While Rayman fans were undoubtedly shafted from grabbing Rayman Legends on Wii U earlier this year, we’ve finally been given some sort of compensation for having to wait. Released today, gamers can download the special “Rayman Legends Challenge App” on Wii U and hold off their Rayman Legends appetite until the game’s official release this summer.

As you all know, many games have received Christmas themed goodies this holiday season. As of yesterday, Uncharted 3 has joined the list and will be offering gamers in-game items for only a short time. Go adorn yourselves with Christmas cheer and obtain a brand new map by playing some multiplayer today!

Now’s the time to take another crack at ToyLogic’s Happy Wars on XBLA, as the game recently received a hefty and much needed update. It’s free after all, so why the heck not?

Halloween isn’t just a time for people to dress up spooky, because many games also like to follow in the trend as well. In one week, the holiday event will arrive, and with it a bunch of games with hold their own Halloween-themes that fans can deck their games with. Two great co-op titles, Happy Wars and Fruit Ninja Kinect want to have their gamers get in the spirit of Halloween, and they’re going to do it through small, fun-sized DLC additions.

As most of us already know, the presidential elections are next month. To kick off the countdown to the debates, scheduled for October 3^rd, Microsoft is giving away free Halo 4 armor Avatar Awards for those that tune into them via Xbox LIVE.

Just last week, Happy Wars, one of the only two games to be a part of the first free-to-play program to be experimented with by Microsoft, has opened up its beta for those looking to take on gobs of players in one, giant, co-op brawl. What’s more awesome to hear is that anyone who is an Xbox LIVE Gold member can go on a download the title (along with Ascend: New Gods) absolutely free and play with others online. Micro-transactions will be available, however, in both games, but you won’t have to purchase anything to enjoy this co-op game.

Holy Hanna Barbera, Batman! In case you were hiding in the back of the Batcave, Lego Batman 2: DC Heroes now features a playable demo on Xbox Live.

Hey all you Twisted Metal fans out there! It is my pleasure to inform you that the downright nasty character known as Axel will become available to all players with the free patch as of today!

We have ourselves a DLC worth investing in! Why? Because we don’t have to invest anything besides the time it takes to download it! Mass Effect 3’s “Resurgence Pack” will be available this Tuesday for free, just as long as you own an online pass.

Ever play a game where riding an elevator is your main and only objective? No? Well, you’re in luck, because that’s exactly what you’re getting when you download Pixeltail’s newest game, Elevator:  Source. An innovative use of Garry’s Mod within Valve's Half-Life 2, Elevator: Source brings players a simple, yet mysterious game of “28 randomly generated floors of realistic elevator physics” which will have you rolling on the floor in laughter within minutes.

To paraphrase a hotly debated quote in U.S. politics: "Never let a good Crysis go to waste."

So...you never bought The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom for a potential co-op patch. Okay, so you never actually bought The Settlers 7 at all. Well...this news isn't for you, then. But for those of you who do own The Settlers 7 it might be interesting to know that the latest downloadable pack - DLC Pack 4 - is currently available for $4.99 and adds two player co-op support and two co-op exclusive maps, among other things. If you don't feel the urge to expand your experience for a mere fiver, then you'll be delighted to know that a free compatibility patch is available...and it provides the capability to play co-op with anyone else who's installed the patch or DLC Pack 4.

Five new downloadable packs are now available on Steam for Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. This little isometric gem won our Best Downloadable Co-Op Game of the Year award for 2010. The first pack actually comes as a free title update and adds the titular characters from the Kane and Lynch games.

I really, really enjoy playing Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light despite the glaring lack of online support, but many of our own community have skipped over this title for that very reason. If all goes well from a technical standpoint, Crystal Dynamics is finally offering a twice-delayed online support patch on October 27th. This first patch will only be for the Xbox 360 version, with PlayStation 3 and PC patches still promised.

Earlier this month, Zeno Clash: Ultimate Edition was released on Xbox Live Arcade.  A very rare first person brawler, we found the game to be pretty good, though the lack of campaign co-op was troubling.  The trippy game world and inclusion of dual wielded fish pistols were highlights.  If only you could carry a couple real life fish pistols while on the treadmill, or in the car, wouldn't that be great?  Well, your neighbors would likely look at you funny if you did.  So, you'll just have to content yourself with downloading the complete soundtrack to the game for all your excercising and driving needs.  Best of all, you can get it free, until May 31st.