Retribution, but gosh-darnit, you have two other people you want to play with, not just one? If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, then great news! DoW2: Retribution's the Last Stand Mode, the mode that focuses exclusively on co-op, is now available as a stand-alone game for just $9.99 on Steam. This is the mode where you and two other friends try to outlast waves and waves of enemies, each of you only controlling one hero. As you progress in levels, you receive new equipment for your heroes. A recent update also added new achievements to this mode which also unlock new gear. We're big fans of the Last Stand around here, and Mike and Jason even recently did a This Week in Co-op on the DoW2: Retribution flavor of it.

Today, Dawn of War II: Retribution, the expansion/stand-alone follow-up to the 2009 co-op hit Dawn of War II, gets a little DLC loving in the form of new achievements (and gear) for the co-op friendly Last Stand mode.  The promise of shiny new toys and achievements wasn’t enough to stem the desire of three friends to mercilessly put down waves upon waves of foes… or try to, at the very least.

After giving Dawn of War 2: Retribution an impressive 4.5 just a week and a half ago, we're certainly happy to hear about how Relic plans to continue to support their fantasticly co-opable RTS. As it so happens, two servings of DLC will be offered up this coming Wednesday, April 6th.

Relic earned my personal Co-Op Game of the Year vote back in 2009 with the original Dawn of War 2. After one great expansion, can they keep the magic alive? Let's take Retribution for a spin and find out.

Dawn of War II: Retribution is less than two weeks old, but fans of the game are going to be getting a treat on April 6th thanks to a free patch for the game.  Included in the patch are updated achievements for the three player co-op survival mode, The Last Stand.

We've done some ranting and raving here about Dawn of War 2. From an interview about the original Dawn of War 2, to a video review of its expansion, Chaos Rising, to co-op nights and no too few This Week In Co-op sessions, DoW2 has gotten some significant play-time around here. I think it's fair to say we enjoy it. Good news for us then, because DoW2's stand-alone expansion, Dawn of War 2: Retribution, releases tomorrow. DoW2: Retribution will be abandoning the Games for Windows support in favor of Steamworks. The campaign will also let you play as more than just the Space Marines (yay!), letting you also control the Tyranids, Chaos Marines, Orks, Eldar, and Imperial Guard in full co-op support.

Steam's midweek madness sale this week is all about Dawn of War.  All Dawn of War titles are 50% off - this includes the two player co-op Dawn of War 2 and the game's expansion - Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising.  Another stand alone expansion pack is in the works as well titled Dawn of War II: Retribution, though this isn't offered at the 50% discount price.  You can snag all three games, plus  Dawn of War Gold, Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, and Dawn of War: Soulstorm all for $60. 

It’s time now for some new Dawn of War 2: Retribution info that should get the mouth watering for most of us, once again. First on the agenda is a great collectors edition of Retribution, complete with all six races bonus wargear, poster, and race cards in a nice bundle. If you’re just not into that sort of thing and you’re especially in love with a particular race, you’ll be able to buy the individual race edition of Retribution at the normal retail price.

Dawn of War 2's latest "expansion pack" was announced quite some time ago, but we haven't been covering it all that much because until today - it was unconfirmed if the game would contain the same co-op campaigns as its predecessor.   So the good news is that yes, all of the races that have a single player campaign in Retribution will also be playable in two player co-op.  That includes the Tyranaids, Blood Ravens, Orks, Chaos Marines and Space Marines.  There is still yet an un announced race for the game.