Skylanders was a game that surprised a lot of folks when it was unveiled at E3 two years ago. I can remember seeing the little figures come to life in a back room at the Activision booth and immediately thinking to myself, ok, this thing is going to catch on. We're now a few games and 50 some characters later and Skylanders is getting what might be the biggest change to the series yet. Skylanders Swap Force is the first game that looks, feels, and plays next-gen.

There is nothing more attractive in this world than watching a hardcore gamer dance around a tiny room vaguely in time to some music game emanating from their flat screen TV.  Prepare yourselves for more beauty as Just Dance 4 is coming to every motion control platform.  The game has modes that will allow up to 6 players to dance at once - imagine in your mind's eye such a wondrous image.

As probably everyone expected, Activision officially confirmed today that Skylanders SWAP Force is in development for the next-gen consoles (namely the PS4 and Xbox One). This is in addition to the already announced versions for the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, 3DS, and Wii U. Get ready to hide the wallet from the kids if you own pretty much any relatively modern console whatsoever.

What the Smurf?  Smurfette has gone missing and we need help to get her back; 4 player co-op help.  The Smurfs 2 is an upcoming co-op title linked to this summer's box office behemoth of the same name.  The game is Smurfing out on the 23rd of July across PS3, 360, Wii and Wii U.  As a special Wii U treat, these gamers will be able to have an additional 5th player on the GamePad - that Smurfs!   

With the announcement of The Avengers 2 movie hitting theaters on May 1^st, 2015, what better to accompany the news than some new screenshots of LEGO Marvel Super Heroes? These sweet shots have finally been unleashed to the public, revealing one of the many super villains we will be facing within the game.

The Disney Infinity launch has been pushed back to mid-August. The Big D's upstart challenger to the Skylanders franchise was originally slated for a June release. Like the incredibly successful Skylanders series, Disney Infinity will feature small action figures that come to life in-game when placed on a special peripheral, in this case called the "Infinity Base." Someone must have crunched the numbers and come to the conclusion that kids don't stay inside and play video games during the summer. Go figure.

Recently I’ve spent quite a bit of time comparing Skylanders Swap Force and Disney Infinity of late, but one area I’d not considered in detail was their co-operative features. What better place than Co-Optimus to get to grips with what these two toy-meets-game titles have to offer.

Amazon is running a promo right now for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on Blu-Ray. The film comes out on March 19th - just over two weeks away and you can pre-order it for just $26 for the regular version or $30 to include the 3D version. Those are already pretty good prices for the combo packs - but there's an added bonus if you purchase LEGO Lord of the Rings too.

In my list of greatest Pixar films, Cars 1 and 2 are placed last and second to last.  This has not stopped them from appealing to the younger generation and the Cars toy range sells by the truckload.  Therefore, when Disney Infinity was announced; a game that combines 4 player co-op with collectable toys, the introduction of a Cars pack was always likely to rev up pretty quickly.  Check out the new trailer for a trip round Radiator Springs.

The upcoming Skylanders SWAP Force has a host of new improvements and additions to the previous two titles.  Players will be able to create 256 different character combinations from the 16 new bifurcated figures. There will also be 16 new Skylanders, eight LightCore Skylanders, and 16 returning Skylanders. There's also the ground breaking new gameplay function that allows characters to jump! Seriously. If you've played the game you know how big of a deal this is.

Yesterday evening I headed down to the NASDAQ building in Times Square for an exclusive first look at the newly announced Skylanders SWAP Force. I am sad to report that if Skylanders has its hooks in you (or your kids or your wallet), SWAP Force will likely just drive them deeper in. The new skylanders and brand new mechanic introduced with SWAP Force look just as addicting, if not more so.

Skylanders Giants is one of the co-op successes of last year selling more copies than the proverbial hot cakes.  However, 2012 already feels like a long time ago and we need fresh blood.  The fantastic news is that Giants is getting this blood in the form of killer whale Thumpback and "oh no, my eyeball" Eye-Brawl.

A new challenger has entered the competition for your hard earned cash. Disney Infinity was announced earlier this week. This new gaming platform will be familiar to anyone who has experience with the Skylanders franchise. Disney Infinity will use physical figurines and accessories which will appear in-game once placed on a separate peripheral, the "Infinity Base." 

The two player co-op adventure/puzzle game Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is today's Gold Box deal on Amazon.com.  You can snag the recently released title for just $20 - a savings of 67%.  The game is available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii for the special price and features two player couch co-op through the entire story.   One player takes control of Mickey while the other controls Oswald as you create and destroy universes based on Disney franchises.

I've scoured the internets for the biggest, the best, and the most fantastic co-op news of the day.  Unfortunately, it’s a major holiday in the USA so news is sparse.  I did manage to find something deep behind the waste bins of the web; a new video for the upcoming 2 player local co-op title Ben 10: Omniverse.  Please feel free to remove the crusted food and enjoy.