Rich Knuckles is back with a retrospective looking at the Serious Sam series since its inception in 1996. Why is he doing that? Because the game is part of this week's Humble Bundle where you can get almost EVERY Serious Sam game ever created including the Indie game series games for a price you name.

The weekly XBLA sale is the place I like to go to pick up a co-op bargain once in a while.  However, it sometimes feels like the same games appear over and over again, seriously what is the problem?  There is no problem, as long as it’s the Serious Sam games getting reduced.  The man's back catalogue is all reduced by 50% until May 13th.  Check out read more for the Serious Sam offers and the rest of the XBLA content incoming.

Xbox Live's "Deals of the Week" can be hit or miss. Next week is a big hit for fans of old school first person shooters. The Serious Sam franchise isn't fancy, but it gets the job done. This is a meat and potatoes shooter for those of us who enjoy our meat bloody and our potatoes mashed. Wait, that doesn't sound right...

Amazon is once again holding a sale on downloadable titles for the PC, offering some truly killer deals on games including some popular co-op titles.   The Serious Sam series seems to be the centerpiece with Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter, Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter, and Serious Sam 3: BFE all available for 75% off.   Co-Op friendly 4 packs of the HD remakes are available for $10 and $15 for the first and second respectively, while SS3 is available in a 4 pack for $30.

Today we've got a great giveaway for our dedicated Co-Optimus readers!  We're giving away five copies of Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter on Steam to five lucky readers.  You may be asking yourself why we'd be giving away the game now, almost two years after it was released.  That's because if you decide to purchase the upcoming Serious Sam 3: BFE through Steam and own any previous Sam product, you'll get 10% off.  It's like we're not only giving away a game, but giving you free money.  Sweet!

This week's Xbox Live Deals focus on "Retro Shooters" - with many of them offering co-op play.  Here's what you can snag for at least 50% off the normal Microsoft Moon Buck price.

Though Sam Stone isn't one to sneak, he managed to find his way onto Xbox Live Arcade this week despite no prior announcement of the game's launch.  It's OK, he doesn't need the hype,fans of the serious know he's one co-op friendly cat.  Our review of the PC version agrees.  Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter is out for 1200  and can be added to your download queue here.  The game sports four player online co-op through the campaign and in a survival mode.

This week, several Xbox Live Arcade titles are on sale for Gold members.  (CHEESY ONE-LINER ABOUT METALLIC PHALLUS)  Of the six games on sale, two of them feature co-op!  The most recent of the two is Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter.  (CHEESY ONE-LINER ABOUT WHAT "HD" STANDS FOR)  You can grab Sam, with 4 player online co-op, for 800 points, which is 33% off.  If that's too rich for your budget, perhaps the second co-op game on sale is for you.  Duke Nukem 3D is available for 400 points, which is half off!  (CHEESY ONE-LINER ABOUT STRIPPER ATTIRE)  Better grab these deals while you have the chance!

This last few months of gaming have been kind to retro co-op games, and I can think of a few warm-n-fuzzies I've felt recently. This weeks On The Download will aim to spark a mushy retromance with some of the recent vintage downloadables. We also want to hear what you'd like to see remade.

This month the Battlefield Report takes a look at a myriad of games that have one thing in common: you have to shoot something. Unfortunately, it's not always that easy. We list the most common game functions that help you adjust your aim.

On the Download is a new feature from Co-Optimus that wants to get you in on the low down for downloadable games. The meat of this feature will cover an experience with a current co-op downloadable game or DLC for a co-op game that I've played recently with friends.

We've gone ahead and updated our review of Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter to include impressions and thoughts on the recently released Xbox Live Arcade version.

Uber-pretty, graphically-tuned remake Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter brings hordes of exotic monsters, 4 player online co-op, and some truly ridiculous weaponry to Xbox Live today.  If you can spare 493 Megs of space on your hard drive, and 1200 MS Points from your virtual wallet, go ahead and queue up the game right here.  Not sure about the game?  Check out Nick's review of the PC version of the game!

I considered writing this whole news post in alliteration, but for your sake, dear reader, I restrained myself.  Another huge weekend sale is here on Steam, this time featuring recently released remake Serious Sam HD.  A scandalously sizable 66% savings means you can pick up the game for a slim $6.67.  I was planning to purchase the as yet unreleased Xbox Live Arcade version, but with 16 player co-op and the big sale, I'll be glad to settle for the PC version.  Will cannons and enormous alien bulls be in your future this weekend?

We preview the cooperative games of 2010 in our first big feature of the new year. It's a jam packed new year already, and if the schedule holds true, there's over two dozen announced co-op titles. We look at the first half of the year in part 1 of our preview. Are you ready for the future?