Look, there aren't many cooperative driving games. There are even fewer that require two players. That's WheelMates from Firevolt, though, a 2-player RC car driving adventure that's built solely for co-op. Thankfully, the game includes a friend pass, so a second online player can join in for free, in addition to 2-player split-screen support. Early Steam reviews are super positive, so this could be the next big co-op game.
I'm not big on building decks, whether the decks are made of cards or planks of wood in the back yard. Thus, a deck-builder needs to be pretty unusual to peak my interest. Duo Quest from 1 plus 1 Studios and Rising Tide is just such a game. It's 2-player only (local or online), and the cards that players draw require them to ask questions about each other. Answer correctly to damage foes; fail, and the team's adventure might come to a premature end. The quest begins on Steam on September 16.
June brings lots of announcements from the big game publishers every year, and this one is no different. Microsoft's Games Showcase was stronger than usual, but what about the Big N? Well, Nintendo adopted a "more is more" approach with today's Nintendo Direct, showcasing dozens and dozens of games for brief periods of time. There are definitely lots of games to get excited about, including the impending Star Fox, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, and the remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time!
Today, Microsoft held its annual Xbox Games Showcase to announce and highlight the games coming to Xbox platforms this year and next year. The lineup features some a handful of co-op games (mostly titles we already knew about, such as Gears of War: E-Day), some third-party heavy hitters, and a smattering of interesting indie games.
In early 2025, Hit Start Studios released a plucky little spelunking game called Brave Escape on Steam. The game is all about a dude and his robot cooperating to make their way through a gigantic cave, and it's exclusively playable in co-op. No single-player escaping around here! Well, there's even more cave-climbing to do now thanks to the latest update, which adds 45 more levels. Additionally, we've learned that Brave Escape is coming to consoles this year.
We first ran across Japanese merchandise label Kumagumi when they released a cool line of Double Dragon clothing a few years ago. Well, now they're back with a similarly attractive array of physical goods dedicated to SNK's Metal Slug. Metal Slug, of course, is a series of run-and-gun shooters that began its life on the NeoGeo arcade hardware. The series is known for its attractive pixel art and memorable character designs, to say nothing of the challenging gameplay.
Ever since the film Clerks perfectly captured the drudgery and indignity of convenience store work, Jay and Silent Bob have been popular characters. They've popped up in numerous Kevin Smith films, on Degrassi: The Next Generation, and even starred in a series of beat 'em ups. The latest of those beat 'em ups is Jay and Silent Bob: Chronic Blunt Punch, and it's out today, a normal day just like any other.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is a bullet heaven roguelike from Games Farm and Grindstone. As the name implies, the game is based around Norse mythology, and it has very detailed graphics for a Vampire Survivors-style game. Jotunnslayer has just been updated with 2-player local co-op support, which is great news all on its own. Even better, though, the new "Conan" DLC adds Conan the Barbarian as a playable character.
It's always sad when a game developer dies, but especially so when that person is the founder of an actual genre. Yoshihisa Kishimoto is just such a person. He created the Kunio-kun/River City and Double Dragon franchises, and as such, is considered the father of the beat 'em up genre. Double Dragon was instrumental in popularizing cooperative multiplayer, so his influence even extends beyond the genre that he created. Lamentably, Kishimito died on April 2, as reported by his son.
The original The Takeover is a beat 'em up from Pelikan13 that is famed for its large characters and impressive graphics. Since the Steam version came out in 2019 and the PlayStation and Switch versions landed in 2021, fans have been clamoring for a sequel. However, as the years stretched on, it seemed like the Take might really be Over. Fear not! The second game will be called Takeover 2 (the budget didn't allow for articles), and it's coming to Steam in September. Hopefully, console versions will follow!
While Arc System Works is best known for games like Double Dragon Revive and the BlazBlue series, they also make non-punching games from time to time. DAMON and BABY is just such a game. It stars a future demon king named Damon who is bound by a curse to a mysterious baby (more like a toddler, really). In 2-player local co-op games, the second player gets to be Damon's dog! The game has just launched on PlayStation, Switch, and Steam... Poor Xbox doesn't get to hold the baby.
Dotemu's Absolum broke all kinds of sales records when it debuted on PlayStation, Switch, and Steam last year. The developers even promised a big Version 1.1 update which came along in February of this year. All the while, Xbox gamers had no choice but to look on from the outside and long for the coveted Absolum beat 'em up roguelike experience. It wasn't easy, I can tell you. Thankfully, those long months of yearning are finally behind us. Absolum came out on Xbox Series consoles today, and it's even on Game Pass. It's time to get absolumming, boys and girls!
