Co-op Spotlight #15 - Divinity: Original Sin

By Logan Hosoda

Technical Details

Divinity: Original Sin is a co-op turn-based strategy RPG that was originally released for windows in June 2014 by Larian Studios, but later got an enhanced edition in October 2015 for all current gen consoles.The enhanced edition added a multitude of new features, voice acting being one of the greater ones. The game features split screen drop in/drop out co-op across all platforms, including PC, and features two fully customizable protagonists. For PC, you can even adjust the controller ui in the options to represent PS4 and Xbox One controllers, depending upon which you’re using, or even stick with the good old mouse and keyboard if that’s your preference. It allows for a maximum of two-players, and even encourages the use of two-players in the game.

Story

The story of Divinity is centered around the concept of “Source”. Source is basically the magical essence that creatures utilize in order to cast spells, or do various magical things, which is pretty much mana. In the story, source was too dangerous, and too unpredictable. An organization called the “Source Hunters” was formed to outlaw all source, and to hunt down, and eradicate all traces of sourcery. That’s where the two main protagonists come in. You have received orders to solve a murder that happened in a town called Cyseal, where a beloved town councilor was murdered, and source was suspected to be involved. You as the players, get to choose how you want to proceed.

Choices

Easily the greatest part of the game is the sheer amount of decision making that’s involved. Right off the bat, you get to choose what you want to do in the game. You can choose to go straight to the town, or start exploring, and doing whatever you want. Beyond that though, the game features incredible character interactions. Even the main protagonists can interact with each other, which honestly is an absolutely genius concept that completely solves the issue in co-op games when it comes to conflict of decisions. Instead of duking it out in real life, you’ll just talk it over in-game. If for any reason there is a disagreement, it forces the players to play a game of “rock, paper, scissors” to solve the argument. The little minigame is always fun, and creates a fair solution for each player involved.

Alignment

One of my favorite qualities that Divinity features is the lack of clear moral decisions. When I think of a modern day alignment system, I think of Mass Effect, or Dragon Age, where they very clearly indicate which decisions are good/bad, and how they will affect your overall alignment. I was never a fan of these systems, because there’s no moral grey area. If you wanted to be good or bad, it was really easy to do so. In Divinity, however, the whole concept of “good or bad” is replaced with various different qualities that your character will pick up over time, such as “obedient”, “loyal”, “heartless”, or “romantic” for example. The concept of a moral grey area is fully employed when you reach your first major quest, which is to solve the murder mystery. The entire time you’re solving the crime, you’ll flip flop constantly between which characters you may think did it or not. I personally found this whole experience to be so extraordinary, because it really showcases the fact that first impressions aren’t always accurate, those that seem trustworthy may not actually be trustworthy, and those that seem guilty may actually be the victim. You never know what you’re going to get, and you just might come to regret the decision you made, thinking that it was a good one. That is the power of grey morality.

Gameplay: 

- Combat

In Divinity: Original Sin, the combat is a modern take on turn-based strategy. This may be a point where the game will lose interest for many that are only interesting in real time combat, but if you enjoy turn-based, this game takes it to the next level. The combat is hard, really hard. Everything factors into who will win, and who will die. You have to pay attention to the environment, your surrounding, what you can utilize, and how to utilize it. If you’re super nerdy and a fan of D&D (like myself), then this will feel really familiar. If you notice someone is standing on a puddle of water, you can electrify it to stun them, or freeze it, or do whatever you want with it if you have the skills. Certain environmental effects will change the entire course of a battle. For example, you can splash oil everywhere then set it on fire, creating a smokescreen and limiting the sight of all archers and mages, while also creating a field of fire. If you’re the type that loves to think of the most devious of strategies to win fights, then look no further, Divinity not only allows you to do it, but rewards you for doing it! In fact, sometimes it’s entirely necessary if you actually want to win some fights, because enemies come packed in with massive groups!

- General Gameplay

When you’re not in combat, you basically have the freedom to do as you please. When both players are together, you can share one screen to adventure together, and when you get too far apart, the screen will split, allowing the players to travel as far apart as they please and do things on their own. One major selling point for me, from a co-op standpoint, is the fact that both players exist, and are important in the universe. I’ve mentioned my pet peeve with the Fable games before, where the second player was an invisible henchman that isn’t even acknowledged in the game, which is a common trend when it comes to co-op RPG’s. As far as gameplay elements, you have the freedom to attack whatever you please, be it doors, chests, boxes, key characters in the game, you name it! You can also pick locks, pickpocket, sneak around, steal stuff, break into people’s houses, barter, persuade, intimidate, craft everything, and do just about anything else that you can think of! There is no shortage of things to do in this game, and coming from a guy that is usually only into good combat, I quite enjoy the gameplay outside of combat.

Conclusion

Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition is well worth the praise that it has received. In my personal opinion, this game is not only amazing, but revolutionary. It takes the oldschool RPG genre, and pushes it to the next level with incredible modern day appeal, all without losing even an ounce of that vintage RPG feel. Even though I’m nowhere near being done with this game yet, I haven’t had an experience this good, and this captivating since the days I played Fable: The Lost Chapters. If you’re looking for not only an amazing RPG, but one that you can play with a friend, then you’re definitely going to want to check this game out! It’s a top-notch experience guaranteed!

Co-op Spotlight #14 - Wai Wai World 2 (Famicom)

By Zachariah Hosoda

Wai Wai World 2 is a 1991 Famicom game released only in Japan by Konami. It is a sequel to Konami Wai Wai World, and stars various Konami characters. At a glance, the game appears to be a basic platformer, and at times, it is. But each level focuses on a specific Konami title, and sometimes a different genre all together. For example, one level is a horizontal shooter, then another is a vehicle combat racer. The differences in style definitely help keep the game interesting.

The player begins by selecting one of four character groups which consist of three different Konami characters. The majority of the levels play like a straightforward platformer. In these levels you play as the main chracter, Rickle. Once you collect a special power up, you are able to temporarily transform into one of the three characters you chose in the beginning. These are the characters you are able to use in the game -

• Goemon - Gonbare Geomon/Mystical Ninja series.
• Simon Belmont III - Castlevania. 
• Getsu Fūma - Getsu Fuma Den. 
• Upa - Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa
• Bill Rizer - Contra
• Vic Viper - Gradius (Only in shooter levels)
• Twinbee - Twinbee series (Only in twinbee shooter levels)
• Pentarou - Dream Penguin Story and Parodius

There is an level select map similar to Mario 3. After specific levels you are able to choose different paths with different stages. Unlike most 8-bit platforming games of the time, Wai Wai world 2 isn't extremely difficult. The game definitely gets harder towards the end, but with the unlimited continues and a password system that is actually manageable, beating the game shouldn't be impossible for the average player. The original Wai Wai world that came out three years prior, was met with mixed reviews. I personally enjoy that game, but the sequel is clearly the better of the two. The first one just lacks the variety and creativity that the second game has. Not to mention, it's a much more difficult game! 

If you're just getting into importing games for the Famicom, Wai Wai World 2 should be one of the first games you look for. There's just so much variety between the levels and characters, it makes for some great replayability. When it comes to co-op games from Nintendo's 8-bit consoles, this is truly one of the finest. It's a shame it never got an American release.

Co-op Spotlight #13 - Castle Crashers

- Logan Hosoda

Castle Crashers is a modern take on the “beat em’ up” genre with added RPG elements, where you play as a set of knights that must rescue the 4 princesses from the evil dark wizard. The game features 4-player local and online co-op, a large variety of characters (most unlockable), various weapons, fighting styles, a leveling system with stats, etc. Castle Crashers was developed by The Behemoth, and originally released of the Xbox 360 in 2008, later to be released for Playstation platforms in 2010, and also released for Steam in 2012.

Perhaps the best part of the game is the amazing combat that it features. The gameplay is very fluid, every action feels smooth, and enjoyable. While yes, it is a beat em’ up, and we all know beat em’ ups get redundant, I think that Castle Crashers has enough varied gameplay to really keep the players interested, especially if you manage to gather 4 people! You can choose between using a melee weapon, your bow, magic, or all three! The best part is that each character has different spells, which makes it fun to unlock them all, and test them all out, which in my opinion creates a very re-playable game. As you level up, you’ll gain new magic abilities if you choose to invest in magic, and you’ll find new weapons as you explore the world. But unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot that’s very special about the bow.

The way you progress in Castle Crashers is similar to a Mario game, where you get to select the level from an overworld view, and then you jump in and work on completing it so that you can unlock the next levels, and move forward from there. It progresses in a linear pattern for the most part, but there’s a couple of points in the game where you can choose between multiple paths. This system is nice, because it allows you to go back and farm money, level up, or search previous levels for secrets, such as pets (cool little creatures that give you a passive bonus), or sweet weapons that can be dropped, or possibly hidden. There’s a plethora of hidden stuff to be found in the game, so if something looks suspicious, definitely check it out!

One of the best parts about Castle Crashers is the amount of humor that they packed into one game. While there really isn’t any dialogue (at least I don’t remember any), there’s loads of hilarious shenanigans happening throughout the game. You need to play the game to understand, but I remember laughing almost all the way through during my first couple of playthroughs. So long as you have childish humor and a love for unnecessary violence and fart jokes (like me), then you’ll enjoy it guaranteed!

The game is overall pretty short, and can be completed casually in around 7-10 hours or so. If for any reason the game isn’t difficult enough for you, then unlock the hard mode, and try that bad boy out, because it will make you cry. To this day, I still have yet to complete that horrendous mode, because it’s too flipping hard. Even with max level, the best weapon, best pet, etc. I still can’t beat it. It makes Dark Souls look like a lovely frolic through the flowers to put things into perspective. So give it a whirl if you’re so daring!

Castle Crashers is an incredible game, and one of the earlier indie games that really sparked the rise of indie developers back in the day. If you haven’t played it yet, or if you’re looking for an action-packed game to play with some buddies, then Castle Crashers is the perfect choice. So go on out there, and save your princesses, and then fight your friends to the death for her kiss!

Co-op Spotlight #12 - G.I. Joe Cobra Strike (Atari 2600)

The game came out on Atari 2600 in 1983. Other than the name, G.I. Joe Cobra strike has very little to do with the G.I. Joe franchise. The game plays similarly to other 2600 games of the time, such as; Breakout, Kaboom, Pong, and maybe even Space Invaders. But what sets this game apart from other Breakout inspired games, is the fact that you can play it cooperatively using two paddle controllers. However, instead of bouncing a ball with the paddles, your goal is to protect the running men below by blocking the missiles being dropped by the giant cobra.

On top of blocking the attacks, you are able to shoot the Cobra with missiles from the cannons on both sides. But in order to do so, you need to first move your paddle over to your cannon and then press the fire button. Once your men are all destroyed, the game ends. As mentioned before, this is a true co-op game. Unlike other 2600 game that feature co-op, this one doesn't have a competitive aspect to it as well. The score is shared between players, and working together is required to move forward.

The giant cobra must be hit around eight times in order to move to the next level. You will then be presented with an almost identical cobra, but with different colors. The graphics are simple, however, the Giant Cobra sprite is very impressive for the 2600 hardware. This is one of the few instances where a character in a 2600 game actually looks like it's source material. Another interesting feature in the game is when you plug a joystick in, a third player can join in and control the cobra. This might not sound like much, but for the time, I think this was a pretty unique gameplay element. 

Overall, G.I. Joe Cobra Strike is a simple game. It may not be the best 2600 game, and by today's standards, it may seem outdated. But if you're looking for a unique co-op experience on the 2600, this is certainly a lesser known classic that deserves some time. This is the definition of "easy to play, hard to master". There aren't a lot of co-op games for the 2600, but this is definitely one of my favorites.

Co-op Spotlight #11 - Blinx 2 (Xbox)

Blinx 2 is a game that was released exclusively to the original Xbox back in 2004, and put simply, is a great game. You play as either the Time Sweeper (the good guys, anthropomorphic cat thing), or a Tom Tom (bad guys, just a pig), basically on a mission to prevent the end of the world by finding eight fragments of this big all-powerful crystal.

Story wise, the game isn’t exactly the greatest in the world. While I haven’t played it since I was very little, what really stood out to me was the incredible gameplay. The entire game is co-op, where you start the game by creating your own Time Sweepers, and Tom Tom’s. What really makes the game unique is how different the gameplay is depending on who you’re playing as.

When you’re playing as a Time Sweeper, you literally have the power of time, and must use it to solve various puzzles. Your sweeper can suck up just about every object you come across, and you shoot the objects out to kill all of the enemies. As for time powers, you can pause time, rewind, fast forward, and even record time, where you create a double of yourself to repeat what you just did. I always remembered the water physics really impressed me as a kid, because you could pause time, walk through water, and it looked like some sort of jelly, which seemed really cool.

When you play as the Tom Tom’s though, the gameplay is very different. Instead of a platformer/puzzle game, you now play an action stealth game, like Splinter Cell. Again, you get plenty of fun little tools to play around with, because instead of having the power of time like their cat counterparts, they have the power of space instead. They use these powers to create portals to travel undetected, or turn invisible, as well as a ton of extra abilities. Arguably, the game is more fun when you play as the Tom Tom’s, especially when you have a friend, but that could be my bias for stealth games speaking.

One major downside to the game is that it is unfortunately quite clunky. The stealth portion of the game isn’t going to be the best stealth game you ever play, and the overall feel of the game isn’t going to be a revolutionary experience for you. With that said though, Blinx 2 is a very fun game overall. The Xbox didn’t have very many good co-op games, but this is definitely one of them. So if you want some fun action, team oriented gameplay, cringy voice acting, and an overall great experience, then go and pick it up!

Co-op Spotlight #10 - The Real Ghostbusters (Arcade)

The Real Ghostbusters was released in arcades in 1987 by Data East. The game can be played with up to three players. The objective is to work your way through all ten levels, capturing and storing ghosts along the way. The end of each level requires you to fight a guardian. Once defeated, the guardian will drop a key that will lead to the next level. Each character has the same move sets and abilities. Which kind of feels like a missed opportunity to add some variety between characters. You are all armed with a gun and a proton beam. Enemies can be shot with either weapon, turning them into ghosts. The ghosts can then be stored in your backpack using the proton beam.

I recently was able to play through the whole game on a real arcade with my dad and brother. Like most arcade games, it was designed to get as many quarters from you as possible by adding unnecessary difficulty. Lucky for us, the arcade was set to free play, allowing us to breeze through the whole game without much trouble... Of course, we all died about seventy times each. But that doesn't really matter when you have unlimited credits. If I had to compare this game to something else, I guess the most similar game would be Gauntlet. The hordes of enemies, the constant tapping of the fire button, and the dungeon crawling level layouts are all very reminiscent of the Gauntlet series. However, Ghostbusters is far more linear, trading the maze levels for a much more straight forward south to north layout.

One of the best features of the game is when two proton beams cross, they combine into an even more powerful beam. This can be very helpful when fighting the guardians. Unfortunately, the game does get repetitive. There is very little difference between levels and enemies. On the positive side, the game does not over stay it's welcome. It can be beaten in about thirty minutes or so. This might seem short, but for this game, I think it's the perfect length. 

The Real Ghostbusters isn't a perfect game. But if you are able to get two friends together, it's definitely worth the experience. Finding arcades that have older cabinets is getting harder and harder now days. But if you ever run into this game, it's a really short and fun play through. Just bring lots of quarters!

Co-op Spotlight #9 - Legend of the Mystical Ninja (SNES)

By Logan Hosoda

The Legend of the Mystical Ninja is a game for the Super Nintendo, that was originally released in Japan in 1991, and later released to the US in 1992. It was the first game in the series to get a western release. In it, you play as Goemon, and Ebisumaru (aka Kid Ying, and Dr. Yang in the American version), while you progress along a fairly typical “damsel in distress” storyline. The entire game is played either singleplayer, or co-op (which I refer to as “hard mode”), and is the most difficult game I have ever laid hands on. Trust me, I’ve played a lot, and Dark Souls doesn’t even hold a candle to this classic title.

Admittedly, my brother Zach and I have a serious love-hate relationship with this game. It plays so well, has some really fun and interesting mechanics to discover, such as minigames, and plenty of varied gameplay to keep you interested the whole time. It’s an open world, action game with some RPG elements sprinkled throughout, which all works together to create a really fun and unique experience. What really ruins the whole entire experience though, is when you reach a certain point in the game, it just instantly becomes infuriatingly, hair ripping, throw the TV out the window hard!

Before I talk about that though, let’s jump into the gameplay. Each level is called a Warlock Zone, and they’re all separated into two major areas that you play the game in. First, you play in a typical town, where every villager that you pass by is a serious threat, and every single one of them can be the death of you. You get to explore and have more freedom with the vertical and horizontal movement in these areas, and they’re not quite as dangerous. This is where you can find different shops, kill people for money, or play minigames to earn money and various goods. There are a lot of fun things to do, but the major downside is that almost every area holds basically the same shops and games, with the exception of potential secrets to be found. So once you’ve explored the first area, there’s no real reason to keep on exploring beyond the various martial arts that you can learn, unless you’re into that kind of thing. 

While you’re in town, it’s always a good idea to stock up on cash, so that you can purchase armor, food, learn new martial arts, find Judo techniques, etc. In the game, you start out with your basic attack (each player has identical move sets), and a thrown weapon that costs money to use, and can acquire bombs via minigames, or purchasing them. When you kill enemies, they’ll drop items that upgrade your weapon, which will increase their range per upgrade, allowing you to attack from a safe distance. Just be careful, because every time you take damage, your weapon gets weaker. It’s always a good idea to get your weapon up to the second strongest level (pro tip: the highest level sucks, always stay one below it) before attempting the next areas!

Now, the basic town can be deceivingly difficult, but the true difficulty shines once you reach the second part of the zone (which each zone has I believe). Here, you approach a statue, which gives you the opportunity to venture into the dangerous area alone or with your friend (yes, it gives you the option to play it solo, and with VERY GOOD REASON!). The game then transforms into a side scrolling platformer, where you have to progress along, until you reach the boss at the end, and ultimately complete the Warlock Zone. This is where the game becomes super difficult, and where you’ll be wishing you spent enough time in town to get strong enough to handle the obstacles ahead. If you play co-op, there’s a cool mechanic that you can perform, where one of you crouches down, and the other one hops on his back. This will allow you to give a piggy back ride to the other player, which can be super helpful when you need to navigate intense platforming areas. Beware though, whoever is riding on top now has a higher hit box, so whoever is at the wheel needs to make sure that they’re not jumping the other player, and hitting dangerous things above them, otherwise the second player will die.

Once you’ve progressed far enough into the game, you’ll reach a zone that will seriously have you begging for mercy. So much platforming, so many enemies, so many boss fights, and so little health. The funny part is that playing the game co-op actually increases the difficulty 10 fold, because both players have to be completely in sync in order to complete the levels. Zach and I spent so much time playing this game that we were actually on the verge of dropping it for good... it was that bad! If one player jumps up onto high up platforms a little too fast, the other can fall off screen and die instantly. If you get hit while jumping over a hole of death, you’ll fall and die. If you’re not completely focused, and performing each input at the precise moment, you can die. The game is incredibly brutal, and punishes you for every tiny mistake you make. The punishment for losing all of your lives is having to restart from where you last saved, which will be all the way back in the village (hopefully). With all of the precision involved, it literally takes a mindset similar to that of a speedrunner to just simply complete the game.

Overall, if you’re looking for an incredible challenge to take on with a buddy, then definitely try out The Legend of the Mystical Ninja. The difficulty might seem a little brutal at the start, but trust me, it gets harder. Despite how much I really hated myself by the end of this game, it truly is a great game, and an incredible first appearance for the western audience. If Dark Souls just wasn’t hard enough for you, or at least left you with a few hairs left that are just waiting to be yanked out, then pick up this game, play it on the co-op (aka hard mode), and say goodbye to the remainder. Don’t worry, you will definitely regret it!

Co-op Spotlight #8 - Sonic Games

By Zachariah Hosoda

With the recent release of Sonic Mania, we thought it would be fitting to do a spotlight covering all of the co-op Sonic games. Being around for nearly three decades, the games were a big part of many gamer's childhood . Unfortunately, the road has been a bumpy one for the blue hedgehog. With that being said, there are definitely some great games worth trying out.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Genesis) - 1992

Sonic 2 is the first Sonic game to feature co-op gameplay, and is considered by many to be the definitive Sonic game. Playing as Tails might be frustrating for some. He can't fly, and the majority of your time will probably be spent just trying to keep up with Sonic. But when controlled by the right player, Tails can be a great asset to the team. And when it comes to boss fights, Tails can really shine.

SegaSonic the Hedgehog (Arcade) (JP) - 1993

Sega Sonic is a true hidden gem. Most people are completely unaware of its existence due to the fact that it was released in Japanese arcades only. As well as it's exclusion from all Sonic collections. This may be due to the trackball control being hard to transfer over to analog. Although, I seemed to be able to use a D-Pad in my emulator without any problems. Although, it still didn't feel exactly right. One day I hope I can play the game on original hardware. What sets this game apart from all other Sonic games is the isometric view, the slower paced gameplay, trackball controls, and most importantly, the three player co-op gameplay! If you get the chance, definitely put some time into playing this through emulation.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 + Sonic & Knuckles (Genesis) - 1994

Sonic 3 picks up where Sonic 2 left off, and in many ways, improves upon some gameplay elements. The music is arguable the best of all Sonic soundtracks, and the same can be said about some of the level design. One of the biggest improvements is that Tails can now fly. On top of that, he can also carry Sonic for a short distance. This definitely adds more playability for the second player outside of boss fights. After finishing the Sonic 3 story, you can attach the game to the Sonic & Knuckles cartridge and continue to play through Sonic's story with Tails by your side. This was very revolutionary for the time. 

Knuckles' Chaotix (Sega 32X) - 1995

Knuckles' Chaotix is one of the best Sonic games that doesn't even have Sonic in it. Also, it's one of the few co-op 32X games. The gameplay is very similar to prior Sonic games, but levels seem to be a bit simplified, trading the different routes for a more straight forward approach. The other difference is when playing two player, characters are connected together through a chained ring. Some might think this is a negative, but I personally thought it added a new layer of teamwork to the gameplay. Plus, it's nice not leaving the second player in the dust.

Sonic Battle (Gameboy Advance) - 2003

Sonic Battle is very different from other Sonic games. Usually when a Sonic game strays from the classic style gameplay, it's not a good sign. But in this case, the game works really well. Sonic Battle plays similarly to Super Smash Bros. Or Power Stone. Up to four players can connect their GBAs for free for all or team based battles. Unfortunately, there isn't much of a story. However, two players can team up against the computer for two on two co-op battles. 

Sonic Advance 3 (Gameboy Advance) - 2004

After going many years without a proper 2D Sonic game, the Sonic Advance series brought the Hedgehog back to his roots. Although, prior Sonic Advance games did have multiplayer, Sonic Advance 3 was the first to include co-op. One of the main advantages of playing the game with two GBAs, is you now have two screens. This removes the issue of losing Tails when the camera follows Sonic. The downside to this, however, now the levels can at times feel more like a race, and less like teamwork. As soon as one player makes it to the goal, the stage ends. It almost feels like you're not even playing together at times. It's still a fun game, and definitely worth trying with a friend.

Sonic Colors (Wii) - 2010

Sonic colors was one of the first Sonic games to start the trend of mixing 2D and 3D gameplay together. Some consider the game to be one of the better recent Sonic releases. Which isn't saying much. Unfortunately, the story mode is only single player, leaving co-op to be played in a separate challenge mode.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 (PS3, Xbox 360, Steam) - 2012

This game is considered by many to just be bad. But I think if it had a different title, it wouldn't be judged so harshly. Personally, I really like this game. I think it got a lot of things right. The co-op is done well, Tails is still able to fly Sonic, and the camera keeps both characters on the screen at all times. That being said, I wish the graphics were done in a pixel art style, the music doesn't feel like Sonic, and sometimes the level design just feels lazy. Overall, I enjoyed this game, but it just didn't quite capture essence of classic Sonic games.

Sonic Lost World (Wii U) - 2013

There's not a lot to be said about this game. Many people call it a rip off of Mario Galaxy, not only due to the level design, but the limited co-op gameplay is similar as well. It's definitely one of the better recent Sonic games though.

Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric (Wii U) - 2014

Sonic Boom was met with very negative reviews. It had numerous glitches, bad camera and controls, terrible acting, story, and dialogue. But also, the game doesn't play anything like a Sonic game. I'm not sure it deserves all of the hate it gets. Maybe if the Sonic name wasn't attached people would view it more fairly.

Sonic Mania (Pretty much Everything) - 2017

I'm just going to come out and say it... Sonic Mania is amazing! This is a game that did everything right. It has great pixel art, amazing level design, interesting and unique boss fights, music that sounds retro but with some modern flair. This is the Sonic game I have been waiting for. I can't really think of a single negative thing to say about it. Other than, the two player mode is the same as Sonic 2 and 3. Meaning, Tails is constantly getting lost as Sonic runs through levels. I think they could've figured out a creative way to improve upon that. That being said, Tails is still able to help out with flying and in boss fights. Coming from a life long die hard Sonic fan, this could very well be the best Sonic game ever made. Sonic 2 and 3 are two of my all time favorite games, but if I am truly looking at this game objectively, I think it improves upon just about everything those games did. This is easily in my top five games of the year so far. If you haven't yet, go out and play this game! I just hope that the people that make future Sonic games take some note!

Co-op Spotlight #7 - The Sims 2

By Logan Hosoda

For this week’s spotlight, I’m gonna talk about The Sims 2, one of my favorite games to hit the PS2 back in the day! It was developed by EA Games, and released in 2004 for Windows, and later ported to consoles. Now, I’ve never played any version aside from the PS2 version, so all features mentioned will be available to that version specifically. For anybody that doesn’t know, The Sims is a series that’s based on the thought of living your life through a character that you created, with a heavy focus on realism (to a quite vague extent). You need to play the game as you would your own life, improve your skills, get a job that governs those skills, climb the corporate ladder, and become majorly successful, or fulfill whatever aspiration you chose to fulfill throughout the game.

What really stands out about The Sims 2 specifically, which crowns it as the best sims game available in my opinion, is the co-op feature. Yes, you can play through the entire story mode in co-op. Each player begins by making their own sim, customizing how you look, what your goals in life are, etc. Then you embark on the adventure together, working your way up in life. It’s a feature that has unfortunately been absent in every other Sims game in the series, which personally has left a large co-op shaped hole in the future entries.

There’s two modes that you can experience in co-op for The Sims 2, which includes the main story mode, and free play. In story mode, you progress through a set list of objectives, all of which you must fulfill while at the same time keeping your Sim alive and satisfied (which is surprisingly difficult at times). Once you complete every objective, you’ll eventually gain the ability to move into a new location, with a bigger house, and different roommates. As for free play mode, you are given a budget at the beginning, and can create an entire house from scratch! Meaning, you must create the full layout, the floors, walls, ceiling, lighting, appliances… Everything! It can be pretty fun if you’re creative, but if you like progression, then story mode is the way to go.

There are loads of things to do in The Sims 2, and all of them are made better when you have a friend to enjoy it with you. If you want a slow paced game that you can kick back and relax with, the Sims 2 is a great option. So go on out there and live an awesome life… as a Sim! Just remember to not walk in on people taking a dump, they’ll hate you for it. Oh, and stay away from fire, and other dangerous things, or you’ll die… Yeah...

Co-op Spotlight #6 - Heavy Barrel - Nes

By Zachariah Hosoda

Heavy Barrel is a top down run and gun game by Data East. The Game was originally released in arcades in 1987, but today we will be covering the NES port. Similar to games like commando, Ikari Warriors, and the top down levels from Contra, Heavy Barrel didn't exactly break new ground. But not all great games need to reinvent the wheel. Despite the lack of originality, Heavy Barrel might be one of the best run and gun games of all time. It's a shame not many people remember it.

The name of the game is from an in-game weapon. The Heavy Barrel is found in six pieces and is an energy cannon capable of destroying any enemy in the game with a single shot (Minus the final boss). The gun has a wide range and can be shot as fast as you can tap the fire button. However, it only lasts for thirty seconds. There are weapon upgrades, shields, and bombs as well.

The music in the game is always upbeat and fitting for the situation. I think the soundtrack can compete with the best of NES music. The same can be said about the graphics. Although simple, the colors and textures keep things looking nice. One of the most fun parts of any game of the genre are the boss fights, and this one is no exception. Each boss has it's own unique look and abilities that require you to put in some time to learn their patterns. 

Overall, Heavy Barrel is a lost classic that every retro gaming fan should at least try out. And unlike most NES games, this one's difficulty is pretty manageable. As an added bonus, if you're an NES collector, this game can still be found for fairly cheap. Heavy Barrel ranks among the best of NES co-op games. I can't recommend it enough!