I’m a high school English teacher, writer, and ninja. My co-op gaming life started with the original Double Dragon arcade game in 1987. As I only owned an NES back then, my Sega Master System-owning friend used to get tired of me wanting to play through Double Dragon with him all the time. I still love cooperative beat-em-ups, including Final Fight, Castle Crashers, and Scott Pilgrim. I was once a competitive Saturn Bomberman player, but otherwise I have always been about the co-op.
My first experience with writing about games came in 2003 when I wrote a full walkthrough for Bomberman Land 2, an amazing Japanese Bomberman RPG. Over the next several years, I continued to write FAQs and Achievement guides for various games, culminating in an award-winning Bionic Commando Rearmed guide. I finally joined the gaming press after Windows Phone 7 launched, covering and reviewing games for Microsoft’s fledgling mobile platform. Now I’m on the console scene at Co-Optimus, one of the coolest and most unique gaming sites around.
In the last few years, lots of Vampire Survivors-style games have popped up. One such title is Outer Terror from VoxPop Games. This one distinguishes itself with a greater focus on story and horror, not to mention a cool 3D-angled perspective. After first appearing on Steam last year, Outer Terror has now arrived on consoles thanks to the porting specialists at Ratalaika.
30XX is one of the best roguelikes out there, combining the tight platforming action of the Mega Man X series with the challenge and randomization that roguelike fans crave. Batterystaple Games has done lots of refinement through updates since 30XX first appeared on Steam Early access a few years ago. The latest such update adds a new character for free, one who combines the best attributes of the two existing characters. Also, the Steam version is on sale, making it a great time to travel to the distant year of 30XX!
Hammerwatch II's journey to Xbox has been long and perilous. After first launching on Steam in the fall of 2023, the game finally turned up on PlayStation 5 last December. Since then, Xbox gamers who enjoyed the original Hammerwatch and the sublime Heroes of Hammerwatch have been anxiously awaiting their turn at the long-promised sequel. At last, the wait is nearly over because Hammerwatch II will hit Xbox and PlayStation 4 on April 23.
Vampire Survivors is the king of its own roguelike subgenre, having inspired numerous imitators (such as the recently released Outer Terror). Gamers in know will recognize that Vampire Survivors was partially inspired by Konami's Castlevania series. While there hasn't been any Castlevania DLC just yet, we are getting a DLC release based on Contra in May, so that's something! Also, Poncle has announced that a PlayStation version of Vampire Survivors will finally, finally be released in the summer.
Back in 2016, Overcooked! emerged as a cooperative multiplayer-focused game in which players work together to create and serve food. Since then, several developers have adapted the Overcooked! formula to different professions. Manic Mechanics from 4J Studios (developer of Minecraft: Console Edition) is one such game that ditches the cooking schtick...
When Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons arrived in July of last year, we were blown away by its exceptional stage design, fast and simple gameplay, and large array of unlockable characters. The only thing it really lacked was online co-op, but that has now been rectified. Today's "Sacred Reunion" DLC (which is really a title update) adds online co-op, Survival and Versus modes, and three new unlockable characters. It's a big update, and it's free, baby.
Some games let you become a fighter, a criminal, or a superhero. Other games let you be a bunny. Bunhouse from Reky Studios and Digerati is one of those games. The charming bunny/gardening game features 4-player local co-op and stress-free farming activities. It's already out on Switch and Steam, and it will soon arrive on Xbox and PlayStation consoles as well.
In 1985, Sunsoft released a Japanese arcade game called Ikki. Many years later, a sequel has arrived in the form of Ikki Unite. The game depicts a feudal farming village that rises up to overthrow its evil overlords. Up to 16 players can team up online in the Steam version of Ikki Unite. Nintendo players will soon be able to join in the feudal fun when the Switch version arrives on April 18 courtesy of Sunsoft and Plug In Digital.
Shoot 'em ups come in many shapes and sizes. One of those is Crystal Comet, an upcoming Steam-exclusive shooter from a new developer called Rewdan Sprites. This one will feature 4-player local co-op, AI teammates, a story mode with full voice acting, and a very indie art style. The freshly released demo shows off all these features and more.
Not long ago, Secret Base and Modus Games announced that Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons will be getting a free update with online co-op and three new characters on April 4. They didn't announce the identities of all three characters at that time, however. Now we know: Yagyu Ranzou, Chin Seimei, and Sonny Lee from Double Dragon 3 are the free DLC characters. I called it!
While we do our best around here to play nothing but cooperative games, from time to time, a non-co-op title slips in. Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes from developer Rabbit & Bear Studios and publisher 505 Games is a JRPG that's too exciting to overlook. It was directed and produced by Yoshitaka Murayama, the creator of Suikoden series, who sadly died in February. The game promises to be a spiritual successor to Murayama's beloved series.
Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons from Secret Base and Modus Games was one of the best beat 'em ups to come along in 2023, featuring nonlinear game design, a variety of unlockable characters, and an excellent soundtrack. The only missing element was online co-op. That will finally change, thankfully, when the much-requested online multiplayer update arrives on April 4, along with three new characters and more. Double Dragon fans are in for a treat!
