We've been eagerly anticipating the arrival of Double Dragon Revive, the first 3D Double Dragon in a long time, since Arc System Works announced it last year. Well, the game officially launches on October 23, and players who preordered the Deluxe Edition already have early access as of today. How's the co-op? We'll tell you soon, but Revive's final developer diary reveals juicy new co-op details that are sure to get series fans excited.

Me oh my, it's a good season for beat 'em ups. Arc System Works' Double Dragon: Revive is just around the corner, and Dotemu's Absolum recently landed on all platforms but the beleaguered Xbox. Not only is Absolum garnering piles of critical praise, it has also sold over 200,000 copies in its first week of release. That's an impressive debut for Dotemu's first game that isn't a remake or a sequel to an existing franchise. It certainly helps that the game is a gorgeous 2D beat 'em up with 2-player local and online co-op.

Are we alive here at Co-Optimus? Yes, we're alive! We've just been super busy with work and saving the world and stuff. But no matter how busy we are, we still appreciate a good deal. That's what caught my eye with Humble Bundle's Momcore Games For a Busy Life Bundle. The bundle includes up to ten Steam games for $10, including the cooperative APICO and Onsen Master from Whitethorn Games. Not too shabby!

We - a lonely mouse - find a clearing ahead in the lush, beautiful forest. Surrounded by the towering trees, a pond piques our interest with faded out runes floating high above it. Why are they there? What can we do with them? A conveniently placed fixture is hanging from a tree branch above right into the middle of all those triangles. T...

When it comes to video games, people tend to think of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as a beat ‘em up franchise, but the heroes in a half shell have appeared in many other genres as well. A few years ago, a mobile game developer called Super Evil Megacorp had the brilliant idea of making a TMNT roguelike. After first releasing it on Apple Arcad...

We always love when a game is listed as "co-op" on the digital store. Sometimes, however, games with the co-op tag end up not actually having cooperative multiplayer. This can happen when the game's developer or publisher mistakenly considers all multiplayer to be co-op, or when they consider team-based competitive multiplayer to be co-op. When that happens, we'll say the game is Not So Co-op.

Dora the Explorer is a heartrending tale of a girl who gets lost in the jungle and must evade a carnivorous fox called Swiper. At least, I think that's what it's about; I haven't seen the show in several years. Well, nowadays, there's a CG-animated series called Dora on Paramount Plus. That show will soon have a video game adaptation from Outright Games, Dora: Rainforest Rescue, and it will feature 2-player local co-op.

At the beginning of this year, Forever Entertainment announced that THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake was in the works for all platforms. Many fans consider HotD2 to be the best game in the series, so this was good news indeed. The questions remained, however, of when the remake would come out, and which platforms would receive it first. Well, now we know! HotD 2: Remake is due on Switch and PC on August 7, and other versions will follow at some point after that.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, the first game in the Bloodstained series from ArtPlay and 505 Games, is a fantastic Metroidvania game, but its post-release co-op mode was a complete afterthought. Thankfully, co-op seems to be a more integral feature in the upcoming sequel/prequel, Bloodstained: The Scarlet Engagement. The new game's campaign will feature two playable protagonists and (seemingly) 2-player local co-op right out of the gate, not unlike the Gal Guardians series. It's due out on Xbox Series, PlayStation 5, and PC in 2026.

The Behemoth, the makers of Castle Crashers and several other gorgeous games, likes to release their games on Xbox before PlayStation. Bless their colorful hearts for going against the grain like that. In late 2023, the studio released Alien Hominid Invasion (a multiplayer-focused sequel to Alien Hominid HD) on Xbox, Switch, and Steam. Good th...

A couple of years back, Ocean Dive Studio released a roguelike shooter called Blackout Protocol on Steam Early Access. During the Early Access period, the developers made some big changes, enhancing the single-player experience, overhauling gameplay, reworking co-op, and even renaming the game. Now titled Section 13, the game has fully launched on Steam and also debuted on Xbox Series and PlayStation 5 consoles (albeit without co-op support at present).

A big part of being a cat pirate is sailing the seas and traveling from place to place. What better way to do just that than by playing Cat Quest III on the go? Soon, aspiring kitty pirates will be able to enjoy the charming cat-themed action RPG on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. That should be a purrfect option for gamers who don't have the game on Switch or Steam Deck. The iOS version will still support 2-player local co-op, thankfully.