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

The stories for this week:

- Digital Distributors Refuse to Sell Modern Warfare 2
- Left 4 Dead 2 Up to 4x Pre-Orders Than Original
- PS3 Netflix Discs Start Shipping
- Atlus Replacing Defective Demon's Souls Strategy Guides
- Some Game Called Modern Warfare 2 Highlights Week's Releases

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Holy moly!  When it rains it pours!  And it's raining co-op games!  We've got three solid co-op titles hitting this week, all bringing their own unique flair to the table, and representing just about every platform out there.

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Some eager buyers of Atlus's upcoming Action/RPG Demon's Souls have snagged a copy at enterprising retailers that have broken the Tuesday, October 6th street date.  If so, you may have thought the game's online mode is broken - you know, the one with the unique co-op aspect?  Nope you've been banned from the game for life for jumping the gun.  Sorry!  Don't pass go, don't collect $200.   JUST KIDDING.

Actually the problem is Atlus isn't turning on those servers until the street date, so no ghost help for you.  Be patient, there's only a few days left.

Source: Link

While we at Co-Optimus do not generally condone the act of competitive gaming, which, by definition allows you to dominate another player; there is a kind of co-op that does include domination, one we would like to paste a label on. This type of co-op can, if used correctly, be used against that game-hog sibling, spouse or significant other. Co-optimus would like to proudly introduce: B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Bitch) co-op gaming. We've looked at a few examples of games that created the B.Y.O.B. co-op genre, all the way back to the days of the Sega Genesis, and culminate the list with recent entries on systems like the Xbox 360 and Wii.

This is the official Co-optimus.com list of B.Y.O.B. co-op titles. (This editorial is rated P for Profanity.)

It's kind of co-op...kind of.

Boy, do we have a multiplayer preview for you. Walk with us now, as we explore Demon Souls - the PS3 exclusive intense dungeon crawler, set to hit shelves just in time for Halloween complete with co-op. Well, maybe complete is a strong word, the co-op in Demon Souls is much different than you'd expect in a dungeon crawler. No Leroy Jenkins action. No loot splitting. In fact, very odd almost-co-op style co-op.

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Atlus' upcoming hardcore RPG Demon's Souls has been on our radar since it was announced- Just ask Jason! Atlus has been posting developer blogs to their forums for some time, and this week's edition focuses on the online play, which sports "seamless" online integration. It also provides a wealth of information about the three-player co-op!

As a living player, you will at times come across Soul Signs, glowing blue symbols on the ground that will at first resemble messages, but as you approach will also feature a transparent 3D projection of the player offering their help. You’re able to see the player’s name and how they have been ranked by others. Should they appear to be relatively competent, you can then summon them into your game. A moment later they will appear, and together you can then proceed.

Check out the Co-Op section below, and you can read the entire devblog by clicking the "source" link.

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Publishing company Atlus, best known for the Shin Megami Tensei/Persona series of games, announced yesterday that it would be bringing From Software's, best known for the Armored Core series, action RPG Demon’s Souls to our shores.  Being billed as a “hardcore RPG,” this title, which saw a February release date in Japan, features the one element that we here at Co-Optimus always want to see more of: co-op.  Two other players will be able to join you in your quest to hack, slash, and quest your way through goblins, dragons, and other fantastical creatures.

The premise of the game is nothing terribly new (i.e., a king dabbles in powers beyond his comprehension, awakens a terrible evil, and you’ve got to set things right), but the game mechanics seem to be where this particular game truly shines.

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