A sort-of-new release in the classic arcade realm, Metal Slug X is a remake of Metal Slug 2 that has been reworked for iPhone, Android and iPad devices. The game, which marks the fourth mobile Metal Slug release, features tweaked controls for the touch screen as well as altered enemy positions and maps, making it a much different experience than the game it's based on. It's also just one letter away from Metal Slug XX, which is totally not confusing at all.

The iPhone/iPad and Android are already home to a fine port of Metal Slug 3, one of the best entries in SNK's arcade run-and-gun shoot-em-up series. Now the Japanese game maker has ported the original Metal Slug to mobile devices under the highly appropriate title Metal Slug 1. Like the previous port, this one boasts several enhancements like an all-new Mission Mode and of course, Bluetooth co-op play. New for this installment: adjustable controls.

Welcome to a slightly late but still delightful edition of Beyond Co-Op, our weekly wrap-up of non-cooperative gaming news.

Mobile phones and tablets are quickly becoming the platform of choice for shoot-em-up makers thanks to the mobile market's low costs of development and large audience. Now SNK is getting in on the action by releasing two much-loved Neo-Geo classics on iOS: Blazing Star, a side-scrolling shmup and Metal Slug 3, a shooter of the run-and-gun variety. Both sport a handful of enhancements as well as Blueooth co-op for two players.

Sonic and Tails are finally working together again in this fully co-op platformer. But does Sonic 4 Episode II live up to Sonic 2's lofty standards? Strap on your red shoes and read on to find out!

Fantastic news, everyone! The Co-Optimus mobile app is now available at the iTunes store! Stay connected with all of Co-Optimus' co-op gaming news, reviews, and massive database. Our filter system will help you find the right cooperative game for you and your friends. Search our mobile app's database to find out if a game meets all of your co-op requirements, or enter in all of your friendly gaming wants and needs to discover which games make the grade.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II, the highly-anticipated sequel to Sonic 4, has a release date at last. And when I say that, I don’t mean just the XBLA and PSN versions have release dates. The PC and Windows Phone ports have them too! Even better news is that owners of both episodes will receive an extra-special bonus that harkens back to the days of Sonic & Knuckles. It's like Christmas in July.

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any better for Phantasy Star Online 2’s future, Sega surprises us even further, announcing that we’ll be able to take the game with us on the go in more ways than one.

Welcome to Beyond Co-Op, a weekly piece that talks about industry stories that may or may not be related to co-op gaming! We like to take a look around the industry and see what news and links may interest you in the world of gaming.

Recently, Capybara Games Inc., a Canadian-based indie developer, won the grand prize at the Independent Games Festival for their submission of their latest game, Super T.I.M.E. Force.

Look, we like rainbow farting unicorns as much as the next guy, but Muffin Knight - a new game from Angry Mob Games available on iOS, Android and Mac - looks to be the real deal in terms of unicorn farting simulations.  Sure Red Faction: Armageddon might have been the first game to incorporate it, but you couldn't actually PLAY as the unicorn and fart exploding rainbows.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I, the long-awaited return to 2D gameplay for the Sonic series, met with a mixed reception when it debuted on consoles in 2010. Part of its back to basics approach included ditching longtime partner Miles 'Tails' Prower, the flying fox with a voice that makes you just want to smack him. And of course, this guaranteed that Episode I was a single-player affair. But SEGA has recently released a teaser trailer for Sonic 4: Episode II that promises the return of Tails, along with classic nemesis Metal Sonic. Dare we hope that Tails' presence means that Sonic 2-style co-op will return as well?

Do you not have enough Xbox LIVE in your life?  When you're at your weekly iOMGApple! meeting, are you curious as to what your 360 friends are playing?  Are you playing Infinity Blade 2 right frick'n now, but you refuse to put it down unless your elderly piano tutor, "ALurBLZbLNGS2MeH," is ready to throw down on some Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 console carnage?  Are you at work, and you want to see if your husband is really taking care of the baby, and not slogging his way through his 200th hour of Dark Souls?  Well there's an app for that!

Like Call fo Duty: World at War Zombies, Black Ops is getting a portable version of the popular mode from the console game.  Call of Duty Black Ops: Zombies is the full fledged co-op sequel to the popular iOS game that's playable on iPhones and iPads.

Dungeon Hunter, the popular mobile gaming franchise, is getting a third installment.  Appropriately titled Dungeon Hunter 3, the threequel is "Coming Soon," according to the Gameloft Facebook page.  Think of it as a portable version of those hack and slash RPG's we've all come to know and love, and then know some more, then love a little less...