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 #3 - Portal 2

By Logan Hosoda

If you haven’t ever played Portal 2 before, then you are seriously missing out. It was developed by Valve, and released for the Xbox 360, PS3, PC, and OS X back in April 2011, and it is still to this day an incredible experience, both single player and co-op. It is a heavily puzzle focused game that features only one piece of equipment: the portal gun. With the gun, you can shoot two different colors of portals, and once both are active, they will connect and teleport you when you walk through them. It’s a confusing concept made even more confusing during co-op play, but it makes for a very fun experience!

The game features a single player campaign, and a co-op campaign, both with their own exclusive puzzles and story. While the single player story is certainly more developed (I mean, it is a continuation of the first game), the co-op story is still fun, and filled with the same great comedic writing. In the co-op mode, you play as two different robots, named Atlas, and P-Body, both equipped with fully functioning portal guns. This really makes the game interesting, because now you have twice the portals to deal with. While this may seem to make the game easier on the outside, in reality it enhances the difficulty ten-fold.

What you absolutely need in order to complete this game is serious cooperation. It starts off pretty easy in the beginning, where you just need to place your portals in the correct spots to complete the test, but the game gets progressively harder, and will twist your brain to the point of spontaneous combustion! One thing that I really love is the natural need for coop. The second player isn’t just a helping hand in the situation, he/she is actually needed every step of the way, and there isn’t any way around it.

In my opinion, the best quality of this game is how blatantly simple it is, yet how amazingly complex it can become at the same time. It’s incredibly easy to pick up and play, you’ll learn the controls in minutes, and you can even beat the whole game in a sitting or two. What really shines is how complex the game becomes as you play. Between the physics based puzzles, portals leading in every which direction, and many more elements, the game picks up incredibly fast. Before you know it, you’ll find yourself staring at a dumb wall, wondering how in the world you could possibly solve what seems unsolvable, it’s downright glorious!

One major feature that I really loved about Portal 2, contrary to many modern day games, is the use of split screen co-op! Most modern games with co-op features focus on co-op over a LAN connection, or the internet, and don’t feature split screen. Even the copy that I own on Steam for PC features split screen as well, which is very rare, while still including online play. The versatility is key here, and sets this game above many others as far as variety of options is concerned.

In conclusion, Portal 2, while not quite a “hidden” gem, is certainly a gem nonetheless. Every co-op enthusiast out there should play it at least once. In my opinion, it is the pinnacle of co-op gaming, and it set a very high standard for co-op games to come. Your brain will certainly regret playing it, and you may end up losing a friendship over it, but you’ll come to find that in the end, it was definitely worth it!

Co-op Spotlight #2 - World of Illusion (Genesis/Mega Drive)

By Zachariah Hosoda

World of Illusion is a platforming game that was released in 1992. You play as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. The game starts out with a short cutscene, revealing that during practice for their magic show, they stumble upon a magic box. Before Mickey can stop him, Donald immediately walks into the box. The two are then transported into a magical world. They then must work together to get back home.

This was one of the first games I remember renting from Blockbuster when I was a kid. And probably one of the only games that I rented multiple times. World of Illusion plays like most platformers of the time. Your main form of defense is a magic cape that you can wave at an enemy to transform them into various objects. You can also run by holding in A, and, of course, there is a lot of jumping. But what sets this game apart from other platformers, and co-op games of the time, is the fact that you actually must work together to get through the levels.

There are times that you come across a platform that is too high to jump to. In order to get to the next level, you must use the log catapult. To pull this off, one player must stand on one end of the catapult, as the other jumps on the opposite side. This will boost the first player to the next area. But then the player that was boosted needs to drop a rope so their teammate can climb up to them. Also, there are specific parts in the game where you need to jump on the shoulders of the other player to get higher up. Sometimes there are small gaps you must crawl under. Donald will not fit, so the player that controls Mickey must press A to pull Donald through. 

The game is fairly short, consisting of only five levels. Some people may consider this to be a negative, but for me, I always appreciate a game I can play through in one sitting. Especially when you don't alway have a lot of time to dedicate to games. The difficulty is pretty manageable as well, but still might take a few attempts to beat. 

Although, there were plenty of co-op games from this time, there just weren't many that actually required team work to progress through the levels. Sure, you were able to play side by side as you kill and dodge enemies. Nothing wrong with that. In fact, good team work can definitely benefit in those game. But what I'm referring to is the purest form of cooperative gaming. It's when having another player not only enhances the gameplay, but also involves mandatory teamwork. And without it, you simply won't progress. In my opinion, this is what makes a great co-op game.