With 8 player co-op title Resistance 2 a short few weeks away, the marketing campaign has kicked up in a BIG way.  The above picture is for a building size ad for the game featured in download Los Angeles.  Luckily no office workers were harmed in the making of said ad, though a few screamed in fear before having their morning coffee.

Now, I realize as I type this that I'm dangerously close to starting an unwarranted hype train here, so let's be clear: I'm excited for this game. You don't have to be. In the meantime, however, just know that while cooperative modes seem to be all the rage, it's rare enough to see a game with 4-player co-op, much less 16.

You may recall the news of a free Rock Band 2 track pack, which we reported on here.  The track list is available now, and you can download your free goodies starting November 4.  Seems like there's something else going on then... hmmm...

Zombies aren't going to be the only thing drooling in Left 4 Dead.  In fact, after looking at the Xbox 360 interface for the upcoming 4 player co-op title, I'll be drooling right along with them.

Poor Billy.  He's looking for a co-op partner in Fable 2.  You see, his friend's list is empty - so he has no fancy orbs floating around.  For shame.  But you fine Co-Optimus readers can help him.  Despite any issues we have with what state the co-op play is in, the bottom line is the Fable 2 is still a damn fine game, and the cooperative play is tons of fun.  

Before you read: don't judge me by the above graphic, which is intended to be slightly humorous. While I'm not a fan of censorship in general, I can admit that as a new parent, it's relieving to know that game companies are taking the inevitable younger audiences into consideration when developing video games and platforms.

You've certainly heard by now about the recent recall of LittleBigPlanet.  The inclusion of music containing verses from the Qur'an was the reason for the recall.  The official quote from Sony: "we sincerely apologize for any offense that this may have caused."  Avoiding controversy for such a big title is certainly understandable, but now, it appears that some Muslim groups are now calling foul, this time over "censorship", as seen in this article at Edge.  Is this one of those lose/lose situations?

For a AAA title on release day, Fable 2 isn't doing too well.  Despite being really well received by critics, the fans are up in arms about several things.  Now there's one more thing to be pissed about.  It seems that some collectors editions, ones that were already gimped, are missing the included card with the codes required to download the extra content.  This includes a new dungeon and the much anticipated Master Chief costume.

The official Fable 2 forums are ablaze with angry co-op gamers, as it appears most of us have been misled as to exactly what the cooperative mode entails.  The main gripe people are having is that your Fable 2 character does not transfer over to any form of co-op.  This applies to both the online and the offline mode.  What you do get is to become a henchmen, something we already knew, but we didn't know how literal the term was.  

In case you missed it this weekend, there was some pretty good Resistance 2 Co-Op News.  First up, the beta started.  Those folks who preordered via Gamestop or subscribed to Sony's Qore service should have received their codes via email.  If you haven't gotten yours yet, you may want to check your spam filters.

You may not think kicking someone in the back of the head is very cooperative, but on this episode we discuss just how co-op a friendly boot to the noggin can be.

Co-Optimus has been on a bit of a Phantasy Star mood recently. What with more info about the new DS game, Phantasy Star Zero, we were itching for more Phantasy Star info. Fortunately, we discovered more info about another portable version of Phantasy Star. 1UP has word that Phantasy Star Portable will be headed stateside this coming March. The game is coming out for the PSP, and takes place after Phantasy Star Universe. It will have a single-player storyline, as well as a multiplayer component.