Co-op gaming is a staple in some of the best video games out today. Such titles like Resident Evil 5, the Gears of War and Halo series, and Left 4 Dead 1 & 2 have allowed gamers to enjoy the co-op experience. There are a number of elements that go into a good co-op game that keeps the players wanting more.
Gears of War is one of those games that made co-op great because it was exciting and easy to control for most gamers. The cover system, which was fresh at the time, allowed flanking and tactical exploitation like a game had never done before. The easy drop in and drop out of the online and offline modes allowed players to interact with their friends, family and people all over the world in ways that the older generations could not do. Even though the story wasn’t something too memorable, it gave co-op gamers a reason to blow crap up and enjoy it together.
Good co-op games mesh together memorable experiences with entertaining gameplay in order to give gamers the time of their lives. Gears of War 2 and Halo: ODST have their own variation of a “Horde Mode” which puts gamers in the middle of a level and pits them against waves of enemies. The goal of Horde Mode is to survive, and team work is the only way that gamers can progress to the last level. The fun about this kind of gameplay is that it allows gamers to play together and work as a team in order to progress past the waves of enemies that are trying to eliminate you. The upcoming Splinter Cell: Conviction will employ a similar mode called Last Stand which pits spies against 20 waves of enemies, which can lead to hours of fun for any person a fan of the mode and spies.
Besides an excellent cover system and demolishing enemies to bits in harmony, a cooperative experience should be easy to enter and leave, then come back for another enjoyable sitting. The interface for games such as Halo 3 and Gears of War 2 allowed gamers to enter a person’s lobby, play a level or two and then leave. Army of Two also had that fault, the lobby interface was annoying. The way gamers play together has to not annoy the players to the point where they do not want to play anymore, break the game in half and curse out the developers and it also has to feel seamless and smooth as they connect online or offline.
A good co-op game does not need to great story that is coherent and interesting, but it sure helps. When two players can make a comment, good or bad, about a game, it should be something that makes them bond and think in ways they’ve never thought before. It is one of the ways that helps people bond together to better enjoy the experience they are having together. Gears of War 2’s story is not a gold standard, but it is sort of easy to follow, or at least explain. Halo’s four player co-op allowed players to watch as Master Chief and his alien allies destroyed another ancient artifact that could destroy the world. It gave gamers something to talk about.
One thing which should be in every game, but especially in co-op games, are random events that create excitement. When someone destroys a giant enemies with four rockets at the same time is something that gamers can talk about together and freak out about. These extraordinary events are something that a developer cannot create, but the players create themselves with a little bit of luck.
Some developers have tried to build their whole video game around co-op, like Gears of War and Army of Two, and have succeeded and failed in some ways. Army of Two succeeded in showing gamers that they can work together to get the job done by allowing the characters to interact with the world together. It also added elements like aggro and back-to-back shooting to add tactical advantages that co-op players can use. The controls made it a little more difficult to convey that.
Sites like Ars Technica and Co-Optimus allows gamers to interact in order to setup co-op games. Co-Optimus has some great features like allowing gamers to find games they have and match themselves with other people who are looking for people to play with. Have Crackdown and want to fight crime with another Crackdown player? Co-Optimus has people who will play with you. It is a community that wants to share and expand across the computer partners in single player games.
Sharing an experience with somebody is just a great feeling whether it is sitting on the same couch or a different couch across town. Co-op gaming allows relationships to be created and to expand. It feeds the gamers need to share with others in ways they normally can’t in real life.
Here is the message: Play together people!
